Bike Summit: Day one in the books

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national bike summit

[Blumenauer and his Trek]

Finally back to my hotel room after the first full day at the Bike Summit. My head is sort of spinning from all the new things I’m hearing and seeing. There’s something surreal to me about looking down the street at the White House U.S. Capitol Building (it’s just a few blocks from my room).

The day started out with an opening panel discussion all about Portland. Jay, Jerry, Evan and Mia got to gush about what a great bike city we live in. Jay kept everyone smiling with his anecdotes, especially the one about Commissioner Randy Leanord‘s metamorphosis from brawny firefighter tough-man to bike commuter. The Trek Portland also made an appearance when Congressman Earl Blumenauer rolled his out on stage.

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From South Africa to the Oval Office

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Interesting bits from the Bike Summit this morning:

In his opening comments of the Bike Summit, Andy Clarke (Executive Director of the League of American Bicyclists) said that Portland is not really competing with Davis (CA) or Boulder (CO) for bike friendlines, but that we’re on an international level now. He then announced that Portland will receive a “Gold” award at the upcoming Velo Mondial conference taking place in Cape Town South Africa next week. Very cool.

He presented the award on stage to Mia Birk, who was filling in for City Commissioner Sam Adams. Adams was slated to speak on behalf of Portland, but didn’t show up due to an apparent bout with food poisoning.

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On the eve of the Bike Summit

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oregon delegation dinner

(Due to a glitch, this post was supposed to publish last night.)

It’s midnight here in DC and it’s been a long day. We arrived this evening and after checking in we went straight to dinner. We ate at a place called Coppi’s Organic, named for none other than famed Italian bike racer and Tour de France Champion Fausto Coppi. It was a fitting locale to kick off the Summit, which starts bright and early tomorrow morning.

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“Bicycle Oregon” to focus on tourism

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Officials from Travel Oregon, Cycle Oregon and other bike groups are behind a movement to establish Oregon as a major destination for two-wheeled tourism. Working behind the scenes for about 2 years now, they have announced a day-long “Bicycle Oregon Summit” in Eugene this March April.

The goal of the summit – which will feature a keynote speech by congressman Peter DeFazio – is to introduce their vision to industries that stand to gain from the economic impact of “bicycle destination travelers.” These industries include bicycle and parts manufacturers, bike shops, bike clubs, bike tour companies, local tourism boards, wineries, breweries, hotel companies, airlines, and so on.

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Update: Pedalpalooza planning in full swing!

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kick off parade

[From the ’05 Kickoff Parade]

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls of all ages…the world’s largest festival of bike fun is set to commence June 8-24th. That’s right folks, planning for Pedalpalooza 2006 has officially begun.

What’s Pedalpalooza? It’s two weeks of creative, fun, bike craziness that has happened every year since Portland hosted BikeSummer back in 2002. To get an idea of how big and amazing this event is, look no further than last year’s calendar, which included a Bike Kiss-in, a Clown House Circus, and an Atomic War Preparedness Ride just to name a few.

There’s always an official Kickoff Parade and the whole thing is capped off by the Multnomah County Bike Fair, a “one-day carnival of mayhem, music, a midway of activities and an arena of events.”

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Stolen: Redline Conquest

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[Posted by “Kim”]

Please Keep a Look Out For My 54cm Redline Conquest Tour!

Hello all, my six month old Redline Conquest Tour that I loved so dearly was stolen from PSU on Thursday the 23rd of February. It is a red 54cm roadbike, serial number S(or 5?)3IK00219. Any tips towards it’s recovery would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Kim
(justkim83@hotmail.com)

City wants feedback on new signs

BTA New Year's Day Ride
[Nice signs, but do they work?]

Have you seen these signs popping up around town? They’re officially known as bikeway network signs and according to City of Portland bicycle coordinator Roger Geller, there are finally enough of them installed that you should be able to rely on them to find your way. But just to make sure, Roger wants us to test them out and let him know where improvements can be made.

He’s sent me a special map of the city’s bike routes with a boundary drawn (in red) around where the signs have gone up. So if you have a few extra minutes, pick out a destination on one of these signs and see if you can get there without any wrong turns. If you already know your way around, try and act like you’re new in town and let the signs be your guide. Or better yet, encourage your less-bikey family and friends to use them and see what they think.

But before you give feedback, Roger wants to share the following:

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Bike thief wants job, gets arrested instead

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I can’t get enough of stolen bike recovery stories. This one, involving a bike recently listed here, is one of the best I’ve ever heard.

On Monday a reader named “jeffcycles” got his beloved Eddy Merckx stolen from the PSU campus. He quickly spread the word and told everyone he knew to keep an eye out for it.

A few days later the thief walked into a local restaurant with the bike in tow, wanting to apply for a job. The hostess at the restaurant was a cyclist and could tell that something was fishy with the bike. She could tell it didn’t quite fit with the guy so she asked him a few questions about it. Not satisfied with his responses she got on the phone and called her friend, who happens to be a bike shop mechanic and member of the PSU Cycling Club.

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Free “Village Bicycle Tour” happens Sunday

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Two local non-profits are teaming up to spread the word about their programs with a free bike tour through Southeast Portland. The Portland Peace and Justice Center and City Repair will host the Village Bicycle Tour this Sunday.

The 2.5 hour ride will be a guided tour of City Repair’s community-building projects around Southeast Portland. According to organizers, the ride is “designed to give riders an intro to City Repair, followed up by an infoshare on the Sustainable Energy in Motion Bike Tours that are organized by the Portland Peace and Justice Center.” There will also be a free vegan lunch at the end of the ride.

More details and an RSVP sign up form are available on the event website.

Stolen: Jamis Dakar

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[Posted by “Eric”]

My black Jamis Dakar Sport was stolen in NW Portland sometime between 2/22 and 2/24.

It’s a 15″ fully suspended bike with disk brakes and clipless pedals.

It does not have a front wheel…I kept that in my apartment.

Any info would be awesome!

Thanks,

Eric
503-679-0601
ericmerg69@aol.com

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