- 1) Hope for Cyclists in No Mans Land, the Davis to Sacramento connection
- 2) Encouraging bike travel to Winters, CA
- 3) J Cunningham at Get Fit Davis to Make Davis Bike Visitors Look Good
- 4) October is Car Free Month i Davis, CA
- 5) The all new National Bicycle Greenway Board
- 6) Amy & Randy Riding Wyoming on their HiWheels
- 7) Lightning Bike Raffle
- 8) Bike Party Davis – Why it’s important
- 9) Busycle in Davis for it’s 100th BD and 50 year anniversary of first bike lane in America
- 10) 2018 Davis NBG Fest Sponsors
Been in dialogue with Diane Swann, of Swann Electric Bicycles, about an expanse of land that long has been a disincentive to riding one’s bike to the CA State Capital or to the epic 35-mile American River Pkwy (described & represented with pictures in this podcast). For that matter, it has also kept the bicycle magic of Davis from being an attractive draw to Sacramento cyclists. The stretch of real estate to which I refer is defined by the Yolo Causeway.
It is here that cyclists are asked to pedal for well over three miles on a concrete path, only separated from the roar of a busy, truck and car filled I-80 by a 3-foot jersey wall and cyclone fencing. And then once they leave this stretch, they enter West Sacramento’s rendition of the historic and once proud Lincoln Hwy (the first coast to coast road, the Lincoln is described HERE). Driveways entering this once important arterial abound. As does broken glass, broken road surface and road debris of all types.
How can this be fixed? While Diane and her husband, John, have spent the last four years trying to get the railroad to close the crossing it has out there (the road from E Davis to the levee) so less cars will use it, there is much we can do about the Yolo Causeway itself. A task force for example has to be set up to figure out why we can’t go through the Causeway at ground level any more. Mr Greenway, Ray Irvin, <podcast he and I did> has become legendary (he’ll be speaking at out Davis NBG Fest on Oct 22) for turning what were once forsaken flood pain lands into one of the finest Greenway systems in the world. As in, similar to what they do back in Indianapolis, when the lower path gets covered by rain, year-round riders return to the Interstate path.
And even the interstate path can be fixed. It needs sound proof plexiglas. Nor are misters a bad idea out there in the summer months.
And then once such cyclists land in West Sacramento, they can be greeted by tarmac that has been kept clean by service clubs wanting to honor the rich heritage of the Lincoln Hwy. Trees need to be planted to make it feel welcome. Interpretive signage can also call out the significance of this road, called West Capital at this point. And as more and more cyclists travel between Davis and the American River Parkway on it, a whole new tourism will result for West Sacramento. Its many roadside lodging purveyors will be pressed into service to accommodate these new travelers. This as the many businesses along the way, will feel called to keep their storefronts clean and their food, drink and merchandise in step with the needs of cyclists.
And yet this has long been a tough fix because there are so many agencies and jurisdictions involved. A task force needs too be formed to get this ball rolling now!! Who wants to help?
2) On Sunday when Eric Warp and I rode to Winters, a front tire flat I had to fix on my Lightning caused us to slow down enough to meet new people. For example, Jeff and Serena stayed around with the floor pump he let me borrow until I got my bike back on the road. We met several helpful others too. And as I futzed around long enough to discover that my rim tape had gotten creased causing the flat, a couple old friends of Eric’s from when he worked in television walked by.
One was Tina Reynolds and through her company, Uptown Studios, she and her partner were busy building Winters tourism. Tina and I talked about the Virtual Tour we are building here from the Hallmark Inn and how I would like to add Steady Eddys and a few other Winters destinations to it. Hopefully Winters, as a result, will have a bigger presence on our maps!!
3) One Davis business that sees the bigger picture of what we are doing is J Cunningham Salon. Located at the beautiful Get Fit Davis health club in E Davis . Margaret Ramos, the owner, loves athletes and wants to keep cyclists looking good. She is also excited about being on a national map that shows cyclists where to ride, eat, sleep, shop and play in the bike capital of America, Davis. As well as the Virtual Tour that will being cyclists to her from the Hallmark Inn!!
4) Just found out that October is Car Free Month here in the City of Davis! Can”t wait to learn all of what Davis Bike Coordinator,Jennifer Donofrio, has up her sleeve! Of which I will keep you posted!!
The fastest man to cross the USA on a Hiwheel bike (29 days), Steve Stevens long has made his mark at the top of any of the games he plays. From his celebrated bike museum to the life he lives in what is arguably the most fully sustainable home in all of the world, Steve does nothing half way. So the fact that he will be helping us connect the coasts with a bikeway, should tell you how close we are to lots and lots of big developments as we relaunch the National Bicycle Greenway . Yahoo!!
Steve joins another legend, Mr Greenway himself, Ray Irvin.
Our new board also includes former aerospace engineering leader and still long time maker of Lightning Cycle Dynamics, the world’s fastest production bikes, Tim Brummer.
Sam Citron, an ardent recumbent cyclist and Harvard educated attorney has also come aboard.
As has Tom Ayres, another cyclist bitten. by the recumbent bug and a widely respected, PhD level safety consultant.
6) 19 days without a rest day, Amy & Randy Oleynik still have the hammer down as they power through Wyoming. No longer on I80, they are seeing an America most of this world does not have time for. You will get to meet Amy when I interview her about her ride at our Oct 22, Davis NBG Fest!!
HERE is their blog!
And HERE is the legendary Thomas Stevens, whose ride they are seeking to replicate
7) This is the bike, the Lightning Cycle Dynamics Phantom, we are raffling off now as a part of our Davis NBG Fest
For as little as 10 bux you can help us as you take a chance at winning this beautiful, well rounded speed machine HERE
8) Produced by volunteers & the City of Davis, Bike Party Davis is a non-athletic experience with lots of stops, laughter & talk. Fourth Friday of the month!
A non-athletic clean & sober party on wheels, with lighted bikes and trikes short, long and tall as well as bikes towing music, dogs and kids, our monthly rides here in the Bike Capital of America, show the fun that can be had while casually pedaling a two or three-wheeled machine. A by-product of giving Davisites this recreational outlet is that Bike Party Davis rides demonstrate the quality of life that has resulted from our making the bicycle a top priority in the transportation mix.
When people from other cities all over the nation and the world come to our rides and discover that what appears from its freeways and car roads is not the real Davis, they learn that the only way one can see and appreciate our city is from a bicycle seat.
Once newcomers experience our traffic calmed and wide bike-laned streets, as well as our many under and over crossings and pathways and greenbelt arterials, we feel we are also serving the international community. This is so because the example we have set plants the seed for what is possible in other cities and towns all over this continent and beyond.
Bike Party ………… Davis!!
9) Met with Davis Bike Coordinator, Jennifer Denodrio yesterday about bike stuff. One topic we discussed was bringing the Busycle to Davis. Those who have long followed my National Bicycle Greenway mailings will remember all the fun we had with the Busycle in Palo Alto. There city and country luminaries from throughout the SF Bay Area and cyclists of every stripe much enjoyed our 15-person car bike.
The brain child of Matt Mazzotta, nearly a hundred people in the Boston area, all played a part in turning a 1979 Dodge cargo van into a fun people powered vehicle using only recycled ingredients. Even MIT and the esteemed David Godron Wilson PhD, all played a part in making it real. HERE is a more detailed explanation of what it is – while HERE are the past rides we did on it!
And if Jennifer can work the magic needed, it will become a part of Bike Party Davis as well as next year’s 50 year anniversary of the first bike lane in America here in Davis. As well as the city’s 100-year birthday party!
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