“Be a Roll Model” launches in Verde Valley


Last year, through a grant funded by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, ADOT announced a program to raise bicycle safety awareness in Arizona.

The program was designed by bicycle advocates, law enforcement officers, government representatives, and the Gordley Design Group of Tucson.

Bicycle advocates included members of the ADOT Bicycle & Pedestrian Committee, the Coalition of Arizona Bicyclists, and the Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition…

— Bicycle Safety Awareness Program takes off in Verde Valley, the Verde Independent, Nov 19, 2008

Cycling rises like a Phoenix in the Sun City

Other efforts by the city to encourage cycling include the creation of 38 miles of new bike paths – a mix of paved and unpaved – along its vast canal system. The canal path in South Phoenix was resurfaced just last year, says Bob Beane, president of the Coalition of Arizona Bicycles, who adds that the current budgetary and political climate could mean tough roads ahead.
“We’re making limited progress in Phoenix proper,” says Beane, “but have had much more progress in recent years in the East Valley of communities of Scottsdale, Tempa, Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert.”
…read the rest from bikeradar.com.


MesaRides kickoff event

Today was a fantastic day for all cyclists in Mesa!

This morning at a Media Event Mayor Scott Smith, City Manager Chris Brady and Police Chief Frank Milstead (who is also an MTB cyclist) together with Dara Schulenberg and Sterling Baer representing “Not One More” and the Brumbys kicked off a major city wide cycling safety initiative called “MesaRides”.

Mesa PD Chief Milstead, Dara
and Sterling of NOM

The Mayor and Police Chief introduced “MesaRides”, committed their full support in dramatically improving safety for all cyclists in Mesa. Mayor Smith acknowledged that Mesa is “one of the best places to ride a bike in the country” and also committed that he will actually ride in the new Tour de Mesa in April along with City Manager and Chief Milstead. I presented each of them a “Not One More” jersey to ride with and I had previously given the Mayor a Brumbys jersey as well. I need to acknowledge Mark Venti (Mesa City Transportation), James Hash (Mesa City Bicycle Advocate), JD Dockstader (Assistant Parks & Rec Director) and Jean Destories (jason’s mom) (Mesa Transportation Safety Educator) for their constant support. These are Brumbys in our gang that help fight the good fight on our behalf daily as their vocations. Thank you!
It was a wonderful display of public support for cycling after many long hard efforts on behalf of Dara, myself and many others. Dara and I were both given time to address the press, telling our stories of the founding of the Brumbys and the terrible accidents we’ve seen over the years, including Dara’s, that led to our activism in founding “Not One More”.

Several of our local bike shops were also present representing the critical link of business partnership for cycling in Mesa as well (Global, Two Wheel, Paragon and DNA). We thank them for their support of our cycling advocacy as well. All of our Shops are wonderful contributers and supporters!!!

Click here for the “MesaRides” Campaign initiative press release, which as the Mayor says below is a “matter of life and death”. We appreciate and are thrilled with the support of Mesa. We believe that “MesaRides” will have an ongoing impact and help dramatically increase safety awareness of motor vehicles towards cyclists on our streets in our community. We also believe there will be improved enforcement and adherence to the existing laws and future revisions for both cars and cyclists.

Thank You Mayor Smith and Team Mesa for your support! Ride on and Ride Safe in Mesa!!!!

Sterling Baer & Dara Schulenberg
Not One More Cyclist Foundation

Valley of the Sun Bike Rack Finder

The City of Phoenix Bicycle Initiatives Committee has joined with CAzBike to map the locations of bicycle racks throughout the Valley of the Sun. CLICK HERE to view map. This is a participation project for the benefit of all cyclists in the Valley. Please submit additions and corrections by email to ValleyRacks@cazbike.org Please include location, name of business (if applicable) and, optionally, a description of accessibility and usefulness.

The Bicycle – a Gift of Independence

Mike Craver is a developmentally disabled employee at the Cottonwood Safeway that volunteers identified as needing a bicycle for transportation. I sent out a request, and Jimmy at Bike & Bean immediately stepped up and offered a BRAND NEW BIKE to help Mike out. Bike and Bean, led by Jimmy and helped out by his employees, pitched in and donated the bike to the VVCC (Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition), who in turn donated it to Mike.
Mike and his brother Larry came over on Monday night. I showed ’em how the gears work, got the bike adjusted, and gave ’em a safety presentation.
You wouldn’t believe how grateful they are!!
Just shows what can happen when we all work together… You Guys Rock!!

CAzBike working for you! 2010 accomplishments; year in review

The Coalition works hard all year round to improve conditions for Arizona’s cyclists. Our year conceptually ends in September, President Bob Beane noted these Activities & Accomplishments of the past year

Organizational/Membership:

  • Drafted the first written set of annual goals and objectives for the CAzB.
  • Added Sterling Baer and Wayne Cullop to Advisory Board.
  • Added or renewed these organizations as members: PBAA, PMBC, ABC, Bullshifters, Bicycle Vibe, Bike Barn, Bike Den, Fair Wheel Bikes, Trek Bicycles, and Parrish Insurance.

Fundraising/Events:

  • Received $72,392 from donations, including the Gorter Family of The Netherlands, the Wells Fargo Community Support Campaign, United Way and several individuals. 
  • Received $2,895 from memberships and events (Ride for Safety, Bike Swap Meet). 
  • Received support from Trek Bicycle Corporation for membership drive. 
  • Received sufficient funds to hire an Executive Director for a year. 

Advocacy:

  • Pima, Pinal and Maricopa County advocates meeting, February, 2010.
  • Met with Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition leaders and participated in “Celebrate the Red Rock Road” event in August, 2010.
  • Established initial connection with Flagstaff bicycle advocates.
  • MAG Bicycle/Pedestrian Committee and City of Phoenix Environmental Quality Commission participation (monthly).
  • Participated in the national bicycling summit in Washington, D.C., in March, 2010.
  • El Tour de Phoenix Expo booth, April, 2010.
  • Meeting with new ADOT District Engineer, Todd Emory, and Pima County bicycling advocates, December, 2009.
  • Letter to Pima County Sheriff’s Department regarding enforcement in Saguaro National Park (Gates Pass area) west of Tucson.
  • Presentation, letters and e-mails in District 3 (Phoenix) in defense of multi-modal bridge over 19th Avenue near Greenway.
  • Provided feedback on Pinal County and City of Chandler transportation master plans.
  • Multiple letters in giving feedback on designs and/or supporting TIP projects in various Valley communities (e.g. Highline Canal in Phoenix, planned Chandler multi-use bridge over Hwy 101 at Galveston St. and new path in Glendale).
  • Presentation of LAB Bicycle Friendly Community award to the City of Chandler, December, 2009.
  • Communication with Somerton PD regarding need to cite motorist in head-on collision with bicyclist.
  • Partnered with Mesa cyclists to help have an offensive display removed from a business.
  • Participated in evaluation of Arizona for LAB Bicycle Friendly State program.

Education:

  • Regular bicyclist education classes throughout the year.
  • Participation in City of Chandler TV program regarding Bicycle Friendly Community status, places to ride and safe bicycling techniques in February, 2010.
  • Program of distributing educational and bike safety materials to bike shops for Valley Metro and ADOT.
  • Proposal is pending at MAG to implement a law enforcement education program for Valley communities with CAzB having a pivotal role in development of curriculum and providing course materials and instruction.

Media/Public Relations:

  • Clear Channel radio interview/PSAs regarding Bike Month and bicycle safety.
  • Publication in Arizona Republic, Tailwinds and Ahwatukee Foothills News regarding AZ laws, motorist education and defense of bicycling and bicyclists’ right to the road.
  • Article for League of American Bicyclists’ American Bicyclist magazine covering the Red Rock Road (Sedona/Village of Oak Creek) advocacy effort and completion celebration.
  • Participated in MAG’s “I Ride” video production, speaking about ARS 28-735 (safe passing distance law) and safe driving around bicyclists.
  • Nominated Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club for LAB regional Club of the Year, for which they were a co-winner in our region with the New Mexico Touring Society.

Outreach:

  • Assistance to family of James Parsons who was hit/killed on Hunt Highway.
  • Partnership with Sterling Baer’s Not One More Cyclist on outreach.

Legislative/Legal:

  • Vulnerable user proposals are in development, as is a list of potential allies in the AZ Legislature.

Price/Hwy 101 Frontage roads Edge lines are back!

Due to the involvement of the CAzB and a number of other concerned individuals, ADOT was persuaded to re-stripe the Price/Hwy101 frontage roads with edgelines to reconstitute the “bike lanes” (striped but not marked as bicycle lanes) that were previously marked prior to the recent re-paving project. Many bicyclists who live and ride in the area weighed in on this…which illustrates the value of the bicycling community coming together to create a strong, unified voice.

LAB’s Traffic Skills 101 class – Explained

[check Arizona class schedules: cazbike.org/BikeEd]
Traffic Skills 101 is a hands-on class of effective cycling. It was originally created by John Forester and taught as a college-level class at Berkeley. Over the years, the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) has refined it and the current version is known as Traffic Skills 101. The name is more telling of the content as well as the level of detail included.
TS101 or similar classes are taught by a few organizations and individuals in Arizona. TS101 consists of four hours of classroom instruction (talk, video and powerpoint) and five hours of on-bike instruction, some of which is done in a protected parking lot and some is done in real-life traffic. This may seem like a large amount of time, but to properly cover the following subjects, it is barely enough to do them justice:
  • Bicycle and helmet fit, and why each is important.
  • Pre-ride check of your bicycle to catch problems before they spoil your ride.
  • Respect for and from other users of the roads.
  • Best lane position regarding your destination, road conditions and traffic conditions.
  • Visibility, both day and night.
  • A fine-tooth comb examination of applicable state law, and what it requires of both motorists and cyclists.
  • The pros and cons of both properly installed bike lanes and road markings that are often, and sometimes disastrously, mistaken for bike lanes.
  • Parking lot skills training for precise control of your bicycle as well as maneuvers to avoid mistakes of others.
  • Actual crash and injury data showing the contributing factors, thus giving the ability to anticipate mistakes of others, as well as what not to do yourself.
  • Knowledge of what skills to use should you need to protect yourself.
  • Tire changing and flat fixing. What tools and spare parts to bring with you.
  • Hydration and eating.
  • Best pedaling rate for endurance and how gears are used to help you in this matter.
  • Special cases, such as, railroad crossings, up and down hill rides, wet weather and cycling on multi-use paths where slow and fast cyclists, children, pedestrians and horses may be sharing the path.
  • Actual riding in traffic on a predetermined route that includes many considerations covered in the classroom. Includes many stops for rest and evaluation of conditions encountered.
  • Written test that is a review of classroom and road experience.
  • Graduation, the proof of accomplishing these objectives.
  • Finally, our mantra, over and over again: “Cyclists fare best when they act as, and are treated as, drivers of slow vehicles.”
Cycling fun increases when confidence increases. TS101 increases confidence by replacing fear with knowledge and skills. These classes are still the only nationally recognized bicycle safety classes taught by certified instructors. Most of these instructors simply have a passion for their favorite mode of transportation and sport, and desire a safe and mutually-respectful use of the roadways by cyclists and motorists alike. Every blown stop-sign, etc. by a bike rider breaks that mutual respect as does any form of disrespect of cyclists by motorists. Building that mutual respect is the way to increase everyone’s safety. That is the objective of Traffic Skills 101.
Gene Holmerud
League Cycling Instructor, #1193