Queen City Bike

I-471 construction may postpone Riverside Drive bike lanes

2012-02-24T17:23:54Z

Bike lanes were scheduled to be installed on Riverside Drive last summer, but then got postponed until 2012 because Duke Energy was going to be doing some work in the area. City of Cincinnati Department of Transportation has learned that there may be some construction occurring on I-471 in the near future, so DOTE is considering “indefinitely postponing” the bike lane project on Riverside Drive because they believe the possible construction congestion on I-471 may cause some motorists to use Riverside Drive as an alternative. Note: Riverside may not be able to handle the extra traffic if DOTE removes a travel lane to install bike lanes.

Postponing the bike lane project is unfair for two reasons:

There is no guarantee that substantial I-471 traffic would shift to Riverside Drive;
East End already deals with commuters speeding through their neighborhood on a daily basis. It’s time for DOTE to make Columbia Parkway the obvious alternative for motor vehicle commuters by going ahead with this project, which will reduce traffic and speeding in a residential area

Take Action HERE:

Queen City Bike Retreat 2012

2012-02-24T16:55:18Z

This Saturday!

Queen City Bike’s Annual Retreat

Queen City Bike is a volunteer-based organization that aims to make bicycling safe, accessible, and enjoyable for the local community. This is your time to share with us your bicycle-related goals for the Greater Cincinnati region. This will affect the bikeability of your city, your neighborhood, and your block. We will be reviewing our progress over the past year as well as setting new goals for Queen City Bike for 2012.

When: February 25, 2012 9am to 1pm

Where: Roebling Point Books 306 Greenup Street, Covington, KY

Limited seating; order your tickets today.

Sneak Peak at Bike Month 2012

May is the national celebration of all things bike! Queen City Bike volunteers are gearing up for the 2012 fête in the Greater Cincinnati Area. If you bike for transportation, fitness, or just plain fun there will be an event for you. Here is a peek at some of this years Bike Month Events:

Bike Art Poster Contest
Bike Prom
Bikes and Brews
Library Bike Expo- A family friendly display of unique bikes and children’s crafts plus more!

Attention local businesses and organizations!

May is the national celebration of all things bike. Join as an official sponsor of Bike Month 2012.

Last Call!

For Bike Month Rides & Events

Bike Month activities are coordinated by Queen City Bike, but many community organizations, individuals and businesses offer two wheeled deals, lead rides, events and lectures throughout the month. If you or your organization would like to get involved in bike month please email us with your contact info and identify your proposal. Our email is bikemonth@queencitybike.org.

Polishing up Purple People Bridge

2012-02-23T21:58:49Z

By Jay Hanselman
2/23/2012 2:25:18 PM

Since last spring volunteers and private donors have been making improvements on the Ohio side of the Purple People Bridge.

Those include painting, removing overgrown bamboo plants and adding flowers.

Council Member Laure Quinlivan and others gathered Thursday to unveil 3 new purple benches.

She said all the work is being done without tax dollars.

“We’re not going to do anything with it as a city because we don’t own the bridge. The bridge is owned by Kentucky,” Quinlivan said. “But that doesn’t mean we should ignore it. And I know that citizens care about it and you know this is proof, because when we started leading this initiative the general reaction was it’s about time.”

Quinlivan is working to find private sponsors for a couple of others projects.

Those include a gateway welcoming people crossing the Purple People Bridge to the city and a kiosk with maps of things to see in the city.

Mobo Winter Workshop Series 2012 – Feb 27: Brakes 101

2012-02-22T22:10:37Z

MoBo

Monday 7:00pm until 9:00pm

Mobo Bicycle Cooperative, 1415 Knowlton, Northside

Brakes 101: Have questions about bikes? Like can my boyfriend really get a sexually transmitted infection from the saddle of a borrowed bicycle? Or is it possible to get pregnant by riding a boy’s bike?

In this session we’ll address none of those questions but we will answer some of your basic questions about brakes! Coaster brakes, V-brakes, cantilever brakes, caliper brakes, you name it, almost every kind of brake except disc brakes. So, if you have a question that doesn’t involve disc brakes, the odds are even that you may learn something about brake cables, housing, pads, and fourth hand tools. (But if you ask about disc brakes, you will be asked to leave!).

This is the fourth in a series of eight Winter Workshops. The workshops are all free and open to the public. Invite your friends!

https://www.facebook.com/events/275617605836059/

Other workshops include:

March 5: Shifters & Derailleuers

March 12: Wheel Basics

March 19: Hubs & Bottom Brackets

March 26: Headsets

Queen City Wheels – 33k Time Trial Series

2012-02-21T14:52:28Z

Queen City Wheels

QCW will once again sponsor a longer distance Spring Time Trial Series in 2012, but in a new location!

The purpose of the 33k Time Trial Series is to give our QCW members an opportunity for training at a distance which is greater than what is typically available in this area. It more closely replicates the distances that you might expect at the District or National Time Trial Championships. This event is also great experience for road racers who want to improve their skills at breakaways or bridging the gap back to the peloton after being dropped (should that ever happen to any of us!).
The 2012 Series will be held at 10:00 AM on the second Saturday of each month as follows:

Saturday, March 10
Saturday, April 14
Saturday, May 12
Saturday, June 9

REGISTRATION / START / FINISH
William Henry Harrison Tomb State Memorial
North Bend, OH

More Information HERE:

D.C. After Dark, Brought to You by the Helmet Cam

2012-02-21T14:45:11Z

bicycling.com

A bike commuter on impatience, stoplights, and the beauty of the Capitol at night.

By Bill Walsh

So, I bought a helmet camera. You might be shaking your head—and so am I, I see as I view the footage. I used a Flip camera strapped to the handlebars to record my daytime ride to work a few months back, and it took all manner of third-party plug-ins and re-rendering to “de-shake” that video. So I bought a Countour Roam, assuming that a high-definition device on my helmet, employing the steady-cam that is the human neck, neck might produce better results.

And it did, but there is still a noticeable Nina Blackwood quality to the proceedings. You might be nodding, if you’re among the three people who watched MTV with me in its early days and referred to that particular VJ as “Hurricane Head.” Otherwise, there’s four seconds of your life that you’ll never get back. Sorry. Anyway, I have this camera now that, as I said last week, makes me look like Marvin the Martian, and now I bike like a cinematographer. (No, Nina, if you’re reading, that’s not akin to walking like an Egyptian.)

This enterprise might require me to invest in even more terabytes of computer storage space, but I like the idea that if something interesting happens, I’ll be able to say to my wife and my brothers and my imaginary friends, “Here, look! See?” And if something bad happens, I’ll be able to say that to the police, even if the results are likely to be less than satisfying. Knowing my own behavior is being recorded might also tend to suppress the urge to be less than civil in the event of unpleasantness. I still mutter things I probably shouldn’t mutter, but the mike (that’s right, kids, it’s not a “mic”) isn’t that great anyway.