Vanilla Bicycles adds to cross roster

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

[Kevin Hulick.
Photo: Doug O.]

Kevin Hulick will be sponsored by Vanilla Bicycles for the 2006 cyclocross season. Hulick, who won the “A” category in the prestigious Cross Crusade series last year, will join accomplished racers Shannon Skerritt, Molly Cameron, and Rhonda Mazza aboard a swanky new Vanilla cross bike this fall.

Hulick, who went to school and raced bikes at Chico State University in California, now splits his time between Corvallis and Portland. He’s “pretty excited to be riding bikes built by Sacha,” and who wouldn’t be?

Sacha White, the former Portland bike messenger behind the southeast Portland based company, has become one of the most sought after custom bike builders in the world.

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Safety concerns may close popular cemetery route

[Slow down or lose access.]

The tranquil roads inside the Riverview Cemetery (Google map) are a popular daily route for hundreds of Portland cyclists. Commuters prefer the cemetery because alternate routes like Barbur Blvd. and Terwilliger Blvd. are full of high-speed motorists. Recreational cyclists like the scenery and access to the Waterfront Trail and many competitive cyclists use the cemetery’s hilly roads for training sessions.

However, a recent episode between a cyclist and maintenance workers has led to a discussion with the cemetery’s management about safety concerns that may lead to a future prohibition of bikes inside the cemetery.

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“Spring Thing” kicks off street fair season

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

[Event flyer]

I love street fairs. Besides meeting people and hanging out, closing streets to motorized traffic just makes me happy. This Saturday (10-5pm), the City of Portland, Kaiser, the Concordia Neighborhood and the Fox Chase Business Association, will kick off summer street fair season with The Northeast Spring Thing.

In addition to a ton of great performances (including Capoeira) and live music, the Spring Thing is the official kick-off of the City of Portland’s Northeast Hub Project, which I covered last week. The Transportation Options crew will be on hand to give out free bike helmets for kids, lead a neighborhood family bike trailer ride, and give away free bike maps and other goodies.

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OMSI gives 2-for-1 for biking

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[Click to enlarge]

OMSI is offering a 2-for-1 or half-price ticket deal for anyone that rides to this Sunday’s showing of “Wired to Win: Surviving the Tour de France” at their OMNIMAX Dome Theater.

This IMAX movie explores the brainwaves of elite professional cyclists as they push their bodies to the limit. Looks like an interesting movie and it’s great that OMSI is encouraging cyclists to “ride-in”. This special offer is good for the 11am, 1pm, or 3pm showings.

**Note to all you racers and speed demons, remember that the Esplanade is a multi-use path and it will be full of people. Please be careful and make your presence known when you pass.

Springwater development update

[The lot in question.
Click to enlarge.]

SK Northwest‘s plans to develop on the Willamette River, and their opposition to an existing trail easement (see this comment) a potential trail that would connect a popular portion of the Springwater Corridor Trail, has been met with serious concern from the community. Last week’s post has generated over 40 comments and many groups – including the HAND neighborhoord association, the BTA, and the Wasabi Paddling Club – have written letters and expressed strong opposition to their application.

[The public comment period ends this Thursday, here’s a handy mailto link that will email all the necessary contacts.]

According to an SK Northwest representative, the company has received “a lot of negative feedback about this.” However, despite the huge outcry and negative PR (KOIN-TV also paid them a visit), they don’t seem to be backing down from their application.

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Shift jerseys in the works

[Relax, it’s just a mock-up.]

Volunteers with Shift to Bikes – the local group behind Pedalpalooza, Breakfast on the Bridges, and bike moves – aren’t usually seen wearing lycra. But Patrick Bardel hopes to change all that.

He’s working with a friend (who designs shoes for Nike) to produce the first-ever Shift jersey. The design on the right is just a rought draft and they won’t be available for a few months…but I have a hunch these will be popular, so I wanted to put them on your radar screen.

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CHUNK holds framebuilding workshop

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Last Saturday CHUNK DCLXVI (666) held a framebuilding workshop. The idea was to invite local framebuilders and show them the fine art of building a bike, CHUNK-style. Here’s more from the event invite:

“You know how to build a bike. We want to teach you how not to build a bike. A sorta monster garage with no cameras and more beer. You are encouraged to bring raw materials (old frames, wheels, beer, etc.) and safety equipment (gloves, gogs, beer, etc). You are not allowed to bring or use poofter stuff like brass, flux, virgin steel or calipers. I think we will allow files since were a little short on those but limit it to one or two. All jigs will be made of 2x4s and old innertubes or whatever else you can find lying around. All welds will be made with an oxy torch and coat hangers.”

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Stolen: Green Norco

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[Posted by “Moose”]

Our daughter’s green 16 and a half inch NORCO bike was stolen from the Sunnyside Environmental School covered bike rack on 4/20 in the evening. The model is: Berretta. There is a Canadian flag sticker on the frame. It has an aluminum back rack and a kickstand. Serial number is: UC&J000445
Our email: mrm@integraonline.com or 503-232-8024

Bikes and more at Earth Day

Bikes at Earth Day

[Your friendly bike valet.]

Spring is here and with it comes hordes of Portland cyclists, eager to ride without gloves and rain jackets. Saturday’s Earth Day Celebration at Sellwood Park was overrun with bikes. Luckily, volunteers from Shift to Bikes were on hand to offer free, attended bike parking.

The bike parking area was part of the Better Transportation Fair which featured lots of bikey fun. Get Lit’s Jeff Bernards was on hand giving away free bike helmets, Citybikes’ Tim Calvert was showing people how to make bike buckets, volunteer Carl Larson was manning the Shift table, and there was a place to test-ride utility and cargo bikes.

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Cyclists fight back in court…and win

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Allan Folz is the third cyclist in as many weeks to successfully defend himself in court. Earlier this week, he fought a citation he got while riding to work in Beaverton back in February (read his story in the Forums). His victory follows the cases of Sean Barrett and Mike Reuter who also took the initiative and won respect from a system that still caters to car culture and leaves cyclists guilty until proven innocent.

We’re still many years away from garnering the same respect in the system as motorized vehicles, so it’s up to us to demand it. We need to educate ourselves and be willing to fight for our rights when necessary. Here are some great tips from Allan about how your can increase your chances of victory in court:

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From the Archives

With six kids and no car, this mom does it all by bike