Getting Back on the Bike: Riding Tips and Tricks for Older Adults

AARP Massachusetts and MassBike's for a virtual workshop that was intended for older adults who are interested in getting back on their bikes, expanding their biking comfort level, and looking for a refresher on bike safety and rules of the road.

Whether you’re looking to get back into recreational riding or to take the next step and use your bike for transportation, this workshop will review what you need to know and answer any questions you have about biking.

Preparing for your Next Ride with AARP Massachusetts

MassBike & AARP Massachusetts's virtual workshop is intended for older adults who are interested in getting back on their bike, expanding their biking comfort level, and looking for a refresher on bike safety and rules of the road.

Check the Preparing for Your Next Ride on the AARP Massachusetts Youtube Channel.

Getting Back on the Bike with AARP Massachusetts

MassBike & AARP Massachusetts's virtual workshop is intended for older adults who are interested in getting back on their bike, expanding their biking comfort level, and looking for a refresher on bike safety and rules of the road.

Check the Getting Back on the Bike Webinar on the AARP Massachusetts Youtube Channel.

Bike Maintenance Basics with Cambridge Public Library

We all know that bicycling is a great way to get around town, keep fit and reduce your carbon footprint. This virtual workshop covered how to maintain your bike so that all of your rides are safe and smooth. Our knowledgeable instructors from MassBike went through the basics in an hour-long presentation followed by Q&A to cover how to check your bike's ABCs (Air, Brakes, Chain). Viewers came away with a bit of home mechanic know-how so they could check the condition of their bike and also fix it when things start to go awry.

This webinar was not recorded, check out our ABCs of Bike Maintenance Webinar for a similar presentation.

Maine to Canada Bike Tour Webinar

Have you been spending the winter dreaming of going on a long bike adventure? Are you searching for some bikespiration or tips on planning a bike trip? Join Randi, one of MassBike's awesome bicycling instructors, on a virtual tour with pictures and stories from a month-long cycling trip from Maine to Canada.

Learn about what to bring if you are interested in touring and bike camping. See the beautiful scenery along the coast of Maine, around Prince Edward Island and the Cabot Trail on Cape Breton. Come with questions and stories to share during a Q&A about trip planning, gear, food, clothing and more!

You can see the whole webinar on the MassBike Youtube Channel. 

Bike Cleaning Workshop 

You love your bike, so show it some tender care! This February 18th, grab yourself some discounted Valentine's day candy and join us for this lunchtime workshop as we cover some of the tips and tricks of keeping your bike clean and happy, especially during the messy winter months. Giving your bike a regular cleaning makes sure it will keep you rolling for miles to come.

Join MassBike Executive Director Galen Mook as he breaks down the dirt on the deep cleaning know-how. And we'll stick to the basics, without needing a lot of space or fancy equipment.

You can see this whole workshop on the MassBike youtube page.

How MA Bike Laws are Made

Most laws and regulations that affect your riding are made on a statewide level and involve a lot of tough conversations about crafting legislation, enforcement, education, and insurance. To help step us through the process of creating bicycling laws, and to see how they are implemented in the real world. We were joined by Andrew Bettinelli, Chief of Staff to State Senator Will Brownsberger (Second Suffolk and Middlesex District) and Josh Zisson a lawyer from Bike Safe Boston for an informational webinar.

This webinar includes a Q&A with Andrew to answer your questions about the status of certain bills and with Josh to hear of examples from his profession dealing with the aftermath of crashes on our roadways.

You can see the whole webinar on the MassBike YouTube Channel.

Pedaling Through the Pages

We hosted a conversation with two bicycle book authors Larry Finison and Christina Uss as they discussed their work in researching and writing about the cultural, historical, and inspiring aspects of the bicycle. These two authors represent two very different approaches to bicycling literature; historical non-fiction and children's books. 

Larry Finison comes with a historical lens as he details his research and explorations of Boston's bicycling history with his books Boston's Bicycle Craze, 1880-1900: A Story of Race, Sport, and Society and Boston's Twentieth Century Bicycling Renaissance: Cultural Change on Two Wheels. And Christina Uss remembers the joys of bicycling as a kid in her book The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle, about an introverted 12-year-old girl learning to make friends by riding her bike from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco.

You can see the whole presentation on the MassBike YouTube Channel.

ABCs of Bike Maintenance w/ Hamilton-Wenham Library

We all know that bicycling is a great way to get around town, keep fit, and reduce your carbon footprint. And especially during this time of quarantine, going on a bike ride is a great way to keep yourself sane by clearing your head (while keeping distance from others). But, along with your sanity, you've also got to maintain your bike if you want your ride to go as planned... so we're here to help you know what to check so you're ready to roll. Please join us for an evening virtual workshop to cover how to maintain your bike to keep you riding safe and smooth. We'll go through the basics in an hour-long presentation to cover how to diagnose your bike's ABCs (Air, Brakes, and Chain). You'll come away with bit of home-mechanic know-how, so you can check the condition of your bike, and also fix your bike when things start to go awry. See the whole presentation video of the webinar on the MassBike YouTube channel.

From DC to Your Block: How National, Regional, and State Advocacy Groups Build a Bicycle Movement

Do you wonder how national, state, and local groups build a bicycle movement that reaches from your hometown bike lane all the way up to the halls of power in Washington, DC? Join us for a discussion with a collection of policy wonks from statewide, regional, and national advocacy organizations. We'll host Ken McLeod from the League of American Bicyclists, Andrew Dupuy from the Rails to Trails Conservancy, and Kristine Keeney from the East Coast Greenway Alliance to detail some of the work in Washington, on Beacon Hill, and regionally that goes into our paths and trails. We discuss federal and state policies that go into our transportation funding, outline regional coordination that'd building out in a network of rail-trails throughout New England, and remember how each frustrating local battle helps move the needle for all of us. See the whole presentation video of the webinar, and see here for the slides from the presentation.

Bikepacking the Bay Circuit Trail

Feeling cooped up during the stay at home order? We've got a cure: Take a trip out in the woods by bike! We hosted a lunch + learn conversation about bike packing around Massachusetts, featuring adventurous bike packers who traversed the Bay Circuit Trail, a 230-mi trek through 37 cities and towns that loop the outskirts of Greater Boston! We featured stories from Jamie Lent who rode the entire trail in 2019, some awesome photos, and a Q&A. We also hosted a short "How to Go on a Bike Overnight" presentation from Adventure Cycling Association to detail some basic bike travel skills. See the whole presentation video of the webinar on the MassBike YouTube channel. And check out the slides from the presentation here.

Know Your Bike Laws w/ Bike Safe Boston

What should you do if you're right hooked by a driver when riding? Do you have to stay to the far right in the vehicle travel lane when riding? What if someone opens a car door and steps out and you bike into them? Can cops really take a kid's bicycle if they're not wearing a helmet?... We've heard a lot of questions about how to interpret the laws pertaining to bicyclists and bicycling in Massachusetts, and we gotta admit it's a bit confusing when you dig into the Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 85, Section 11B. To help us understand some of the nuances, we've invited bike lawyer Josh Zisson from Bike Safe Boston to host a discussion of the rights and responsibilities of all road users out there. For this hour-long event, we covered the laws, what can happen if you break them, and what you should know if you're ever in a crash. See the whole presentation on our YouTube channel.