Saturday, November 14, 2009
Trekking Along the Hillsborough River
Sterling weather -- cool and dry in the mornings -- makes for stunning photos along the Hillsborough River.
Catching Up At Flatwoods This Morning
A crisp, cool and dry November morning brought out bicyclists by the dozens all around the Tampa Bay area.
Take Flatwoods county park, for example, where it was a regular social bike round-up.
I did my usual ride from Seminole Heights to Flatwoods and met my pal, Ranger Rick, collecting $2 fees at the Morris Bridge Road entrance, then cycled through the loop and saw my fellow Seminole Heights bicycling Alan Badia -- one of the fastest cyclists in Tampa.
When I reached the Bruce B. Downs Blvd. side of Flatwoods, I met Oliver's Cycle Sports owner Randy Myhre, a SWFBUD member who was at the parking lot for a Trel demo day. If it's a Trek demo day, Trek central Florida rep Andrew Young is not too dar away and I met with Andrew at Flatwoods as well. Wrenching for Andrew Young was Andrew of Carrollwood Bicycle Emporium.
Hanging out at the BBD entrance was Flatwoods manager Eddie Anderson, who I caught up with.
Then it was a ride through the park back to Morris Bridge Road and at the parking lot there was Doreen Jesseph, who got a new road bicycle and is a Seminole Heights Bicycle Club member and married to Doug Jesseph, who I plan to see Sunday morning at the Horrible Hundred ride in Clermont.
Take Flatwoods county park, for example, where it was a regular social bike round-up.
I did my usual ride from Seminole Heights to Flatwoods and met my pal, Ranger Rick, collecting $2 fees at the Morris Bridge Road entrance, then cycled through the loop and saw my fellow Seminole Heights bicycling Alan Badia -- one of the fastest cyclists in Tampa.
When I reached the Bruce B. Downs Blvd. side of Flatwoods, I met Oliver's Cycle Sports owner Randy Myhre, a SWFBUD member who was at the parking lot for a Trel demo day. If it's a Trek demo day, Trek central Florida rep Andrew Young is not too dar away and I met with Andrew at Flatwoods as well. Wrenching for Andrew Young was Andrew of Carrollwood Bicycle Emporium.
Hanging out at the BBD entrance was Flatwoods manager Eddie Anderson, who I caught up with.
Then it was a ride through the park back to Morris Bridge Road and at the parking lot there was Doreen Jesseph, who got a new road bicycle and is a Seminole Heights Bicycle Club member and married to Doug Jesseph, who I plan to see Sunday morning at the Horrible Hundred ride in Clermont.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Another Dubious Distinction For Tampa
If you think it's dangerous to ride a bicycle in the Tampa Bay area consider the perils of the oldest form of transportation: walking. Tampa Bay ranks as the SECOND most dangerous place to walk in the country, according to a report released Monday.
Places that are dangerous to walk or ride a bicycle do not thrive as quality-of-life communities and there are economic consequences for cities such as Tampa that are not committed to building adequate infrastructure for pedestrians and bicyclists. People do not use businesses as much as they would if it's unsafe to bike or walk to them.
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio is a nice lady who says all the right things publicly, but the bottom line is that she has failed to financially support public works-transportation projects that would make Tampa a safe place to walk and ride a bicycle. She gets an F for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure.
Kudos to Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe who posted the pedestrian report on Facebook. Sharpe -- along with Tampa City Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena -- is the only politician in Hillsborough County who understands that cities only flourish when they embrace, design and build infrastructure that accommodates pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users -- and not just cars.
Places that are dangerous to walk or ride a bicycle do not thrive as quality-of-life communities and there are economic consequences for cities such as Tampa that are not committed to building adequate infrastructure for pedestrians and bicyclists. People do not use businesses as much as they would if it's unsafe to bike or walk to them.
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio is a nice lady who says all the right things publicly, but the bottom line is that she has failed to financially support public works-transportation projects that would make Tampa a safe place to walk and ride a bicycle. She gets an F for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure.
Kudos to Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe who posted the pedestrian report on Facebook. Sharpe -- along with Tampa City Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena -- is the only politician in Hillsborough County who understands that cities only flourish when they embrace, design and build infrastructure that accommodates pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users -- and not just cars.
Monday, November 9, 2009
A Share the Road Sign Is Part of Today's tbt* Cover
During the last year, I have lobbied for SWFBUD before local Hillsborough County planning and transportation agencies to include bicycling as part of any transportation plan.
Today on the cover of the free daily tbt* you saw a "Share the Road" sign along with a bus and a train as part of a "2035 Vision Transportation Plan" being proposed by the Tampa/Hillsborough County MPO (Metropolitan Trainiong Organization).
A few years ago bicycling was seen as a gringe activity in Tampa but slowly we're becoming a political player on the local landscape.
Keep telling your local officials that you want more bicycle infrastructure in the Tampa Bay area because communities that embrace bicycling in all its forms flourish economically
Today on the cover of the free daily tbt* you saw a "Share the Road" sign along with a bus and a train as part of a "2035 Vision Transportation Plan" being proposed by the Tampa/Hillsborough County MPO (Metropolitan Trainiong Organization).
A few years ago bicycling was seen as a gringe activity in Tampa but slowly we're becoming a political player on the local landscape.
Keep telling your local officials that you want more bicycle infrastructure in the Tampa Bay area because communities that embrace bicycling in all its forms flourish economically
The Challenge of Sharing the Road
Bicycle Stories correspondent Picot Floyd sends me in a few paragraphs from a LA Times story about a car driver who hurt two bicyclists in California and highlights the challenge of creating roads that accommodate both bicyclists and cars:
Mandeville Canyon Road is a two-lane, dead-end road that twists and climbs for six miles through a quiet Brentwood neighborhood. "It's perfect for bicycling -- like honey to bears," says Jeffrey Courion, former public policy director for Velo Club La Grange, a bicycle touring and racing club.
But with just one lane in each direction and limited visibility in some places, the road has also become a flash point for conflicts between motorists and cyclists. "It's a problem of people competing for space," Courion says.
That competition turned ugly in July 2008. Brentwood doctor Christopher Thomas Thompson is currently facing trial in the L.A. County Superior Court, charged with four felony counts related to a collision with two bicyclists in Mandeville Canyon. The injured cyclists allege that Thompson deliberately pulled in front of them, then slammed on his brakes, intending to hurt them. Thompson's attorney argues that the cyclists had yelled profanities at Thompson and were to blame for the accident.
The number of people riding bicycles has exploded in recent years. U.S. census statistics released in September show a 43% increase in bike commuting nationwide between 2000 and 2008, and Courion's bike club, which often rides in Mandeville Canyon, has seen its numbers nearly double to nearly 500 in the last several years.
This surge of new bicycles on the road frustrates some motorists, leading to antagonism and altercations of which the Mandeville Canyon incident is an extreme example. And though data suggest that cycling fatalities have actually fallen nationwide, one new study suggests that the injuries cyclists suffer in traffic accidents are becoming more severe.
Mandeville Canyon Road is a two-lane, dead-end road that twists and climbs for six miles through a quiet Brentwood neighborhood. "It's perfect for bicycling -- like honey to bears," says Jeffrey Courion, former public policy director for Velo Club La Grange, a bicycle touring and racing club.
But with just one lane in each direction and limited visibility in some places, the road has also become a flash point for conflicts between motorists and cyclists. "It's a problem of people competing for space," Courion says.
That competition turned ugly in July 2008. Brentwood doctor Christopher Thomas Thompson is currently facing trial in the L.A. County Superior Court, charged with four felony counts related to a collision with two bicyclists in Mandeville Canyon. The injured cyclists allege that Thompson deliberately pulled in front of them, then slammed on his brakes, intending to hurt them. Thompson's attorney argues that the cyclists had yelled profanities at Thompson and were to blame for the accident.
The number of people riding bicycles has exploded in recent years. U.S. census statistics released in September show a 43% increase in bike commuting nationwide between 2000 and 2008, and Courion's bike club, which often rides in Mandeville Canyon, has seen its numbers nearly double to nearly 500 in the last several years.
This surge of new bicycles on the road frustrates some motorists, leading to antagonism and altercations of which the Mandeville Canyon incident is an extreme example. And though data suggest that cycling fatalities have actually fallen nationwide, one new study suggests that the injuries cyclists suffer in traffic accidents are becoming more severe.
On The Road To Plant City
If you have been cycling the last two days you know the winds are strong out of the east -- a fact of life I accepted while cycling into the teeth of the steady gusts while biking east on US 92 from Tampa to Plant City Sunday morning.
I used a bathroom at the Seminole Hard Rock Sunday morning and is there a more depressing scene than old blobs of people sitting like zombies in front of slot machines, with a cigarette dangling out of the cornr of their mouths.
Then it was off to Plant City after cycling a bit on the I-4/US 92 ramp to Seffner but not before I took in the view of the biggest confederate flag at the I-4/I-75 junction. Makes Tampa Bay so proud, doesn't it, to see the Confederate Flag flying at the crossroads of our region's two major highways?
Confederate flag fans pay tribute by leaving a Marlboro pack in front of the flag at a small parking lot in front of the flagpole.
Vending by bicycle along US 92 on the way to Plant City.
Beautiful outdoor artwork: Wild boar vs. boar-fighting canine.
In doubt about the marketing approach for your business? Just put sexy legs on whatever you'r trying to sell -- like long-legged sandwiches at Norma's on US 92 in Plant City.
I used a bathroom at the Seminole Hard Rock Sunday morning and is there a more depressing scene than old blobs of people sitting like zombies in front of slot machines, with a cigarette dangling out of the cornr of their mouths.
Then it was off to Plant City after cycling a bit on the I-4/US 92 ramp to Seffner but not before I took in the view of the biggest confederate flag at the I-4/I-75 junction. Makes Tampa Bay so proud, doesn't it, to see the Confederate Flag flying at the crossroads of our region's two major highways?
Confederate flag fans pay tribute by leaving a Marlboro pack in front of the flag at a small parking lot in front of the flagpole.
Vending by bicycle along US 92 on the way to Plant City.
Beautiful outdoor artwork: Wild boar vs. boar-fighting canine.
In doubt about the marketing approach for your business? Just put sexy legs on whatever you'r trying to sell -- like long-legged sandwiches at Norma's on US 92 in Plant City.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
