Hampton Roads area now has three new League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructors

Congratulations to the new certified instructors!

After considerable effort including passing a rigorous course in bike-ed hosted by Greensboro, NC’s planning district commission, the Hampton Roads area now has three new League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructors (LCI for short):

Tommy White- Norfolk
Bruce Drees- Virginia Beach
Stephanie Smith- Williamsburg

Here is a brief description of the L.A.B. education curriculum.

In addition to starting up some courses to help bring about safer and better cycling, one of our first goals is getting more instructors certified to teach in our area. If you are interested or know someone who is, please contact me!

Leave a comment if you want to help with a clinic on Shore Drive whether it's help sponsoring one, or volunteering.

Article about cyclist who went off Pungo Ferry Bridge inspires many comments

Read & comment at Pilotonline.com:

The 18-year-old cyclist took a tumble off the concrete span Sunday morning, falling what rescuers estimate was 35 to 50 feet to the marsh below. He came out of it with a fractured shoulder blade - and not much more.

As of 11:03am it is the most read and most commented article at Pilotonline.com.
That should help raise more awareness for Cycling & Pedestrian Awareness Week!

Report on Biking and Walking Resources in Virginia

From BikeWalk Virginia:

BikeWalk Virginia just completed research to provide the first ever comprehensive picture of the current state of biking and walking planning, resources, accommodations, and safety in the State of Virginia.

And:

In all, study findings supports that more work needs to take place to include biking and walking into the transportation picture. Injury and fatality data shows that more can be done to improve the safety of Virginia roadways for non-motorized users. Not only is inclusion of biking and walking an important part of the transportation needs of Virginia, it is also beneficial for the health of both residents and the environment.

Be sure to follow the link that includes info about the study, Pedestrian & Bicycle Legislation in the General Assembly, Potential Funding for Pedestrian & Bicycle Projects in the Federal Economic Recovery Bill, recommended actions you can take, and more.

4 minute vid about why you shouldn't text while driving

Watch this before you drive.



From a story at NPR.org.

Bruce Drees, TBA's respected Advocacy guru has a piece in the Pilot today

Read the entire piece at his website:

Cities with extensive growth in bike use often see their crash totals hold steady or even decrease. For example, ridership in New York City recently increased from 100,000 to 180,000 a day through bike friendly improvements, yet their number of injuries and fatalities decreased. The same trend has been noted elsewhere. Evidence suggests the more cyclists around, the better everyone does in being alert and working together.

Cars and bikes are compatible to the extent we are willing to make them so.

Help promote Cycling & Pedestrian Awareness Week

This should be every week! The "event" is September 13th - 20th.

Did you know:

Just last year 90 people died walking or cycling on our Virginia roadways. In addition, 716 cyclists and 1,696 pedestrians were injured. A single death or injury is one too many. Increasing knowledge of roadway regulations and safe behaviors may help reduce those numbers.

We all know, that tragically, Shore Drive is the deadliest road in Virginia Beach. Please! Do your part in making it safer everyday by sharing the road respectfully & wisely.

When all users of the transportation system know the law and respect their mutual rights and responsibilities, sharing the road is safe and predictable.

Check info & get materials from Drive Smart Virginia.
Check info & get materials from Sharing The Road In Virginia.

DeSteph working to change legislation to make it illegal to follow bicycles too closely

Following Bicycles too closely - change in legislation

Resolution recognizing bike accomodations passes!

City Council approved the resolution this past Tuesday!
Thank you.


VB Bike Accommodations Resolution - Draft

Resolution recognizing bicycle accomodations will be presented to City Council on August 25th

Va Beach City Council member Rosemary Wilson recently introduced a resolution which recognizes the safety and other advantages of on-road bicycle accomodations, ie. bike lanes, wide curb lanes, shoulders, or signed/marked shared roadways.

Most importantly, it also signifies council's support for inclusion in future major road improvement projects where ever feasible, as well as a look at and backfit of on-road bike facilities within existing roadways. This would be done in a cost effective manor on a priority basis determined by the Public Works department in consultation with the Bikeways and Trails Advisory Committee.

The resolution is on council's agenda for a vote on Tuesday, August 25th at 6pm. Council chambers are located at City Hall Bldg 1, second floor.

This is the moment we've waited on for nearly two decades. It is a giant leap toward a better cycling environment in VB. However, to get the resolution passed we need a significant show of support from each and every cyclist in the city.

Please come show your support for on-road bike facilities at Tuesday's council session. Let's fill every seat and the adjacent hallway too. I am working on two or three speakers on behalf of the resolution in the event it doesn't make the consent agenda.

Ride safe and I hope to see everyone at City Hall this Tuesday night!

Bruce
p.s. Questions or concerns- please contact me at 757.647.3987 or mailto: hrcyclist@cox.net.

A GPS run/walk/ride as an idea for an event

Running, walking, riding, sharing and arting as an idea for an event that includes gpsin'.

This sounds cooler than geocaching.

Part sport, part art, GPS drawing lets runners, walkers, cyclists and hikers imagine themselves... neo-cartographers, jumbo-size doodlers and bipedal pencils, mapping their track lines[.]

Article at NYTimes.com.

Everytrail.com:

With EveryTrail, sharing your trip experiences has become a lot more fun: using a GPS device you can easily plot the exact path you traveled on an interactive map, with your photos positioned on the map at the exact location you took them.

A cool gallery of someone doing this for 10 years.

How cool & appropriate would it be to include this in our Columbus Day Weekend event?