The Mexican office of the Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (ITDP) produced this film – in Spanish with English subtitles.

Photo by Devon Balet

by Nate Bird

Steamboaters love snow. Last April….we were neck deep in it.

In April of 2011, you’ve never seen so many people who love the snow so over it and yearning for some respite from the long, snowy winter.  In stark contrast to last year, this year the valley is green and trails are dry.  We’re talking mountain biking, real legit mountain biking. Our amazing singletrack, reh’ tuh’ go.

Though ski season didn’t officially end until the second weekend of April, it pretty much ended way earlier than that here – it was a dismal snow year in Ski Town USA.  But luckily we have bicycles to save us.  The bike season kicked off early for Team Honey Stinger/Bontrager with team camp in MTB mecca Fruita, Colorado the week before the celebrated closing of the ski hill.  The rag tag assembly of some bada$$ Colorado Mt. bikers did not struggle to enjoy the two days together.  We might have also gone for a pretty dope night ride or two with our Light & Motion bike lights – a veritable choo choo of lights rallying under a full moon at Highline State Park. The evidence is in the pics.

Next stop was the Sea Otter Classic.  Mad amounts of fun starting with some picture taking con lights and some of the best and most fun bikers in the industry.  Picture this: Santa Cruz, Light & Motion lights, single track, super good riders and people, ‘nuff said.   This was proceeded by a visit to the factory where Honey Stinger Organic Energy Chews are made – talk about being a kid in a candy factory.  Mr. Wonka was not present, but the Oompa Loompas were very accommodating in his stead.  Oh, and Sea Otter….. the place where there is something to satiate anyone who likes a bike of any sort.  We sampled and sold a lot of Honey Stinger, but we just had the best damn time talking bikes and having fun with our fans.  And Coco (AKA, Buzz the Bee), hit the jump into the airbag with the bee suit on; a valiant attempt at a backflip when you can’t even see the jump you’re hitting – watch the sick footie attached.   The homies at Trek enabled me to race on a super sick Superfly 1oo Elite last minute and off the couch (booth) to complete my trip to the No to the Cal.

April’s last stop was vacation, if you refer to vacation as racing that is – the Whiskey 50 in Prescott, AZ.  What an event – rarely do you see a town rally around an event (let alone a bike race) like the folks in Prescott did.  The promoters and the town truly put on an event that all of the locals embrace – it felt like being at home in Steamboat, CO.   Despite the awesome atmosphere, I had been having  some problems with my drivetrain and didn’t know what was up.  Much to my chagrin, but probably a blessing in disguise, I discovered my shifting issues were due to a very cracked chainstay five minutes before the fat tire crit, I don’t really need or desire a carbon puncture wound.  It also may have been a gift because I didn’t have to race a fat tire  crit against the likes of Kabush and JHK.  It was super disappointing nonetheless, but luckily I was allowed to start the race and then pull out immediately so I could race in the big show on Sunday.

And then, without a doubt, the nicest, most generous example of a stranger’s kindness ever in my life happened.  Basically, a bystander (who turned out to be one of the mostest cool peeps in the AZ bike community) overheard me bitching about my busted rig and approached me.  His name is Kaolin, and I later found out he is bros with many of my bros.  He, completely and selflessly, found and personally installed (at his insistence) the part I needed  after a fairly exhaustive search on his part.  I had mentally already checked out of the race, but he hooked me up, and completely changed my mental complexion at the midnight hour (actually 1 AM – 7 hours before the race start). He made Falcor race ready, fixed the broken wing.  I raced, had a fun time, gave it all I had, and that’s that – it was awesome.

And another bonus, my boy, another Nate (Miller), won the single speed category the day before.  Not only did he win the single speed, he beat all of the other geared racers whilst setting a course record for the category.  He’s won his last five races, including Sea Otter, and being on the winning Light & Motion team at The 24 Hours of Old Pueblo.  We call that “baller” in the parlance of our times.

Up next – the first night ride of the season – tonight.  I’ll have my stash of Light & Motion lights to illuminate Emerald Mountain and get lights on other bikers to show them just how awesome night rides and Light & Motion are.  Boom.

Nate Bird

Nate Bird works when he’s not riding for Honey Stinger.

We were on the local bike path this Thursday with our local transportation agency TAMC to serve up breakfast, talk bikes, and share commute stories.  We discovered that people are passionate about their bikes and we saw all kinds including a mom riding her daughter’s purple 20-inch wheeled stingray to work!  We also heard a world of good reasons to ride your bike. Here’s an excerpt from our interview with Light & Motion employee Jarod Armer who rode by our booth en route to work:

“I started riding my bike to work because I have a 30-minute commute in my pick up with 20 miles per gallon so I decided I’d drive part way and ride my bike in 10 miles each way – that’s 20 miles (on the bike) a day which is one gallon of gas. I end up saving about $4 dollars per day, $20 per week, and $80 a month. It really adds up and it means less wear and tear on my car and it is better for the environment.”

Bike to Work Day is tomorrow –  count the smiles on the bikes you see!

By Ian Dowden

As a bike messenger its easy to become jaded and take things for granted since every day is ‘bike to work day’ -  I ride  my bike all day, every day, all year-round.  But Bike Month and Bike to Work week is pretty cool because you get to see ordinary people do extraordinary things when they take the challenge to Bike to Work.  It’s motivating for me to see them taking a risk to leave their cars behind.

Bike Month and Bike to Work week is cool because you see adults rediscovering the simplicity and joy of riding a bike again.  It sounds cheesy saying that and I roll my eyes a lot when I read things like that but it is true.  In fact, as I was writing this a friend of mine came in to where I volunteer and gave me a high-five and said she had just done a practice ride! She and her friend rode from her house to where she works to test out her new commuting route she’ll start this month.  She had a huge smile.

Here are a couple of links to help you find a route for your ride to work this week:

http://www.ecovelo.info/2012/01/01/bike-commuting-101-route-planning/

http://www.commutebybike.com/2007/11/14/commuting-101-how-to-find-the-perfect-route-using-google-maps/

Photo by Solifesyle.com

What a way to kick off National Bike Month – two bike shows in NYC! The New Amsterdam Bike Show last weekend and now the Bike Expo New York this week are showing us that cycling is for everyone! These dynamic shows have something for everyone and give people a chance to share their love of bikes, celebrate the progress that has been made politically to improve bike lanes, and put the FUN back into riding a bike.

Check out the photo coverage of the New Amsterdam Show here: http://www.solifestyle.com/2012/05/new-amsterdam-bike-show-recap.html

AR Worlds Tasmania 2011

Lights & Motion sponsored Tecnu Adventure Racing is off to a great start with their 2012 adventure-racing campaign. There are lots of exciting changes this year with new focusses and faces on the team – and it seems to be working. In January we had a team meeting in Sacramento where we welcomed in some new team members, and formed 2 squads of Tecnu athletes. Our expedition squad consists of our captain Kyle Peter, Marco Amselem our “Brazilian Sherpa”, the “Queen of our Machine” Liza Pye and the “Nav God” Bob Miller. This expeditionary squad races all over the globe at ARWS qualifying events to gain exposure and publicity for the team and sponsors, and will end the season hopefully vying for a podium spot at the Adventure Racing World Championships in France in September. Our domestic North American squad consists of Garret Bean, Ryan Ognibene, Andrew Peterson, and Mindy Fernando. Together these 8 athletes will race in over 10 races this year in promotion of Tecnu, and lighting up race courses all over the globe with our killer Seca’s and Stella’s.

2012 started off with a win at the Baarr Brawl 24 hour adventure race near San Francisco, which is an annual clandestine race well attended by some of the better adventure racers on the west coast. Both Tecnu squads raced there, and we were the only teams to clean the entire course finishing in 1st and 2nd places! Our expedition squad then went to Quito, Ecuador in February to race at the ARWS Huairasinchi 4 day expedition race hoping to qualify for the Worlds in France. Out of 49 teams that started the race, only 3 teams finished the course and we finished in 2nd place, and qualified for Worlds, losing only to a local and acclimated team as the race went up to almost 16,000 feet in elevation. That race had HUGE elevation change, extremely wet/cold conditions and the race course bested all but three teams.  Last month our domestic Tecnu squad went to Kentucky and raced at the LBL 24 hour adventure race and captured the win.

The Expedition Team just got home from the ARWS Costa Rica 5-day expedition race. There were 17 teams that had travelled from all over the world that competed to win and get a free entry to the 2012 AR World Championships in France in September. After missing the win 2 months ago in Ecuador with a 2nd place finish at the ARWS qualifier, the team was extra motivated to push the pace hard. Taking the lead from the onset, Tecnu adventure racing never looked back, and at the end the Team cleared the 550 km course to win the adventure race!

We could not do it without our L&M Seca 300′s and Stella 800′s lighting up the course for us and helping us travel light and fast. Thanks Guys! Be sure to watch out for the team as we go through an exciting year for us. We have a great season of racing ahead of us, but with three wins and a hard fought 2nd place to start the year, we are off to a good start and excited to see where the season will take us. World Championships in September here we come. Next up for us is the Central Coast 10 hour adventure race, the Dawn to Dusk, May 12 in California where we are the defending Champs. Adventure on!

Doug Judson is the team manager for Tecnu Adventure Racing

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tecnu-Extreme-Adventure-Racing/162254323809953

Bike-to-Work Day is an annual event held in May across the United States and Canada that promotes the bicycle as an option for commuting to work. Leading up to Bike-to-Work Day, national, regional, and local bicycle advocacy groups encourage people to try bicycle commuting as a healthy and safe alternative to driving by providing route information and tips for new bicycle commuters. On Bike-to-Work Day, these groups often organize bicycle-related events, and in some areas, pit stops along bicycle routes with snacks.

We’ll have our booth out on the local bike path serving up bagels and fruit and providing safety tips for commuters riding into work!

Encourage your employer to promote Bike to Work Day and Commuter Challenges. It’s a great opportunity for them to support their employees in a fun, healthy, cost-saving and environmentally-friendly commute that will benefit the company. Check out the League of American Bicyclists for information on how to get started:

www.bikeleague.org/programs/bikemonth.

See you out on your bike!

Show goers will see all the latest in bike gear, bikes, and fashion from commuter to roadie and can also participate in local activism by supporting Transportation Alternatives. This group has worked to improve New Yorkers’ bicycling, pedestrian and public transit experience and will be on hand to provide safe and useful tips for navigating the streets of NYC by bike. Other on-site activites include provocative presentations by Guardian editor Matt Seaton on NYC’s “Bike Lane Backlash” and Ben Fried, the Editor-In-Chief of Streetsblog on how Streetsblog makes an impact through effective advocacy journalism.

Light & Motion will be there with NYC bike posters, information on commuter safety, and our line of high-performance commuter lights. We will offer a 15% discount on all lights at the show! Come see us in booth #47.

Light & Motion will be at this year’s bike show on April 28th & 29th – look for our Urban lights on the runway!

http://newambikeshow.com/