BikeDenver Vernal Equinox Coffee Ride

When: Sunday, March 19 (Sunday, March 26 weather date), 1:00 p.m.

Where: Meet at South High School in Denver

What: Join BikeDenver as we take a leisurely tour through South Denver’s Washington Park and DU neighborhoods. We’ll make several stops for coffee at our favorite local haunts and celebrate the coming of Spring! Bring money for coffee and snacks. Helmets required. Ride updates will be posted on the website at www.bikedenver.org. Any questions, contact Tracy.

Contact Tracy at thalasin@yahoo.com with questions.

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The mission of Bike Denver is to promote and encourage bicycling as an energy efficient, non-polluting, healthy, and enjoyable transportation alternative within the City and County of Denver.

NEXT MEETING: March 9, 6-7pm, Union Station, Bicycle Colorado offices, Suite 236 upstairs.

FUN RIDE FUN RIDE FUN RIDE

BikeDenver Vernal Equinox Coffee Ride

When: Sunday, March 19 (Sunday, March 26 weather date), 1:00 p.m.

Where: Meet at South High School in Denver

Join BikeDenver as we take a leisurely tour through South Denver’s Washington Park and DU neighborhoods. We’ll make several stops for coffee at our favorite local haunts and celebrate the coming of Spring! Bring money for coffee and snacks. Riders will be asked to sign a waiver and wear a helmet to participate. Ride updates will be posted on the website at www.bikedenver.org.

Contact Tracy at thalasin@yahoo.com with questions.

ITEMS IN THIS MONTH’S NEWSLETTER:

** IMPORTANT COMMUNITY MEETINGS WITH THE MAYOR

** BIKEDENVER TO HOST THUNDERHEAD ALLIANCE TRAINING

** QWEST FOUNDATION MATCHING GRANT

** NATIONAL MAGAZINE HONORS DENVER

** VISIT OUR NEW, REDESIGNED WEB SITE

** BUCHTEL BOULEVARD COALITION (BBC)

** NEWS FROM MAYOR’S BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE

** NEWS FROM BICYCLE COLORADO

** LANCE ARMSTRONG FOUNDATION (LAF) ANNOUNCES DENVER EVENT

ANOTHER ROUND OF IMPORTANT COMMUNITY MEETINGS

Mayor John Hickenlooper is launching a new public input initiative called Partnership Denver: Neighbors Building Solutions this spring. The series of six community forums in March and April will provide an opportunity to find solutions to neighborhood concerns by building partnerships with the city, neighborhoods, non-profits and businesses.

“Denver owes much of its success and vitality to the active engagement of its citizens and neighborhoods in shaping its future,” said Mayor Hickenlooper, who hosted.

It is extremely importance that there be a strong bicycle community voice at these events. These meetings are an excellent opportunity to voice our concerns and provide valuable input to Mayor Hickenlooper, City Council members, and members of the Mayor’s Cabinet who will be in attendance. A number of important bicycle issues were raised at the last series of meetings, Denver Listens in 2004, because the bicycle community was so well represented. Let’s do it again!

Participants will use interactive key-pad technology to facilitate discussions and provide real-time data gathering and feedback. Denver residents who want to join the interactive conversation in their area are asked make a free, courtesy reservation by calling 720-865-9074 or by registering online at www.denvergov.org/PartnershipDenver

Forum Dates and Locations

BIKEDENVER TO HOST THUNDERHEAD ALLIANCE TRAINING

BikeDenver will to host a Thunderhead Alliance Training for bicycle advocacy leaders in Denver on July 14-16 although the exact location is still under review. The Thunderhead Alliance is the national coalition of state and local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations working in unison to break down the barriers to safe bicycling and walking in North American communities.

This training is for leaders of state and local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations. Its purpose is to train leaders to organize and execute campaigns that will improve pedestrian and bicycling conditions in their communities. To find out more, visit their web site at: www.thunderheadalliance.org/trainings.

QWEST FOUNDATION MATCHING GRANT

In February, BikeDenver received a matching grant of $500 from the Qwest Foundation. The match was based on the number of hours a Qwest employee has donated to the organization. We are deeply appreciative of both this Qwest grant and the employee who wishes to remain anonymous.

NATIONAL MAGAZINE HONORS DENVER

Bicycling Magazine recently picked Denver as the 2nd best place to bike in America in the 500K to 1M population category. Criteria for the award included bicycle facilities, number of riders, and general bicycle friendly culture. The downtown bike bridge over I-25 (under construction) and bicycle events such as VeloSwap were mentioned as reasons for choosing Denver for the award.

VISIT THE NEW, REDESIGNED BIKEDENVER WEB SITE

Our redesigned and upgraded website is now up and running, so check it out at www.BikeDenver.org. Current cycling news and action alerts appear along with links to many other bike related sites. The calendar on the web page will be more current than the one usually found in this newsletter so look for it there.

BUCHTEL BOULEVARD COALITION (BBC)

If you live in the area around Buchtel Blvd between Colo. Blvd. and Logan St., you should be aware of the Buchtel Boulevard Coalition (BBC) recently formed to provide input about the final redesign of this area affected by the TREX project. Of special interest is the issue of bicycle and pedestrian flow through the area and particularly access to the new light rail stations at Louisiana, University and Colorado from the north side of I-25. This relates to the lingering question of the I-25 bridges previously discussed in this newsletter.

Two meetings have been held to date with the next one scheduled for Wednesday, March 15th at 7 pm at the District 3 Police Station community room, 1625 S University Blvd. Contact Charles Howard at 303-282-0982 or AE5260@msn.com

NEWS FROM MAYOR’S BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Dan Grunig of Bicycle Colorado (BC), briefed the MBAC on current BC activities including the work they are doing with the Colorado State Patrol regarding the proposed, and then rescinded, cap on the number of riders at cycling events. He stated that while there are problems, large events can attract new bicyclists to the sport and this is an opportunity for education.

The Safe Routes To School (SR2S) program was also reviewed. Two years ago BC got the Colorado SR2S bill passed and it is now funded with new federal transportation dollars. Colorado will have $2.3 million to spend based upon student population. Visit www.BicycleColorado.org for more information on both of these topics. (See update in News from Bicycle Colorado below.)

David Krutsinger talked about the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) which TCRP is part of the National Academy of Sciences and the Transportation Research Board. Of special interest to us is their 2005 report on Integration of Bicycles and Transit. In the eleven years since the last report, bike on transit services have become more common, including bike racks pre-installed on new buses. Increasing the capacity of the bike racks on buses is an issue as bicyclists use the service more. In Denver, the annual bike-on-bus boardings average 540,000. The service has been shown to be safe, with few maintenance concerns. Transit operators still have schedule concerns, but impacts are rare.

While some members stated that low floor vehicles and larger stairwells would be better for bikes, Krutsinger said that the current RTD stance is that they won’t do low floor vehicles. There is a potential, however, to include a low floor vehicle in a three or four car [insert: "LIGHT RAIL?"] train.

Source: Approved Jan. minutes of the Dec MBAC meetings; James Mackay, Denver Bicycle Planner

NEWS FROM BICYCLE COLORADO

According to the Colorado Department of Transportation, communities have applied for $6.5 million in bicycle/pedestrian projects and safety education programs, far exceeding the $2.3 million available this year. Safe Routes to School grant funds will be distributed before students return this fall.

BC efforts to keep bike paths safe for bicyclists continue with opposition to State Senate Bill 168. This bill would allow select motor vehicles (e.g. Segways) access to bike paths. The bill recently passed the Senate Transportation Committee by one vote. It now moves to the Senate floor.

In conjunction with their annual Gala fundraiser event on April 22nd, BC will present the 2006 Bicyclists’ Choice Awards for Bicycling Event, Club and Retailer of the Year. Go to their website to vote your favorites and get your tickets to the Gala. Support the organization that does so much for bicycling in Colorado.

Source: Bicycle Colorado - www.BicycleColorado.org

LANCE ARMSTRONG FOUNDATION (LAF) ANNOUNCES DENVER EVENT

LAF has teamed up with Nike to produce the LIVESTRONG™ Challenge - a series of fundraising events in five cities across the country supporting the LAF’s mission to inspire and empower people affected by cancer. The Denver event will be held Aug. 20th in and around the Denver area although the exact route is still in the planning stages. While the LIVESTRONG™ Challenge maintains the LAF’s previously scheduled signature LIVESTRONG™ cycling event, the addition of a 10K run and a 5K run/walk will allow people of all ages and physical abilities to participate and raise funds for cancer survivors.

Individuals and teams are encouraged to register early to take advantage of the “coaches” program with LAF. The ride will raise funds to support the LAF’s advocacy, public health and research programs including the one at the University of Colorado Cancer Research Center.

To register or to learn more about the LIVESTRONG™ Challenge, call 888.4.CHALLENGE [888.424.2553] or visit www.livestrongchallenge.org.

MEMBERSHIP IN BIKEDENVER means:

1. We have your email address. We send you action alerts and a monthly newsletter.

2. You act on BikeDenver action items, as you feel willing and able.

3. You recruit other bicyclists to join BikeDenver. Membership is FREE!!!

To join BikeDenver send an email to info@bikedenver.org and write “subscribe” in the subject.

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The February BikeDenver commuter column is being created at the end of a cold, snowy week. During this past week, this columnist has had the rare and unpleasant experience of driving an automobile on the road. These infrequent driving experiences always remind me, admittedly with surprise, that watching out for cyclists isn’t as easy as it seems.

Genevieve Hutchison

As a regular cyclist, pedestrian, and transit user, my perspective is usually that of a defensive traveler. That is to say, I am often looking out for motorists who are not looking out for me. More than once I’ve had to dodge a car parked in the bike lane or assert my presence between the parking lane and the travel lane or dodge litter flying from a car window or endure any number of inconsiderate behaviors. These experiences can lead to an angry, “no one cares about the cyclists” attitude.

As a motorist one frosty night in the past week, I tried to be very cautious of the brave non-motorized travelers. I checked my mirrors diligently for bikes and pedestrians on sidewalks, in bike lanes and on the road in general. Understandably, my walking and cycling brethren were few and far between. In eleven miles of driving I saw three cyclists and several pedestrians. Only one of the cyclists had a light. The other two were lightless and traveling via sidewalk.

After riding in a variety of conditions and with a variety of different riders, I have adopted a short and sweet motto for sharing the road with vehicles that could easily kill me: Be predictable, be seen, use hand signals, and be safe. I have reluctantly accepted that not all vehicles are out to mow me down and I try to make it easier for them to avoid doing that. One doesn’t have to wear bright yellow cycling gear from head to toe either. Simple lights and a reflective band or two go a long way. The same goes for being predictable. A dear cyclist friend of mine enjoys darting through rush-hour traffic—bike courier style—and I cringe at this. It confuses drivers who want to get where they are going without incident and makes them expect me to be just as unreliable. Of course, it would be ideal if all motorists followed the rules of the road, shared it generously, and were conscientious of others’ modes but I can only control my behavior as a cyclist, pedestrian, and motorist.

When I started bicycle commuting in 1999 I was both amazed and appalled. Amazed that there were so many biking options and facilities in and around downtown Denver but appalled at the second-class citizen feeling I had on the road. Hopefully, this feeling will go away as motorists and cyclists respect each other more on the road with an increased bicycle commuting crowd. With that I’ll close by saying—Be safe! Especially during these winter months where there are fewer of us out there and motorists may be less attentive to bikes on the road for that reason. To reiterate what Tracy said at the end of the January column—be friendly to your fellow rider. To quote those penguins from the movie Madagascar, “Smile and wave [cyclists], smile and wave.”

By Genevieve Hutchison, BikeDenver Secretary

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