Casual Encounters in the Pacific Northwest
Casual Encounters in the Pacific Northwest is a sellf-published photo zine from Brian Barnhart, showing off the friends and places that bikes take us more than the bikes themselves. You can view the zine online for free or order your own full color copy for $6 at casual-encounters.in
Driver Tweets Hit and Run
Ah, the conjoined stupidity of social media and youthful naivety, where kids today think EVERYTHING should be shared even if it’s a crime they just committed. As this article details, a young driver clipped a cyclist with her mirror, sending him off the road, into the trees, suffering minor injuries…but…but…instead of stopping and making sure he wasn’t DEAD or anything, she instead decides to tweet it out to the world and even justifies the act by saying cyclists don’t pay the road tax, so it doesn’t matter.
Other cyclists disagreed with her and retweeted her to the Norwich UK police, who contacted her via Twitter and suggested she turn herself in. As it stands, the police are now in contact with both the cyclist and the driver and the matter is being pursued.
In another twist of the plot, the cyclist didn’t initially report the hit and run because he didn’t want his girlfriend thinking it was unsafe for him to be on the roads, which although isn’t as nefarious as the crime committed by the driver, certainly doesn’t do much for the rest of us in holding drivers accountable for their actions.
Regardless, the advent of social media sure has brought us into a new world, where both oversharing and undersharing have become quite problematic. In this case, at least, justice will hopefully be served by the new form of communication. Happy Friday.
The 1897 Bicycle Highway that Almost Was
From io9.com:
At the close of the 19th century — just before cars made their appearance — a wealthy American businessman began construction on a private, for-profit bicycle superhighway that would stretch from Pasadena to Los Angeles. It almost got built.
Write a Letter to your Editor
People for Bikes are taking advantage of National Bike Month and Bike to Work Week/Day and asking you to write a pro-bike letter to a local newspaper editor. If you aren’t necessarily the writing type, they have even taken the trouble to craft a letter for you. All you have to do is fill in some basic information and send it on in. Short of being in the streets and riding as much as possible, this is a great way to have a positive impact on decisions made on behalf of cyclists and bicycling infrastructure. Even if you don’t do this year round, use Bike to Work week as an excuse to up your bike advocacy. It certainly can’t hurt!
Go here to use People for Bike’s suggested letter. It’s that easy.
See you at Bike to Work Day tomorrow!
Introducing the Urban Cycling Hall Of Fame
It’s been in the works behind the scenes for a while (disclosure: I licensed photography for the website), but today the Urban Cycling Hall Of Fame officially launches and begins the search for both artifacts and inductees. The public can nominate people in a number of categories, with the final selections being made by this year’s committee of familiar names: Kevin “Squid” Bolger, John “Prolly” Watson, Christina Peck, Austin Horse, Nelson Vails, and Andy White. Awards will be held and the collection on hand at Interbike 2013, with the physical collection on display at Chrome SF.
