It is kind of unbelievable that our journey to the STP is now over. We did it! And we may just do it again!
Really, I think it takes a couple days for the excitement of completing 204+ miles to really hit one. We did THAT on a bike?! We got to see some beautiful country and had the chance to ride in all kinds of different situations.
Happy Friday all! We hope you have a safe 4th of July and are able to get out there on your bikes and ride! This week's link is to New Belgium.
If you have never been to New Belgium's website you should go. Not only are the graphics cool, but they have fun stuff like "Clips of Faith Beer and Film Tour."
We're looking forward to this year's Tour de Fat on 08/21/2010 in Anne Morrison Park.
Happy Friday! We're still out there biking away (just in case you thought we had disappeared)!
This week's link is to the Cascade Bicycle Club. This is the outfit who is putting on this whole Seattle to Portland Bike Ride. The link will take you directly to the STP page with all the "goods" on it.
Here is some information on the ride I snagged from their website, in case you are interested in numbers.
2009 STP Ride Stats
9,999 other riders
Oldest rider: 87
Youngest rider: 2 years 4 months old
18% first-time riders
100 safety and medical riders
310 riders who have participated in 10+ STPs
Two riders who have ridden them all: Jerry Baker and Paul Wantzelius! In 2009, riders came from 46 states plus Australia, Bermuda, Canada, England, Puerto Rico, and Sweden.
Friday has come and gone, but Monday is here with last week's connection. Whoops.
Today's link is to a couple different 'posts by others.' The first is a link to a nifty bike. Really, it is the kind of bike we should be taking to the Seattle to Portland ride! It's a bike with a sidecar! This is where I found the original link.
Also, if you are looking for navigation tools for your daily commute via bike here is a great article about navigation tools offered for smart phones. In a nutshell, the article touts the Google Maps application for Droid and the OpenMaps application for iPhone. I've downloaded the OpenMaps application in hopes of testing it out this week. I'll have to keep you posted on how it works.
Lastly, here is some cool bike art . . . Have you ever seen antlers on a bike? These are beautiful!
We hope you are doing something fun (like a little biking) for the weekend.
This week's Friday Connection link is to bikewise.org. This is a service provided by Cascade Bicycle Club. The site shares bicycling related information on thefts, crashes, and hazards in your area. Give the interactive map a twirl and find out what's been happening in your neck of the woods.
Happy Friday, friends! It looks like this weekend is guaranteed to have awesome weather so I look forward to seeing you out there! Here are a couple fun links for today's connection. Don't forget, next week is Boise Bike Week! Lots of fun activities . . .
Check out these innovative pieces of bicycle art. Students from the University of Houston School of Art created these eclectic rides for this year's Houston Art Car Parade. For the full article click here. Do you think Boise should have something like this? Looks like fun, right?
Take the Go by Bike challenge and see how you can reduce your carbon footprint, the size of your waistline, and your fuel spending habits. (It's a very cool, fun interactive website.)
Here we are again at our favorite day of the week! Every Friday we post links to informative, interesting, or just plain fun links. This week we have a 'fun' link. We love it!
Celebrity and funny man John Leguizamo is a big cycling fan. Who knew? Watch as he shares tips on bicycle commuting--in New York! If you interested in reading the article click here.
Also, don't forget! Boise Bike Week is coming right up.
Hello friends!
We have two links this week you might enjoy. One link is to a local bike/musical festival, the other link is for the upcoming bike enthusiast/commuter. Sun Valley Rhythm & Ride Festival, June 24-27, 2010
What's better than music and a little bike riding? Join in the fun for the First Annual Sun Valley Rhythm & Ride Festival. As described on the website, "Four days of activities in one of the best singletrack mountain biking and scenic road biking environments anywhere."
Event includes:
Ketchum Cruiser Criterium
Sheep Town Fat Tire Rally Sawtooth Century Bicycle Tour First Annual Idaho Pump Track State Championships Dollar Mountain 10K Trail Run Musical Headline Concerts in Hailey and Sun Valley
Bike Your Drive
REI offers a wealth of information on lots of different topics, but this week we will be looking information on Bike Your Drive. If you're looking for basic bicycle maintenance tips, how to ride in traffic, or just what the parts on your bike are named this is the site for you. They have videos, articles, and an interactive parts guide. Help make your ride anywhere a little better by visiting today!
When you hit the road for an extended ride you probably carry cash, but do you carry identification? If you were to have an accident would someone know how to contact your family? Would they know vital medical information in case of injury?
Today's link is to RoadID.com. This is a versatile medical identification/alert system that offers a variety of products such as: 'dog' tags, bracelets, and shoe pouches. Check them out. If you spend any time in the great outdoors this is a must have.
This week we have two links for you! The first link was sent over from our friend, Linzi, at Destination26.2. It is an article from the Idaho Statesman titled How to Become a Better Biker. These are some great tips for anyone who rides a bike. Fabulous. Thanks, Linz!
The second link comes out of the Adventure Cyclist. If you ever wanted to know the ins and outs of gearing this is the article for you!
When considering commuting via bicycle there are a lot of things to think about. You have to PLAN. One of the things you have to plot in advance is your route to where you're going. I was in Idaho Mountain Touring last weekend in search of a map of the Boise area. Not just any map—a map that would tell me what streets have bike lanes or bike paths (because as a driver I never quite pay attention to those details). What I was presented with was a great map of trails, not city streets.
On a mission to find such a map I began "googling" my way around. What I found was Ada County Highway District's (ACHD) website. BINGO! They had exactly what I was looking for. Their Roadways to Bikeways program is working on making Boise a bike friendlier city. In the "Related Documents" (on the above linked page) is a nice map of Boise defining bike lanes, bike paths, and areas under construction. This is perfect for the potential bike commuter extraordinaire.
Link two is for a great site discovered only yesterday—just in the nick of time.
Are you up for a challenge? Do you think you could ride your bike for 30 days? This website http://30daysofbiking.com/bike/ challenges you to do just that. The stories posted on the site are inspiring, from everyday Janes & Joes turned two-wheeling fans. If you did ride your bike for a month how do you think it would change you? Would it?
Here's to wishing you and yours a very happy Friday.
Hey, it's Friday! What better way to spend your Friday than having a guffaw and a snort or two? Well, to help perk up your day we're sharing a fun link from www.bikehacks.com. It is the Dictionary of Bike Commuter Slang! If you're curious to know what a Babe Ruth, a Tin Man, or a Weeble Wobbler is, click the link and prepare to be enlightened!
Today's link of the week goes to a fun helmet vendor whose safety gear is graphically appealing. You can't help but smile when you see their brain bucket designs.
Nutcase Helmets [www.nutcasehelmets.com], based out of Portland, Oregon, has a whole barrel full of fun helmets. They aren't just for cycling either. They have helmets for skateboarding, inline skating, and scooter helmets. This might just be the place to get a roller derby helmet, too. They also have some cool wallpaper for your computer.
You can find Nutcase Helmets in sporting good stores everywhere. We even saw a handful of designs at our local REI.
Don't be surprised if wearing one of these colorful helmets makes you ride just a little bit faster. :)
Hello Friday! You could not have come soon enough. It's bike ridin' time!
This week's link is a quick one to an online (free) training tool offered by Bicycling.com. If you are wanting to keep track of your weekly mileage and are a sucker for graphs you'll want to take a look.
You can keep track of your times, heart rate, calories all in one place. It even allows you to see other users' routes (which could be really handy if you're trying to get creative about your rides).
Man, another week has flown by and it is Friday again. What does that mean? (Yes, it is the Friday Connection!) And it is a 60 mile weekend (80 mile week) according to our training plan!!
This week's link comes from our friend Monique. It is to an article at the Idaho Statesman highlighting Kristin Armstrong's visit to the Senate Transportation Committee where she testified about strengthening Idaho laws for cyclists. Some laws they are discussing were also hashed out at the Boise City Council Meeting a few weeks back. It is exciting to have a local cycling celebrity help bring in the fight for safer roads.
In the same article the organization Yield to Life was mentioned. Yield to Life is a non-profit that focuses on creating safer conditions for cyclists. It is a very nice site. It offers tips for motorists and cyclists to help make roads safer.
Safety really starts with education. If motorists and cyclists know the rules of the road we are less likely to have bike/car related accidents!
I was so tired this morning I thought it was Saturday and then I remembered the Friday Connection hadn't been posted yet! Yep, it is Friday! And the beginning of another weekend of great rides.
Interesting fact for the day:
Americans use their bicycles for less than one percent of all urban trips. Europeans bike in cities a lot more often—in Italy 5 percent of all trips are on bicycle, 30 percent in the Netherlands, and seven out of eight Dutch people over age 15 have a bike.
The look of this website is really fun, but the program they are working on is very, very cool. Here is a snippet from their about us page that talks about this cool program.
"In 2006, Columbia was selected as one of four communities in the nation to participate in the Federal Highway Administration's Non-Motorized Transportation Pilot program. Columbia's designation as a pilot city came with $22 million in federal funds over a four-year period to help build infrastructure and establish national standards for public awareness and willingness to use active modes of transportation." The rest of the story here . . .
Free Class
Also, REI is having a Mountain Biking for Women class 7:00-8:30 p.m. on March 24, 2010 at Boise's REI at 8300 W. Emerald Street. There are 80 spots available. Register now at http://www.rei.com/event/2644/session/3179
On this Friday Connection we will share links to two local upcoming cycling related events in Boise.
Our first link is to some local bike commuting workshops for women! Yay! If you have ever been interested in commuting, but felt like you needed more information, OR if you are an avid commuter and would like to contribute your two cents, these are the workshops for you. Boise State University (BSU) is putting on the Sixth Community Bicycle Congress Bike Commuting Workshops for Women.
Here is the official solicitation from BSU:
The website has a lot of other great resources on commuting, bike shops, and routes to campus.
There are several bike shops in Boise, but there aren't a bunch that sell Brooks brand items. Upon searching for Proofide for a Brooks Saddle I ran across a small local shop called Hyde Park Cycle Sports. They are located, not surprisingly, in Hyde Park in Boise. When you walk in the store you immediately get the "mom and pop shop" vibe. Music plays on the radio in back and even though the shop is small it's packed with cool stuff (and several Brooks saddles).
Proofide was my mission and they carry the kit. The owner was working the front counter and easily helped me find what I was looking for. And he asked me if I wanted to be on their mailing list. (I like that he asked.) They send out a monthly newsletter, which is not only smart advertising, but it was the first time I have asked by a bike shop to be on such a list.
On their website they say, "We support your right to be "spandex-free" and ride a bike." They are all about the bicycle rider, which is fun and not intimidating for the average Jane. Check out their website and if you are tooling around Hyde Park stop in and say hello.
Another Link . . .
Bamboo bicycles seem to be all the rage these days, but The Bamboo Bike Project works to make bikes with sustainable materials, while helping local communities develop skills.
It is that time of the week again where we look at fun and interesting bicycling related links.
I have to warn you about this week's link. If you are a cyclist or biking enthusiast you could find yourself becoming addicted to this site. No, really. It is that cool.
Debbie's friend Andrew clued her in to the good deals at BonkTown.com. This site highlights items for sale such as jerseys, bike tubes, sunglasses, shorts (anything bike related) at a largely discounted price.
The catch? It highlights one sale item at a time for a limited time. There is a quantity countdown display, too. Really, some of the deals they have are unreal. AND all items ship fast. You could get those new gloves you've been needing in two days, without breaking your wallet.
It is that time of week again where we look at fun, informative, or helpful links. This week's link is a fun one.
Can you imagine swiping your card and out pops a bicycle? It's like a redbox, but for bikes! It's a bike rental unit that dispenses a bike for $3.75 for 24 hours of use. It is currently being used overseas.
If a Bike Dispenser was in your neighborhood do you think you would use it?
Lesley B.
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