Archive for the ‘DFW Cycling’ Category
Traffic Skills 101 Classes In Richardson, Texas – September and October 2015
Because my city, Richardson, is such a Bike Friendly Community, I thought it would be great to hold a couple of Traffic Skills 101 classes this fall.
Traffic Skills 101 (TS101) gives cyclists the confidence they need to ride safely and legally in traffic or on the trail. Through TS101, students learn how to conduct bicycle safety checks, fix a flat, on-bike skills and crash avoidance techniques. We recommended this class for adults and children above age fourteen. The curriculum is fast-paced, and prepares cyclists for a full understanding of cycling on Richardson streets.
Traffic Skills 101 Curriculum
Part I: The Basics
• The Bicycle
• Maintenance Basics
• Clothing and Equipment
• Bicycle Handling
Part II: Bicycling in Traffic
• Your Role in Traffic
• Avoiding Crashes
• Hazard Avoidance Maneuvers
Part III: Enjoying the Ride
• Riding Enjoyment
• Ride Etiquette
• Helping Motorists Share the Road
Required to participate in this class:
– Bicycle in good working condition
– Helmet that fits
– Completion of online portion of course – info provided upon registration
– Cash for lunch
There will be 2 classes available:
Option 1:
Date: Saturday, September 12, 2015
Time: 9:00a.m. – 3:30p.m.
Location: Huffhines Recreation Center – 200 N. Plano Rd., Richardson, TX 75081
Cost: $50
Option 2:
Date: Saturday, October 17, 2015
Time: 9:00a.m. – 3:30p.m.
Location: Heights Recreation Center – 711 W Arapaho Rd., Richardson, TX 75080
Cost: $50
All tuition will be used to cover class expenses. Any remaining funds will be rolled back into the BFR education program.
Go here to register. Sorry. There is no deep link to this class. You’ll need to click on the “Adult” category in the side menu.
Richardson Texas Gets Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community Status
It’s no surprise to me, since I ride in this city all the time.
Today, the League of American Bicyclists recognized Richardson, Texas with a Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community (BFCSM) award, joining 350 visionary communities from across the country.
With the announcement of 42 new and renewing BFCs today, Richardson joins a leading group of communities, in all 50 states, that are transforming our neighborhoods.
“We applaud this new round of communities for investing in a more sustainable future for the country and a healthier future for their residents and beyond,” said Andy Clarke, President of the League of American Bicyclists. “The growing number of leaders taking up bicycling as a way of solving many complex community problems is encouraging. We look forward to continuing to work with these communities as we move closer to our mission of creating a bicycle-friendly America for everyone.”
The BFC program is revolutionizing the way communities evaluate their quality of life, sustainability and transportation networks, while allowing them to benchmark their progress toward improving their bicycle-friendliness. With this impressive round, there are now 350 BFCs in all 50 states. The Bronze BFC award recognizes Richardson’s commitment to improving conditions for bicycling through investment in bicycling promotion, education programs, infrastructure and pro-bicycling policies.
This is a big deal in north Texas. Even though many cities in the area – including Fort Worth, Plano and Frisco – have received an Honorable Mention, Richardson is the first north Texas city to be recognized as a Bike Friendly Community. With it’s many bike lanes, growing trail network and interconnecting neighborhoods, this is a well deserved recognition.
There were many other variables involved in earning this status, including a great city management team – encouraged by a city council with a vision to create a great city. Richardson is also growing a strong bike community – supported by local and regional advocates like Bike Friendly Richardson and BikeDFW.
Richardson is just getting started. They’re hoping that Bronze is just a stepping stone to an even better, more robust bike community. They also hope to see that the many great efforts of their neighboring cities get recognized by the League as well.
I hope that this recognition becomes a way to motivate other north Texas cities to work harder to become bike friendly as well. Let’s keep this momentum going.
You can find the latest list on the League of American Bicyclists site or click here.
Bike To Work Day Energizer Stations 2015 – Recap And Pics
Earlier last month was the Bike League’s National Bike To Work Day. For the fourth year, Bike Friendly Richardson, worked with BikeDFW and DART to set up a bike commuter Energizer Station at DART‘s Arapaho rail station in Richardson.
Because interest in these stations continues to grow, BikeDFW and DART were able to set up another 9 stations throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth area, including Plano, Garland, Irving, Addison, Carrollton, Oak Cliff, and two locations in Downtown Dallas. Unfortunately, May was a really wet month, with record rainfall in our area. Bike To Work Day, was no exception. Reports came back that those stations had less success greeting bicycle commuters than previous years.
The Richardson station was still pretty successful. We had a dozen bike commuters stop by our Energizer Station, where we provided them with snacks and breakfast tacos. We also handed out lots of swag donated by DART and NCTCOG as well as energy bars provided KIND. Richardson Bike Mart was out to do bicycle safety checks.
Although it was a lighter turnout than we had hoped, it’s still apparent that folks around the Dallas area are starting to look at bicycle commuting as an viable form of alternate transportation – which most feel is hard to do in a city built for cars. Because of this, we will continue to host these stations on Bike To Work Day – rain or shine.
Here are a few pics from the Richardson event:
Dallas Area Bike To Work Day Energizer Stations – 2015
Mark your calendars! Friday, May 15, 2015 is The League of American Cyclists‘ National Bike To Work Day. IF there is ever a day to ride to work, make it this day. Think about the positive statement we’ll be making as cyclists, safely using an alternate form of transportation.
Based on our great success in Richardson 3 years ago, which grew to 5 stations around Dallas 2 years ago, and up to 9 stations last year, BikeDFW, DART and local bike groups have partnered up to host another 9 Bike Commuter Energizer Stations around the Dallas/Fort Worth area:
• GARLAND – DART Downtown Garland Station
• DALLAS – DART St. Paul Station
• DALLAS – Young Street (Library Staff)
• OAK CLIFF – DART Oakenwald Street Car Stop
• RICHARDSON – DART Arapaho Station
• PLANO – DART Parker Road Station
• IRVING – TRE South Irving/Heritage Crossing station
• CARROLLTON – DART Trinity Mills Station
• ADDISON – DART Addison Transfer Station
DATE: Friday, May 15, 2015
TIME: 6:30-9:00 am
We will be providing snacks, beverages and FREE bicycle safety checks at most stations.
Let us know you are coming on our Facebook Event Page.
SPONSORS FOR ALL STATIONS:
DART
KIND Snacks
MORE DETAILS TO COME.
Live Kickstarter Campaign!
I love supporting my local bike community.
A couple of local, Oak Cliff advocates and BFOC board members have a start up company manufacturing cargo bicycles right here in north Texas! Please help support them by checking out their rewards, many from other local businesses like Oil and Cotton and Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters! We’d love to see them reach their funding goal so they can design and build a new, scratch built cargo bicycle frame to compliment the recycled frames they’re currently building. Go to http://oakcliffcargobicycles.com/kickstarter or launch the campaign from the link below.
Originally posted on Oak Cliff Cargo Bicycles:
Recap And Pics From Last Weekend’s Bicycling Skills 123 Class
Last weekend, BikeDFW was asked to help out a local Boy Scout troop earn their merit badge in cycling, so we held a Bicycling Skills 123 clinic in Allen, Texas. Not only did we have the opportunity to teach some great kids, but also their parents. We wanted to leave this group with some good bicycle knowledge, so that the whole family can work together to ride safely. I feel that if the parents are safe riders, the kids will pick that up from them.
It was great to see the progress these kids have made, especially since many of them couldn’t even ride a few weeks ago. They were part of our successful learn to ride program.
It was also great to have three new League Cycling Instructors to help teach the class. Two of them came from Fort Worth, which is quite a distance from Allen.
Here are a few pics from the class.
My Ride To Dallas City Hall
For the past few years, local bike advocacy group, Bike Friendly Oak Cliff, has hosted a month long bike event called Cyclesomatic. One part of that event is the Bike to City Hall ride – which always happens on a work day, early in the morning. I’ve always wanted to participate in this ride, but couldn’t find the time to bike into Dallas from my house in Richardson, then back out to my job in Carrollton.
Finally, on their sixth year, I made the time. I saw a post on Facebook that a local cyclist friend was riding down early that morning to catch the event. I checked my calendar and workload, and for once, my morning was meeting and deadline free. I decided to join him.
We met up at a local shopping center in Richardson at about 6:00 am., when it was still dark and I was still half asleep. Most of the ride through town was before rush hour and traffic was pretty light. The great thing about riding into downtown Dallas from Richardson, is that most of the route is multi-purpose trail. Once we hit the Cottonwood Creek Trail, it was just a matter of jumping onto the White Rock Creek Trail then the Santa Fe Trail – which takes us mostly into downtown Dallas.
Overall, we rode about 25 miles in about an hour and a half – a slow but fun pace. I really enjoyed the view of White Rock Lake, just before the sun came up.
We met up with many other riders at Main Street Park. After hanging out for a bit and taking a few pictures, the whole group – including some Dallas City Council members – headed out for a really slow paced ride to Dallas City Hall. This was obviously a ride to make a statement. As we rolled safely through the morning, rush hour traffic, there were lots of waves to and from our parade of two-wheeled advocates.
When we arrived at Dallas City Hall, the whole group gathered outside to listen to a presentation from the City Council members who rode with us, as well as a few other city officials. Our new, local advocacy group, The Dallas Bicycle Coalition, even go a special recognition certificate for all of their efforts.
Overall it was a great morning, and I hope to do this ride again. Here are a few more pics from the event. Click here to see the entire set.
Summer Vacation
Well, my summer vacation came and went without much to write about. There were lots of variables that got in the way of a proper vacation or any kind of travel.
The first was money. Hotels and transportation for a family of 4 always seems to cost more than what’s available after several unexpected expenses this year – including auto repairs, vet bills, appliance replacement and various other household costs. Perhaps with a little better planning and better saving, we might get away next year.
Even if cost wasn’t a factor, there have been other issues that happened this year. Without getting into too much detail, we have a family member who is suffering from health problems and is requiring a significant life change, and our family is having to focus on that. In fact, a good portion of my time off was spent working to help facilitate some of that change.
Even so, my vacation wasn’t always that productive. We did manage to squeeze in a trip to the Perot and a few hours at the city pool. It was really nice spending more time with my family.
I also gave myself a goal to ride my bike every day, even if it was a short distance. I ended up riding 9 days in a row, totaling over 117 miles. Sure, it wasn’t any kind of Grand Tour, but it was enough to wind down and recharge.
Isn’t that what a vacation is truly about?
Bike League’s Andy Clarke Visits North Texas
We are very fortunate to have a League of American Bicyclist board member, Gail Spann living in north Texas. Her dedication to cycling and bike education is an inspiration for many bicyclists, advocates and enthusiasts. This past weekend, she and her husband, Jim, hosted a visit from the League’s president, Andy Clarke, who came to talk to us about Bike Education and the Bike Friendly Communities Program in north Texas.
Given that our time with Andy was limited and wanting to keep this visit focused, we set up two meetings with just a few key instructors, advocates, industry leaders and city officials.
Bike Education:
The first meeting – which was held Sunday evening at Gail’s house – was about the current education program, were several local LCIs (League Cycling Instructors) met with Andy for dinner and a ’round table’ discussion. We discussed ways to make the program better and how to reach a larger audience. Quite a few good ideas were discussed and many of us left the meeting inspired and ready to move the program forward.
Bike Friendly Communities:
The second meeting – held on Monday evening at the Plano Parks and Recreation office – was about north Texas and the the Bike Friendly Communities Program. Attending, were representatives of BikeTexas, BikeDFW, Bike Friendly Richardson, Bike Friendly Oak Cliff and Plano Bicycle Association, city officials from Dallas, Fort Worth, Plano and Richardson, and industry leaders from Richardson Bike Mart and Plano Cycling and Fitness.
At this meeting, city officials were able to openly discuss the efforts that have been made towards bicycling infrastructure, issues and concerns with the Bike Friendly Communities Program and ways to get clear benchmarks moving forward. It was evident that many of the city officials weren’t expecting a ranking based on the current program, but wanted to see some sort of recognition for the expenses and efforts made so far. They felt that having this would help motivate and inspire city management and council to continue investing in bicycling education and infrastructure.
Given the limited amount of time, we were able to have a good conversation with Andy Clarke, and he was able to assure us that the League of American Bicyclists was listening and willing to help us achieve our goals of becoming bike friendly communities. It was nice to be able to have this direct link to the League to make it clear that cycling is growing in north Texas and we are a strong community of bicycle riders.
Watch Out For Road Hazards
I saw this on Alma Road in Plano, Texas, the city that neighbors mine. I’m not sure if this was painted by the city or by a concerned citizen, but it definitely caught my eye. Unfortunately, with it’s placement right next to the actual hazard, so it’s too late to do anything to avoid it.
Perhaps the city of Plano will fix this road soon, because it’s one of the best routes for cyclists into town.
