MassBike Quick Release 7/11/08

MassBike Goes to School

Over 500 Massachusetts kids at eight schools participated in MassBike’s Safe Routes to Schools Bicycling Safety Training during April, May, and June this spring, a great start to our kids education program! Led by Director of Education and Outreach Shane Jordan, MassBike’s instructors visited classrooms and conducted bike rodeos all over the state. During the training sessions, we collected data from the students, and learned that students in 4-6th grade are better at wearing helmets than students in 7-8th grades. Fourth through sixth graders also ride their bicycles more. We found that the vast majority of students (96%) have bicycles and that a majority ride them three or more days a week (58%). The vast majority of students also have helmets (89%), but only slightly more than half (59%) wear them “all of the time”.

MassBike will continue working with the SRTS program in the Fall, and we hope to grow the number of schools participating. Contact Shane Jordan for information about bringing MassBike to your school! MassBike gratefully acknowledges the past support of the Charles River Wheelmen, which provided the resources for us to design and plan a successful kids education program.

Safe Routes to School, a program of MassRIDES, is a service of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation, and supported by the Federal Highway Administration. Parents or educators interested in the SRTS program should contact Davida Eisenberg at MassRIDES.

(Photo courtesy of MassRIDES)

Bicycling Skills Classes: Duxbury and Boston Classes This Month!

Space is limited, so register right now at http://massbike.org/skills/classes.htm.

MassBike’s class schedule is bigger and better than ever! From our Bicycling Safety Workshops to our Better Bicycling Skills classes and more, we’ve got plenty of options for you to become a better and safer cyclist. Get comfortable riding around the city, or get ready for a big charity ride. Bicycling Safety Workshops are FREE 2-hour classroom sessions, and are a prerequisite for our 4-hour on-bike Better Bicycling Skills class ($45 MassBike members, $60 others). All classes are taught by certified League Cycling Instructors.

Bicycling Safety Workshop : July 17 (Duxbury), July 23 (Boston)

Better Bicycling Skills : July 19 (Duxbury), July 27 (Boston)

We also offer on-site bicycling education for your business, from our 1-hour Bicycle Commuting for Everyone, a fast-paced introductory workshop, to our full classroom and on-bike classes. Contact Shane Jordan, Director of Education and Outreach, for details.

Click here for information, class schedule, and registration http://massbike.org/skills/classes.htm

Pocket Rides: Now in the MassBike Store!

MassBike is proud to announce a new addition to our online store: Pocket Rides from Rubel Bike Maps. Looking for great pre-planned rides? Pocket Rides are the answer!

These sets of five pocket-sized waterproof cards are beautifully illustrated. Each card shows one loop ride including a map and a cue sheet plus points of interest such as ice cream shops, conservation land, bike shops, bridges, views, food stops and more. Rides in the Pocket Rides series vary from 9 to 83 miles each.

12 sets of Pocket Rides are available, so you will never run out of rides: Beach Rides, Beyond the Minuteman Bikeway (Arlington), Beyond the Minuteman Bikeway (Bedford 1-5); Beyond the Minuteman Bikeway (Bedford 6-10); Beyond the Northampton Bike Path; Beyond the Norwottuck Trail; Farm Tours; Lighthouse Rides; North Shore Massachusetts; South Shore Massachusetts; Starting at the B.U. Bridge; and Swimming Hole Rides.

Perfect for summer. Collect all 12 sets for only $9 each!

Click here to purchase Pocket Rides http://www.massbike.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=30_24

Help MassBike Win $4000 for Education

MassBike has been chosen to compete for a $4000 donation from Patagonia, and we need your help to win! With its Voice Your Choice (VYC) program, Patagonia asks its customers to decide which local group will receive the donation. VYC offers a multitude of options and opportunities to learn more about local environmental groups and issues, join a particular organization, write a letter, donate money, learn more about our current campaigns and programs, and more.

More Education, More Outreach: If MassBike is chosen, we plan to use the $4000 to expand our education and outreach programs this year. We’ve noticed that a lot more people are bicycling these days, so we want to get advice and information out to as many bicyclists and motorists as possible. (One way we’re doing this is our new Guide for New Riders, so if you know anyone who just got back on a bike, please let them know.) Many bicycling projects take years to come to fruition, but information can have an immediate impact – we need to get it out there!

Here’s how the VYC program works:

From June 10th through July 19th, visit the Patagonia store at 346 Newbury Street in Boston, and cast a vote for MassBike! One vote per customer per visit. There is no purchase necessary and no age limit to participate, so bring the whole family! If you live or work near the Patagonia store, please vote on as many days as you can.

MassBike Bike Photo Extravaganza!

MassBike is building a new website, and that means we need some great photos of people on bicycles! Send us your best bicycling pictures. We are looking for people in urban environments, mountain bikers, road bikers, recumbents, funny signs, people doing things right, people doing things wrong, all your best bike moments. It’s not really a contest, but we’ll pick some favorites and the lucky photographers will get MassBike t-shirts!

Please email your photo (please one photo per email) to Shane@massbike.org. By submitting your photo, you grant MassBike the non-exclusive right to use it in print and online. Submit as many entries as you want, but please only your BEST images! Thanks.

Redbones Sets the Stage for 2008 Tour de France: Two Breakfasts with a Broadcast Planned

The first breakfast is this Monday, July 14, 2008!

If you are interested in a road ride with MassBike Executive Director David Watson before breakfast, email david@massbike.org. Weather permitting, we will probably ride about 30 miles beginning in Davis Square, Somerville. There will be some climbing!

According to many, the annual Tour de France is the world’s premier cycling race; at bike friendly Redbones it is an opportunity to open the doors early and serve breakfast to local cycling enthusiasts with TVs tuned to live broadcasts of the Tour.

Every year the Tour course is different but, as always, the 21 Stages are of varying degrees of difficulty over the 3,500 kilometres route traveled from July 5 to July 27.  Redbones Breakfasts are scheduled during 2 of the 5 Mountain Stages - the most challenging for competitors and the most exciting for you.  The first breakfast also coincides with Bastille Day - tandem time for Francophiles!

Cyclists are encouraged to put together a group or ride in solo, stay for breakfast and the broadcast and then ride away inspired by the competition!
      
Place: Redbones, 55 Chester Street, Somerville, MA

Breakfast Dates & Start Times:
Stage 10 - Mon, 7/14  @ 9:00 am
Stage 16 - Tues, 7/22  @ 9:00 am

Description:
Watch a live broadcast of the day's Stage while enjoying a buffet breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, fruit, yogurt, juice, coffee and more.
 
Cost:
$8.00 per person, includes breakfast and
Redbones Signature Free Bicycle Valet Parking

For Information: www.redbones.com &  617-628-2200

Mass BikePike Tour: August 14-17, 2008

Be part of this celebration of cycling in Massachusetts. This year, the bike tour travels from Sudbury to Northampton, with daily riding options ranging from 30 to 65 miles. Overnight camping (alternate options available), luggage transfer, transportation back to the start, breakfasts, catered dinners and a farewell lunch are all included.

Riders will receive maps, cue sheets, event SAG support, a commemorative T-shirt, and the camaraderie of friendly folks having a good time. And the final day will feature a parade of bikes along Main Street in Northampton.

Registration is limited to 100 and there are already over 70 people registered. So if you are interested, sign up soon. And best of all, proceeds go to support MassBike.

For more information and registration details, visit the web site at www.MassBikePike.org or call Bruce Lederer at 617-710-1832.

Get Help for Your Trail Project: Application Deadline August 1, 2008

The Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) Program provides staff time and technical assistance for 1-2 years to projects that need an extra hand to take the next leap forward to success. We work with citizens’ groups and non-profits, helping them realize their vision of how to improve their communities, whether it’s through a rail-trail, urban park, or a restored river. The National Park Service helps make it happen.

The RTCA’s current projects in Massachusetts include Berkshire Bike Path, Great Barrington Trails, Groundwork Springfield, Metacomet-Monadnock-Mattabesett Trail, French River Connections, and Attleboro Trails System.

August 1, 2008 is the deadline for the next round of assistance from RTCA Program. Applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss project ideas with RTCA staff before submitting an application.

Visit www.nps.gov/rtca for more information.

Boston Bike Film Festival: Call for Entries

Organizers of the Fourth Annual Boston Bike Film Festival have asked filmmakers with a cycling habit to submit their work to be shown October 17-18, 2008, at the historic Brattle Theatre in Cambridge. Film submissions are due September 20, 2008. The event is a fundraiser for local cycling advocacy groups, including MassBike. Film concepts from last year's festival ranged from home moving by bike, to a group of roving BMXers looking for the ultimate empty pool to ride in, to guerrilla bike mechanics.

Among the benefits available to acclaimed and amateur filmmakers, the Festival continues to offer a chance to get their films in front of audiences who are intrigued and influential to the quality of cycling nationwide. "We keep tweaking it every year, and this year, we’ve even lowered our ticket prices, based on audience polls," said Cat Bryant, executive director of the BBFF. "I think we have found our niche; the Boston bike community has shown so much enthusiasm for this event."

Types of films shown at the BBFF include animated shorts, digitally enhanced clips, and feature length documentaries. Festival information and details for submissions can be found at www.bostonbikefilmfest.org, which will soon include clips from last year's festival.