Progress In Seattle

Very cool news out of Seattle! Thank you to Josh Cohen, Publicola's self-proclaimed bike nerd for breaking the story.

QUEEN ANNE HOTEL SHOWS BIKES SOME LOVE
Posted by Josh Cohen on April 13, 2010 at 1:09 PM
from Publicola - Seattle's News Elixir

Seattle might not be getting a public bike-share program anytime soon, but a Queen Anne hotel is getting ready to offer its own version to guests, free of charge. The brand-new Maxwell Hotel is located on Roy St. in lower Queen Anne, directly north of Seattle Center. The hotel’s owners worked with local cyclist and blogger DL Byron of Bike Hugger to procure eight Torker T-300 commuter bikes (with front baskets, of course), along with helmets and locks, for their guests to use.

The Maxwell’s sister hotel, the Watertown in the U District, already offers bikes to guests (though Bike Hugger was not involved) and has found them to be extremely popular.

“We want to promote Seattle’s bike-friendliness and promote a healthy lifestyle,” said Maxwell Hotel manager Lai Chin.

With only eight bikes planned for the stable, cycling is obviously going to be more of a niche at the hotel than a primary form of transportation. Still, the Maxwell deserves credit for offering their guests a free, clean, healthy option for exploring the city.

The Torker T-300 is on the lower end of the company’s commuter offerings, but it should be plenty of bike for hotel guests. The three-speed internally-geared hub will offer a wide-enough gear range for the flat roads and bike paths the bikes will mostly see; coaster braking is intuitive to most people; and rear racks and front baskets offer the requisite cargo-carrying capacity every good city bike needs.

Speaking from experience (I live a few blocks away from the hotel), the Maxwell is in a prime biking location for bicycling. Pike Place Market, the waterfront, and Pioneer Square are all readily accessibly by safe, relatively flat routes from lower Queen Anne, and a short, flat jaunt up Westlake Ave connects you to Fremont and, more importantly, the Burke-Gilman Trail.

The bike program hasn’t rolled out quite yet (the hotel just opened three weeks ago), but with any luck I’ll be seeing lots of blue Torker 3-speeds rolling through my neighborhood this summer.

Growing Up

As TYB.org is growing into its new role in the global advocacy community, we're still cutting our teeth. That being the case, we've started a new Facebook page for the organization that's different from the old group page. Check it out at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/TakeYourBikeorg/112386508795705

at subscribe as fan if you haven't already. It will be the only way to follow us on Facebook starting next week, when the group page gets taken down.

Thanks for following us - see you out riding!

It's Official!

The takeyourbike.org homepage is launched - check it out when you get the chance. Go to takeyourbike.org and be one of the first!

See you out riding!

An Article Worth Reading

David Byrne (yes, the same David Byrne from Talking Heads) is an avid commuter advocate. He's one of the good guys. And he also happens to be a good writer. Below is a link to his review of Jeff Mapes' "Pedaling Revolution", a cool book.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/books/review/Byrne-t.html

Mr. Byrne's own "Bicycle Diaries" is worth a read as well - it's a diary of his commuting experiences around the world. Fun stuff for those of you who are travel junkies as well as bike enthusiasts.

Hope you all get out riding soon! Rubber side down!

Takeyourbike.org launches tomorrow - be sure to check out the new site!

Biking in Colorado Springs!

Did 65 miles in Colorado Springs, CO yesterday - one of the most rewarding but hardest rides of my life. Headwinds over half the day and a lot of typical Colorado-style climbs. But I was rewarded with a nice, fast downhill every time. If you have a chance to make it to Colorado Springs and put some rubber down - do it. The Garden of the Gods is breathtaking.

Took the time to preach the TakeYourBike gospel to some CO Springs cyclists - Denver today to keep up the mission!

Bicycle Benefits

Some cool work being done out in the real world:

http://1world2wheels.org/blog/does-your-town-have-bicycle-benfits/

Good work, Ian. Keep it up!

Now There's Proof!

A study was just released that affirms what all of us who take our bike already know - using active transportation (biking, walking, etc.) instead of a car to commute makes us happier people.

http://blog.cascade.org/2010/04/want-to-be-happy/

Thank you to the Cascade Bike Club for posting this article. If you haven't checked them out yet (especially if you live in the Pacific Northwest), you should: http://www.cascade.org/

Life is like riding a bicycle; in order to keep your balance, you must keep moving. - Albert Einstein

Friends!

Take the time to check out some bike-friendly friends of ours in VA on their blog at http://needtobike.wordpress.com/. Keep up the good work, guys!

We're Building!

As we're quickly approaching the April 15 launch date for TakeYourBike.org, the revolution is building... You can now find us on Facebook and Twitter, so join the team and keep in touch. The links to each page are below - click away and start spreading the word! See you out riding!

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=115260551824085

www.twitter.com/takeyourbike

How Cool Is This?

Tech exclusive: Colnago developing Da Vinci's flying bike

By:

Daniel Benson

Published:

April 1, 11:25,

Updated:

April 1, 10:56

Edition:

First Edition Cycling News, Thursday, April 1, 2010

Ernesto Colnago shows the only way for the 'ColnaGo-Up' to head... skywards.

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Revolutionary transportation more than just a pipe dream

Colnago founder and managing director Ernesto Colnago sensationally revealed that the Italian bike manufacturer has spent the last few years working towards the production of a prototype of a flying bicycle that is partly based on drawings done by Leonardo Da Vinci in the 15th century.

Colnago confirmed his development team has been working on this incredible innovation after rumours started to circulate during the recent Taipei bike show.

Initial designs for the machine that is likely to revolutionise transport planning across the world were based on Da Vinci's plans for a human-powered ornithopter, an aircraft that flies by flapping its wings like a bird. Drawn up in the 1480s, Da Vinci's drawings sketched out a machine in which the pilot lies down on a plank and works two large, membranous wings using hand levers, foot pedals and a system of pulleys.

Over the subsequent five centuries many attempts have been made to produce a working model of Da Vinci's designs. All have ultimately failed due to over-reliance on human muscle power, primarily in the arms.

However, Colnago's team of expert engineers have hit upon a simple modification to the Da Vinci's original design that, they say, makes their version of the ornithopter a viable mode of transport. For the moment, they are refusing to give precise details of this modification but it is rumoured to stem from developments made during recent years in recumbent/human-powered vehicles. In other words, Colnago's engineers are producing a machine based on leg rather than arm power.

Colnago was tight-lipped about when the machine will receive its first public airing but did not deny reports that it would be used during a stage of the Giro d'Italia. Indeed, a number of Italian riders have admitted to taking part in training sessions with the almost silent craft tracking and filming them from above.

"Unlike race helicopters, you can completely forget it's there," said one Colnago-CSF rider. "I think the riders will welcome its introduction because it will get rid of the constant clatter of helicopters and we'll be able to hear ourselves think again."

One key problem that Ernesto Colnago did admit needs to be resolved is the question of what to call the new prototype. At the moment its working title is the ColnaGo-Up. Fans should are encouraged to post their own suggestions on Colnago's website - with a free ride in the new ColnaGo-Up going to the winner.