Tip of the Day: Getting Those Cars to MOVE

It's happened to all of us who ride the roads regularly - that well-meaning driver who interrupts the flow of traffic to try to let a cyclist turn left in front of them. Or they'll sit behind you for miles on a busy road, to "protect you from other cars." Or they'll sit at a four way stop and hold up traffic trying to get you to cross or turn first.

I don't know about you, but this is something that drives me crazy about drivers. Sure, they think they're doing the right thing and helping to keep cyclists safe, but frequently they don't realize that you're watching out for other things and their "help" isn't really helpful at all. In fact, it's frequently quite dangerous!

Here's an example: Part of one of my occasional routes is on Indianola just north of Hudson. Frequently, I get stopped going northbound at the traffic light at Arcadia (right next to the Dairy Queen). This is a four-lane road (two lanes each way) at the top of a hill, the hill sloping down to the north. I want to turn left onto Arcadia at this point. See the picture below, looking north on Indianola and crossing Arcadia.

For some reason, this is a prime location for people wanting to let me cross in front of them to turn left onto Arcadia. And it's not always safe. If the car exhorting me to turn is an SUV or other taller vehicle, I can't always see if there's a car approaching in the oncoming curb lane. And what ends up happening is one of two things - either the cars behind the "Good Samaritan" start honking them to make them go, and they get frustrated with me and yell something as they go anyway, or they sit and wait until I go, even though I'd prefer just to let the flow of traffic work as it's supposed to.

So what to do in these situations? I've done the frantic wave and shaking my head thing, trying to get them to just go themselves, but that just makes them more insistent. I've done the sit and wait for them to go anyway, even though they are still sitting and waving. That just makes them mad.

The best way to handle this is to pretend like you haven't seen them waving at you. Take a drink from your water bottle. Fiddle with your gears. Look down the road as if you're trying to find something. Check your watch. Pull out your iPod and change the tune on it. Anything to make them think you haven't seen them.

If they think you haven't seen them, they're less likely to sit and wait for you to go.

Let me know how this works for you! And what tips do you have for people who find themselves in this situation?

People, not speed.

Bike the C-Bus planned for September 4th

Those of you who've enjoyed Bike the C-Bus as it winds its way around our fair city will be glad to know that the 2010 iteration of this ride has been scheduled.

Wheel your way over the Bike the C-Bus and make plans for September 4th, 2010.

People, not speed.

BikeSource locations offering maintenance and training classes

BikeSource locations in Clintonvillle, Dublin, and Westerville are preparing to offer a number of fantastic free clinics to cover a number of very important bicycling topics. The clinics start in February and go through the spring, so there are lots of opportunities for everyone to get to one of these classes.

Did we mention they're FREE?

Topics include:

• Tire Changing Clinic


• Bikes Need Love, Too! - basic maintenance for all bike owners.


• Training for Your Big Ride - preparing for some of those huge rides, no matter what the distance!


• No-Nonsense Nutrition - making sense of the confusing world of nutrition products.


• Tri Bike Clinic - especially for you triathletes, how to keep your tri bike in good maintenance condition for your racing season.


• Mountain Bike Clinic - maintenance and care of your pet mountain bike.

All these clinics start at 8:15 pm and will be offered at different times at the various locations: here's the schedule of clinics.

I'm particularly interested in the maintenance clinic. My knowledge of that stuff isn't up to snuff and I'm planning to be a part of that one at some point.

If you know of other such clinics and class offerings around the city for cycling, please comment below and we'll get these posted for you!

People, not speed.

Check Saturday's Dispatch for Article on Dangerous Cyclist/Pedestrian Intersections

Today, I was interviewed by Jennifer Smith Richards of the Dispatch for an article on the most dangerous intersections for cyclists and pedestrians in Columbus.

That article will be out tomorrow, and of course I'll link to it for you when it's posted!

Thanks, Ms. Richards, for the time today!

People, not speed.

New Options For Hauling Stuff on my bike.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know about some of the issues I've had with my rear wheel and spokes - specifically spokes breaking on me.

It happened again late last fall and I've been busing for a while. And while part of the reason for that is that my bike's just had a lot of miles put on it, what with three solid years of commuting, another reason is that the weight on my bike just isn't managed particularly well.

One of the tenets I have for my bike commuting is the old Keep It Simple, Stupid. In other words, I don't like to have to make lots of changes to my daily lifestyle in order to ride daily. I'd prefer to simply hop on my bike the way other people would hop into a car, and go. I don't want to change clothes if possible. I don't want to have to tie up my pants so that they don't get chain grease on them. I don't want to have a briefcase for every day stuff and one for riding days.

So here's what I was doing for my daily commute, basically, last fall: roll up a pant leg; throw my briefcase into one of my (rear) panniers, my other one always staying on the bike with my bike-specific stuff like rain cape, tools, spare tube, etc.; put on my bright green Pearl Izumi Vagabond jacket, helmet, and riding glasses, and off I go. During the summer I was changing into shorts and a t-shirt but during the fall's cooler weather it wasn't necessary.

I don't ride particularly fast on my commutes so I don't sweat too horribly unless it's hot out. I try not to let my heart rate go any higher than 55-75% of my maximum while I ride (part of the Primal Blueprint diet and exercise plan I follow - you can read more about this at Mark's Daily Apple if you're interested).

When I get to work, I pull out my briefcase, lock my bike (luckily I park in a parking garage at work) and head into my office for the day. And I'm good to go - with as few changes as possible. Very minimal.

Well, my system has encountered a bit of a flaw - all that regular riding with the weight of me and two panniers (frequently full) on the rear wheel of the bike has led to the aforementioned broken spokes. I need to rebuild the wheel, and plan to do so before spring. But I also want to do something to make this situation go away as much as possible (realizing, naturally, that spokes simply break sometimes, with wear).

So, after some discussion back in November with my friend and fellow LCI Ken Cohen, the idea struck me about redistributing the weight on my bike into a front rack and rear rack instead of the two rear panniers. As most of the weight on the bike falls onto the rear wheel (and that weight would be ME), putting as much weight forward as possible might make things more stable. That means putting the briefcase up front.

And my thought went immediately to a couple of products I've seen in the past: a Cetma rack or a Civia Loring front rack.

The Cetma rack is a messenger-type item that is used for heavy duty work. They're really sturdy and carry lots of very heavy items. Like you can see in the picture to the left - this dude is carrying around a cooler on his rack. Very functional piece of hardware.

The Civia Loring front rack is a somewhat classier-looking model. Normally I'm not so much into the look of cycling, but I do like the use of wood/bamboo on it. What can I say, I'm an old-fashioned kind of guy. But I also like the "basket"-type nature of it - the rails float my boat. The Cetma can come with rails, too, but it's a LOT more expensive.

So, does anyone else have any ideas? Opinions? Reviews of the products I've mentioned? I'd love to hear them.

People, not speed.

More Reasons for Less Parking Lots

I posted an article today at Examiner.com about how a popular coal tar based pavement sealant is found in the dust of many homes and contains polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which have been proven to lower IQs and may also cause skin problems and immune system disorders.

Let's take it a bit further and look at the bigger issue than just the fact that these PAHs are bad for us. The Discovery News article that I used as a source for my article mentions that coal tar sealants are popularly used on parking lots. And parking lots are used for... that's right. CARS.

The more people who have cars, the more we're going to need spaces to put them. Think for a moment - every car in regular use today requires at least one and possibly up to three parking spaces - for home, work, and stores that the drivers frequent.

And if the substances that we're using to make the parking lots are making us dumber and possibly making us more susceptible to disease... doesn't it behoove us to do something to reduce the number of parking lots? And doesn't it also behoove us to do something to keep cars out of places as much as possible to reduce the NEED for parking lots?

Let's take a look at the things we can do to reduce the need for cars:

1. Encourage cycling as a transportation means.

2. Promote and FUND better public transportation.

3. Stop widening existing roads and building new ones. Period.

These three measures will work together to make the need for parking spaces be greatly reduced.

People, not speed.

Yay Bikes Newsletter - December, 2009

From the great folks at Yay Bikes! Visit their website, support them, and join the fun at Columbus's number one bike forum!

---

Dearest Cyclist,

In the most joyous spirit of the holidays, Yay Bikes! thanks you for your kindness, patience, creativity, and generosity in 2009. Without you, Yay Bikes! cyclists wouldn't have celebrated a successful Bike to Work Week, opened an office, launched a new website, educated seven cycling instructors, provided Pedal Instead bicycle valet service at major events, helped Columbus attain the League of American Bicyclists' Bronze Award, and organized rides as diverse as Bike the Cbus and Night of 1000 Tacos! If you'd like to support the work of Yay Bikes!, there are several options in the left-hand column in this newsletter. But other (already-nonprofit) local cycling organizations could also use your help! Please read on to learn more about these projects and how you can help advance their missions with even a small donation. And stayed tuned for next month's newsletter, when we'll lay out a timeline for May Bike Month planning! Start thinking about YOUR contribution NOW! Happy Holidays, Yay Bikes!

The Bike Lady In 2008, the Blacklick woman now known as "The Bike Lady" organized an impromptu bike drive that collected enough cash, bikes and gear for 125 children of Franklin County Children's Services to wake up to a new bike from Santa! You can help The Bike Lady fulfill the holiday wishes of a vulnerable child this year with a cash donation - any amount is appreciated; $125 will get a child on a bike with a helmet and lock. Learn More & Contribute!

Pedal Instead Volunteers with The Enrichment Association's bicycle valet service parked an impressive 5,436 bikes this year (up from 3,871 in 2008!) for cyclists at events like Buckeye Football, ComFest, Latino Fest, and more. This year the team was also awarded the WTS International Innovative Transportation Solutions Award! Your sponsorship of or donation to Pedal Instead allows the bike valet to maintain its equipment and to attend events that couldn't otherwise afford the service. Learn More & Contribute!

Third Hand Bicycle Co-op The primary goal of the Third Hand Bicycle Co-op is to promote cycling as safe and environmentally responsible transportation. The shop provides community members with the facilities and tools, and the skills and knowledge, to help make cycling an essential part of their everyday lives. Weekly open shop hours are Weds 6-9pm and Sat 12-6pm, with a Womyn/Trans night on Thursdays 6-9pm. Your donation to Third Hand helps with overhead during the winter off-season and with the purchase of tools. Learn More & Contribute!

People, not speed.