10 posts tagged “cycling”
Last Friday Critical Mass snaked around Vancouver like a cobra ready to strike. It was a well attended rally of at 500 to 600 bikes at the Art Gallery Starting Point. Instead of the Ride going thought a major down town streets mass meet up was a Small Group of Politico Bikes Who Were having a Bike to Work Week BBQ. This was all bad news for the Ride now 600 riders needed to get through a very narrow bike lane that would at most free three bikes across. This slowed the ride down and this issue just kept building throughout the ride. Even with this Problem it was a really great mass the Vibe was good. There were aggressive bikes that taunted dives at Intersections. When I was corking a guy in a Mimi on 4th and Burrard Street Two Young Guys Road Up to Him with Camera and Make Some Stupid Comments. I had to tell the bikes to move on and that moment I felt that I was protecting the driver from the bikers as I was protecting bikers from the drivers.
Here is the Ride Route As Posted By Dragon from a Internet form
Super long ride though.
* Art gallery to Helmekan
* Around Science World
* 2nd to Cambie
* Up the side street to Broadway
* Over the Burrard Street Bridge To Georgia
* Over the Viaduct
* Through Chinatown to Gastown
* Through Gastown
* Up Howe to Robson
* Down Robson to Denman
* Over to Georgia
* Onto the Lionsgate Bridge.
* Turn around and to the ultimate downhill through Stanley Park
* Then we lost the route....
No Joke super intense.
I think there were over a thousand people at one point.
My favorite was sitting in the middle of the Lions Gate Bridge.
Totally silent.
It was a Really Great Mass I love to see how the light changed during the ride
Regards
Brian
The day trip started with a simple premise 4 persons on Bicycles ride through Sannich on their way to to Victoria and stop for lunch and return to the ferry terminal which would make for nice day trip. Living thought the ride felt more like a living a Live Eposide of The Amazing Race than a Vancouver Bike Club Day Ride.
Sannich Loop Two Tail looks like fairly flat 80 k day trip from the map posted on the Internet.
Visually it is a great ride which takes you thought the Rolling Hills of Sannich with great views of both Water Landscapes to West and Young Vineyards to East the only problem is there are no road based signs marking the Cycling Route.
So one wrong turn and you are going north when you would have been better off going south. After some careful map reading the group decided to turn around and head to Mount Newton Cross Road back to Sindey to join the Lochside Trail then it was a quick spirit to Victoria where we just made it for the last lunch sitting at Pagliacci"s (Learn about the Opera at this Link) in Victoria and then race back to Tswwassen for the 6pm ferry. Us and our Bicycles were the very last passengers that boarded the ferry. Based our estimates the group road at least 98k in about 5.5hrs of Riding so thats about 18k and hour and we burned at least 4500 calories. It was a fun ride to say the least.
Wow Sometime things just seem to work out better then you could ever plan them . This Saturdays Vancouver Bike Club at the spur of the moment decided to bike to the Burnaby Velodrome. Eleven Bike Club Members set out for a Saturday Bike Ride to Iona Breach club a tried and true destination but I would suggest something different a ride to the Burnaby Velodrome near Simon Fraser University I read on the net Velodrome Track was having a May Days event open to the public.
So at the start of the ride I took a vote 8 people voted to go the Velodrome. That was the Good News but there was a problem for me I did not now exactly how get to the our new chosen destination. Thats were the Team work came in Ben who came from his first ride in a while said he pretty much new the way. Also Cameron as always has a great sense of Bike Routs in the Greater Vancouver area. Neil had his maps and back up GPS system and it was time for the start the ride. It was Overcast sky's but the streets were dry.
We headed east thought the Adanac Street Bike Route to Frances/Union Bike way via Cliff Ave to Barnet Road to the Velodrome there were some hills during the ride but nothing too bad. As we approached the Velodrome there was a short steep hill we had to climb to enter the Velodrome Parking Area. The lot was full of cars but we did not see a any sign of bicycles and there were no bike racks to lock up to. We locked the bike to some posts and into the Velodrome bubble we went. After a short walk to the viewing area I saw my first ever in person bike sprinting going on live in front me.
There were about 25 Riders in Bright Colored Jersey's Speeding around the 200 meter Track in Fixed Gear Bikes as a team member did a hand off they (there were Women and Men on the Track at the same time) would push the other rider forward like a small catapult. The Club watched the racers and got some snacks and turned the whole proccess around for the most part and where back in Vancouver by 1:30 it was about a 45k ride total and I am really glad I did it.
Vancouver Bike Club goes on Spring Blossom Ride. It was a bit cold in Vancovuer for April 21 but nice clear sunny day to ride in. Brian
Fall Critical Mass in Vancouver 07
Lions Gate Bridge Criticalmass May07
Critical Mass Take Lions Gate Bridge for Vancouvers Largest Monthly Moving Party.
Originally uploaded by Brian of Vancouver.
What a nice way to start a weekend
The Seawall Is Closed These Days
Originally uploaded by MontyCat.
Today I went biking with Vancouver Cycling Club and ride came over the Lions Gate Bridge thought Stanley Park wow you see how the seawall is closed. This is were I took my Saturday Summer rides. Although the Seawall may not be open Cycling must go on. Todya was a great sunny day to go cycling.
Their I sit on asphalt delivery guy gets our his car apolgizing. It a short 2.5 k ride with slight incline. I normally take the 10 Ave bike street home. Today was different I decided to stop at the store and get some dinner. It was about 5:30 and it was dark. I was riding with my helmet and two small but working bike head lights. I rode up 13 Ave at a normal speed holding a quart of milk and sandwich in small shoping bag. A door up opens quickly and I tired to move around but before I new it I was feel down. Hitting my Right Shoulder first. It hurt and I was a bit shook up. I could feel my shoulder and knee burning. The man in the 1980' BMW got out of his and apolgized. Although that it was nice that he apologized. I felt that he was selfish for not looking before he open his door and threw my off my bike
Well I now at home with a sore shoulder and a bruise ego but I think hopefully I be ok.
Brian
Last nights Critical Mass ride started with the air of a party. The First Biker I met came by with an open box of chocolates. Of course there was normal talks about bike and the holidays. It really was not a massive group about 30 bikers were at the Art Gallery. One female biker was talking about trip she taken to Mexico were she was acting as observer journalist. Her skills likely came useful later in the nights ride.
For the benefits of readers that do not live in the Vancouver area our City will be Hosting the 2010Winter Olympics and Vancouver's Mayor has made cracking down on social disorder a top priority. Biking with-out a helmet was named as a top cause of social disorder in Vancouver. In this backdrop there increased reports of Bikers in Vancouver getting tickets for running stop signs and not having lights on bikes at night.
At about 6pm the group of Mass rides grew to about 80 rides. I always amazed the range of people that come to ride on Critical Mass. There are the people you expect Young Bike Messengers riding their fixed gear bikes. It the riders you don't except that make the ride so joyous. A guy used his bike as RV with BBQ and cooler attached to a extra long frame. Their are older folks that ride 3speeds with mental fenders and young guys riding an extreme mountain bike with disk brakes rotors that rival the size and stopping power of a full size SUV.
At the start of the ride there were a few announcement about a party at local club with a cover charge that seemed like the main concern to the ride leaders. I always wondered if the people make that important annoucement get a cut of the door take. There was very short safety briefing by a guy who told us that all riders were part of one big bus.
The group was off we went down one set of blocks and turned up Granville Street and then past the Main Library down to Hastings street up the hill toward Commercial drive no real problems except that the riders has spread out over about three blocks.
All of a sudden a gray unmarked police car blocks traffic for the ride at a Commercial Drive intersection at this point I knew the ride was going to have problems I have never seen VPD help a Critical Mass ride before so I decided to speed up and catch up with the pack next thing I know women tells the pack to pull over and we stop by old body shop and wait.
Reports and rumors fly someone got a ticket for not having a helmet, someone else got a ticket for not having lights on their bike and then after about five mins a clean cut guy who has said he was from Toronto a few mins before ride started rode by the pack yelling out "I going home this is getting weird".
The pack talks about if bikes should go back to the police site to support the rider(s) that got sited. No one really seems to want to turn the ride into an all out confrontation and group stays put for about 10 mins listing to box radio playing dance music. Then another cell phone call comes in and its reported to the group women making the announcements at the start of the ride had been arrested and being taken away in a wagon.
The women with cell phone asked people to go back the site of the police incident but there were conditions and well I broke off with a group of about ten riders that decided to the club that was hosting the after ride party that really was not going to be much of party after all. When I got club a young guy that ride a home-made that put him high up in the air started tried to make everyone feel bad because we did not go back to support the other riders.
I decided to nicely tell this guy I did not agree with him and last thing I heard out of his mouth was I glad I did not get a ticket. Which was how I felt myself and I decided to ride home and eat dinner.
Updated Jan 1pm
A rider that was corking (or interacting with drivers) stopped an un-marked police car he was ticketed and two other riders intervened on the corke's behalf were ticked by police for not wearing helmets. One female rider that was very vocal was hand cuffed by police and taken by wagon and later released before being brought to the station for booking. (This is a typical tactic of VPD. Vancouver riders will have to wait for the next Mass to if this type of incident occurs again.
I took this dutch bike for a ride. To be fair I took women's bike since I have short legs it was the only that really fit me.
The bike has very upright ride and good tries, but i felt its really not a bike Vancouver with the type of hills we have here. It great bike for riding short distances on flat ground. The I rode had 8 internal gears which would work good for riding over bridges and up some hills, but the bikes internal shoe brakes do not have the kind of stopping power I have grown to enjoy with current bikes hand pull disk brakes.
The bike has very good fenders and pump and lock built-in.
But for over 1000.00 you could likely but two good bikes with disk brakes for the price of the 8 speed model.
