Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
December 22nd, 2005

DURHAM -- One reason Lars Trost took his current job is that he knew he could bike to work from home. His office is about six miles south Forest Hills West, and it was important to him to find a route he could ride safely at night, since he often leaves work in the dark. After months of riding, he feels that the American Tobacco Trail is the safest and most direct route.

Ever since Daylight Savings Time ended in October, Trost, like most bike commuters in Durham, finds himself riding home in the dark most of the time. Trost says that after dark he's not comfortable riding in the traffic of Fayetteville or Roxboro streets, his only alternatives to the ATT. So, he chooses to ride Durham's most popular greenway instead.

One evening a little more than a month ago, he left work around 6pm. The sun had set, but his path was lit by a headlight mounted to his handlebars. Near the ATT's intersection with Cornwallis Rd, a Durham Police Officer patrolling the trail pulled him over and issued a warning for trespassing.

The officer pointed to a sign near the intersection and noted that the American Tobacco Trail, like all parks in Durham, closes at dusk. The officer advised Trost that the next time he is caught on the trail after dark, he could be issued a $135 fine.

This incident brought to light a problem for Durham's greenways. If users rely on greenways to get to and from different sides of town, then why should the trails close at sunset? Doesn't closing greenways at sunset limit their utility, especially in the winter months when the sun sets as early as 5pm?

While greenways are parks, they are parks of a different sort. Linear parks double as transportation corridors, and transportation is more than a daytime activity. Whereas recreational cyclists have more flexibility to arrange rides at convenient times, commuters are at the mercy of their work schedules and mother nature.

Trost isn't alone. I see the same people every morning on my way to work, he says. If I had to guess based on my experience, I'd say close to a hundred people a day use the trail.

Through email, Trost initiated a conversation with the Durham Police Department, City Council, and the City's Transportation and Parks and Recreation departments. A meeting was arranged, at which the City acknowledged that it would be squandering a resource if a transportation corridor is unavailable to those who need to use it.

Bike commuters in other cities also face the problem of dusk trail closures, so Durham was able to look to other places for solution models. While some municipalities, such as Baltimore, Maryland, address the problem simply by exempting commuters from the trail closure, how to enforce this exemption creates a new problem for law enforcement. The idea of establishing a permit system was also looked at. But requiring cyclists to register with the city in order to lawfully use a greenway after hours would prevent folks from spontaneously using Durham's greenways to bicycle to and from a Durham Bulls game.

After hearing from Trost as well as many other commuters who use Durham's greenways as transportation routes, Darrell Crittendon, Director of Parks and Recreation, decided that extending the hours that the trails are open is both the simplest and most democratic solution.

As of Monday, December 5th, the Parks and Recreation department extended the hours of the American Tobacco Trail from dawn until dusk to 5AM until 10PM.

Crittendon also notes that The Durham Police Department (DPD) will continue to monitor the ATT for safety throughout the extended usage hours. He encourages any commuters who use the trail at night to consider using a buddy system. The more traffic there is in any area, the safer it tends to be from a public safety perspective.

None of Durham's greenways are lit and the City does not plan to install lighting along the trails. So,
if you're going to ride the trail at night, be aware that it will be dark. From sunset until 10pm and 5am until sunrise, Durham police will be enforcing the state laws concerning nighttime cycling.

All cyclists riding at night must be equipped with a headlight visible from at least 300 ft. and a red tail light visible from at least 200 ft. All local bike shops carry these lights, which can be attached to either your bike or your clothing.

--
NC General Statutes
20-129. Required Lighting Equipment of Vehicles.
(e) Lamps on Bicycles. Every bicycle shall be equipped with a lighted lamp visible up to three hundred feet in front when used at night and must also be equipped with a taillight or rear reflector that is red and visible for up to two hundred feet from therear when used at night.

Posted by nicomachus at 8:14 PM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
December 8th, 2005

She turns around, sees reminders of how far she's ridden, and thinks about how different the world seems when you're on a bike. The hills she's finished climbing look so innocent from a car and feel so challenging on a bike.

She looks ahead and sees how far she has yet to go. The road is arrow straight and flat. Lined with corn and soybean fields on either side, her path stretches to the horizon.

Judy Martell, 55, of Durham is a little less than halfway through riding the American Discovery Trail, a 6,800 mile patchwork of paved greenways, state parks, and roadways connecting Delaware with San Francisco. In 2001, she woke from a dream with a goal to use her own two legs to get her from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

A month ago, she reached St. Louis, Missouri.

If she were to ride the entire Discovery Trail in one effort, she estimates it would take her anywhere from a month to a month and a half. Whether to raise money for a charitable cause, bring attention to an injustice, or just to experience the changing landscape of our vast country on a more human scale, Martell says "there are a lot of people who are doing it straight through on the Discovery Trail, biking or walking."

"I do it in chunks... in sections, because I can't do the logistics of being away from home long enough to do it all in one shot," says Martell. When she knows she's got five free days coming up, she starts to plan the next trip.

For most of the route, she's been riding alone. But friend Alison Carpenter also of Durham recently kept her company from Cincinnati to St. Louis.

Traveling at the speed of a bike allows a different perspective, says Carpenter. "Life's just fleeting from an automobile on a day to day basis. Then you get on a bike... and time just sort of disappears, everything changes, and your perspective becomes 'eat, drink, bike, sleep, bike.' It was definitely a meditative experience."

Carpenter had never done any long-distance bike touring before. "The first day was mentally challenging. We did fifty-five miles in the first day, and I'd never ridden fifty-five miles at once," she says. "[The] second and third were more physically challenging. But, after the third day I felt like, 'alright, I can do this'." By the end of the fifth day she had a hard time letting the trip come to an end.

Her pluck speaks to the c'est la vie attitude that got them through parts of their ride; it was not without challenge. Martell lost her GPS device early in the trip. At one point they ended up riding on a limited access freeway with tractor trailers passing a little too close and too fast for comfort. And on their last day, they found themselves riding through the headwinds of a tornado system that hit Illinois later that day.

Nor do they forget the killer leg cramps, a semi-paralyzed left hand, and the ka-chunk of an adjusting chiropractor's table that still rings in their ears.

But, then there was the time they stopped at a restaurant and a pickup truck driver who had passed them thirty miles back welcomed them with a "you made it! Alright, way to go!"

Or the time they rolled up to an auto-auction with a vending machine tucked behind a fence decorated with a "dealers only" sign. After sneaking in to get water from the vending machine one of the dealers struck up a conversation with the two weathered and worn-out cyclists.

And they'll never forget that warm, inviting cafe -- with fresh baked bread -- in, "where was that cafe again?" Carpenter asks.

Riding through the country side and small towns endeared them to the folks they passed. Martell and Carpenter feel like the people they met along the way would not have been as open or willing to strike up conversations if they'd been just another driver passing through.

Planning for a trip like this is not as difficult as you might think, says Martell. That is, if you plan the way Martell does, it's not that taxing. She likes to leave a lot of the details to just work themselves out. But, not without reason.

"I think we get into this box of 'it's a scary world and let's stay in our safe route'. But when you put yourself out there, then you're reminded that the world's not that scary. Life is going on in these little towns just like it is here. It's just a different pace in a different place," she says.

"A yearning for pure spontaneity is human nature," says Carpenter, "but at the same time that time runs together on [a trip like this], it also becomes more precious."

--
For their ride, Carpenter rode her 1980s Motobecane with downtube shifters and Martell rode her custom recumbent, made here in Durham by Wayne Schnackel.

Information on the American Discovery Trail can be found at http://www.discoverytrail.org/

Posted by nicomachus at 1:21 PM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
November 22nd, 2005

DURHAM -- I asked new bicycle commuters in the Triangle area whether they had any thoughts to share on their decision to ride. Boy, did they.

This week, I'm letting some folks who started bicycle commuting within the last year step up to the microphone. Morning motorists, city council, and even you, sitting on fence about whether you can rely on your bike to get you to work -- take note; these folks are talking to you.

Mostly for the exercise, Joseph Maxwell started bike commuting about seven months ago. Three days a week, he rides from Durham to Sports Endeavors (SEI) in Hillsborough.

"I am one of two bike commuters in a company of about 450 employees. There are many physically active employees at SEI, but I assume most people don't feel confident or safe riding into Hillsborough. But he says Highway 751 and Old NC 10 make for a a nice ride. A wider shoulder or bike lane on 751 (going out towards Highway 70) would be a great improvement. I see a lot of cyclists using this road. Obviously, bike lanes along my route to Hillsborough would make my commute easier. More than anything, I would just like for drivers to show more consideration towards cyclists."

Rhonda Kaye, a teacher at Lowe's Grove Middle School, started bike commuting when the new school year began in August.

Before then, she says, "I would drive to work by myself. I started riding for two main reasons: first, the cost of gas started to creep up and I thought riding would help my family save money. Then, after Hurricane Katrina, there was talk of a gas shortage, and I thought I would be a good citizen, and set an example for my students. So I started doing it 2-3 times a week."

"Cycling on a teacher's schedule can be a challenge. My work days starts at 7:15, so I don't have a big cushion of time to get to work and be ready to teach," says Kaye. "The one thing [sic] the city can do to make my ride easier is to add bike lanes on Sedwick Rd and Alston Ave."

Dave Sokal would also like to see bike lanes or extra lane width on Sedwick and Alston. Sokal lives in Parkwood and bikes to work in Research Triangle Park, but he does not consider busy, narrow two-lane roads with no shoulders to be acceptable for safe commuting. His route to work is currently a mix of on-road riding with a shortcut on an unofficial trail he uses to avoid narrow, high volume roads.

Since she started riding in July, Kim Gray says that her biggest challenge has been negotiating with cars. "I think that the city could do more to educate its drivers through some sort of campaign." Gray says that she was able to get cyclists' rights pamphlets from Alison Carpenter, the City of Durham's Bicycle and Pedestrian transportation planner, and get her employer to distribute them through monthly paychecks. "If more places did that I think that would help," says Gray.

Tanya Jisa echoes Gray's wish for more public education about cyclists' rights. "There are lots of people who still don't 'get it' that bikes have just as much right and reason to be on the road as cars," she says.

Determined to commute by bike once she moved to Durham, Jisa sold her car before she ever left Decatur, Georgia. "Luckily I found a job with Duke just over 5 miles from my new home, so I made a few trial runs before my job officially began," she says.

"I started riding for fitness and health benefits - working my exercise time into my commute to and from work is a big bonus. I also like the opportunities to transition to and from work on a bike. Rather than getting in a car and 'fighting traffic', I getto have an enjoyable bike ride at my own pace and take short cuts through neighborhoods that I probably would never notice otherwise. The physical effects of exercising right after work really help me to leave my work behind, and give me a burst of energyfor the rest of my day."

"Commuting by bike does take a little extra time and effort, but," says Jisa, "it's worth it not only for the benefits to your own physical and mental health, but the health of the planet. It's something you can be proud of every day."

Posted by nicomachus at 4:40 PM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
November 10th, 2005

DURHAM -- Chris Sevick would love to be able to ride the entire 23 miles of the American Tobacco Trail. Three things stand in his way right now, but he hopes that riding it will be a real possibility one day soon.

The first obstacle is a 1,000-foot gap between where the trail currently ends at N.C. 54 and where it will pick up at The Streets at Southpoint. A pedestrian and cyclist bridge over Interstate 40 is in the works and funding has been set aside by the federal government (and was fodder for John Stewart's political humor a few months back -- "$2.8 million for something called the American Tobacco Trail in North Carolina," he joked on the Daily Show). In a few years Durham will provide safe passage for cyclists, joggers, and walkers from one side of the expansive freeway to the other.

The second is that there's still is no trail south of N.C. 54 through Southpoint. The railroad corridor has been purchased from Norfolk Southern through the N.C. Department of Transportation's rail program and construction could begin as soon as a year from now.

The third obstacle is that, even when finished, riders have long expected the southern sections of the ATT to remain unpaved and instead be graded and topped with a packed gravel screening. Gravel makes it hard for Sevick to ride, since the Durham resident rides a traditional road bike with tires less than an inch wide.

"Given the long distances that the trail connects, it would be more efficient to use a road bike on a paved trail," he said in a recent e-mail to the N.C. DOT. And this, whether to pave the southern sections of the American Tobacco Trail, is the issue at hand.

Bob Morris, vice president of the mountain bike club NC Fats, says that if the existing Wake County section of the ATT is an example of how the rest of the trail might be finished, he wouldn't want to ride it either. The loose, softer trail surface attracts equestrians, but the impact of the horses' hooves contributes to the fairly steady erosion of the trail. The ATT is pocked with rough sections that, even on a "cushy" full-suspension mountain bike, leave the trail difficult to ride, Morris says.

Morris is not worried that paving the American Tobacco Trail means losing it as a mountain biking opportunity. The ATT follows a former railroad corridor originally built by the New Hope Valley Railroad. Its long, straight stretches and minimal elevation changes lack the technical challenge of singeltrack that typically draws mountain bikers out into the woods.

Rails-to-trails projects across the country are most successful when they serve as both transportation corridors and recreational outlets. "Multi-use trails should serve the greatest number of users and paving is the way to do that," Morris says.

Tom Norman is listening. Norman works with the division of the DOT charged with completing the American Tobacco Trail. As director of the division of bicycle and pedestrian transportation, he wants to hear from cyclists how they might use the trail and what kind of trail surface they prefer.

To clear up some confusion, Norman says there really has never been a plan for what to do with the southern portions of the ATT -- at least not an authoritative one. DOT, which is responsible for the final design of the ATT, is currently in the information gathering stage of the design process.

So, why is everyone thinking that the southern half of the ATT wouldn't look like the signature paved section between Southpoint and the Durham Bulls Athletic Park?

In 1992, the Triangle Rails-to-Trails Conservancy commissioned Greenways Inc. to develop a Master Plan recommending designs for completing the American Tobacco Trail. This independent study suggested, based on then-current levels of residential development and population south of I-40, that the sections south of Southpoint could be left with just a gravel topping.

But, a lot has changed in southern Durham, Wake, and Chatham counties since then. Residential development and population in 1992 was "substantially less dense than it is today and what projections showed that it would be," says Norman. "Current residential density levels need to be taken into consideration."

Norman adds that funds for this project have come from federal and state resources slated for development of alternative transportation, so there is pressure to think of the ATT as a transportation corridor first, with resulting recreational opportunities as a bonus.

So, if like Sevick, you've ever wished that you could continue riding your bike the entire length of the planned 23 miles of greenway, now is your chance to be heard. Norman is currently accepting input on whether the southern portions of the American Tobacco Trail should be paved.

You can reach him at tnorman@dot.state.nc.us or by writing to him at this address: Division of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation, 1552 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1552.

Posted by nicomachus at 10:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
October 27th, 2005

DURHAM -- On Saturday, November 5th, you're invited to come out and support the Hillside High School men's varsity and junior varsity basketball teams.

Basketball? Wait, this is the cycling column.

Well, the basketball teams are going for a bike ride. The second annual Ride with the Hornets, which begins at 8:30AM in the rear parking lot at Hillside High School, is a fund raiser for the varsity and JV mens teams.

It's not unusual for organizations to use cycling events as fund raisers. This Saturday, Durham's Habitat for Humanity is hosting the "Halloween Hundred" -- a fully supported metric century (100km ride) where proceeds will sponsor construction of a homein Habitats East Ellerbee St. neighborhood.

The Triangle Cyclopaths are donating a portion of the proceeds from their November 5 "Dance with the Devil," an endurance mountain bike race, to the Caring Community Foundation.

And every year, regional chapters of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society host an "MS150" ride. All over the country, cyclists raise entry fees and additional funds to search for the cure for multiple sclerosis by riding in these 150km events.

This year, Coach Wayne Howell is doing something similar for his basketball teams at Hillside. He hopes that by inviting the community to sponsor members of the basketball teams, the Hornets can raise at least $1,300 for a "shoot-away" -- a device that sets up under a basketball goal, rebounds shots, throws the ball out to the next person, and keeps statistics on players' shooting percentage.

Howell, who played basketball professionally for more than nine years in Australia and Singapore, says that a device like the shoot-away would make a big difference to his teams. "It can take a team from making 300 or 400 jumpshots per hour to 2,000 or 3,000," he says.

The Ride with the Hornets will be one of the first experiences the students will have together as a team. Tryouts for the basketball teams will be completed in the week leading up to that Saturday, and Howell wants to do something to help the team bond in their first few days.

"I found last year, we did a lot of team-building things, and that really helped us," Howell says. "It always helped me, too, when I played overseas."

Remembering the joy of cycling as a kid is what led Howell to start the Ride with the Hornets. "Growing up, we used to ride bikes a lot. I don't think kids now ride bikes like we did," he said, and he thinks a combination of video games and parents not pushing kidsout of the house are to blame.

"And with the [American Tobacco] Trail, you don't have to worry about riding on the street," he added.

In a school that already boasts increasing enrollment in academically rigorous programs like International Baccalaureate and AVID, four-time state champions in women's track, and a world-traveled theatre department, Coach Howell sometimes feels the pressure to offer Hillside students something unique.

Bob Hill, the athletic director at Hillside, says "Howell is one of those people who likes to bring young people together and show them a lot of different life skills. The bike ride is a tool to be able to communicate with the students, have them share their thoughts and feelings about anything. I think it's an excellent way to teach young kids outside the classroom."

Howell has reason to think he's offering something the students like. "All this year, I've had students ask, 'Coach, are we gonna do the bike ride again?'," he says.

Howell says donations can be made in two ways either directly to the team as a whole or by sponsoring an individual player. Sponsorship simply involves pledging to donate a certain amount of money per mile that the student rides.

This year, the community is also invited to join in the fun and ride with the Hornets. If you'd like to ride, be ready to roll by 8:30AM. Their route will follow the American Tobacco Trail, first north to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, then south to Highway 54, and then finishing back at the Hillside parking lot.

Posted by nicomachus at 8:50 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
October 13th, 2005

DURHAM -- In April 2004, I took a road trip to the Grand Canyon. Just inside the Arizona state line, I stopped for gas. I'd always heard that gas is more expensive on the west coast, and here was proof. The price of "premium" gas began with a "2" -- I cleverly took a picture of the sign so that my friends back home could have a good laugh at gas prices in excess of $2 per gallon.

Now, the joke's on us.

Gas prices are hovering around $3 per gallon, and that's reason enough for me (and my wallet) to think twice about driving my car to Raleigh to go mountain biking. An October 6th Washington Post commodities article reports that while "SUV sales plunged in September more than 50 percent, U.S. bicycle sales have outnumbered car sales." Sounds like mine is not the only wallet taking a hit.

On my route to work, I've met more first-time bicycle commuters in the last two months than in the last two years. Heck, probably more than I've met in the last 5 years. But at most, my experience merely anecdotally suggests that ridership numbers may be up.

Is the national bicycle-sales trend holding true for Durham as well?

"We've definitely seen an increase in sales this year" says REI-Durham's store manager Jim Bennett. "And we certainly have seen a bigger increase in the last three months. The [Durham] store showed a 39% increase for the year through June, and since June we're up 59% over last year's sales."

Durham's other full service bicycle retailer, The Bicycle Chain has evidence to support the same trend. Chris Hull, the new general manager of the The Bicycle Chain's Durham store, says the store has definitely seen one of its best fall seasons in a long time. "Sales are up, business is up," he said.

But just as the New York Times bestseller list for books tells you nothing about whether people actually read the books they buy, new bicycle sales don't necessarily indicate new ridership.

An increase in business for bicycle repair shops, however, would suggest that people are riding the bikes they have.

"When people ride their bikes, they need to be repaired," says REI's Bennett. "Revenue we've taken in from the bike shop shows that people are riding their bikes as well."

Hull says The Bicycle Chain has also seen a significant increase in business for the service department. "People are dusting off their old bikes that have been sitting in the garage and bringing them in to get them in shape to ride," he said.

Whereas service customers are famous for making requests along the lines of, "just do the minimum to get the bike running again," Bennett says that customers are now taking bike maintenance more seriously.

"When people are willing to spend more money on their bikes, it's often because they are riding more regularly," Bennett says. "They're riding to work or school and need their bikes to be reliable."

Separating the effect of gas prices on bike sales from the effect of Lance Armstrong winning a 7th Tour de France may be difficult.

But Bennett says that REI has also seen an increase in the sale of commuter-specific accessories like fenders and racks. Although manufacturers are producing newer bike models with frame geometries designed specifically for commuting, you can also retro-fit just about any bike with the components that turn your sleek road bike or heavy duty mountain bike into a more utilitarian commuter - semi-slick tires for mountain bikes, locks, racks, panniers (saddlebags that hang over the racks), baskets, lights, and even reflective vests.

Components like fenders and tires with low rolling resistance make your everyday ride more comfortable. Cargo racks, panniers, and baskets make your bike more useful.

So, whether or not there are more folks riding to work due to higher prices at the gas pumps, there are more folks investing in bicycles and in the kind of equipment you'd use to ride to work.

Are there more new riders in Durham? I don't know. You tell me. And come tell me at the next Bicyclist Breakfast.

--
The Durham Bicyclist Breakfast happens on the last Friday of every month. Drop by Mad Hatters (1802 W. Main Street) between 7:30 and 9AM.

Posted by nicomachus at 9:51 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
September 22, 2005

DURHAM -- This July, my nephew visited from Canada. Matt, 15, is a skilled athlete – a hockey star, a track phenom, a confident snowboarder – and like most teenagers, difficult to impress. As often as he's heard me talk about mountain biking, though, I realized this summer that he'd never ridden singletrack.

I took him for a spin around the trails at Lake Crabtree County Park, and by the fifth mile he was hooked. I could see it in his face. He confessed later on that he'd never experienced anything like it before. I was excited to introduce something meaningful to his life.

Mountain biking can teach riders young and old an appreciation of the natural environment, responsibility for the trails, and a lifetime of active, healthy habits.

These are just a few of the reasons why Congress, for the second year in a row, has designated the first Saturday in October “Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day.”

North Carolina and Colorado senators and representatives co-sponsored a joint resolution (SR 195) to support the International Mountain Bike Association's youth-oriented outreach effort.

At 10AM, Saturday October 1st, the Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC) are sponsoring events at three local favorite trail systems.

Volunteers will be on-site at Lake Crabtree County Park in Raleigh, Legend Park in Clayton, and Little River Regional Park in Durham.

Get there early for a skills-building session, where experienced mountain bikers reveal the secret techniques of log-crossing, bunny-hopping, and hill-climbing. Once you've got your skill-set built up, ride leaders will be available to show you the way through the woods.

In their petition to Congress, IMBA cites heightened levels of childhood obesity as one of its reasons for reaching out to kids. In a July press-release, IMBA states its belief that mountain biking builds self-confidence and offers kids and adults “an adrenaline-packed adventure while giving them an effective workout.”

IMBA reports that in 2004, thousands of kids participated in more than 100 events nationwide and in several other countries. The international organization expects even greater numbers of participants this year.

At the TORC events, kids age 14 and under need to be accompanied by an adult, and the parks require all riders to wear helmets.

If you need to come up with a set of wheels for the weekend, the Bicycle Chain's Durham and Chapel Hill stores rent mountain bikes for $25-35 a day. The stores also allow you to use up to $50 of rentals as credit toward the purchase of a bike.

Aside from a bike and helmet, bring lots of water and an adventurous spirit.

So c'mon out and bring a kid with you for some good, clean fun in the dirt. Whether you're in elementary school or just a kid at heart, “Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day” will be a fun, active outdoor event.

Posted by nicomachus at 7:12 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
September 8th, 2005

DURHAM -- As if North Carolina didn't already have a hard enough time combating air pollution, a new federal ruling may allow neighboring, upwind states to off-load soot and other particulate pollutants on the Tar Heel State.

In July, Attorney General Roy Cooper filed a lawsuit in federal court and a petition with the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider portions of the agency's Clean Air Interstate Rule. "While we generally support EPA's new standards to clean our air," Cooper explained, "we fear that loopholes in this Rule will give power plants in other states the ability to send additional pollution our way."

According to the Sierra Club of North Carolina, the petition specifically asks the EPA �to require emission reductions from power plants in thirteen upwind states in order to reduce their contribution to North Carolina's fine particle pollution,� a contributor to asthma and other respiratory ailments.

On September 14th at 9 a.m., the EPA is holding a public comment hearing on the CAIR ruling and Cooper's petition for reconsideration. The hearing will be held at the EPA facility in Research Triangle Park.

The Sierra Club hopes to gather the support of local cyclists who want to say something about it. In order to show support for Cooper's petition and cleaner air standards, the environmental group is organizing a bike ride from downtown Durham to the EPA hearing, says Beau Memory, NC Sierra Club's Conservation Campaign Coordinator.

The �Bike Against Bad Air� begins at 8am at the American Tobacco Trail's northern trailhead, just across Willard and Blackwell streets from the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The planned route to the EPA is less than ten miles � approximately a third of which follows the greenway, a third follows the new bike lanes on Cornwallis Rd, and the remainder follows Alexander Dr. through RTP.

The plan is for cyclists to ride together and enter the EPA's campus as a group. A photo ID will be required to enter EPA facilities. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Sierra Club invites the cyclists to return to downtown Durham for lunch at the Mellow Mushroom.

�Getting riders out in the middle of the week will demonstrate North Carolinians' commitment to clean air,� says Memory. �We're lucky to have a great trail system here, and we also want to show people there are cleaner ways to get to work each morning.�

In a July press release, Roy Cooper says that �out-of-state polluters are interfering with North Carolina's ability to meet national air quality standards despite the state's success at cleaning up in-state pollution under it's Clean Smokestacks law.�

Memory acknowledges that �North Carolina's taken a huge leap forward with smokestack legislation.� The point of the �Bike Against Bad Air� and the public hearing, Memory says, is to convince the EPA that �unfortunately, air pollution doesn�t stop at state lines. Every day that goes by that our neighbors don't clean up their pollution means more soot, more smog, and more asthma for North Carolinians.�

RIDE DETAILS
If you're interested in riding or testifying, you can register with the Sierra Club by emailing bikeagainstbadair@yahoo.com or calling Christa Wagner at (704) 374-1125.

Cyclists should arrive downtown at 8am and be ready to roll by 8:30.

All riders are required to wear a helmet and sign a waiver of liability.
Bring plenty of water, a photo ID, and a bike lock.

Posted by nicomachus at 9:37 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
September 1st, 2005

CARRBORO -- Apart from the iPod powered boombox blasting acid jazz from the back of Matthew Lee's bike, last Tuesday night's cruiser ride around Carrboro and Chapel Hill was a display of retro-technology over high-technology. It was not your typical group bike ride.

Lee, of Carrboro, who organized the ride says, “cruiser rides are something that have been going on [for a while now ] in cities around the country that have a strong bike culture.” He had a hunch that the time may be right for the Triangle.

I'd say that the turnout for the “funky formal” themed ride confirms his hunch.

(photo by Jack Edinger)

Fifty people strong, the riders' outfits were as eclectic as their aging bikes. There were more fenders, chain guards, and kick stands than I've seen at other group rides. And I've never before seen cyclists wearing feather boas, sport coats, and prom dresses. There was even a gaucho on a unicycle.

Any other time cyclists get together, we ogle the well-machined parts or the lightweight feel of each others' bikes. Desirable bikes on a cruiser ride are heavy and have a lot of rust or chrome.

When it comes to how much money folks are willing to spend on cruisers, it's an amusing race to the bottom. Emily Buehler of Carrboro says she “found [her bike] in a dumpster, and the guys at the Clean Machine fixed it up for $20.” She's got a basket full of flowers hanging from the handlebars, and the bike has an old internally geared three speed hub... but only one gear works right now.

Seth Elliott's riding his wife's bike. “I put these tall handlebars on it so that she'd be more comfortable,” he says. “I thought I'd do something just a little different. For tonight, I put one of my daughter's stroller wheels on the front.” The stroller wheel is so small the brake pads don't even make contact with the rim.

I made a note to myself to stay out of his way.

“This is a dress I wore in high school, I haven't had an opportunity to wear it since, but tonight seemed like the appropriate night,” Melissa Kenney of Durham says with a sarcastic smile. “There are so few occasions that you get to do a formal dress bike ride, I had to bring out the very best for it.”

While Kenney stopped to get her dress un-stuck from her brakes, I talked with Natalie Nagalingen, also of Durham. “It's a friend's,” Nagalingen says about the feather boa she's wearing. “We swapped because my feather boa actually coordinates with her outfit.”

Charlie Hileman, a member of the Transportation Advisory Board of Carrboro, joined the ride towing in a trailer his daughter Stella. The flames painted on the frame of his bike made it look like we were moving faster than the 5 mph pace we were keeping.

I asked Carl Salk, a Duke student, why he's wearing a hot suit on an August night. It “looks better than his swim shorts,” shouted Arielle Cooley. Cooley and Michelle Hersh, fellow Duke students, fashionably sported more feather boas loaned to them by a friend.

Hersh said she didn't think she'd “leave a trail of feathers down Franklin Street” when she got up Tuesday morning.

Lee and others want to “try to make [a cruiser ride] a monthly occurrence.” Although the date is not yet set, next month's theme is “Space Wrangler.”

“Funky formal” I understood. I can't help you interpret this new one.

The success of the cruiser ride just goes to show that not all cycling has to be about fitness. What was the point of this ride, you might ask. The flier encouraged folks to leave politics, spandex, and any competitiveness behind. “The idea is to pedal in good fun,” it reads.

Rob Noti, a mechanic at the Clean Machine, says the ride's purpose is to be “laid back; to have a fun group ride.” The only thing he had to say about his bike is that “it was free.”

--See more images from the inaugural Cruiser Tuesday over here.--

Posted by nicomachus at 7:46 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
August 25th, 2005

DURHAM -- If you haven't heard, the state of North Carolina just issued new “Share the Road” license plates. For $30 annually, cyclists who drive can show their fondness of two wheels even while in their car.

And if talk in the local cycling community is right, these new license tags couldn't have come at a better time.

In June, the Herald Sun reported that Durham cyclist Drew Cummings was hit and seriously injured while riding to Pittsboro. Whether it was an accidental or intentional hit and run, the driver fled the scene and has yet to be identified.

Greg Sousa reports on a local cycling listserv that he was run off the road on his way to work one morning in July. And Douglas Woolcock says that someone in a passing car threw a fast-food cup at him while he was cycling down Ninth Street.

Both are skeptical that these encounters were accidents since both incidents involved a passenger in the car raising a middle finger out the window.

What's going on here? Are the rising temperatures interfering with our sense of compassion? Do rising gas prices make it more difficult for motorists to show patience on the road? Do the summer swarms of cyclists upset all drivers?

A reader of this column, who wishes to remain anonymous, opines that some motorists are reluctant to share the road with cyclists who defiantly disregard traffic laws. Cyclists running red lights and stop signs are just a few of the anarchic affairs he's irritated by. And, he thinks, these small acts of rebellion may be igniting a territorial instinct in other drivers.

He may be right. I've listened to radicals on both sides of this issue.

To hear some motorists talk about the perceived arrogance of cyclists, you'd think that sharing lane space with a bicycle offends them deeply. To hear some cyclists talk about the perceived arrogance of drivers, you'd think every car with which they share the road puts their life as well as national security in danger.

But vigilante justice, whether it's a motorist chasing down an errant cyclist or a cyclist brandishing a U-lock as a weapon, is also against the law. More than illegal, it's shameful behavior.

Thinking in extremes, leaves us prone to confrontation. It locks motorists and cyclists in a turf battle over space on the road, and no one wins a battle like this.

Roadways are dangerous places simply by virtue of the fact that they are filled with independently moving machines – each traveling with enough speed to harm the delicate human body. Cars and bikes can mingle together safely, but only if we leave our attitudes out of the mix.

Let's not let our tempers rise as high as the temperature. Rather than polarize the road, let's share it calmly and safely.

Posted by nicomachus at 9:53 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron The Herald Sun August 11th, 2005 OAXACA, MEXICO -- After asking at a taller de bicicletas (a bike shop) whether I could rent a bike, a mecanico leads me across the street to Pedro Martinez. Sr. Martinez is a former Olympic mountain biker who rents bikes and leads tours in Oaxaca, Mexico.
(Bicicletas Pedro Martinez)	His office is small, just big enough for a counter, ten bikes to hang tightly against the wall, and shelves for helmets and cycling shoes. A collection of cycling jerseys hangs overhead, and inside the glass case that forms the counter are cassettes, pedals, hubs, and derailleurs. What available wall space is left is covered in poster-sized photographs of Martinez himself competing in races.
While Sr. Martinez is busy arranging a hiking tour with customers, his nephew Roberto invites me in. In the best Spanish I can muster, we joke about the pain of a long climb, about reaching down to click into the next easiest gear only to realize that you're already in it, and about the white-knuckles and big eyes of a sketchy descent. He tells me there is a 50 mile endurance mountain bike race on Sunday and invites me to race on a rented bike. I'm tempted but decline in favor of a ride through the streets of Oaxaca.
Sunday morning, I arrange to take a bike for two hours and ask about the local mountain bike scene. Roberto charges me 50 pesos (about $5.00) for a nice bike (a Giant Rincon), a pump and spare tube, tire levers, a lock, and a helmet.	(Rincon in the Zócalo)
Leaving the shop, I ride down la calle Aldama and turn south on JP Garcia. Although the sidewalks are crowded, traffic flows swiftly in the streets. Oaxaca is, like most developed areas, an auto-centric place. But bicycles fit right in with traffic here, and I never feel threatened by the buses, trucks, and taxis swirling around me. In fact, as I get more comfortable with the new traffic patterns, I realize that drivers around me seem to be more aware and respectful of bicyclists than I am used to.
(I snapped this one the day before)	I decide to ride the road up Monte Alban, a tight, steep road that leads to Zapotec ruins dating back to 100 AD. It's a grueling climb, but the views alone from the roadside make it worthwhile. Halfway up the road, I can see all of Oaxaca to the east. I snap a photograph in my mind and turn around.
Next I head north, riding the narrow one-way streets up to Chapultepec Highway. Although I see a few cyclists riding traditional road bikes, because of numerous speedbumps and the occasional cobblestone street, mountain bikes are the steeds of choice. (typical narrow street, facing north)	(Iglesia de Santo Domingo) I reach the northern end of the city passing la Iglesia de Santo Domingo, a cathedral built between 1570 and 1608. Santo Domingo sits squarely inside the art district of Oaxaca, and I pass several cafés catering to gallery patrons. (art district, facing south)
My two hours are coming to an end, so I turn back and begin riding southwest. On a bike, it's easy to navigate a city laid out in perfect square blocks, and I make my way to the Zócalo and the adjacent Alameda de León.
The Zócalo and Alameda de León are wide, auto-free pedestrian plazas where kids chase balloons, artists sell crafts, and musicians entertain day and night. I ride slowly through the crowds and notice several other cyclists also converging on the parks. These plazas are both the geographic and cultural focus of the city, drawing people to it. I feel as though I'm traveling against the natural flow of traffic as I leave the Zócalo and head south again for Aldama. (Zócalo and sculpture in the background)	(creativity on the Alameda de León)
Roberto welcomes me back into the shade of the office and asks where I've ridden. I tell him that I now believe that a bicycle is the only way to see Oaxaca, and he agrees. Out of curiosity, I ask whether he rents any single-speed mountain bikes. He laughs at the idea of riding a bike with only one gear in the mountains. I guess he needs to visit North Carolina.

Posted by nicomachus at 12:05 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
July 28th, 2005

DURHAM -- If le Tour de France inspired you to take a bike out for a spin, you're not alone. The bike industry has reported sales booms in previous Julys... those when Lance won the Tour. This year's race was just as inspiring, particularly in the mountain stages. It's always impressive to watch riders climb a hill faster than I could cruise down it.

The hill on Mt. Sinai Road isn't exactly Alpe d' Huez, but if you ride with a pack of fellow cyclists like the those in the Durham Cycle Center's weekly Tuesday ride, you might just feel like part of the peloton.

The biggest difference, however, between le Tour de France and your weekend tour of the Triangle will be traffic. Le Tour may be a tough bike ride, but for three weeks those riders don't have to put up with motorists. Apart from the support wagons and motorcycle-mounted cameras, they have the roads entirely to themselves.

We, however, share the road. We share it with vehicles much heavier than our bikes, and we're fairly vulnerable when out there riding. There are no race officials cordoning off the road ahead for us, so our personal safety is our own responsibility. Riding your bike on the road isn't all that tricky, because most safety is just common sense.

Bicycles are classified by state and municipal laws as vehicles. This means two important things: first, their proper place is on the road. Second, bikes are subject to traffic laws just like any other vehicle. Plainly, to get from here to there on a bike, you should be riding on the road – not on a sidewalk. In fact, Durham's city ordinances require any cyclists older than 12 to ride in the road.

The safest place to ride in the road is on the right hand side of the lane. Durham cyclist David Boynton describes his lane position as “out in the road with the right side of the handlebar on the line.” Riding here allows cars the chance to pass when it's clear and it also allows the rider some room to maneuver around potholes and lane debris.

Even though many new cyclists are uncomfortable turning their backs to the traffic, riding with the flow of traffic is far safer than riding against it. And with time, it'll feel more natural.

Since most accidents (in cars or on bikes) happen at intersections, keep a careful eye out at stopsigns, traffic lights, and even driveways. Most accidents result when one person just doesn't see the other. On your bike, ride predictably and try to be cognizant of how visible to others you are. Bright clothing or blinking lights may help.

Most of us cyclists are also drivers. So when you trade the handlebars for a steering wheel and you encounter a cyclist on the road, remember what it's like to be that cyclist. Drivers interact with cyclists best when they treat the bike as just another vehicle on the road.

When passing a bicycle, it's courteous to give the rider as wide a berth as you would a car. The NC DMV's driver's manual states that “drivers wishing to pass a bicyclist may do so only when there is abundant clearance and no oncoming traffic is in the opposing lane. When passing a bicyclist, always remember the bicyclist is entitled to the use of the full lane.” So, even though a bike takes up less room than a car, the cyclist has a right to the lane and may need extra room to dodge a pothole.

Contrary to popular belief, the DMV does not recommend tapping your horn to alert the cyclist of your presence. As you approach a bike from behind, most cyclists are already aware that you're there (even though they may not give any indication).

I've heard from more than one reader of this column that as drivers they are often frustrated when they encounter a group of bikers riding together and crowding the road. This happens more often on the rural roads surrounding the Triangle than the city streets. While there's certainly a social component to any group ride, cyclists also ride in groups for better visibility and thus greater safety.

So if you encounter a peloton on 751 down by Lake Jordan, just be patient. They'll soon fall in line on the right hand side of the road, and you'll be on your way.

Posted by nicomachus at 6:00 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
July 14, 2005

DURHAM -- Back in the winter, Curt and Judy Eshelman had an idea. They though it would be fun to celebrate the summer solstice with an organized cycling event. At night. A night ride in honor of the longest day of the year.

�They made one fatal error,� says friend and fellow cyclist Peter Anlyan. �They put it out to the cycling community for opinions.�

It seems no one could agree on anything � the time, the route, whether to make it a benefit ride. But Curt Eshelman is quick to point out that the idea �died� for lack of consensus � not a lack of interest.

A week before the solstice, Anlyan and the Eschelmans revived the idea, passed the word among friends, and gathered twenty or more riders at the American Tobacco Campus for a 17 mile ride.

As we head off around 8:30pm, the sun is setting and the riders are giddy. Not many have ever ridden their bikes at night before, and for a good number of the riders, this event is their first foray into group bike rides. Fitting that an ad-hoc event brings together such an unlikely group of people.

�Well, [it's my] first intentional night ride,� says Muriel Moody. There was that time, in the Peace Corps, in Madagascar, �but that's a long story.� Moody, a first year Duke Law School student getting a jump on her studies this summer, is excited to get tapped into the loacl cycling community.

For Tate Little, the solstice ride is also his first group ride in Durham. Little moved to Durham only two days before the summer solstice when his girlfriend, Roxanne Hall of Durham's Habitat for Humanity, told him about the ride. Little and Hall are training for the local MS 150 ride in September. �I'd just like to get in as many rides as I can,� says Little. �This is a nice, safe ride.�

Hall says she can't believe all the fireflies. It's �nice and cool. I'm really enjoying it. It's a different experience. Durham by night.�

Rusty Miller, a cycling coach and �ex-professional cyclist� joins the ride midway through it. On his way home from his own ride, he spots a pack of riders with lights. �A night time ride on the Tobacco Trail... how could I say 'no'?�

Near the end of our route, we cross the bridge over Lakewood Avenue. Any hint of sunlight is gone; the sky is a deep blue-gray. Facing north, all you can see are the lights of Durham's skyline and the blinking tail-lights of other cyclists.

As rider Matt DeMargel puts it, the solstice was the �perfect night for it.�

Posted by nicomachus at 12:38 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
June 9th, 2005

DURHAM -- OK, OK, we don't have the steep slopes or off-season ski resort infrastructure of British Columbia or West Virginia. Even in the state, we're at a bit of a disadvantage. Western North Carolina already boasts the world-famous Tsali and Pisgah trail networks.

You might think it's unlikely that folks will come to the Triangle just for some off-road action.

But, consider some other unlikely mountain bike destinations... the 33-mile Womble Trail in Hot Springs, Arkansas or the Alafia River trail network in Brandon, Florida. Both have earned the distinction “epic rides” by the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA), and neither is in an area known for its mountains.

The only thing the Triangle needs to compete with other metropolitan mountain biking hotspots is longer trails. Mountain bike community leaders hope the new Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC) can make that happen.

“We feel like a unified voice speaking for the area riders will stand a better chance to gain access to some of this land as well as be able to secure large enough grants to construct the trail,” says TORC board member Stewart Bryan. “Essentially we are trying to pool the talents and people [who] are working for public trail and use them more efficiently.”

With their sights set on Jordan Lake, Falls Lake and Chatham County, TORC is prioritizing gaining access to big tracts of land and building sustainable, environmentally responsible mountain bike trails.

Carter Worthington, North Carolina's IMBA representative, is getting involved with TORC so that his “little girl will have a place to ride her bike in 20 years.”

“Right now, we're losing trails faster than we're gaining trails,” says Worthington, of Apex. “The legal trails have been successful; we have good relationships with the land managers and owners.”

But unofficial trails are “usually not sustainable. The land owners sell the land,” or the trails just aren't designed well to begin with. Either way, mountain bikers lose out.

The Triangle currently boasts more than 80 miles of public singletrack – however, most of these trails come in sections fewer than 10 miles in length.

TORC is committed to establishing more legal mountain bike trails in the Triangle, trails to which it can preserve access and that will be longer than existing trail networks. One of TORC's primary goals is “at least one permanent year round public singletrack trail system of around 40 miles with camping facilities,” Bryan said.

“Everything is in the early stages of a long process that requires a lot of patient work that many riders are not even aware is going on on their behalf,” says the Chapel Hill resident.

To kick things off right, the Triangle Cyclopaths, a local cycling team, are hosting a race to benefit TORC. On the night of June 18th, bike- and helmet-mounted halogens will “Light the Night” as racers compete in a night-time endurance mountain bike race at Umstead State Park.

Who knows? With the thousands of acres of protected natural lands surrounding Jordan and Falls Lake and the steadily growing mountain bike community, the Triangle may just play host to an epic ride someday.

--
A TORC membership application is available at Trianglemtb.com.

Posted by nicomachus at 11:09 AM | Permalink

The Herald Sun
May 26, 2005

DURHAM -- May is National Bike Month, and last week was National Bike to Work Week. They probably schedule these celebrations for May because of the weather. I mean, how can you resist going for a ride when the highs are in the 70s and the mosquitoes aren't out yet?

It makes sense, then, that May is also the time a lot of folks start dreaming of that new bike.

John Murray of Durham writes in to ask for a little advice on choosing his next bike. He says, “I am a 60 yr.old male in good health. I have a small amount of experience with a road bike (narrow tires, drop [sic] bars, 20 years ago) and when at the coast, I ride a fourteen year old Diamond Back Sorento.

I am looking to... lose weight, and improve my cardiovascular condition. I will be able to ride to work, 6.9 miles. I would like to get to the point of riding 20 to 30 miles on a Saturday morning without being completely wasted (this may be wishful thinking).

Should I go with a road bike, a mountain bike, or something in between?”

Finding a bike that fits your riding style is tough. I can tick off some of the considerations you'll want to keep in mind, but the absolute best advice I can give you is to go to a local bike shop, have them size you for a bike, and then test ride several. The only way to decide on a new bike is to get a feel for it.

It sounds like you want a bike on which you can put in some serious weekend mileage as well as commute to work. The difference between a mountain bike with road tires and a road bike (with even skinnier tires) is all about preference.

Traditionally, you ride in a more aggressive, aerodynamic posture on a road bike, whereas you sit more upright on a mountain bike. The bent-over, road riding position is harder on your back, neck, and wrists. The more upright mountain bike riding position is usually more comfortable.

Chris Hull of the Durham Cycle Center showed me a few bikes that help blur these traditional distinctions, bringing more comfort features to road bikes.

The Specialized Sequoia ($800) is what Hull calls a "comfort road bike." It combines traditional road bike frame geometry with a suspension seat post, taller stem, and carbon fiber fork. The fork and seat post "help reduce road resonance," says Hull, while the taller stem puts the rider in a more upright riding position. All this translates into a smooth, fast road bike that puts less strain on your back, neck, and wrists.

The Sirrus ($470), also from Specialized, uses a traditional mountain bike frame with flat handlebars, and trigger-style gear shifters, but uses narrow, light 700c road tires. This makes for a fun commuter bike that can zip around urban streets. The frame is strong enough to carry panniers and light enough to invite you to ride it just about anywhere.

Skinny road bike tires mean less rolling resistance. You can go faster and ride for longer stretches of time using less energy than you would on 2-inch wide tires. The skinny road bike tires, however, require the rider to use more skill and keep more focus on road conditions. A fatter mountain bike tire is a little more forgiving if you hit a pot hole or gravel. So, if you plan to ride dirt roads, you may want to look at something like the Trek 7200.

The 7200 ($390), compared with the Specialized bikes, is oriented more towards comfort. The rider sits in a very upright riding position atop a wide seat with a suspension seat post. Riser handlebars attach to an adjustable stem and a suspension fork. This bike is made to eat the bumps so that your arms and legs don't have to.

The last bike Hull showed me is the Specialized Roubaix ($1,200 for '04 model). The Roubaix, he says, "is more performance oriented. It's a race bike with some comfort features." Someone with prior experience on a road bike would be comfortable on the Roubaix, Hull thinks. With a traditional road bike frame geometry, the Roubaix uses "resonance absorbing technology in the fork, seat post, and even seat stays" to make a comfortable ride that you "could bring to our Tuesday night rides," referring to group road rides Cycle Center hosts every Tuesday night.

Infusing performance bikes with comfort technology is a new trend in bike manufacturing. It's an exciting trend, says Hull. But new technology can't (and doesn't) replace a good old fashioned bike fitting. Hull says that when you're looking for a new bike, whether at Cycle Center or anywhere else, bike shop employees should take the time to adjust the seat height and the handlebars to "make sure the bike fits you properly before your test ride."

Posted by nicomachus at 10:14 AM | Permalink

The Herald-Sun
May 10, 2005

DURHAM -- Susan Crosjean of Raleigh practices "popping" her front wheel off the ground again and again. Once she's comfortable with the move, she aims her bike at a tightly packed row of logs, each 12 inches in diameter. Riding toward them, she gathers speed. She's cheered on by her friends and encouraged by spotters, who are there just in case.

She lifts her front wheel, then the rear, and rolls gracefully over the stunt.

I ask later whether she's ever cleared that stunt before. "Never," she says, "but I don't let anything stand in my way. I do it again and again until I get it."

This is a typical evening for the women of GRID.

Just over a year old and more than 100 members deep, GRID -- Girlz Riding in Dirt -- is a Trianglewide, all-women's mountain bike club. Last week, GRID founder Peggy Dodge let me tag along at Lake Crabtree County Park with 10 of the club's members.

I've never ridden with a more excitable bunch. Riding through the woods, you'll hear just as many "Yahoo!" shouts as supportive words. This group hits the trails to have fun.

Experience levels among GRID's members run the gamut, from newbies to racers.

Right now, "GRID primarily caters to the less-experienced crowd and intermediate riders," Dodge says. "Let's face it, for a beginning rider the trail can be very pushy and intimidating." Membership benefits include "no-drop rides, weekly mailings, bike maintenance and skills clinics, group trips and a great time! It's very social."

Lisa Schell of Cary adds another benefit: "It's nice to be around people who understand it's OK to have three bikes."

Encouraging riders like Crosjean to improve their skills in a noncompetitive, friendly, confidence-building environment is exactly what GRID specializes in.

Many of GRID's riders started mountain biking within the last three years and choose to ride with the club to develop technique. Paula Frost of Holly Springs sports the new woman-specific Specialized Stumpjumper. "Peggy got me into mountain biking," she says. "She's very positive; a good teacher." Three years and four bikes later, Frost says she's riding 'til she's 50.

"What? I'm not stopping at 50," shouts Schell.

Amaris Guardiola, a hard-tail rider from Graham, has been mountain biking since 1996. Echoing a sentiment I heard repeatedly that evening, Guardiola says she used to ride alone, but started riding with GRID for the companionship.

"Everyone's just so encouraging," she said.

Schell says her riding improved after her first GRID ride. She raises her voice to announce, "Hey Peggy! Two days in a row, I didn't fall!"

Yeah... I was the only one who tumbled on the trail Tuesday night.

The guys can join in the fun on any of GRID's co-ed rides, but Dodge keeps the club focused on women. "I actually established GRID for selfish reasons... I wanted to ride with other women and not just the boys who were so much stronger and more skilled than me," she told me ahead of time. "Women are more cautious while men approach their riding more aggressively, facing the consequences later."

If I'd listened, maybe I wouldn't have ended up face down on a switchback.

Dodge would also like to see GRID expand by developing a team component to the club, "to have an individual who can establish a race program and build membership by recruiting more advanced riders."

Back at the trailhead, we stand around swapping stories, discussing the benefits of clipless pedals and bashguards, and sharing riding techniques. Just like any other group bike ride, the conversation inevitably turns to pizza. The camaraderie never stops.

Posted by nicomachus at 12:35 AM | Permalink

The Herald-Sun
April 27, 2005

DURHAM -- Riding along the American Tobacco Trail on my way home from work, I come up behind another bicyclist. I slow down to say hello, as I always do.

My fellow biker assertively tells me to slow down, to pull over and that he is a cop.

"Of course, Officer," I say, unlocking my shoe from the pedal and squeezing the brakes a little harder. When we both stop conveniently at an intersection, I look more closely at the arresting officer: a young boy, no more than 9 years old.

"I read in the paper that the Durham police are putting more cops on bikes this year," I say.

Reading either the skeptical look on my face or my willingness to play along, he shows off his radio, which validates his ability to protect and serve. It's the hand-held mouthpiece to a CB radio with its coiled wire tied to the handlebars of his BMX bike.

"Seen any trouble on your ride today?" he asks me.

"No, not yet, but I could use some help crossing this intersection." Riding his own bike nearby, the cop's older brother -- I mean superior officer -- smiles at the two of us.

Like cops in the movies do, Officer BMX is eyeballing me -- with a squint no less. Kids are fascinated by gadgets, and he's taking in the utilitarian nature of my gear: shoes that lock into the pedals, a rubber band around my right ankle to keep my pants cuffs out of the greasy crank, a rack holding my sandals and blinking tail light, a brightly colored shoulder bag with reflective tape and most importantly, my helmet.

Officer BMX happily complies, escorting me through the intersection once he determines the coast is clear.

"Did you respond to any calls today, any trouble in the neighborhood?" I ask him.

"Yeah, a girl had a bike accident earlier. I had to help her fix her bike. It's been quiet since then," he replied.

On the other side of the road, I thank him for helping me across the street and for keeping this route safe for me and for other cyclists.

As I click into my pedals and begin to pull away, I think he might ride with me. Instead, he turns around and rides back through the intersection. I guess he can't stray too far from home, I mean, outside his jurisdiction.

Posted by nicomachus at 10:44 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald Sun
April 7, 2005

DURHAM -- Imagine driving along when without signage, without warning, and without anywhere else to go, your lane ends. You stop, baffled, climb out of your car and look around. About 50 yards ahead you see where the road continues. Between here and there is an unpaved, patchy mix of grass, gravel, mounds of unused asphalt, and murky puddles from last night's rain. Even if you wanted to drive through this gap in the road, you're not sure you should since the ground is also littered with rusty car parts left by the last person who tried to traverse the stretch.

A motorist would immediately report the gap in the road to the local public works department. Such a gap would fail every known traffic engineering standard. Really, it's a lawsuit waiting to be filed.

Cyclists, however, know this scenario all too well. One minute we're riding comfortably on the 3 ft. shoulder of a wide outer lane. The next minute, we have to make a split-second decision: we can stop, jump off a six-inch ledge into the sandy grass just off the road (which is also usually filled with broken glass and empty fast-food bags), or suddenly merge with the automobile traffic.

Riding a bike in traffic isn't necessarily dangerous. Merging with automobile traffic without warning, however, is pretty scary.

The inconsistency of the shoulder, the width of pavement just outside the line marking the limit of the lane, is just one of the reasons why state law says that cyclists should ride in the travel lane, as part of traffic. Under state law, a bicycle is considered a vehicle, just like any car, motorcycle, or truck. Not only do bicyclists have the right to ride in traffic, it's also the safest place on the road to ride. Sometimes, though, uncooperative or unaware motorists or even just a steady stream of automobile traffic can marginalize bikers, pushing us to the shoulder.

Relegated to the margins of the roads, we often ride in that inconsistent, crumbling, glass-strewn space that may end abruptly. When the shoulder extends a foot or more in width, a cyclist can be tricked into thinking that the shoulder is a safe place to ride.

Old Erwin Rd. and Ephesus Church Rd. are case studies in varying shoulder widths and bottle-necking narrow bridges. At times, a cyclist can ride down Erwin on a width of pavement wide enough to be a bike lane. At the bottom of a hill, the “lane” may end without warning.

Roads with inconsistent shoulders are dangerous in their deception. They appear to offer bicyclists space to ride. On your bicycle, that car-free zone just outside the outer lane entices you. Then, you're forced to think quickly about how best to avoid an accident. Neither merging nor stopping are ideal.

What would be ideal? What if civil engineers and transportation planners thought about bicycles with every road designed and built? What if bike lanes on urban streets and wide outer lanes on rural roads were the rule rather than the exception? Then the problem of the inconsistent shoulder would be a thing of the past.

We don't accept this kind of dangerous inconsistency for our automobiles. Why do we accept it for our bikes?

Posted by nicomachus at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Herald-Sun
March 24, 2005

DURHAM -- Picture yourself riding a Six-13 -- the bike so light, Cannondale claims they had to "add weights to the frame just to make it UCI-legal." A plush blend of carbon fiber (hence the six – check your periodic table of elements) and aluminum (the thirteen) not your style? Then how about taking a spin on the Prophet – Mountain Biking Magazine's pick for Bike of the Year?

Next week, you'll get your chance.

Cannondale is touring the country, showing off its latest technology by bringing it with them. On Thursday, March 31st, Cannondale will be at the Durham Cycle Center with a full fleet of Six-13s and Prophets. Guaranteed, they'll have one that's your size. They'll be back in the area, at the Clean Machine in Carrboro, on Sunday, April 3rd, to let you test ride the Prophets on some Orange County singletrack.

Demo tours offer you the chance to take one of these beauties for a "longer test ride than on an in-store bike" says Brian Bergeler, store manager at Durham Cycle Center. He adds that Cannondale's visit promises to bring together some top-of-the-line "bikes that aren't normally found in great quantities anywhere."

The Prophet, with five inches of travel in the fork and the rear swing-arm, is the current pinnacle of full-suspension technology. It's "super plush" says Matthew Lee, Carrboro resident and member of the Cannondale Mountain Bike Team. And at just under 28 lbs, the Prophet is "a lot lighter than other 5-inch travel bikes."

The Six-13 is the bike of choice for the 2005 Lampre-Caffita team, a professional road racing team in the European circuit. The Six-13 combines aluminum downtube and chainstays with carbon fiber top tube and seatstays. The result is a rigid powertrain with a more humane, more comfortable seat.

Cannondale has long been the most innovative of the major bike manufacturers. They made their name establishing aluminum as a reliable frame material in the late 1980s. The single-pivot rear suspension design pioneered in their "Super V" model is one of the the most unique and most mimicked frame designs ever. Named for the unusual V shape to the frame, these are the beefy-but-light bikes that both the Duke and Durham Police Department's Bike Units rely on. Advanced as the Super V was, Lee says the Prophet is a tremendous improvement.

Lee will be riding a Cannondale this summer, when he rides in the Great Divide Race for his second time. The GDR is a 2500 mile mountain bike race from Canada to Mexico along the Continental Divide. Lee did well last year; this year he's out for a record.

But you don't need to be a pro to visit with the Cannondale representatives next week. A longer test ride on these Ferraris of the cycling world gives you more of a feel for the bike in case you want to take one home with you. For most of us, Cannondale's visit is a chance to throttle some of the nicest bikes in the industry. For free.

Posted by nicomachus at 10:39 AM | Permalink

The Herald-Sun
Mar 9, 2005

DURHAM -- If he sees one or two fresh sets of tire tracks on a wet, muddy trail, Stewart Bryan of the Durham-Orange Mountain Bike Organization gets frustrated. Three or four sets and he's angry.

"Five or more," Bryan jokes, "and I heat up the branding iron."

As DOMBO's trail construction coordinator, Bryan knows that even the best-designed trails are more delicate when wet. Keeping the flow of a well-designed trail depends on riders respecting the trail by taking a minimal-impact approach to their rides.

But recently, conscientious mountain bikers have noticed more and more ruts in the trails. Whether this is due to inexperience or to riders who just aren't watching the weather, the local mountain bike community is now paying more attention to this issue.

The International Mountain Bike Association recommends waiting at least 24 hours for every inch of rain before hitting your local trails.

But these are just rough guidelines, since drying times might be longer depending on other factors. Freezing temperatures, for example, can extend a trail's drying time to a week or more.

It's taken many years of volunteer organizing and thousands of hours in meetings with politicians and land managers for mountain bikers to shake loose the "Mountain Dew" image of the sport's youth. Repainting our bikes (and ourselves) with mud "reinforces the negative stereotype that we are destructive and unconcerned for the environment," Bryan said.

That's why DOMBO is more than a mountain bike club -- it's an environmental organization "dedicated to building and maintaining low-impact sustainable" trails.

Triangle cyclists bent on proving that you don't need mountains for mountain biking still have to admit that trails in the area don't have the benefit of steep slopes. As a result, water drains more slowly from local trails than from trails in the western part of the state. Each rut carved into a trail is a pocket where rainwater pools, and every puddle extends the drying time of the trail.

Since fewer than half of the trails in the area are managed by park officials, mountain bikers need to develop their own awareness of trail conditions. If the dirt singletrack is too wet to ride, cyclists can still ride their knobby tires on the gravel trails in Duke Forest or at Umstead State Park.

There's always asphalt too. Yes, some mountain bikers are also roadies. "Better yet," says Bryan, "take up another form of recreation like weight training, yoga, or table tennis, and watch [your] riding improve."

So, the next time you're tempted to steal a few laps in or soon after a rain and you come out muddy on the other end, remember that you're sharing this trail with others, including your future self.

Posted by nicomachus at 9:43 AM | Permalink

The Herald Sun
February 24, 2005

"Bicycle Commuters Unite" says the flier Alison Carpenter has been passing out recently. She's trying to get the word out about Durham's first Bicyclist Breakfast.

From 7:30AM until 9AM Friday, bicycle commuters will be stopping by Ooh La Latte Coffeehouse, 1116 Broad St., on their way to work.

Who's invited? Anyone who loves bikes.

Carpenter, Durham's new Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Coordinator, hopes the get-together will become a regular monthly event, something to bring "cohesion, solidarity to the downtown [bike] commuting group."

Bikers' breakfasts have been successful in towns like Charlotte and Boston, and are as much about diversity as about unity. That's because people rides bikes for a lot of reasons. About the only thing they'll all have in common tomorrow is a love of the bicycle. That and helmet-hair.

Bicycle commuters, simply by virtue of their mode of transit, are often seen as self-reliant people. Solitary figures, hunched over their handlebars, negotiating with tons of steel for a few feet's width of pavement. It's an image to make Ralph Waldo Emerson proud.

But it's no fun to bear the weighty burden of autonomy all the time. Aristotle, recognizing us as social animals, characterizes the most meaningful life as one with elements of both self-reliance and friendship. Sometimes even the independent folks want a little company.

What's on the agenda?

"Eat, drink, be merry, and talk about bikes, of course," says Carpenter. Actually, there is no agenda. It's not a meeting; the Bikers' Breakfast is just an excuse to meet some of your fellow cyclists and ponder the big questions in life: aluminum or carbon fiber? ("Steel is real" someone shouts out from the back.) Fox Forx or Marzocchis? A backpack or a messenger bag? In the interest of getting to work on time, however, we may have to agree to disagree.

So stop by tomorrow morning, refuel with caffeine, conversation, and camaraderie, then head on to work knowing that you're part of a community.

Posted by nicomachus at 11:29 AM | Permalink

The Herald Sun
February 10, 2005

On the one day you forget to carry a spare tube, patch kit, or pump in your pack you feel your front tire roll unsteadily around corners.

You arrive at work as the remaining useful psi's escape with that dreaded hiss. A shard from the broken bottle on the side of the road that you didn't see until the last minute, catches the sunlight from where it sits halfway in your tire.

Anxiety over being stranded at work by a flat tire, a broken chain, or unscheduled overtime is a big reason that people don't try bike-commuting.

Until recently, cyclists had to rely on sympathetic co-workers or their own wallets/purses to get them home. But now, if you register for the Triangle Transit Authority's Emergency Ride Home program, TTA's got your back.

Here's how it works: TTA issues registered users a voucher good for "a reliable, emergency ride home on the day the person has used an alternative mode of transportation to get to work." When you find yourself stranded, call one of the transportation providers that TTA has partnered with -- a taxi if your ride home is less than 20 miles, a car rental if it's more than 20 -- and the voucher is your payment.

It's that simple. But you have to be a registered user, so sign up now. Don't wait until there's an emergency.

TTA's not just there in emergencies; they're helping bikers get just about everywhere they need to go with a bike rack on the front of every bus. The $1.50 fare (going up to $2.00 in March) will get you and your bike anywhere within the Authority's region of coverage -- from Franklin St. in Chapel Hill to New Bern Ave. in downtown Raleigh, from Duke to Garner.

Since DATA, Chapel Hill Transit, and CAT also have bike racks on the fronts of their buses, you can use TTA to travel between towns and the municipal systems to travel within them.

But most of the time, the greatest help to a cyclist isn't a lift in an automobile, it's camaraderie.

If you're looking for someone to ride with on those cold mornings, TTA has partnered with Share the Ride NC to help you find other cyclists who share a similar route and destination.

Linking from TTA's website, you can access Share the Ride NC's database of bicycle commuters interested in sharing their morning or evening commute with other two-wheeled companions.

Commuters enter basic information like starting point, destination, and approximate time you leave or arrive at work. The program matches you with other cyclists in your area.

Besides, a good riding buddy will carry spare tubes and pumps even when you forget yours.

Route maps, fare information, and registration forms are all available on TTA's website. You can also request registration forms by calling 919-549-9999.

Posted by nicomachus at 9:27 AM | Permalink

The Herald Sun

By choice, Caleb Southern doesn't own a car. He lives and works downtown, walking just about everywhere he needs to go. You might think, then, that he'd be excited about the N.C. Railroad Co.'s proposal to close the railroad crossing at Blackwell and Corcoran streets to automobile traffic. In place of the street-level crossing, the railroad has proposed a 65-foot wide pedestrian underpass.

Southern adamantly opposes the plan.

"I believe the best solution," to the imminent increase in train traffic at this crossing "is to improve the Blackwell Street railroad crossing at grade."

Many readers of this column have asked for my opinion as a cyclist. I agree with Southern that closing the crossing to cars is not in downtown's best interests. Nor the best interests of Durham's cycling community.

Here's why.

I'm not sure where it comes from, but there is an assumption that cyclists and drivers are at odds with one another. Occasionally, a driver resents slowing down to pass a cyclist, and sure there is a small but sometimes vocal community of cyclists who proclaim that gasoline consumption is tantamount to global devastation. But for the most part cyclists and drivers are happy to share the road with one another. Think about it, most cyclists are also drivers.

Sharing the road is what urban cycling is all about. A well-designed street is one that keeps traffic - in all modes of transportation - flowing smoothly and safely.

Many Durham residents have long complained that the downtown loop impedes downtown's ability to attract businesses because the loop diverts traffic around the district. City transportation planners have listened and rethought downtown's streets.

For example, the city plans to realign the Foster/Corcoran Street, Chapel Hill Street intersection. Coupled with this will be a new bicycling route through downtown. The Downtown Trail will connect the South Ellerbee Creek Trail with the American Tobacco Trail. It will follow Foster and Corcoran, cross the railroad tracks, and continue on Blackwell Street.

I believe downtown's renaissance depends on growing downtown from the center, out. As I've said before, Durham is already a city divided into bike-friendly islands. Closing the Corcoran/Blackwell railroad separates downtown physically and visually from its newest resource - the American Tobacco Campus.

As Southern says, the railroad company's "plan will clearly impede the continuity of the Downtown Trail for cyclists and pedestrians and further separate the two sides of the tracks." Finding an attractive and safe street-level solution will unify Durham's downtown and preserve the flow of Durham's contribution to the East Coast Greenway - the 2000-plus mile cycling trail from Maine to Florida. If cycling traffic at the railroad crossing is disrupted in any way, Durham may lose its best opportunity for bicycle tourism.

The proposed closure of the railroad crossing shows that cyclists, drivers, and pedestrians share more than the road; we also share the desire to get from here to there as safely and efficiently as possible.

Posted by nicomachus at 11:38 AM | Permalink

Phillip Barron
The Herald-Sun
January 11, 2005 9:09 am

DURHAM -- All cyclists have stories about accidents: the first time, the worst time, the most recent time. Falling, in my opinion, is just part of cycling. For the most part, especially if you're wearing your helmet, falling isn't so bad. It gives you the chance to get back up.

On the way to work a few months ago, a familiar corner of the last 50 yards of my commute revealed itself as unfamiliar. Rounding the corner, I tried to keep as much speed as possible for the climb up the steep hill on the other side. The corner, a sharp right turn, is the only thing standing between me and the momentum I need to coast up at least a quarter of the hill. My 9-mile commute is not hard, but by the time I get to this hill, my feet are heavy.

Seeing how fast I can take the corner is one of the risks I take to challenge myself on my way to work. Every morning I go a little faster, lean the bike a little more, and make myself a little more vulnerable. But, this morning, I rode a little too fast or leaned a little too far. It was tropical storm season, and the suddenly clear blue sky belied the fact that it had rained persistently for three days. Although the roads were dry, under the canopy of the trees the trail was still wet.

Wet pavement, hit at an angle and with enough speed, can be slick as ice. It doesn't take much mud, wet grass, or algae slime to pull a wheel out from under you. Especially if you're braking into the turn. I should have finished braking before the turn, so that I could accelerate through it. But, my confidence was off and I was still braking while turning. Probably because I was afraid of falling.

The front tire slipped first. The bottom of the front wheel kicked out and to the left. The rest of the bike, not prepared to follow the front wheel's new direction and keep a 200-pound rider on top, laid down on its right side. By the time the rear wheel was sliding, the handlebars hit the path, bounced, and skidded down the hill. The bike came to a stop about 15 feet away from where the front tire slipped. With a smoothly worn bar-end, the bike faired better than I.

I slid across the pavement on it. The sliding didn't hurt, even though skin was tearing. It hurt only afterward. While you're falling and sliding on pavement, it's almost like it's not happening to you. You don't have time to think or feel.

When I stood up, I began to feel. Yeah, my shoulder hurt from the jarring impact, but it didn't dislocate. Yeah, my hip hurt from slamming into pavement, but I had no trouble walking. Yeah, I was bleeding from my elbow, but not badly considering what just happened.

What I felt most was relief. Relief that I was OK; that my fears didn't come true. Later, I was even glad that I had fallen. I felt like I had accomplished something important.

As we age, we grow more fragile. We lose the adept strength, flexibility, and elasticity of our childhood physiques. But our habits accelerate the biological inevitability of aging. We are less active as adults than we are as children. We value play less; we value physical activity less. We surround ourselves with safety features like airbags, surge protectors, carbon monoxide detectors and surveillance cameras. For many of us if we play, we tend to play it safe.

This is something to think about. We're not just growing more fragile as we grow older, we're also growing more conservative. Some of us take fewer risks because we see risk as a health care liability or a threat to job security.

What are we afraid of? Maybe we're afraid of falling because we don't fall often enough. We fear falling when we forget that falling is about healing, about recovering, about learning.

If we fell more, we'd be a little bruised, maybe a little bloody, a little more sore. But, we'd be better prepared for what comes next. Where we fall and bounce back, where we risk and succeed, where we work through fear, that's where we find meaning in life.

Posted by nicomachus at 1:14 PM | Permalink