Why I love to ride

On my way home from lunch with MJ (she's doing the very American thing by WORKING on Independence Day), I stopped and walked the Labyrinth at Audubon Park. It's a little hidden treasure which I cherish. It had just stopped raining, and the weather was beautiful, perfect even - especially for July.

So what does this have to do with bicycles? I walked the circle, trying to be present and enjoy just - well just being. On my ride home, I felt great. I realized that bicycling can be for me an almost a moving meditation. You must be aware of your surroundings (or else). You must be aware physically to keep the bicycle upright. You must be present - and in the moment.

I find when I do all these things - not TRYING to do them, it is AMAZING. Just like any meditation, if you try to hard or get distracted by your internal dialog, you can find yourself frustrated and depressed. When I get on my bike and ride, I try not to think about all the things that weigh me down every day. When I'm successful (and sometimes even when I'm not) getting on the bike almost always puts me in a better mood.

So ride a bike to enlightenment. It's easier than you think.

New Bike Lanes on S. Carrollton Ave.

On my way to a Regional Planning Commission meeting on forming a Complete Streets Citizen Advisory Board, I snapped this picture from the car.  Yes, the car.  Feeling a little under the weather today, I drove to Metairie instead of taking the bicycle.

The bicycle lane has been striped, but now labeled as a bicycle lane yet.  Unfortunately, the bike lane on St. Charles is not even close to being striped, so the Carrollton lane basically is just runs from St. Charles to S. Claiborne Ave.   One of these days, all these bicycle lanes will be CONNECTED, and that will be a joyous day.

Until then, I'll take the little victories.

Critical Mass New Orleans

Today I rode in my first Critical Mass in New Orleans. Apparently this was one of the biggest - if not the biggest Critical Mass ride New Orleans has ever had. The ride started at Jackson Square and went to Jefferson Parish and back to Orleans Parish to highlight that it IS possible to commute from one Parish to another. I think because of the BP oil debacle in the Gulf there were more riders than usual (not to understate).

I'd say the ride had close to 100 people. It was a fantastic ride - up Canal Street then though Old Metaire (where the picture was taken). It was a glorious sight to see all of Airline Highway filled with bicycles - a true critical mass. Along the way we picked up a Jefferson Parish Police escort. When we had to cross the train tracks underneath Earhart Blvd to avoid the Causeway on ramp they couldn't follow - but when we re-emerged on Jefferson Highway we had like 4 cruisers attempting to keep the left lane open to traffic. They kept putting their lights on and forcing cyclists to clear the lane. They only had mixed results because only a few cars actually passed us in the cleared lane. Of course when we got to the Parish line they disappeared.

Most motorists were pretty positive- honking and giving us thumbs up and being pretty patient. Apparently one of the guys who was "corking" had an incident with somebody driving a Lexus decided he couldn't wait and try to pass him by driving up on a median at one point. Seriously? Where are you going to go with 100 bicyclists on the road?

What a great ride. I'm hoping to do it again.

Bicycle Second Line!

Yesterday was MBC's 2nd annual  Bicycle Second Line.  And what a Second Line it was!  We had close to 300 people on bikes for the 13 mile ride from Audubon Park to the French Quarter and back.  It was a glorious sight!

Ironically, I drove a truck all day.  I was in charge of the SAG-wagon (Support And Gear) fixing flats, mechanical breakdowns, etc.  Lauren was riding her bicycle and helping with repairs more than I did - a flat and a brake problem, but nothing major.  I had a thrown chain, and picked the rider and bicycle up and delivered to the end of the ride.  Then a flat I had to pick up and bring back as well.

Best story from the SAG wagon:  A mother and a young girl approached me before the ride started and asked how long the ride was.  I told them it was about 13 miles.  Mom informed me the girl had just learned to ride her bike, "and wanted to go on a big ride."   She picked well, because I think this may have been the biggest group ride in New Orleans - ever.  Anyway, I explained that I was driving the SAG wagon, to help with mechanical problems and riders who couldn't make it.

The girl made it to about Napoleon Ave and we picked her up.  She got out at OC Haley when we stopped, and rode some more, but had a small spill,  and we took her the rest of the way.  I think she probably rode almost half the route!  She helped hand out water from the back of the truck, and later sat in the cab with me and explained it only took her 2 days to learn how to ride her bike once the training wheels were off.

So if driving a truck all day at a bicycle event only gets you a wonderful story about a little girl who just wanted to ride her bike on a big ride with her mom - well, that's enough for me to make it worth everything.

Ride of Silence in New Orleans

Ride of Silence honors all those who have lost their lives or have been injured in a bike/motor vehicle crash.  New Orleans Ride of Silence is today at 7:15pm.  They will be meeting at the St. Charles entrance of Audubon Park. More details here.

Bicycle Rack from Baltimore's Inner Harbor

My wife is visiting her family in Baltimore and sent me this picture from Baltimore's Inner Harbor.  Nice rack!

Sierra Club Delta Chapter focus on bicycling

Sierra Club Delta Chapter is having their meeting this Sunday and their focus is on bicycles. A timely topic considering what's going on in the Gulf right now.  From their calendar:

May 16, 2010:

Sierra Club Program Sunday, May 16, Audubon Zoo, Dominion Auditorium and outside yard. Liz Lichtman and Victor Pizarro will present a bicycle maintenance and repair workshop. 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM. Pre-registration requested. 504-780-8889 to register and for more info.

Social and refreshments from 6:30 PM to 7 PM. At 7 PM, Lauren Sullivan will present a program about the work of NOLA Cycles and bicycling in New Orleans. Also, additional speakers TBA. Parking plentiful and safe in zoo parking lot. Enter gate behind Audubon statue in front of the zoo and turn right. It is some distance to the right of the main public zoo entrance. Free and open to all.

More Details Here.