2011 North American Handmade Bicycle Show Today thru Sunday

If you’re in or around Austin this weekend, be sure to head to the seventh edition of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show at the Austin Convention Center. Oak Cliff custom bike builder, DALTEX, is exhibiting at the big three-day event. More details at http://www.2011.handmadebicycleshow.com/

Pics of Daltex from Prolly is Not Probably.

Dallas Cycle CHIC!

Week 8: 1 Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

 

Week 8: Bring a friend

This week, I’d like to hear how this challenge is affecting, positively or negatively, your friends and other family members in regards to your day to day social engagements.  Have you brought others along for the ride?  Are some relationships being strained by your new found lifestyle?  Best story gets a free beer on me! Must be officially listed in the challenge to win the beer.

Furthermore, I’d like to see your weekly no car days in action.  Post a pic to your favorite social media site and share the link in your posting for this week.  Best pic gets a free beer on me!

Also, don’t forget the Car Share Co-Op of Oak Cliff will be hosting another Meet and Greet at Spiral Diner tomorrow, February 23rd, at 7:00pm. RSPV to jonathan@carshareoc.org or here

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Here are a few highlights from Week 7 quotes:

Went car-free Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Monday and Thursday rode the bus in to work and back home. On Wednesday and Friday rode my bike. Rode my bike to the gym every night to lift. In this beautiful weather, its great to be on the bike. As a good friend of mine once said, you really feel more a part of the community on your bike. And she was right!!! You notice a lot more things along the way.Although, I have to admit, I miss the free time of my bus ride into work when I could do some Rosetta Stone lessons on my iPhone – am trying to learn Italian. Have to find some time during the day for those when I ride in. Bike Man

This week’s remarkable weather has allowed me to stay car-free all week except Tuesday, when the pups had to go for shots. I’ve biked to the office every day this week, only staying 5-6 hours so the dogs can get outside sooner. I’ve biked to get groceries and to my barber as a bonus.  Next week will be interesting – I will be in metro Manila for work. I know I can walk from the hotel to our office there, but not sure what other car rides I might have to take. Stay tuned for next week’s report! Rick Titone

Went car-free Tuesday. Love this weather. Been trying to bike around as much as possible – find myself doing most trips within 2 miles of the house on bike, but haven’t managed a whole day car-free since Tuesday. Last Sunday I bought a few groceries and even dog food on the bike – forgot my bungee chords though and lost the dog food off my back rack twice. No casualties though! UrbanPedal

I went car free everyday this week but Thursday and Friday. I had to run to Ft.Worth to take care of some things and I didn’t have time to plan my route on the TRE.  Thanks to the guys on dorba.org who help me find a route from Downtown Dallas to my office in Las Colinas this week. Check it out: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4291014/  Is anyone going to the NAHBS bike show in Austin next weekend? We plan on driving to Austin but taking our bikes with us to ride to the show.  Art O

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Ride with Bike Friendly Oak Cliff in the Mardi Gras Parade

It’s that time of year again for Oak Cliff’s Mardi Gras parade! BFOC will be leading off the parade which will start at the Kessler Theatre and end in the Bishop Arts District with a giant Crawfish Boil on Sunday, March 6th. Everyone who owns a bike is welcome to come out and join us…just be sure to wear orange to support the group! Click here to view more pics of last year’s parade, and check back for more details on where and when we’ll be meeting for the lineup.

RSVP TO RIDE WITH US

Free BFOC T-Shirt Screening today at OCBC!

Free Bike Friendly Oak Cliff t-shirt screening party at the Oak Cliff Bicycle Company today (Sunday 2/20) from 2-5pm. Bring a blank t-shirt, bag, or other article of clothing and have it screened with the BFOC logo!

Week 7: 1 Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

 

Week 7: Go Ride!

This week everyone should be itching to be car free after the coldest weeks we’ve seen for some time!  Can’t wait to hear your comments!

Also, the Car Share Co-Op of Oak Cliff will be hosting another Meet and Greet at Spiral Diner on February 23rd, at 7:00pm.  RSPV to jonathan@carshareoc.org or here

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Here are a few highlights from Week 6 quotes:

Took DART yesterday and today. This morning the doors on my train were a little messed up and they were still running on a modified schedule. I hope they run ice trains overnight so we don’t have a repeat of last week tomorrow. Jenny R

Wow – another week of bizarre weather. Am really glad that things are warming up for this weekend. Hate to admit – but the report for the week is pretty lame though. Wednesday took the bus into work and home through the snow. Stayed in the rest of the night. Bike Man

t was a pretty uneventful week for me too. I was car-free Tuesday and Wednesday, but didn’t need to go anywhere as I am still being work-at-home dad to our two new pups. Had to drive most other days for weather or expediency. Hoping for warmer weather next week and a chance to ride my bike more, as the pups are getting closer to ability to stay home alone now! Rick Titone

Well, didn’t do too well this week.. mainly because I lost my month pass (if anyone finds it, let me know but I was sans car yesterday so I guess I’m still in the running. But just barely. Rand M

I rode my bike to work and was car-free on Saturday. I had to dress up for work, and made the mistake of wearing platform wedge shoes for an eight hour shift on my feet. The platforms weren’t terribly comfortable while riding, especially on the 6 mile trip home, but hopefully I’ll get used to it. I’m trying to dress as I usually do even when I’m on my bike.
I love the return to 60 degree days, and am looking forward to the 75208 Be My Velontine ride tomorrow! callmemisspriss

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Urbanism through the eyes of a 9 year old

My 9 year old son was asked to write a paper on the “Perfect Place” for a classroom assignment.  His teacher called us later that afternoon to tell us it brought tears to her eyes. After reading it, I realized that he had done a better job of promoting the need for great, livable/walkable communities than anything I’d run across by Jane Jacobs, Andres Duany, or Jan Gehl…and all he did was describe a day in his life:

(Full text below image)

The Bishop Arts District by Asher Roberts

I get up [out] of my bean bag and say, “finally done with my homework.” I jump on my bike and ride to a little district called Bishop Arts. I hop off my bike and thought to myself, “Where should I go?”

I look around at the old brick buildings and all the murals and say “Oddfellows.” I rode my bike past the cars and to the bike rack.  I’m not supposed to eat on days when they’re crowded because my mom, dad, and other owners of the restaurant don’t want to have more people waiting at the door and I say, “Well you shouldn’t keep your son waiting,” and they just ignore it but it’s still a pleasure to say hi. After I say hi, I go to the bike shop. Jeremy is  one of the owners and he usually messes around with me and I don’t care for it, I don’t understand how it’s funny to them but I just ignore it. And then I go ride by the murals and some one like my friend Matt asks me to do something like go get me an extension cord for piano night at his restaurant Eno’s. Then my mom, dad, and sister ride over to Eno’s to watch piano night. We eat dinner and I get my favorite food truffel cheese bread, when we are done with our food we ride back home and get into bed to get ready for another great day.

In the Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs describes neighborhoods that sounds much like this…where shop owners know the people in the area, keep eyes out on the children, and the kids have a fun and safe environment to play in with plenty of options. We recently moved to be closer to the historic Bishop Arts District for this very reason. Our son now has a place that he can go and just say, “hi”, and stroll past murals, listen to pianos play, eat his favorite food, walk or bike safely, and have a community that knows his name, asks how he’s doing, and maybe even playfully busts his chops a bit…but most importantly, it loves him back.

Dallas Rides Photo Contest…Extended!

Hi Everyone! We’ve been getting some incredible submissions for the Dallas Rides Photo Contest, as you can see below. However, we have decided to extend the deadline one week due to the recent local inclement weather. We suspect many of you would have preferred being out riding your bike and getting some great shots as opposed to being cooped up in the house.

You can continue to submit photos until next Friday, February 18th. The art exhibit will also be in March with details to come. Keep ‘em coming Dallas!

By Jill Stegall

By Walraj Singh Gosal

Harvard Study: “Pedaling in traffic 28 times more likely to hurt you than sticking to a bike lane”

The Daily posted an article on a recently announced study by the Harvard School of Public Health noting what we already see in Europe;  separated bike lanes increase ridership and reduce accidents. The full study can be found  here. What’s most impressive is that Scottsdale, Arizona now has 339 miles worth of separated bike lanes and is requiring all repavings to incorporate bicycle infrastructure. This study is timely given the Dallas Bike Plan adoption in April. We hope to see similar strides that cities like NYC, Minneapolis, and Scottsdale have made.

Week 6: 1 Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

A proud sponsor of the One Day 52 Week No Car Challenge

Week 6:  DART, oh DART!

Like many of you, last week posed serious public transportation challenges that were at times unpredictable, and at other times bordered on the absurd.  Take one of the worst winter storms of our times and a world-wide event hosting, and you see why the south has a long way to go with having a transportation system the likes of other rival big cities.  This wasn’t entirely DART’s fault, mind you.  Temperatures haven’t been this cold in almost 15 years, and DART didn’t have that much light-rail line back in 1996.  Heck, it had just opened that summer:

June 14, 1996
The first 11.2 miles of DART’s 20-mile light rail transit starter system open on time and within budget, with weekend festivities followed by a week of free rides. Revenue service begins June 24, coinciding with the opening of the CBD West Bus Transfer Center in downtown Dallas.

Yes, DART had to deal with nasty, winter weather since then but let’s give them this one.  However, for some reason their buses don’t seem to like ice and snow at the same time.  A bus couldn’t climb a hill on Sylvan Ave and slide into a car.  Now, this one I’m puzzled with.  I’ve got to assume that it was circumstantial, as northern cities must have contingency plans for icy roads and their buses.  And then there is this one.  A local Dallas Morning News reporter, who writes specifically about transportation issues, and has been car free for 12 years decides this is his last straw!

Hopefully, these hard learned lessons will energize DART’s management to re-evaluate their cold weather plans, and formulate better ones.  You know they have a precedent for doing this.  Remember TX/OU weekend in 2009 after the opening of the first segment of Green line?  They went back to the drawing board and had a better plan in place by the following year.

Just found an article about the CEO of DART apologizing about their performance this past week.  Here’s his apology and a link to the full article:

A special message from DART

We know this week’s unprecedented winter weather caused frustration and aggravation for many of you. We apologize for not delivering the transit service you need, expect and deserve. In spite of long hours and hard work, we let you down. We’ll review our actions and find ways to improve.In comparatively few years we’ve built an extensive regional transit network. Our ongoing challenge and commitment is to operate it at a high level every day and in every circumstance.

To our regular customers, thank you for staying with us this week. To the new customers who were drawn to us as an alternative to driving on icy roads, thank you for trying us. Know that we’re redoubling our efforts to provide a safe, comfortable and affordable trip.

Sincerely,
Gary Thomas
President/Executive Director

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Here are a few highlights from Week 5 quotes:

Okay, went car free on Monday, it was warm enough to bike comfortably. But what was interesting was the bike commute on last Friday, when a lady rolled down her window while moving to let me know that I am a “F***ing idiot,” presumably for riding a bicycle down San Jacinto during rush hour.  Lady, its Friday, I don’t need that kind of garbage ruining my evening! JT

Thankfully I got my car-free day outa the way for this week this past Sunday. Nothing notable happened – though I have noticed my legs are getting stronger and I’m going a bit faster now. I’m just such a wuss when it comes to the cold…I can deal till it reaches about 35. Urban Pedal

I haven’t been on my bike since Sunday but I went without the car Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. I was one of the huddled masses downtown wondering where the train was…and then wondering if I should get on it. My advice, everyone’s advice maybe…when there is a lot of ice, take the bus. Sleepyhead

Well, I was holding off on posting to see if I had another car free day but nope.. only day sans car (where I actually went somewhere) was Tuesday where I decided to try my mettle on the ice to pick up some lunch. Went fine on the way there but had a monster headwind on the way back and could barely get enough traction on my rear tire to move. Rand M

With the weather this past week, going car-free was pretty easy. What wasn’t easy was my commute home from work on Tuesday. I went into work pretty easy on the DART bus since Where’s My Bus? was working for the bus I wanted to catch, but getting home was another story. I stayed at work till 5 not realizing how bad the streets still were. Silly me thought the city would have things in better shape by evening. Boy was I wrong. There were four buses stuck on the hill coming up San Jacinto and so they had the street shut down. The only DART buses I saw anywhere downtown were stuck in ice. I was worried I was stuck downtown. I hopped a 51 that would get me to CityPlace and saw some 24′s headed into downtown. Finally got on one and made it home safe and sound. I telecommuted the rest of the week so I ended up with 4 car-free days – and I think that Tuesday adventure should count for double!!! BikeMan

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