🚨 Please note: BikePortland is currently on hiatus and only publishing guest articles. Learn more here. Thank you. - Jonathan 🙏

SW rider mini-profile: Jeff Knapp, lured by a simple bike lane

garden home jeff

Jeff Knapp.
(Photos Michael Andersen/BikePortland)

This post is part of our SW Portland Week.

Jeff Knapp has two things to blame for his afternoon rides into downtown and back: a friend and a white stripe of paint.

“When I started bike commuting, that was right before it really took off,” said Knapp, 52. “You could sort of feel it was poised to take off.”

A friend of Knapp’s, who lived in Northeast Portland, started riding to work and talking about how pleasant it had turned out to be. So Knapp, a 20-year resident of the Garden Home area, decided to try.

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With Kitzhaber resignation, bike advocates upbeat about incoming Gov. Kate Brown

kate brown at portland society

Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown at a
2011 fundraiser for the Portland Society Fund, which
supports “emerging leaders in active transportation.”
(Photo: M.Andersen)

Oregon’s next governor rides a tandem.

While we’ve been hurrying around Southwest Portland this week, we’ve been keeping half an eye on the drama unfolding in Salem. In the wake of Willamette Week’s report Thursday that Gov. John Kitzhaber unsuccessfully tried to get state employees to block release of thousands of his emails amid a criminal investigation of the overlaps between his public role and his fiance’s business, the governor has resigned and Secretary of State Kate Brown will be moving into the job.

According to her 2012 election registration, Brown lives with her husband in a 1914 home in Southeast Portland’s Woodstock neighborhood.

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In sidewalkless Southwest, neighborhood greenways are made for walking

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward
swwalklead

A SW Illinois Street piggyback ride,
brought to you in part by speed bumps.
(Photos: M.Andersen/BikePortland)

This post is part of our SW Portland Week.

Part of Portland’s big idea of renaming “bike boulevards” as “neighborhood greenways” was that they’re not just bikeways; they’re spaces for street play, sports and other fun. And they’re also, the line goes, good for walking.

It’s easy to laugh that last part off on the east side of Portland, where almost every greenway is lined with sidewalks.

Not so in Southwest Portland, where neighborhood greenways are few but sidewalks are nearly as rare.

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Weekend Event Guide: Mini Bike Winter, gravel, stories, love, and more

Mini Bike Winter 2012 - Chariot Wars-52

Mini Bike Winter is here… let the games begin!
(Photo by J. Maus/BikePortland)

Welcome to your menu of weekend rides and events, lovingly brought to you by our friends at Hopworks Urban Brewery.

If you’ve got energy saved up from all the rain we’ve had, this weekend is the time to use it! The forecast looks very promising, and there just happens to be a ton of cool bikey things to do.

Not surprisingly, there’s a lot of love among this week’s events. The BTA will share stories of bike love, the Portland Wheelmen (and Women) will ride to the roses, and even the folks at Puddlecycle have a heart-themed ride. Make sure your outfit has some red in it and enjoy the ride(s)!

Friday, February 13th

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A closer look at southwest Portland’s ‘highest priority project’

SW Capitol Hwy-44

With 36-feet of unused right-of-way, advocates like Roger Averbeck say this portion of SW Capitol Hwy should have a dedicated bikeway.
(Photo J. Maus/BikePortland)

This post is part of our Southwest Portland Week.

For a quarter-century now, neighborhood activists have been pushing to make SW Capitol Highway a nicer place to live, walk, and bike. Yesterday I joined up with local resident and Southwest Neighborhoods Inc Transportation Committee Chair Roger Averbeck for a closer look.

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Southwest Portland Week photo essay: Day 2

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward
SW-Portland-Week-Day-2-14

The Fanno Creek Trail near Garden Home is not too shabby.
(Photos J. Maus/BikePortland)

This post is part of our Southwest Portland Week.

It’s been a great week out here in southwest Portland. We’re learning a lot and enjoying the experience of being in a new place with new roads to explore and unique bicycling issues at play. I’ve gotten behind on my daily photo essays, so here’s the one from my ride on Tuesday.

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What it feels like to ride Barbur Blvd for the first time (photos)

to barbur

Seems easy enough.
(Photos Michael Andersen/BikePortland)

This post is part of our SW Portland Week.

Here’s a confession: though I’ve driven on Southwest Barbur, ridden the bus on it, and walked along it to reach a vigil for a woman killed while she crossed it, in four years of reporting on the street and its problems I’ve never actually ridden a bike on it.

Until this week.

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Industry Ticker: Showers Pass launches Double Century RTX jacket

spjacket-finallead

Women’s plum color on the left, men’s white on the right.
(Images: Showers Pass)_

Industry Ticker

Showers Pass, a riding apparel company based in southeast Portland, continues to push the boundary on innovative bike apparel that works in wet weather. Their latest is a jacket that packs up small and packs a high-tech rain-busting punch. I’ve got one to try out so stay tuned for a proper review.

For now, check out the press release below…

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Job: Senior Mechanic – Joe Bike – FILLED

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title
Senior Mechanic

Company/Organization
Joe Bike

Job Description
Joe Bike is looking for a passionate, experienced mechanic to join our team.

You should have:

Several years’ experience as a bike shop mechanic

Outstanding customer service and communication skills
A friendly and upbeat personality

A desire to work in a collaborative environment while also being able to work independently

Joe Bike offers competitive compensation, an excellent health care program, paid sick leave, flexible scheduling, and a generous employee purchase program.

How to Apply
Email info@joe-bike.com, or drop your resume off at the shop.

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