The city has announced a date for the opening of the Burrard bridge trial bike lanes. After choosing the design of these bike lanes several weeks ago, the city has put the chosen plan into action. As of July 13th, bike lanes will be in full affect.
I encourage everyone to make use of these lanes if you do any north-south commuting over False Creek. Even if you would usually take Cambie bridge, make the slight detour for the three weeks of the trial period. The city will be monitoring bike traffic closely during this period, and it would benefit all of us if the numbers they count are high.
Thanks in advance,
-DXII
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
A Dispatch From This Weekend's "eatART" Festivities
This past weekend, alternative energy activists eatART threw a big ol' party on the Vancouver Art Gallery's lawn. DXII was lucky enough to have a friend on-site for the event. Guest contributor and journalist extraordinaire Melissa Baril has shot a run-down our way. Without further ado, here it is!
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One thing I’ve noticed since moving to Vancouver just under two years ago is that where you find cycling events, you usually find hippies. This time, the “one less car” set pedaled stationary bikes attached to generators to demo an alternative energy source at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday.
The event was organized by eatART, a group that makes really neat industrial art to promote energy awareness. Check out their giant solar-powered tricycle, which made an appearance on Sunday, and is apparently wheeled around Burning Man every year. What a trip.
Arranged across the VAG lawn, each of the energy-generating cycles’ back wheels was hooked up to a battery, which powered a couple of laptops, the water cooler, and the sound system (donated by the good folks at OCB), which in turn powered a pretty happening party.
From 7 o’c’ock in the a.m., teams of 4 took turns pedaling ghetto-rigged stationary bicycles to try to beat all the other teams’, not times, but kilowatt hour generation.
Pedaling with the fightin’ 36ers was alternative energy-producing heavyweight, and “eatART Powers the VAG” organizer, Adrian Sinclair, along with yours truly. Naturally, we came in… second? To the 37ers?! Man, they sure one-upped us. But to quote my teammate Tom Wynn, “Let's get something straight: the ONLY reason the 37ers did better than the 36ers was because, when we handed the bikes over to them, the wheels were still spinning so fast, it was like going down an hour-long hill.” Too true.
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Event photos can be found here. Thanks go to Melissa B for her journalistic endeavors, and photo credits belong to Leigh Christie.
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One thing I’ve noticed since moving to Vancouver just under two years ago is that where you find cycling events, you usually find hippies. This time, the “one less car” set pedaled stationary bikes attached to generators to demo an alternative energy source at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday.
The event was organized by eatART, a group that makes really neat industrial art to promote energy awareness. Check out their giant solar-powered tricycle, which made an appearance on Sunday, and is apparently wheeled around Burning Man every year. What a trip.
Arranged across the VAG lawn, each of the energy-generating cycles’ back wheels was hooked up to a battery, which powered a couple of laptops, the water cooler, and the sound system (donated by the good folks at OCB), which in turn powered a pretty happening party.
From 7 o’c’ock in the a.m., teams of 4 took turns pedaling ghetto-rigged stationary bicycles to try to beat all the other teams’, not times, but kilowatt hour generation.
Pedaling with the fightin’ 36ers was alternative energy-producing heavyweight, and “eatART Powers the VAG” organizer, Adrian Sinclair, along with yours truly. Naturally, we came in… second? To the 37ers?! Man, they sure one-upped us. But to quote my teammate Tom Wynn, “Let's get something straight: the ONLY reason the 37ers did better than the 36ers was because, when we handed the bikes over to them, the wheels were still spinning so fast, it was like going down an hour-long hill.” Too true.
---
Event photos can be found here. Thanks go to Melissa B for her journalistic endeavors, and photo credits belong to Leigh Christie.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Gastown Sprints: The Evidence
Travis has kindly posted up some of his pictures from the festivities. The full Flickr album can be found here. Here's a few of my favourites:
Naked dudes galore!
-DXII
Naked dudes galore!
-DXII
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Gastown Sprints!
So for those who haven't heard, some guys and gals have started up a racing series called Gastown Sprints. Once a month, they'll be running roller races inside Pub 340. The inaugural race was this very night!
Upon arriving, I was greeted by one of the most impressive examples of bike parking I've ever seen. Bikes were locked to every post, tree, parking meter and fence within a block of 340; the closest poles had bikes piled five deep, and up to three high. Taking this as a sign of a good turnout, I was not disappointed when I got inside.
The official racer tally was fifty-two. With all the spectators on top of this, there must have been well over a hundred people in attendance. Racing got started shortly before 10pm, and the first few heats were plagued by technical difficulties. Of the four bikes hooked up to the rollers, one was broken for a couple heats, and one worked intermittently. After three or four heats, however, all the kinks were worked out of the system, and the real racing began.
Everyone ran in groups of four, but how you did against the other three people in your heat was irrelevant to your placing, because qualification was based entirely on your 500m time. Top qualifiers came in under the 23 second mark (I ran a 23.83, netting myself the 5th spot).
Once everyone ran their qualifying heat, it was time for head-to-head, sudden death tournament racing! The top 8 qualifiers were paired up and pitted against each other, until only one remained. This one happened to be underage dynamo Travis aka. HustleJr, who walked away with some prize money and some champion status.
All in all it was a successful evening. I had a blast, and I think almost everyone else did, too. Thanks to all the dudes and ladies who threw this, with particular thanks to Moses, who seems to be the mastermind of the operation. Thanks also to Pub 340 for letting us fill their establishment with sweaty cyclists.
The next Gastown Sprint will be on July 8th. Same time same place. Be there!
ps: If anyone has pictures from tonight, send them to districtxii at gmail dot com. I will post them up for everyone's ogling pleasure.
-DXII
Upon arriving, I was greeted by one of the most impressive examples of bike parking I've ever seen. Bikes were locked to every post, tree, parking meter and fence within a block of 340; the closest poles had bikes piled five deep, and up to three high. Taking this as a sign of a good turnout, I was not disappointed when I got inside.
The official racer tally was fifty-two. With all the spectators on top of this, there must have been well over a hundred people in attendance. Racing got started shortly before 10pm, and the first few heats were plagued by technical difficulties. Of the four bikes hooked up to the rollers, one was broken for a couple heats, and one worked intermittently. After three or four heats, however, all the kinks were worked out of the system, and the real racing began.
Everyone ran in groups of four, but how you did against the other three people in your heat was irrelevant to your placing, because qualification was based entirely on your 500m time. Top qualifiers came in under the 23 second mark (I ran a 23.83, netting myself the 5th spot).
Once everyone ran their qualifying heat, it was time for head-to-head, sudden death tournament racing! The top 8 qualifiers were paired up and pitted against each other, until only one remained. This one happened to be underage dynamo Travis aka. HustleJr, who walked away with some prize money and some champion status.
All in all it was a successful evening. I had a blast, and I think almost everyone else did, too. Thanks to all the dudes and ladies who threw this, with particular thanks to Moses, who seems to be the mastermind of the operation. Thanks also to Pub 340 for letting us fill their establishment with sweaty cyclists.
The next Gastown Sprint will be on July 8th. Same time same place. Be there!
ps: If anyone has pictures from tonight, send them to districtxii at gmail dot com. I will post them up for everyone's ogling pleasure.
-DXII
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Bomont Bridge Session, from Vincent Allard
This guy always has cool videos of the MTB action in Montreal. This one is hot off the press, and is no exception to the rule.
Check out the rest of his stuff here.
Check out the rest of his stuff here.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Burrard Bridge Bike Lane Proposal: The Verdict
A decision has been reached on the burrard bridge bike lane issue. Of the three options available, city council has chosen the mediocre one. Only one lane will be closed to motorists; the west curbside lane will be southbound bike-only, the east sidewalk will be northbound bike-only, and the west sidewalk with have two-way pedestrian travel.
As cyclists, this works out decently for us. Not as well as the first option, which has two full lanes being closed to motorists, but not as terribly as the second option, which would have us biking amongst pedestrians when heading north.
As cyclists, this works out decently for us. Not as well as the first option, which has two full lanes being closed to motorists, but not as terribly as the second option, which would have us biking amongst pedestrians when heading north.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Burrard Bridge Bike Lane Proposal: Back From The Dead?
As some seasoned Vancouverites may remember, there was a test conducted on the Burrard bridge back in 1996, in which lanes were closed to motorists and converted into bike lanes. Well, it seems the city council has decided to give it another go.
Obviously, this is great news for cyclists in general, and cyclo-commuters in particular. There is no question this will make life easier for those of us who commute into downtown from the south side of False Creek. However, there are some concerns that definitely need to be raised.
The current proposal contains three different options for the lane closures. One of them is great for cyclists, one is decent, and one is complete rubbish. They are as follows:
1. Close both curbside lanes, resulting in a dedicated bike lane in each direction. Motorists are relegated to the middle four lanes, pedestrians to the sidewalk.
2. Close only the west curbside lane, making this a southbound bike-only lane. Motorists get five lanes, southbound pedestrians get the sidewalk, and northbound cyclists share the sidewalk with pedestrians.
3. Close only the west curbside lane, making this a southbound bike-only lane. Motorists again get five lanes, pedestrians going both ways are allowed only on the west sidewalk, and the east sidewalk becomes the northbound bike-only lane.
Clearly option 1 is most favourable for cyclists. A lane each way all to ourselves is more than adequate for even peak-hour, fair-weather cyclo-commuting periods. However, reducing the number of motorist lanes by two will make motorists markedly displeased, so this one may encounter serious resistance when it goes before council.
Option 2 should be thrown out immediately and emphatically. Multiple studies have concluded that riding amongst pedestrians is considerably more likely to result in an accident than riding amongst cars.
Option 3 seem to be the happy medium. Motorists only lose one lane, and thus raise less of a fuss; cyclists get a "lane" to themselves in both directions, though one of these "lanes" is a repurposed sidewalk. Considering the low volume of pedestrians crossing the Burrard bridge, a single sidewalk will definitely suffice for pedestrian use.
The bottom line is that as cyclists, we should all be crossing our fingers and rooting for the first option; we should also be willing to accept the third. In the end, I think this issue will prove itself an effective measuring post with which to gauge how bike-friendly Vancouver really is.
Obviously, this is great news for cyclists in general, and cyclo-commuters in particular. There is no question this will make life easier for those of us who commute into downtown from the south side of False Creek. However, there are some concerns that definitely need to be raised.
The current proposal contains three different options for the lane closures. One of them is great for cyclists, one is decent, and one is complete rubbish. They are as follows:
1. Close both curbside lanes, resulting in a dedicated bike lane in each direction. Motorists are relegated to the middle four lanes, pedestrians to the sidewalk.
2. Close only the west curbside lane, making this a southbound bike-only lane. Motorists get five lanes, southbound pedestrians get the sidewalk, and northbound cyclists share the sidewalk with pedestrians.
3. Close only the west curbside lane, making this a southbound bike-only lane. Motorists again get five lanes, pedestrians going both ways are allowed only on the west sidewalk, and the east sidewalk becomes the northbound bike-only lane.
Clearly option 1 is most favourable for cyclists. A lane each way all to ourselves is more than adequate for even peak-hour, fair-weather cyclo-commuting periods. However, reducing the number of motorist lanes by two will make motorists markedly displeased, so this one may encounter serious resistance when it goes before council.
Option 2 should be thrown out immediately and emphatically. Multiple studies have concluded that riding amongst pedestrians is considerably more likely to result in an accident than riding amongst cars.
Option 3 seem to be the happy medium. Motorists only lose one lane, and thus raise less of a fuss; cyclists get a "lane" to themselves in both directions, though one of these "lanes" is a repurposed sidewalk. Considering the low volume of pedestrians crossing the Burrard bridge, a single sidewalk will definitely suffice for pedestrian use.
The bottom line is that as cyclists, we should all be crossing our fingers and rooting for the first option; we should also be willing to accept the third. In the end, I think this issue will prove itself an effective measuring post with which to gauge how bike-friendly Vancouver really is.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
BMXin' in California
Long time no update. Oh well, quality over quantity, right? Speaking of quality, dudes in Long Beach clearly have some quality BMX skills. Exhibit A:
(via The Come Up)
(via The Come Up)
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
This Just In: LA Drivers Insane; LA Cops Insane...er?
Apparently last friday morning at 2am, a Hummer ran over a cyclist, stopped, then ran over several more bikes and fled the scene. This would already be cause for alarm, but the craziness doesn't end there.
The cop who moments later pulled the hummer over - with a bike still lodged under it - allowed the driver to leave the scene without so much as a ticket. The officer purportedly said to the cyclists after allowing the driver to leave, "If it had been me with my family in that car, I’d have done the same thing, and I carry a gun in my car."
Remind never to bike in LA.
(via Fixed Vancouver)
The cop who moments later pulled the hummer over - with a bike still lodged under it - allowed the driver to leave the scene without so much as a ticket. The officer purportedly said to the cyclists after allowing the driver to leave, "If it had been me with my family in that car, I’d have done the same thing, and I carry a gun in my car."
Remind never to bike in LA.
(via Fixed Vancouver)
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Shanghai-style...bike polo!?!
Breaking news, folks. Bicycle polo is now an intercontinental phenomenon. Chances are this isn't actually breaking news...but now there's video proof!
On April 18th, the Shanghai Bike Polo League played their inaugural game. Take that, doubters of China's progressiveness and technological advancement!
On April 18th, the Shanghai Bike Polo League played their inaugural game. Take that, doubters of China's progressiveness and technological advancement!
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