campus bike project closed friday 8/13 and sunday 8/15!

FYI: The Campus Bike Project will be closed on Friday, 13 August and Sunday, 15 August.

Carl and Joel -- current and former CBP Managers, respectively -- are leaving town (and the country!) to attend Bike!Bike! in Toronto.  Bike!Bike!'s an annual convention of bike co-ops from around North America and Carl and Joel will be there representing The Bike Project and learning from other co-ops.

Have a safe trip guys!

No learning with Vince today...sorry!

I just got back from a Rocky Mountain trip to Salt Lake City and Denver and arrived in Champaign at 1am this morning so I have to regretfully postpone the class on shifting today. Of course, the volunteer staff will be more than happy to help.

On a bike note, I don't know how the University of Utah students ride their bikes to and from classes. The campus is on the mountain (it takes less time to get on a hiking trail than it does to get to a Target) and most the students are commuters. I saw a bunch of folks riding their bikes up and down the main road. I could barely walk up a set of stairs. And finally, the fixie scene seems strong in the SLC, even though the beer is weak.

tonight: the bike project general meeting!

6pm sharp at the Campus Bike Project. 

All Bike Project members are invited and dinner (maybe pizza?) will be served... kinda like this:

next wednesday: bicycle infrastructure webinar

From an email to the Champaign County Bikes discussion listserv:

On Wednesday, July 21 at 2pm CT, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) will present a webinar on Bicycle Boulevards and Neighborhood Greenways. Morgan Johnston of Facilities and Services at the University of Illinois has graciously arranged for access to the webinar in the conference room of Public Safety Building on campus at 1110 W. Springfield Ave in Urbana (NE corner of Goodwin and Springfield). The webinar is free and open to all that are interested.

I have used bicycle boulevards in Portland and Berkeley and I believe that they would make a great addition to the bicycle infrastructure we have already started to build in Champaign-Urbana. They are particularly attractive to people who do not want to bicycle on busier streets and they allow side-by-side bicycling that is so useful for families bicycling an essential for introducing young bicyclists to on-street bicycling.

the bike project still seeks an americorps volunteer

We're still hiring for an Americorps volunteer position.  And we've extended the deadline for applications til 14 July.  The position is for a Volunteer Coordinator based at the UC-IMC shop.

If you'd like to apply, check out our pdf announcement for instructions.  And if you have any questions, email us at thebikeproject@gmail.com.

saturday: health and wellness bike ride

This Saturday, 17 July, join other families in Urbana on the Health and Wellness Bike Ride, organized by Champaign County Bikes. 

It's a self-paced, self-guided tour of Urbana beginning at 9am from Urbana's Farmers' Market and supported by organizations like the Urbana Free Library and Common Ground Food Co-op.  The ride aims to show just how easy it is to get around by bicycle in Urbana.

A drawing for prizes will be held after the ride on the porch of Common Ground Food Coop at Market at the Square. Prizes include gift certificates, pool passes, a bike helmet,  and t-shirts.  You can preregister for the ride at: www.champaigncountybikes.org.

vets' cross-country bike ride arrives in c-u today!

Sunday's News-Gazette included a story about a group of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans (and others) trekking across the country on bikes.  C-U will welcome them today, with a ceremony taking place at Hessel Park beginning around 2pm:

A group of exceptional bicycle riders, many of whom are wounded Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, will be in Champaign-Urbana this week as part of a 3,696-mile tour.
The riders, whose trek is called Sea to Shining Sea, have undertaken the effort to pay tribute to service men and women and challenge perceptions about how Americans see disabled athletes. Some of the 19 cross-country riders have prosthetic limbs, while others with spinal cord injuries or without legs are using specially designed hand-powered bikes. They are from all branches of the service. Among the riders is Paul Bremer, the former diplomat who oversaw Iraq’s provisional government in 2003 and 2004.

They are scheduled to arrive in Champaign around 2 p.m. Tuesday. A welcoming ceremony will be held between 2 and 3 p.m. at Hessel Park in Champaign.

For more info, visit their website.

don't ride your bike on the sidewalk

Urbana police are -- rightly! -- enforcing a prohibition against riding your bike on sidewalks.  You shouldn't be riding on the sidewalk in the first place, but the $100 fine for a citation might be more persuasive than our moralizing.  Here's a blog post from the City of Urbana:

please note that riding bikes on downtown sidewalk is prohibited. Due to the large number of pedestrians walking, diners eating outdoors, and shoppers stepping out of shops, the sidewalk is not a safe place to ride a bicycle. For everyone's safety, the City asks you to dismount and walk your bicycle on downtown sidewalks. Thank you for your cooperation.

Riding a bicycle on downtown sidewalks is punishable by a $100 fine.

The Bike Project's looking for an Americorps volunteer

The Bike Project's hiring for an Americorps position.  Current Volunteer Coordinator Emma is off to school in Oregon and so we're looking for a new Volunteer Coordinator, based at the U-C IMC.  Here's a link to our pdf announcement.  The pdf includes everything you need to know to apply, but if you have any questions, please feel free to email us. 

The deadline's July 5, so act fast!

next tuesday: the bike project general meeting!

Next Tuesday, 29 June at 6pm, The Bike Project shop at the U-C IMC will host The Bike Project's general membership meeting.  Our wiki has an agenda.

All members are welcome.  Food and drinks will be served.  Last time we had sandwiches -- which was cool -- but usually it's pizza, like so:

Hope to see you there!

saturday: tour de fruit

This Saturday, 19 June, C-U will host an impromptu Tour de Fruit, departing from the space outside The Bike Project's U-C IMC shop at 6:30pm.  Details from an email announcement:

Join local bicycle riders and fruit lovers as we excursion through the area. We'll visit a variety of fruit trees, including pears, apples, paw paws, persimmons, plums, apricots, peaches, mulberries, cherries, and juneberries.  Each stop on the route will have time for activities and discussion, and will end with a delicious snack at the end. The purpose of the ride is to share knowledge of trees, identify native edibles, engage with the community, and talk about new ways of navigating our landscape.

The group ride will begin at the IMC Bike Project and end at La Casa, a co-op house where the residents are working on a permaculture food forest.  

3-4 mile ride. Bring a helmet and containers to collect fruit.

Here's a link to the blog entry announcing the Tour. And here, some pix of fruit from around town.

(Update: Smile Politely just posted a C-U Fruit Map!)

new design plus links

If the blog looks prettier lately, it's because I just redid it with blogger's new design templates.  Here's hoping it's now more legible.

I also just added a collection of links to (mostly) local blogs and other (mostly) local sites, both bike-centric and not.  Find them by scrolling down and checking out the righthand column, beneath "archives" and "labels."

If you've got a site or blog you'd like us to link (and want to link us back in return!) email us!

weekend bike events?

We've got some!

First, the Art Gallery Bicycle Tour, which was rained out last weekend, will take place rain or shine this Saturday, 12 June.  It's a self-paced ride around town, punctuated by visits to some of C-U's art galleries.  Entry fee is a $10 and you'll get a discount on food at some participating restaurants. Check out the Champaign Cycles page for more details.  (And read a preview I wrote for last fall's iteration of the Tour.)

This weekend Champaign will also host Taste of C-U in West Side Park.  Some Bike Project volunteers will be volunteering at the bike corral and if you get there by bicycle, you'll get a free drink ticket good at one of the Pepsi tents.  The Champaign Park District website has more info.

(And if you'd like to see some live theater, the U-C IMC's hosting a "woven collage of music, theater, and dance" called Aquatown: A Future Hydrohistory.)

The Bike Project's also got a bunch of open hours this weekend if you'd like to stop by our shops.  The U-C IMC shop will be open 2-5pm on Saturday and Sunday; the Campus Bike Project from 5-9pm on Sunday.

Hope to see you out and about!

"sharrows" coming to philo road

Later this week, Urbana will start painting "shared lane markings" or sharrows on Philo Road, as part of the Urbana Bicycle Master Plan.  Campus shop manager Joel wrote about the city's press release for our favorite local website.

Here's some good lines from the city's press release:

there are several purposes for the shared lane markings on Philo Road south of Colorado Avenue:

• Let motorists know they can expect bicyclists on the road;
• Help bicyclists position themselves in the travel lane (i.e. “take the lane”) since it is too narrow for a bicycle and a vehicle to travel side-by-side in the lane;
• Positioning the bicyclist in the lane will encourage safe passing by motorists (if a bicyclist rides too close to the curb, they risk being squeezed by a motorist trying to pass without leaving their travel lane)

and we're back

We've been on vacation from blogging, spending time scouring rust off old Schwinns with steel wool and elbow grease.  We really should get a Dremel.

But last week we heard that we "should totally blog about the shop!" ... and we agree.

Despite our laxity, we're still in the news!  Smile Politely (our incestuous sort of sister site) featured an article by a U of I journalism student about how we recycle old bikes.  And next week, probably on Monday, 7 June, C-U tv station WCIA's morning show will feature a segment on The Bike Project live from the campus shop.

And if you're looking for some bike-related fun this weekend, check out C-U's Art Gallery Bicycle Tour.  (Here's a preview I wrote for Smile Politely for the last iteration of the Tour.)

One last PSA: if you'd like to contribute to the blog, please email us and let us know.

tomorrow: ride of silence

Tomorrow night -- 19 May at 7pm to be precise! -- C-U will play host to the annual Ride of Silence.  The Ride of Silence aims both to honor cyclists who have been hurt or killed and to raise awareness that cyclists are by-right users of the roads, or, as the slogan goes, that "we are traffic!"

Here's some details from an email to The Bike Project's member listserv:

We start at the parking lot near the assembly hall at First and St. Mary's. The route will be N on first to Stadium Drive, then across 45 (Neil Street) to Randolph and through downtown Champaign, then South on First and then down Green Street, then a bit North on Busey to Main and through downtown Urbana, then South on Vine to ILlinois, then Goodwin, then Pennsylvania, Fourth and back to the lot. It's about 9 miles and we'll be going less than 12 MPH and regrouping whenever we get spread out.  (Note:  this is pending me looking at this on the map -- it's changed a tad from last year so we can ride a little on new bike lanes on Goodwin).

In the past we've had about 35 riders; if riders wear black armbands (a garbage bag cut into strips works) or have a sign on bikes indicating who they're riding for, then it communicates what we're doing to passersby.

The purpose of this ride is

• To HONOR those who have been injured or killed
• To RAISE AWARENESS that we are here
• To ask that we all SHARE THE ROAD; that drivers recognize that there’s room for all of us out here, and that a bicyclist may be around the next corner and has every right to be. 

We are looking for respect, not retaliation; for visibility, not vengeance. Let us show how to share the road by a positive example. Please follow the rules of the road. Ride as you would in a funeral procession; ride predictably.

Point out potholes and road hazards; signal turns and if you slow down. Momentary inattention is the number one cause of accidents -Be aware of what is in front of and BEHIND you, watch your line, and keep your hands near your brakes. 

We are riding as a group, silently but use your judgement regarding both. Allow for breaks in the group when it makes sense.

next monday: the bike project's volunteer mixer

Have you been staffing at The Bike Project?  Are you interested in starting?  Then you should come out to The Bike Project's volunteer mixer next Monday, 17 May at 7:30pm at The Bike Project's shop at the U-C IMC in Urbana.

There will be food and great folks to chat with about volunteering. If you're interested in starting to volunteer, or if you want to continue volunteering this summer, come prepared to let us know when you'll be available. We'll also be redoing some staffing hours and volunteer schedules, so if you'd like or need to switch days, this will be a good chance to do so.

Please let us know if you plan to attend so that we can get a head count on food.

Hope to see you there!

online petition to support a bike-friendly downtown urbana

Tonight the Urbana City Council will meet and discuss their master bicycle plan.  If you can make it to the meeting, you should come out.  If you can't -- and even if you can -- but still want to show support for a bicycle-friendly downtown Urbana, Champaign County Bikes has developed an online petition you can sign to express your support for keeping Urbana bike-friendly.  Here's the details:

For all Champaign County residents - NOT just citizens of Urbana! As Urbana is the County Seat everyone in Champaign County should fill-in this petition.

BACKGROUND
Urbana has been recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists. Creating an active transportation system for Urbana will improve our residents health, add economic benefits, reduce our carbon footprint, and give our community more choices in transportation.

WHAT IS NEEDED
The Urbana City Council approved the Urbana Bicycle Master Plan and an Urbana Downtown Plan that both call for the redesign of Main Street in downtown Urbana implementing a road diet that would improve safety, reduce traffic speeds, create a more attractive environment for shoppers and diners and provide better access for pedestrians and bicyclists. The Urbana Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission also approved this plan as did the Officers and Steering Committee of Champaign County Bikes. Road diets have been shown to slow and calm vehicle traffic and encourage bicyclists and pedestrians to shop and enjoy the downtown. We encourage the city council to proceed with implementation of these plans.

WHY
The Urbana Bicycle Master Plan was created with the assistance of the best professional bicycle and transportation consultants in the state of Illinois along with the City of Urbana staff and extensive public input. It's implementation will provide safe, affordable, and healthy access for bicycling as a regular mode of transportation. In 2008 this plan won awards from both the Illinois Chapter of the American Planning Association and the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations, validating the very high level of expertise and the outstanding quality of Urbana's plan for bicycles in the city's future. Implementation of our excellent bike plan will benefit many generations to come and enhance the vitality of our downtown.

Thank You!
Champaign County Bikes

Please come to the Urbana City Council meeting this coming Monday evening, 5/10/2010.
Urbana City Building, 400 South Vine Street Urbana, IL 61801
Be there at 6:45. Meeting begins at 7:00PM

For more information about the street plan and for Urbana City Council contact information, please visit: http://UrbanaBikeLanes.notlong.com.

this monday: urbana city council holds public discussion on urbana's "master bicycle plan"

This upcoming Monday, 10 May, starting at 7pm in the Urbana City Council Chambers the Urbana City Council Meeting will include a public discussion about implementing Urbana's Master Bicycle Plan.  If you care about bike lanes in Urbana, come out and make your voice heard.  Here's some excerpts from an email to the Champaign County Bikes email list:

There will be an important Urbana City Council Meeting (of Committee of the Whole) next Monday, May 10 starting at 7pm in the Urbana City Council Chambers at 400 S. Vine St. in Urbana.  At this meeting, there will be a discussion about implementing Urbana's Master Bicycle Plan which calls for a road diet and bike lanes to be installed on Main St. in downtown Urbana. This plan is supported by Urbana City Staff, the Urbana Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission and the Officers and Steering Committee of Champaign County Bikes. It has also been endorsed by Ed Barsotti, Executive Director of the League of Illinois Bicyclists.

And yet there is strong opposition to the plan by some of the Downtown Urbana merchants would want to see more parking (angled) on Main Street and no bike lanes, despite the fact that there is an excess of parking space in the downtown area.

...we need people to support the plan to show up at Monday evening's meeting, especially Urbana residents and especially people from anywhere to shop and dine in downtown Urbana.

There are different ways for you to show your support of downtown bike lanes at the meeting, from the least involved and time-consuming to the most:

1. Leave a comment card with your support of the road-diet and bike lanes on Main Street in Downtown Urbana. You can then go home. Your name and comment will be read when the agenda item comes up.

2. Leave a comment card with your support of the road-diet and bike lanes on Main Street in Downtown Urbana. Stay through the discussion of the agenda item. I suggest wearing your bicycle helmet throughout the meeting as a very visible indication to the City Council of your support for bicycle infrastructure in Downtown Urbana (the helmet may also prove useful if an earthquake or tornado strikes Urbana during the meeting).

3. Leave a card requesting to speak as public input at the beginning of the meeting. And then speak. Comments are usually limited to 5 minutes, but may be shortened to 3 minutes of a lot of people want to speak. You can then go home.

4. Leave a card requesting to speak as public input when the item comes up on the agenda. Stick around (with your helmet on) and then speak. Comments are usually limited to 5 minutes, but may be shortened to 3 minutes of a lot of people want to speak.

All other things being equal, comments from those living in Urbana will have more impact on the City Council than comments those living outside Urbana. But comments from those who shop and dine in Downtown Urbana will have impact regardless of their place of residence.

In addition to encouraging bicyclists to come to the Urbana City Council meeting to show their support for the road diet and bike lanes in Downtown Urbana, Champaign County Bikes may be soon circulating a petition for signatures. More information will be provided about this soon.

But for now, put the Monday evening on your calendar and plan to be there if you possibly can. 

congratulations to the bike project's half-marathoners!

Congratulations to The Bike Project volunteers Emma, Barry, Emily, and Todd for completing yesterday's Illinois Half-Marathon!  Thanks, too, to volunteers Carl and Phil for volunteering with the marathon's bike patrol!