6th Mayors' Ride Begins with Shake up of SF this w/e

- Our ride from San Francisco to Boston starts (unofficially) tomorrow night when our Busycle, probably the most photographed vehicle in the world, will be at the head of Critical Mass this Friday and will be giving demonstration rides for San Francisco Bike Coalition (SFBC) members in Golden Gate Park on Sunday as per http://www.sfbike.org/?chain. At present, we are working out the details for riding it up Market St and to City Hall for a reception we are trying to get together with Mayor Newsom but his office does have their 2008 proclamation ready for us and all systems are up, operational and set to go for the 6th annual ride to Beantown! I don't know if our ride to the Civic Center, a ride that is sure to shake up the city, will take place on Monday, 4/28 or Tuesday, 4/29, but do know that I will keep you posted!!!

In other news (there is so much to talk about so I will be brief):

- Our 15-person pedal truck, the Busycle that Matthew Mazzotta and Heather Clarke gave birth to in Boston and raised, in part, at MIT, has been invited to the Maker Faire, an event that is growing in popularity by explosive leaps and bounds. They are so excited to have us that they are paying to have our machine towed to their event at the San Mateo County Fairgrounds. As such, we will be able to give their attendees, who come from all over the world, the chance to enjoy our human powered hayride. Look for us also on the Today Show when it stops in on Friday morning to capture the excitement for TV viewers also all over the world.

- Our ride from Oakland City Hall to Berkeley City Hall will, as most of you already know be ushered by Oakland Councillor Nancy Nadel and Berkeley Councillor Kriss Worthington. What's new is that we will be riding to our reception with Mr Traffic Calming, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates (hear the podcast I did with mayor Tom HERE) with youth from the Waterside Workshops and possibly the Rosa Parks elementary school as well as staff from the city of Emeryville! This after we cross over possibly one of the most famous and celebrated pieces of bicycle infrastructure in the world, the bike bridge over 880 that connects Berkeley's Marina with the San Francisco Bay!

- From there Tom Ayres, PhD, who also created the Berkeley to Napa bike route that your can find at our schedule/scorecard will be joined by Allison Chalken, PhD, and Barry Burr, two more dynamos that you can learn more about as well at http://www.BikeRoute.com/NationalMayorsRide2008

- Our ride from Sacramento to Folsom on 25 of the best bike miles in the world, just keeps getting better. Peter Wagner the Bike Guy of Davis, CA just signed on. He will be riding one of his zany and thoroughly capable machines with us to the picnic reception that the city of Folsom is working up for us.

Peter Wagner

- We also just heard from Rancho Cordova Mayor Linda Budge. She has "deputized" some of her Public Works" staff to ride the rest of the way to Folsom with us (Rancho Cordova is at the half way point) as well as make sure we are refreshed with fruit and cold drink once we reach the beautiful park that is their part of the river bikeway

- If you've not been to our maps yet, THX to Grey Lowell, they keep getting easier and more and more fun to use. Toward that end, even our instructions are improving:

For Fun:

- How BIke aware are you:
http://www.maniacworld.com/Awareness-Test.html

- Why driving is raising the cost of food
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/04/02/cstillwell.DTL

- Car Free Sat GG Park starts 4/4 for 6 mos
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/04/MNTQ1008J2.DTL

_ The documentary feature that the Korean TV station did of our Busycle is now out!! It is fabulously done and exciting to see. Soon I will get it on to Youtube so all of U can see what I mean. Toward that end, Dan Kottke, employee Number One at Apple Computer and Steve Job's one time best friend, has offered to help me get it digitized...

- Here is the visit we did to the home.museum of lving legend Jack Castor:
http://www.bikeroute.com/Castor/Castor4-6-08.php

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
~ Winston Churchill ~

Tow Vehicle Needed - Cops clear Busycle ?

Our 6th Annual National Mayors' Ride starts Mon April 28 from San Francisco City Hall hopefully with Mayor Gavin Newsom's blessing. We will be using two Busycle rides on the weekend that leads into that Monday to bring attention to NBG Day with two demonstration rides as per our schedule/scorecard at http://www.BikeRoute.com/NationalMayorsRide2008

On Friday April 25, we will have the Busycle at the Justin Herman Plaza start of the monthly Critical Mass ride for people to try. And then on Sunday April 27, Santa Clara County Supervisor Liz Kniss and outgoing Palo Alto Mayor, Councillor Yoriko Kishimoto, will be leading a bike ride from here in the Stanford city to Golden Gate Park where we will meet the San Francisco Bike Coalition. Their membership will be enjoying demonstration rides on the 15-person reconverted Dodge van that will be going back to Boston in 2009 as a part of my Author Tour at http://www.bikeroute.com/HBGR .

You can help us make San Francisco happen if you have a strong vehicle with a tow hitch that can move our Busycle from here in Palo Alto to the Golden Gate City. Gerry Barnett from down in the San Bernardino area has donated a two bar that we are trying to work out a way to get up here. And yet if we can't get that up here and then mounted in time, we could still rent a tow dolly or even a car trailer from U-Haul, as we have in the past, However it works out, we still need a vehicle we can tow with. We can even supply the driver if you can help!

In a perfect world, we will also be able to find a place where we can leave it in San Francisco on Friday and Saturday nite. Does anyone have any ideas/leads here?

In addition, that Busycle like pedal car (an '86 Buick Regal) up in Canada that got cited for being on the road, got laughed out of court. Click on the image below to see the video of it getting a ticket.

Here is what came of the citation:
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http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2008/04/04/pedal-car.html?ref=rss

'Flintstones' car case thrown out of court
Last Updated: Friday, April 4, 2008 | 9:22 AM ET

A man who was facing charges for driving a pedal car won a victory in a Toronto courtroom on Thursday.
Trevor Baldwin was pulled over on a Toronto street last October for operating an unsafe vehicle on Queen Street West.

The Buick he was driving looked more like a car from The Flintstones animated television show, in which the driver and passengers use their feet to propel the vehicle.

Artist Michel de Broin built the so-called shared propulsion vehicle to make a point about gas consumption.

The hollowed-out car has no engine or transmission and uses candles instead of headlights. It does, however, have hand brakes.

The car, which has a top speed of 15 kilometres an hour, requires all four occupants to pedal and work together ó a sharp contrast to the solitary, effortless experience of a typical car.

As the Crown prosecutor tried to make his case Thursday, the court erupted in laughter, and the charges were thrown out.

Baldwin's legal representative, Terry Fox, said the arresting officer never should have pulled the car over.

"Where's the evidence it was illegal? There was no objective standard here. Just his opinion is what it was, and that's not good enough. It's speculation he based it on," Fox said outside court.

Baldwin said he was happy with the decision. And what did he want to do after leaving court?

"I'm thinking its a really nice day, so we might go for a drive," he said.

That's exactly what Baldwin did. He grabbed three friends, pulled the car out of storage and took it for a spin.
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THX 4 all of U!!

Perfect love drives out fear - John 4:18

Martin Krieg "Awake Again" Author
2009 w/"How America Can Bike & Grow Rich"
http://www.bikeroute.com/HBGR
'79 & '86 TransAmerica Bike Rides
Coma, Paralysis, Clinical Death Survivor
NBG Founding Director, HiWheel Cyclist

3-31-09 Mayors' Ride News

A) Bio Diesel Bus Wanted
B) 79 inch wide trailer and Tow Bar need for Busycle
C) Scott Campbell maps Napa to Sacto
D) Important changes to NBG Maps - add video instructions, Firefox download, etc
E) Internet Explorer Code Masher wanted
F) San Francisco Train Station to to Golden Gate Bridge bicycle joy ride
G) Cal Train to GG Bridge Slide Show
H) New Home page
I) Little Mexico bypass routed
J) Little Mexico bypass photo documented
K) Folsom Heating up
L) Oakland Councillor Nadel to ride us to Berkeley Councillor Worthington
M) Emeryville CA might be a stop on Oak to Berkeley ride
N) Barry & Allison to join Tom Ayres on Berkeley to Napa ride
O) Awesome Busycle tune up BBQ party
P) Tow Vehicle & Driver Needed for 4/27 Car Free GG Park
Other news
Q) Ines Brunn blog
R) Pledge not to drive to school - get a Free BIke
S) Jack Castor Webbed
T) Why Joe from the SJ Merc doesn't drive
U) Backwards John

A) I posted the following at the SF Bay Area Craig's List and have not heard a peep:

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The 15-person Busycle needs the services of a bio-diesel bus so that it can expand the consciousness of kids and adults through out the San Francisco Bay Area. It lives now in Palo Alto Ca but needs to circulate in the Bay Area cites as a dry run for the Author Tour across America it will do in 2009 with Martin Krieg's new book, “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto”.

In the summer of 2009, either the bus we find ourselves able to use now or another, larger one, will support Martin's 6-person crew and the HiWheel bicycle he will be riding. Details about the 2009 ride can be found at http://www.bikeroute.com/HBGR . The only one of its kind Busycle can be found HERE!
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Any ideas or leads out there?

B) We need a trailer to haul the Busycle that can accommodate a wheelbase 79 inches in width. The average width for most vehicles is 76 inches. However when the engine was pulled from the 79 Dodge Cargo van that is at the heart of our machine, the wheels splayed out an additional three inches. We can rent such a car trailer from U-Haul when we are careful to make sure they can supply that spec but the time and expense involved only adds to the complexity of getting our machine to more cities where it can be enjoyed. Does anyone have such a trailer we can buy? This will be an especially important requirement when my '09 ride finds us moving the Busycle from San Francisco to Boston and all the 25 cities we will be visiting with demonstration rides.

In addition, we need a removable tow bar that we can run off of the front of our machine. This would be helpful when we get invited to events that are to far to pedal to and yet too far to go through the trailer mounting ritual.

The above is an example of what I have in mind. Can anyone help here?

C) Toward the end of getting our entire Mayors' Ride route on line, Scott Campbell got Napa to Sacramento on line for us. See: http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=124

D) Behind the scenes, we keep making little improvements to our maps. If you can get over to our interactive maps at http://www.bikeroute.com/brdc, you will see that there is now a Firefox download site that you can readily access. Since our maps only run in Safari and Firefox (a truly better web browser), if you run a non Apple machine, we now have an easy way for you to upgrade your internet life as you position yourself to become a part of the National Bicycle Greenway rock with our maps. We also now have video instructions on line that you can access at the 'How to Use' part of of our maps.

E) We still need someone who knows how to work with Google map code. Grey, our map magician, just does not have the time needed to set these up so that they also run on the IE platform. Who knows someone who can help here?

F) One of the most truly epic and memorable rides I have ever done in my life is along the San Francisco Bayfront from the Cal Train station at 4th and King all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge. HERE it is at our maps. Sights along the way include The Giants baseball park, the massive Bay Bridge (which you pass under), Justin Herman Plaza (where Critical Mass starts), Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf, Alcatraz, Aquatic Park, the Fort Mason Great Meadow, Marina Green, Crissy Field, East Beach, Fort Point and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Cal Train devotes one entire rail car to bikes for cyclists coming to San Francisco from the peninsula. This route stops by the Ferry Building where cyclists can board a ferry to Oakland, Sausalito, even Vallejo - or on the last Friday of the month partake in Critical Mass..

G) HERE is what the above route looks like in pictures.

H) While we were out there doing our photo documentary of the above ride, I felt inspired to do a short No Hands run on the Golden Gate Bridge on my HiWheel bike. The resulting photo came out so good, I decided to make it the centerpiece of my home page. In doing so, I was actually heeding the advice I had been getting to simplify our web presence. See http://www.bikeroute.com

I) HERE is how we are going to get around the little Mexico bottleneck when we do our 4/27 ride to San Francisco with outgoing Palo Alto Mayor Yoriko Kishimoto:

Here is Faye's reaction to it:
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At 9:41 AM -0800 2/28/08, Faye Saunders wrote:
Ah, nice not to have to ride thru little mexico, all the bumps and rr tracks, cars parked, having to take the lane, etc. That route from PA-SF has certainly needed some tweaking by us. Although I will miss the smells of tortillas cooking!
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J) HERE is what our detour above looks like in pictures.

K) At Folsom City Park, next to City Hall, the Mayor and his staff, in conjunction with Mary Ann Mcalea of the Folsom Tourist Bureau, and Karen Pardieck of Karen Pardieck & Associates, have a picnic spread reception planned for us. Besides food and drink, they will provide secure bike parking so we can also explore the highly regarded city zoo/sanctuary that we will be given free access to! We are half filled. The first 25 get a free lunch compliments of the people named above. Sign yourself HERE!

L) Caught Oakland City Council person, Nancy Nadel, in between meetings and she tells that while she has a budget meeting later on on Thursday 5/1, she still looks forward to getting her trike out to ride us from Oakland City Hall to Emeryville! Car Free Berkeley Councillor , Kriss Worthington, who always also makes this ride with us, will then bring us to his City Hall seven miles away! Sign yourself on HERE

M) Peter Schultze-Allen the Environmental Analyst for the City of Emeryville signed on to ride with us in the Evite noted above. And since Emeryville is such a forward thinking bike city as well as a city that we will pass through on our way to Berkeley, I asked Peter if he would like to invite his Mayor to receive us with a proclamation.

N) Barry Burr, the Barry's Beams start up CEO and Allison Chalken, an MIT educated PhD Physicist, just signed on to ride the 37 mile Berkeley to Napa relay that Human Factors Consultant, Tom Ayres, Ph.D, is lining out for us. Keep your eyes peeled for the Evite that will get you an opportunity to join these gentle giants as they make their way to the wine country.

L-R Allison, Barry, Tom

O) The Spring Tune up that we held on March 16 to get the Busycle ready for the events of spring and summer was a flat raging success. So much got done and so many people were there that it got an entire web page. See http://www.bikeroute.com/BusycleWestCoast/BusycleSpringBBQTune-Up.php

P) As soon as we can get a few people over here to build a frame to support our new 'above the riders' sign, the Busycle is ready to make people smile. Hopefully we can get it out before then, but it's first official event is April 27th when, in conjunction with the SFBC, we do demonstration rides in Golden Gate Park as per this note in their "Chain of Events":

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http://www.sfbike.org/?chain
Busycle Rides in Golden Gate Park *
Sun., Apr. 27 | 2-5pm, Car Free JFK Drive, Golden Gate Park
The world famous 15-person Busycle will be giving demonstration rides on Car Free Sunday stretch of JFK Drive. Rides are free and on a first come, first serve basis with priority given to SFBC members. The National Bicycle Greenway is using this event to call attention to the National Mayors' Ride that leaves for Boston on the following day from City Hall with Mayor Newsom's blessing. Info: www.bikeroute.com -- Questions: nbg@bikeroute.com
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That said, might there be anyone who can help us get it up there? We can supply the trailer, but we need a vehicle and a driver (I don't have a driver's license) who can get our vehicle to and from Golden Gate park. If you can help, NBG@bikeroute.com

Q) The fully astonishing trick cyclist, Ines Brunn, sent me an alert to let me know that she now has a blog in place where her fans can now follow her. Do get a look at http://blog.trick-bike.com . I say keep an eye on this woman. She takes for granted all the many different worlds she lives in, but I suspect that we are seeing her before her many talents take her to many new unthought of heights..

R) Ripon College, a small liberal arts college in Wisconsin, is launching an innovative new program this fall. In exchange for promising not to bring a car to campus, incoming freshman will be offered a brand-new Trek bike, equipped with helmet and bike lock!

http://blogs.jsonline.com/education/archive/2008/02/13/ditch-the-car-get-a-free-bike.aspx

S) I was finally able to pin the legendary Jack Castor down long enough to get a representative listing of some of his many two wheel exploits. See the NBG Scout web that resulted:
http://www.bikeroute.com/JackCastor

T) San Jose Mercury News reporter, Joe Rodriguez, is Car Free now and has been for the last year. He authored an excellent article for his newspaper entitled:
Why I don't drive
WITHOUT A CAR, LIFE MOVES AT A MORE NATURALLY HUMAN PACE
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8511346?nclick_check=1 .

It is an excellent read!

U) I saw John Eaton on his way home from dinner with friends on what looked like an early 1950's Schwinn Phantom. I asked him if he could ride it backwards too when he said, "well I just had a few drinks so I'm not sure". He turned around, sat on the handlebars and took off. In traffic. And he kept riding and riding for block after block. I did manage to get a few shots of him with my iPhone as I rode. Too much fun. Here's John:



This and other Mayors' Ride news can be found at: http://nationalbicyclegreenway.com/News

The 2008 Mayors' Ride begins in less than a month now. See our 2008 schedule/scorecard !!

Rider(s) Needed, Video, Maps, NBG Bios, Histories. 48 Days till Lift Off!!

1) Who will ride SF to Boston and get a video made of their ride this year?
2) Ride Reporter Needed for a Don Loomis type journal
3) Mayors' Ride questionnaire fixed
4) Randy Mitchell filed a bio with us!
5) Why Mark Lind is Hooked on our Mayors' Ride relays
6) Will pay $$ for Map Code Masher who can get our maps to run in Internet Explorer
7) Please input your utility, recreation and training routes to our maps
8) Karen Pardiek to get us Folsom River Ride lunch
9) The doorway to California - Emigrant Pass from my book
10) Mike Damon makes child's play of Emigrant Pass
11) Little Mexico bypass routed
12) Riders/Routes for Napa to Sac Needed
13) Where to find City Histories, NBG Biking Pages, etc at Schedule
14) Express interest in my book to help me get funding for 009
15) New photo for my book and home page communicates hope
16) HiWheel Light show by Michael's Light Toys
17) Tom Kabat to donate Dumpster Verathene
18) Interstate Subway map
19) 101 tear old Marathoner

1) We need one (could be a small group) coast to coast cyclist to carry the the NBG torch from San Francisco to Boston in this year's 6th Annual National Mayors' Ride. Your reward for doing a self supported tour for us as per the parameters laid out at our Get Started page will be much notoriety and a 20-30 minute on line slide show like this one that we did for Scott Campbell, our 2006 rider at:

http://revver.com/video/139587

Complete with sound track, your ride will be featured in the 2009 banner for all our  BikeRoute.com web pages as well as circulated at Revver.com, the usenet and by all those who want just to share a good thing. In addition, as yours to keep for a lifetime, it will be something you can:

- use in a resume
- entertain guests with
- use with presentations to bike groups, service clubs and school kids, etc
- help you get a book about your journey sold to a publisher
- offer to an employer, before you ride, as a way to get the time off
- establish you as a cycling authority
- etc

If interested, please reply accordingly to me at NBG@bikeroute.com or just fill out our Mayors' Ride questionnaire

2) Because Faye Saunders keeps finding herself more and more in demand at Apple Computer, we lost the word crafter we needed to keep the efforts of our coast to coast cyclist(s) in real time as well as archived. HERE is the ride series she created for Don Loomis three years ago.

We have been unable to replace Faye because the word has not been well enough out there for interested writers to know that this opportunity even exists. And it is a great way for someone trying to build a by line portfolio to get their writing skills known about. This, as such a person also gets to vicariously ride a bike across America from the comfort of their living room, or wherever their computer may happen to be.

All that is required is for such a word scribe to make regular phone contact with our rider every two or three days and find out how he or she has occupied their time. And then to to make a report however long or short they may feel is warranted..

3) Unbeknownst to us, the questionnaire that we use to get a feel for who is out there on the roads for us was broken. Seems our ISP made some software changes on their end that affected us. It's all fixed now. So if if you sent in a form and have not heard back from us, that is why. Please contact me directly at NBG@bikeroute.com if this was the case and do know that I apologize very genuinely for our oversight. The form is at - http://NationalBicycleGreenway.com/Forms/newriders.php

4) Legendary HiWheel cyclist, Randy Mitchell, now has a bio with us!! If you want to see a little bit more about this amazing, former professional stunt man, turned professor, go to http://www.bikeroute.com/RandyMitchell . You might also recognize one of the pictures that you see there. It comes from the BikeRoute.com home page....

     

5) Our Mayors' Ride relays have created a Monster. A Bike Monster that is. See Why Mark Lind, pictured below is smiling about the upcoming Palo Alto to San Francisco Mayors' Ride relay that he gets to ride in. HERE is is in his own words



6) Our cutting edge bike route maps are at as crossroads. Grey Lowell, the software consultant who built them for us, has fully run out of time. As many of you have seen, they work great in Firefox and Safari, but not in Internet Explorer where the lion's share of Internet activity takes place. Who can mash some code so that our maps also run on that platform? Grey will be happy to turn the keys over to someone so qualified. If you can't do it, please let us know if you know someone who can!! We can pay such a person on an ad commission basis.

7) Our maps are similar to the others that have begin to show up on the web. Many of the the features and ways in which you plot, zoom and undo at other map routing sites are all in place on ours.

So that we can seed them as a way to ultimately turn them into bike, and not car, centric maps, we encourage you to upload as many of the utility, training and/or recreational cycling routes that you can.

Once we have established a well travelled path to our maps, as well as a a large data base of such users we can begin our search for the funding that will make the next edition possible. Once underwritten, our plans call for a a site where bikeable roads and paths will stand out on the screen as the principal routes of travel and not freeways, expressways and boulevards.

When we bring our Phase Two level of service on line, cyclists will be able to plan door to door bike routes in the same way car drivers use the mapping sites that exist on the web today to locate the fastest way to get places in their motor vehicles. In time, Google and other map services will offer Bike Road coding for their maps based on those roads that our users will keep regularly identified as being acceptable for cycle travel. More

8) Since we will be helping them showcase the river playground that they have built their city around, the City of Folsom wants to make sure we are warmly received this year. Toward that end, Karen Pardieck, of Karen Pardieck & Associates, a consulting firm that acts as a steward to assure that when lands near and around the river are developed, they are done so wisely, has begun talks with the Mayor's office on our behalf. Do stay tuned!. Besides the 2008 Sacramento, Rancho Cordova and Folsom Mayoral proclamations, a plethora of picnic food and drink, possibly music and other festivities, will reward us for our exhilarating 26 mile water side ride from the state Capitol on Sunday, May 4. Too exciting!! You don't want to miss this!! Details at our Evite. Sign yourself up while you are there!!

9) If you want to lean a little bit about the history of the road Don Loomis and unicyclist, Patrick Thomas, pedaled for us in 2004 to get over the Sierras and that I will be biking (how much I will be walking remains to be seen) in 2009, go to:

http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide2008/Reno/EmigrantPass.php

You can also learn about Reno while your are there.....

10) The above is child's play to Mike Damon, outgoing Reno Wheelmen president. At 35 miles, Emigrant Pass, is just one of the many challenges that make up the 164 miles that Mike will be pedaling when he makes the RETURN trip from Folsom to Reno in ONE day! HERE is Mike's NBG bio.

11) Last Friday, I did some advance scouting work for our Palo Alto to San Francisco ride. I wanted to figure out a way around the stretch of Middlefield Rd where it enters Redwood City that many refer to as Little Mexico. It is here that one must take the lane, because even though they are slow speed, cars are still frequent. What I found is a wee bit out of they way but far more peaceful as well as pretty: HERE is that route!!

It is an alternate route within the Palo Alto San Francisco route

12) Our 2008 Mayors' Ride does not start until the end of April and yet that date is fast racing to the immediate. Despite all this, we still do not have a route for Napa to Sacramento. Or for that matter, a rider or group of riders to make the 65 mile relay. We'll be happy to get you a marquis presence at our schedule for your efforts. As well, we could use your map knowledge of this connection. If you can help with either please let me know at NBG@bikeroute.com . And/or fill out or Mayors' Ride questionnaire ..

13) Whether you know it or not, our 2008 Schedule is chock full of information. When you get there, those cities that are represented by an image, have an NBG Biking page. As works in progress. you will find everything from our NBG Biking Report Cards, to histories to things to see and do to the bike shops, bike routes and etc, for each of these cities. HERE is an overview of the NBG Biking cities we have on line. All of the population centers you see see there will be complete in time for my 2009 ride..

14) If you want to help me make my 2009 Author Tour real, please express interest in my new book. The sequel to "Awake Again", it is called “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto” . Here is the overview where you can use the link at the bottom to communicate your desire to buy the book when it comes out.

15) The picture below will be on the front cover of “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto” as well as make up the bulk of our BikeRoute.com home page, The caption it will bear is:


Fully Recovered from Catastrophic Head Injury. Next Up: National Bicycle Greenway .

There is a lot in this picture and in this choice of words. While the photo represents a feat that only the ablest of body can hope to master, in its simplicity it is stunning causing most who view it to want to know more. This is especially so when the word 'recovery' is associated with it. And as such, when people see how far I have come from having to learn how walk, talk and balance myself, etc, etc, all over again, the vision I now hold for the National Bicycle Greenway becomes far more believable. It also goes a long way toward the reason I feel I got better - to inspire people to know that we are only limited by how big we allow ourselves to think!!

16) If you find yourself riding at night, do give Michael's Light Toys some consideration. The Bicycle Light Show below (40 seconds) was made possible by MichaelsLightToys.com. A major supplier for Burning Man exhibitors, their lights work on all kinds of bikes. And with the EL light string variety especially, the AA batteries last a long time. HERE is the movie




17) Tom Kabat, the Palo Alto city engineer who shows people who want to know how to to build a bike in the worst possible way, how to do so at his web site http://woodenbikes.com tells us that he will likely be at our Mar 16 Spring Cleaning Party for the Busycle with a 1/2 gallon of the Liquid Verathane that he rescued from a dumpster. Keeping in the spirit of our 15-person car-bike where all of the components have been recycled from other uses, Tom reminds us that, if as environmentalists we need toxic stuff like this, that we should only put it to use if we find it otherwise headed for the landfill. THX Tom!!



18) Saw Don Loomis, our 2004 coast to coast rider on his way home from work at Apple Computer last week. He told me about the subway style map that had been made of the great interstate system.



Double click on the above to see a bigger image. When you get to http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2007/02/13/75-a-diagram-of-the-eisenhower-interstate-system , you will learn some interesting facts about the system of highways that Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law in 1956 to provide easy transport for military purposes.

19) The guy pictured below is 101 years old!! What's more is that he plans to run a marathon. Double click on the photo to read the story. And after you do, ask yourself what's keeping you off a bike or maybe even signing up to ride one of our relays..

NBG's 2008 Mayors' Ride Heating Up!!

A) Outgoing Palo Alto Mayor Yoriko to ride/kick off 2008 Mayors' Ride
B) Palo Alto to San Francisco ride registration opens - FREE
C) Coast to coast Mayors' Ride map routing help needed all over the US
D) Christy Wolf Creates New Map Banner for BikeRoute.com
E) Christy Wolf's New Banner now flies on the Busycle
F) State Capitol to the American River Jed Smith Trail now on line
G) Wai Chong gets Sacto to Folsom route on line
H) Beauty of Sacto to Folsom ride now much easier to enjoy - 1/2 as long!
I) Sacto to Folsom excerpt from my book
J) Randy Mitchell to HiWheel Sacto to Folsom River again
K) Marty Wilson to HiWheel Sacto to Folsom River again
L) Mike Damon submits Folsom to Reno route
M) Mike Damon to ride Folsom to Reno again - in O N E day!!
N) Annual Oakland to Berkeley ride opens for registration
O) Riders/Routes Needed for Berkeley to Napa, Napa to Sacto - Go all the way, get a video?
P) “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The NBG Manifesto” Description now on line
Q) Boston and SF top 3 Greenest cities in America
R) Amazing Bike Acrobat Ines Brunn may perform for us
S) Busycle Community Ride w/Paul Gregg Horn and UltraStar, A-ooga horn
T) Wai Chong on the known knowns & unknown unknowns


A) Outgoing Palo Alto Mayor Yoriko Kishimoto, the two wheel power house who moved a lot of mountains for cyclists here and on the SF peninsula during her one year term, is going to help lead the charge from Palo Alto City Hall to San Francisco City Hall on Sunday April 27th. She will be helping us kick off our 6th Annual National Mayors' Ride.

B) If you want to join Yoriko and the rest of us on this flat 34 mile ride from Palo Alto to San Francisco, you can read all about it at our Evite - while you're there, sign up to join us!!

C) If you are out there on the east coast, we still need your help getting our coast to coast Mayors' Ride route mapped. This is also true for a fair amount of the Midwest and Far West. Come on fellow NBG Giants. Own a piece of the NBG Rock. Go to http://www.bikeroute.com/brdc and please help us connect the Mayors' Ride cities you see at our schedule/scorecard..

D) Christy Wolf of yourbrandhere.com created a beautiful banner that now flies proud across the top of all of our BikeRoute.com pages

E) It also now stretches across the top of our Busycle!! Christy, gave us the art work for free! WOW!!

F) Our route from the CA State Capitol to the American River and the world class Jedediah Smith Recreation Trail is now on line. See it HERE . Many THX to Bruce Morrical of the Sacramento Bike Hikers for helping me figure it out with the very detailed cue sheet he emailed to me.

G) Not only is Wai Chong riding the river with us again, but he plotted the route we will be using along the American River from Sacramento to Folsom. See it HERE!!

H) The biggest news about the route Wai plotted for us is the fact that it is now half as long! This is particularly important to those HiWheel cyclists who have stayed away because they are not sure if their fitness or their antique machines are up to the task. Now instead of being tortured in the hot July sun for what was 66 miles our first two years when we stopped in Davis and 51 miles last year, we now have a shorter relay in the cool of Spring that far more people can participate in. As such we will be able to show a greater number of cyclists the consummate, unparalleled river trail beauty that cyclists along this part of American River get to revel in every day!

I) Here is how I describe it in my book, “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto” :

========================================
And it was easy to understand why. A true bicycle heaven indeed, we all looked forward to doing that ride. Nor did it matter which way we rode, While most years, we did the slight downhill direction from Folsom, we were going this way because of our ride ended in Boston this year.

Even though the surface of the trail was city like asphalt, we still looked forward to the escape it would provide. Soon we would all be on a path that felt miles from nowhere even though the life of busy cities lay just beyond the river bluffs. We would look out on a peaceful summer-time river that gently poured over the rocky bottom it often exposed.

Along the way, we would ride through a few lawn covered parks, cross this, the American River, on a historic metal bridge and be entertained by all the people frolicking in the many different swimming holes along the way. As the trail neared the base of the Sierras we would find ourselves passing through miles and miles of untouched open space where even the occasional tell tale sign of human life, such as a far away building or road, had completely disappeared from sight.
========================================

J) Randy Mitchell who you see pictured here doing his coffin trick during our 2006 San Jose to Palo Alto relay is coming back for more of the river. A college professor and former professional stunt man, Randy would have been on the river ride no matter how long we ran it, He is bringing his recumbent trike buddies with him this year.

K) To give you an idea how much people enjoy their American River trail ride experience, Marty Wilson is coming back once again for his fourth time! What's more is the fact that as one of the bicycle highlights of his year, he was this year's first Mayors' Ride sign up -- for any of our relays. A powerful cyclist, like Randy above, he is loved by everyone who meets him.

L) In between his fast moving job and the MBA program that eats up the rest of his time, Mike Damon found time to draw up a beautiful Folsom to Reno route. He even fleshed it out with a lot of detail for any of those daring enough to undertake this challenge. 164 miles, it is what Don Loomis rode for us in 2004 and what I plan to "ride" in 2009. I qualify the word ride with quotes because I do not know how much of this stretch I will be walking. I plan to run the excerpt from my book at our schedule/scorecard that discusses the history of an important part of this relay link - the Mormon Emigrant trail, once an important doorway to the west,. See the epic route Mike drew up HERE.

M) What's especially important to note about the route Mike Damon plotted for us above is the fact that he once again plans to cross the Sierras on it in ONE day. Compare that to the several weeks it used to take back in 1846 and the three to four days I have planed for this stretch when I ride it in 2009. Besides the 164 mile distance, there are many, many thousands of feet of climbing, while on one uphill ascent, there is no water or services of any kind for 35 miles.

N) This year's eight mile Oakland to Berkeley ride is now open for registration. A fun ride that showcases some landmark bicycle infrastructure and even has us riding along the edge of the San Francisco bay at one point, we expect to be joined for part of the ride by Oakland councillor Nancy Nadel and Car Free Berkeley councillor Kris Worthinton. To se the route and/or to sign up, go to the ride Evite

O) Once our ride reaches Berkeley, we need a cyclist(s) to carry the figurative NBG torch to Napa. Ditto for Napa to Sacto. As well, we need the route for this connection. Who can go to http://www.bikeroute.com/brdc and help us out with a route?

Who can go to http://NationalBicycleGreenway.com/Forms/newriders.php and let us see if they are qualified to ride any of those relay connections for us? Maybe even ride from coast to coast like Scott Campbell did for us in 2006? If that person is you, we'll even produce a video/slide show for you like this one that we have on line for Scott: Scott Coast to Coast 2006

P) If you want to see what my book, “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto” is all about, I finally put the description on line. See it HERE

Q) Boston, the birthplace of American cycling and our National Mayors' Ride destination city is ranked number three in terms of green by "Popular Science" magazine. Mayor Tom Menino has been the driving force behind how Beantown is now becoming seen by the rest of America. Number one is Portland, OR while San Francisco, the start of this year's Mayors' Ride is Number 2. Read about this excitement HERE

R) I just heard from artistic celebrity cyclist, Ines Brunn! I had asked her if she would like to perform at our 2009 ride send off and she tells me she is very interested! And she says may even get out here, from China where she lives, to ride the Busycle if she has any business trips to the US to make in the interim.

Do get a look at her web, what she can do on a bike will take your breath away. There is not a man alive, that I know of, who can do more than a few of her tricks, much less a fully choreographed show full of them. You don't want to miss this: http://trick-bike.com

S) Read about our most recent Busycle ride HERE, A Community Ride to help kick off the Tour of California bike race it was made all the more official by Paul Gregg and his escorts, Nathan, Benjamin and Nick. At every intersection, Paul and his team could be seen stopping all the traffic so we could get through, And they do so with with skill and a growing arsenal of tools.

First there was the UltraStar, the kind of flashing yellow beacon you see on forklifts and city vehicles. It is powered by the motorcycle battery he carries in his panniers. To this reflective safety vests began to appear on our ride chauffeurs. An Aooga horn that gets it power also from the motorcycle battery is the most recent addition. When cars encounter Paul and his team, they don't mind yielding as they watch us parade by!! Indeed Paul has taken the term escort to a whole new level. Now all he needs is an amplified megaphone.......

T) I'd like to close this newsletter with some wisdom from former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. It was in Wai Chong's .sig:

"...there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also
know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some
things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we
don't know we don't know."

Return of the Scorcher - The Bicycle as a Way to Heal Ourselves and the Planet

This is a classic half-hour documentary that looks at bike culture and bike lifestyles around the world. Created by Ted White in 1992, using beautiful and inspiring scenes of bikes in China, The Netherlands, Denmark, and the U.S, it is one of the first films ever made that offers the bicycle as a solution to our auto centric way of life. As well, it is from this production that the idea, as well as the term itself, for Critical Mass bike rides was derived. It is a must see for anyone active in two wheel activism,,,,,

See the video

2008 Mayors' Ride readies for 4/28 start from SF!

A) Progress in establishing coast to coast on-line Mayors' Ride route
B) Map Instructions Video on line
C) Join us for the 4th Annual Palo Alto City Hall to San Francisco City Hall Ride
D) Golden Gate Park Busycle demonstration ride
E) 4th Annual Oakland to Berkeley ride
F) 4th Annual Sacramento to Folsom ride
G) Loneliest Road route now on our maps with excerpts from 09 Author Tour book
H) Mayor calls for better biking in Chicago
I) London Mayor to saturate his city with bikes!
J) Norway Bicycle Tram
K) Miller H-Life Bike Commercial

Thank you Christy Wolfe of yourbrandhere.com for the above that will soon appear as a banner on the Busycle and now runs as a header at our site......

A) Routes that will connect San Francisco with. Boston are ever so slowly trickling in at our new interactive mapping site. And yet at the current rate we won't be able to tell our riders where to ride. Or for that matter where those interested, such as the press. can meet them along the way. And yet, with such a completed map in place, smaller towns along the Mayors' Ride way can know where to expect us. This will engender more fanfare for our scouts in the form of more media opportunities as well as more of the more impromptu receptions one can expect from the more rural parts of America. If you can help us, please see what routes we need HERE

B)  If upon first blush, you cannot figure out the magical maps that Grey Lowell has created for us, we now have a video on line and printed instructions

C) If you've never ridden a bike to San Francisco because the hills have seemed too daunting or the flatter streets near the Bay present navigation hurdles too difficult to overcome, join us on April 27th when we use this casual ride to announce our 6th annual National Mayors' Ride. A Sunday ride, to sign yourself up for the day ride, here is the Evite

D) The venerable SFBC is already helping us promote the Busycle rides that will be taking place at Golden Gate Park once our riders have reached City Hall. So once we do get to City Hall, a non hilly three mile ride will take us to the park and the Busycle fun

E) We are also working on an Evite for our annual Oakland City Hall to Berkeley City Hall ride and that should be in applicable email boxes soon

(pictured: the HiWheel crew along the SF Bay)

F) Our 4th Annual Sacramento to Folsom ride led in the past by as many as a 10 HiWheel bikes returns on Sunday May 4, If you've never ridden the American River parkway, this is hands down one of the most beautiful Car Free bike rides you will have ever done. Look for an Evite in applicable email boxes soon..

G) If you want to see America's Loneliest Road, complete with excerpts from Krieg's new book, click HERE

H) From the SFBC:
Last week Chicago mayor Richard Daley introduced his 2008 Bicycle Safety Ordinance, calling for new fines for drivers who endanger bicyclists. Specific provisions of the ordinance define three feet as the minimum safe distance to pass a bicyclist, prohibit opening a vehicle door into moving traffic (already illegal in California), increase the fines for parking in bike lanes or marked shared lanes, clarify that left-turning motorists yield to oncoming bicyclists and prohibit motorists from turning right in front of a bicyclist. Violation of the proposed rules will result in a minimum fine of $150 and no less than $500 when the violation results in a bicycle crash.

I) From the SFBC:
In London, Mayor Ken Livingstone laid out his vision of "bicycle highways", It is awesome and includes a 400% increase in the number of people pedalling 'round the British capital by 2025. At a cost of ?400 million ($780 million), the 12 routes are intended to zoom cyclists through motor-choked traffic jams quickly and conveniently and are likely to be emulated by other cities across the UK. Planners hope the changes will encourage a "critical mass" of cyclists (their words) to use the routes, creating a safe and accessible environment as well as cutting congestion and pollution across London.

J) Norway Bicycle Tram


video

K) Miller H-Life Bike Commercial


video

"The world is so fast that there are days when the person who says it can't be done is interrupted by the person doing it." Unknown

London to Change the World with Bike Initiative

With the actions detailed in the following article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2254928,00.html

London has set itself on a course toward a true bicycle nirvana. Hopefully soon American cities will be inspired by the example London will have set!!

Need help plotting coast go coast route

Routes that will connect San Francisco with. Boston are ever so slowly trickling in. And yet at the current rate we won't be able to tell our riders where to ride. Or for that matter where those interested, such as the press. can meet them along the way. And yet, with such a completed map in place, smaller towns along the Mayors' Ride way can know where to expect us. This will engender more fanfare for our scouts in the form of more media opportunities as well as more of the more impromptu receptions one can expect from the more rural parts of America.

What you see below are the routes we have on line as authored by those who have claimed their own piece of the NBG rock. While the routes you see below that do not have an associated url are those that we need. I know you agree that it does it make sense to wait until the Mayors' Ride comes to your city before you get us routes. We need to get a.coast to coast Mayors' Ride route NOW

All we have are Safari or Firefox enabled maps now but HERE: is where to get a better browser if you are on Internet Explorer.

And here is how to use them:
video - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8537188732270706024&hl=en

print - http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/MapInstructionSet.html

**San Francisco to Bosotn Mayors' Ride route**

Palo Alto City Hall to San Francisco City Hall
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=41

Oakland City Hall to Napa City Hall
Napa City Hall to Sacramento City Hall
Sacramento City Hall to American River to Folsom

Folsom to Sly Park Campground (1 of 3 to Reno Scott Campbell)
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=82

Sly Park to Reno City Hall
Reno City Hall to Fallon, NV

Fallon NV to Ely, NV
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=77

Ely, NV to Baker, NV
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=79

Baker to Salt Lake City
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=80

Salt Lake City to Boulder City Hall

Boulder to Golden (c/o Steve Stevens, shown in reverse - who wants to send riders the other way?)
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=69

Golden, CO to Denver City Hall
Denver City Hall to Omaha, BE

Omaha to Des Moines (c/o Steve Schnitker)
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=96

Des Moines to Chicago
Chicago to Indianapolis
Indianapolis to Cincinnati
Cincinnati to Columbus
Columbus to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh to Washington DC

DC to Mount Rainier (c/o PJ Park)
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=110

Mount Rainier to Baltimore (c/0 Barry Childress)
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=97

Baltimore to Philadelphia
Philadelphia to New York City
New York City to Boston

I Took My Car to the Corner Store to Get a Loaf of Bread

I Took My Car to the Corner Store to Get a Loaf of Bread                            
by Mike Nickerson         

I took my car to the corner store,
to get a loaf of bread;
It turned out to be quite a trip,
when all was done and said.

First I took the doors along,
as they were first at hand;
A trip with each, my heart did pound,
the exercise was grand.

Next I took the hood and trunk,
they easily came undone;
The body posed a bigger task,
it could not be moved as one.

I'll not tell all, about the chore,
with torch and saw to render;
Suffice to say, when it was done,
I could carry every member.

But for the engine, I had to cheat,
its weight too much for me;
I brought a wagon to the task,
man powered, though, you see.

With fenders, gears and manifolds,
bumpers, clutch and brakes;
My heart and lungs were racing now,
a little rest I'd take.

Oh how I love my motor car,
its chrome and paint do shine;
The neighbours stare as we go by,
I'm so glad that it is mine.

The tires I choose to roll along,
a wonder is the wheel;
After axles, tranny and padded seats,
I was ready for my meal.

Alone, one man, but for his car,
the corner store's so handy;
I got the bread that I came for,
some cheese and also candy.

The joys of transport are so grand,
the world is there to roam;
I took my car to the corner store,
now I have to take it home.