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Vancouver Critical Mass Bike Ride

dustin — 2009-01-26T02:29:39-05:00

Critical Mass is a fun bike ride that lets everyone cycle parts of the city that are normally overrun with cars. Costumes are encouraged in our monthly bike parade!

Vancouver details:
Meet at the North end of the Art Gallery.
On the last Friday of every month.
Announcements at 6 PM, we ride at 6:15.

Critical Mass uses ad hoc organization through the ride. Every cyclists looks out for each other. It's important for safety that all the bicyclists stay together in one large group. Safety in numbers.

Stop and "cork" open intersections to cars. This is a very rewarding experience and a good opportunity to see the beautiful parade go by. After corking you'll be at the back of the ride, and can play the peloton game of racing to the front.

People at the front need to choose the route in real-time and shouldn't get too far ahead. The group will stop after the top of bridges or big hills and let everyone catch up. If the mass is big it should stay on larger streets so we have more lanes and can ride together.

Critical Mass is many things to its many participants. Partly it is a non-violent protest for bicycle rights. A gathering for the thousands of cyclists in the city. We deserve more of the road and Critical Mass is our proof. These are our streets and we want to ride our bikes on them.

First and foremost it is a celebration of Vancouver and bicycling! Everyone is welcome to ride. Have fun and be nice to people along the parade route!

More...
Join the Velolove Announcement mailing list to get reminders about Critical Mass!

Join the Velolove Discussion list to talk with other local cyclists.

Check the CycleMass Vancouver Blog for more local cycling events.

Overheat!

registeredname — 2009-01-15T00:14:41-05:00

Remember Exciteboke on the NES?
Also, is that Jerry?

Speechless

vinny9 — 2008-11-19T22:18:25-05:00

Playing Guitar Hero with a bicycle.

Pedal to the MTL

vinny9 — 2008-09-22T12:25:18-04:00

Bixi, a bike sharing service starts next spring in Montreal.

For 28$ a month, you can grab a bike from any of the 300 central MTL stations and use it for 30 mins and drop it off at any other station. Using it for more than 30 mins incurs additional charges.

There are plans to expand it each year.

Random Links for May 7

dustin — 2008-05-07T07:00:01-04:00

Food vs. Nutrition - 40 minute talk from Michael Pollan.
He's the author of "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "In Defense of Food."

Bike To Work Week Vancouver, May 26 - June 1.

Avoid The Relativity Trap - How Thinking Globally Can Save You Money.

Sleep deprivation is not a badge of honor.

Random Links for April 18

dustin — 2008-04-18T07:00:02-04:00

TransLink - Cycling Route Planner.
TransLink is investigating the development of a web-based cycling route planning tool and wants feedback.

CANADA: Nation or notion? Debate between Malcolm Gladwell and Adam Gopnik.

KRAZY! The Delirious World of Anime + Comics + Video Games + Art.
Exhibit showing at the Vancouver Art Gallery from May 17 to September 7, 2008.

peace, love and bicycles

dustin — 2008-01-14T04:28:07-05:00

Strathcona, Vancouver Mural

dustin — 2007-12-14T02:15:40-05:00

A mural off of Hastings St in Vancouver. Looks extra funky on large size.

Vancouver Transit Camp

dustin — 2007-12-04T23:02:04-05:00

Vancouver Transit Camp is an open-invitation unconference about transportation being held on December 8th. The BC government has shown an appalling lack of wisdom in handling transportation planning. I'm hopeful that the geeks of Vancouver can start improving things despite them. Check the website for some funky transit inspired designs, sign-up info, and more.

Cars vs Bus vs Bikes

dustin — 2007-11-05T05:38:55-05:00

Amount of space required to transport the same number of people by car, bus or bicycle.

Conclusion: Congestion is caused by too many cars, not by lack of roadspace.

Critical Mass Video

dustin — 2007-07-01T01:01:19-04:00

I made a video montage of Vancouver's Critical Mass June ride, sped up and set to music. Here's a high quality version (88 MB).

For info on the ride in your local city see this Critical Mass page.

Random Links for June 5

dustin — 2007-06-05T07:00:09-04:00

Stephen Rees: transport and the urban area it serves.
I have been really enjoying this guy's blog I recently found.

Amsterdam Bicycle Photos.

WWF rips U.S., Canada environment records.
"Canada is joining the U.S. as the worst performer on climate change."

BEST Vancouver Events Calendar for June.
June is Bike Month and there's a ton of stuff going on for it.

Fantasy Name Generator

Random Links for May 27

dustin — 2007-05-27T07:00:02-04:00

Communities reclaiming their intersections to create more livable neighborhoods.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Prevention Exercises.

What happened when New Zealand eliminated it's farm subsidies?

Norwegian bicycle lift.
Innovation in bicycling infrastructure.

Bike To Work Week is May 28 - June 3

Trip Photos

dustin — 2007-05-19T02:01:04-04:00

Here are my photos from the bike/ferry trip I returned from today.

Random Links for May 16

dustin — 2007-05-16T07:00:04-04:00

Outdoor Gear & Sports Information - Tips and Info from MEC

BC Car-Free Outdoor Portal - Exploring Vancouver Surroundings Without a Car

Ken Kifer's Bike Pages -- bicycle travelogues, bike safety, bicycling advocacy, and cycling humor.

Walkers are the Oxygen of the City

dustin — 2007-05-03T05:56:58-04:00

I like these posters from the NYC Transportation Alternatives. You can get bigger versions in their gift shop.

The Case for Separated Bike Lanes

dustin — 2007-04-01T23:54:16-04:00

This video does a great job of showing how bike lanes that share roadspace with car traffic on busy streets suck. It's entitled The Case for Separated Bike Lanes and was created by StreetFilms, an NYC group dedicated to making their urban spaces more livable.

Vancouver could use this advice in a number of places. I was biking in the shared bike lanes along Pender and Richards coming home today, and in both cases it was an exercise in avoiding the buses that are making stops along those same streets. It's dangerous and not very fun. Bring on the separated lanes!

Traffic lights considered harmful

dustin — 2006-11-10T02:04:15-05:00

From the UK Telegraph:

Most traffic lights should be torn up as they make roads less safe, one of Europe's leading road engineers said yesterday.

The link in the first paragraph of that article goes to a second piece with more.

Critical Mass - Bikes on Parade

dustin — 2006-04-01T21:22:30-05:00

I went out to Vancouver's Critical Mass yesterday. 200 cyclists riding together in a fun filled, human fueled, car displacing celebration of bicycles. It was really fabulous. It was the first time I had gone to such an event, but I am definitely going to be attending regularly from now on. People said that once the summer gets going turnout can increase to 1000+ people!

Cycling is such an awesome way to get around the city. Get your exercise, help the environment, see the sights up close, and it's very cost effective. I find operating my human powered vehicle liberating. Cars will always have their place (long trips, etc), but bikes are so much more fitting for an inter-city commute. I find it pretty sad seeing all the cars with only 1 person in them sitting in traffic. Go get a bike!

Also, at the (very fun) party afterwards somebody brought their drum and we jammed on it for a little while. Just the two of us banging on her little drum outside while some spectators enjoyed it. Very nice. I think I'm going to get myself a drum out here. Then see if I can join a drum circle of some sort, or perhaps try and help incubate a Vancouver version of the Tam Tams.

My Move To Vancouver - 2 Week Update

dustin — 2006-01-20T18:19:09-05:00

I've been living in Vancouver for about 2 weeks now. I completed my primary short term goals handily and have been working on the January ones. Telus is the old-school phone company in western Canada, and they have a store right near where I'm staying, so I got a cellphone with them. Give me a call if you want at 778-899-3040 (remember the time difference though, it's pacific time here: EST - 3 hours). I bought a (somewhat) cheap used bike, and it's taught me the importance of having a cover over the back wheel. My bike doesn't have one, which means I get a nice line of gunk on my back whenever I ride over wet or gravelly terrain. Which brings us to the topic of wetness...

This month Vancouver was challenging an old record of theirs; the most days in a row with rain. The record is 29 consecutive days, and it was looking like 2006 would break it. At 26 days we fell short though (un?)fortunately. Still, 26 days in a row of rain is a lot. I missed the first 2 weeks of it, but just because there was 1 day without any rain doesn't mean it stopped. It continues to rain more days then not. The conclusion is that Vancouver doesn't have the most fun filled weather in January. It's still better then Montreal, right? I say yes. The temperature is much warmer here (although I have still donned my hat a couple of times). Still, I'm hoping that the weather improves in the next couple of months. I've been watching some of the Australian Open tennis tournament on TV, and the thought of heading out to see it in Melbourne next January has crossed my mind.

I've been exploring on my bike at every opportunity and it's been great. Vancouver has a ton of waterfront, which provides nice for pleasant bikery. The bike paths around False Creek and Stanley Park are both lovely. Downtown Vancouver is very bike friendly and I've been riding around getting to know the street layout and where some of the happening blocks are. There's still a lot of ground I haven't seen at all yet though. I've been focusing on the downtown, and there are lots of surrounding areas that are still totally unknown to me. Commercial Drive is next on my hit list. Even if I don't end up staying here permanently I think it's an excellent experience to live here for a while and get to know Canada's big western city. I bought myself a nice waterproof MEC jacket (hurray for the cheapness of the Salvation Army Thrift Store near where I'm staying), so I can still venture out when it's raining (or threatening to). I'm thinking about getting some waterproof pants though. Then I would be invincible!

Work on American History Lux is moving along. It's 90+% finished, which means the only things remaining are all the really uninteresting stuff that I've left to the very end (i.e. those $!#%ing bugs that only occur on Windows). I don't have internet access where I'm living, which is both good and bad for my productivity. There's a Starbucks nearby (and every couple blocks after that) that I bring my laptop to for my online fixings. They charge way more for net access then they should (it's a partnership with Bell). Lucky for them I'm desperate.

I've also been spending a lot of time reading, which is always nice. Sometimes I go through droughts without reading anything for a long time, but once I get my literary groove on I am a maniac. I've read 5 novels (plus a picture book of Vancouver) since I've been here. A supply of good cheap books seems to be the spark that sets me going (hurray again for the Salvation Army). I checked out the main public library branch yesterday and it's awesomely huge. I'm going to try and get a membership post-haste. Last year I said I was going to document all the books that I read for fun and informative purposes. I maintained it for about half the year but then I lost track. I'm going to try again this year, but in a simpler way; just keeping a list of "author - title" with little to no commentary.

The past few days I've started searching for a place to live. Before I came here I found myself a sublet for the month of January in Kits, right near the Burrard bridge, within easy striking distance of the downtown. There are tons of listings on craigslist vancouver, which I have been using. This is where the dirt cheap Montreal cost-of-living really becomes apparent. It's looks as though I will end up living in a place smaller then Summerhill and paying more money for it. Unless I happen to get lucky, but I'm on a pretty short deadline. The last time I was apartment hunting it was driving around Montreal with Nikki. Oh the memories...

41 Centimeters of Winter Fun

dustin — 2005-12-18T18:11:08-05:00

On the friday before my last weekend in Montreal we were hit with 41 cm of snow. The first real snowfall of the season. Whether or not it was an omen, I took advantage by going sledding (twice) and engaging in some further snow wresting fun. I went out prepared in my winter boots and snow gear and had a great time. Currently, my body is aching pretty much all over. I took a few pictures of the aftermath. The first big snowfall is always fun (and beautiful) and it made me happy. Today I noticed the slush piles are starting to grow at the intersections though...

Also, props go out to an awesome Balls Out show that I saw at the up-and-coming Theatre Ste-Catherine last night. It was great.

Lockpickin'

dustin — 2004-09-19T09:27:49-04:00

Recently some people discovered that you can pick a variety of bike locks using a bic pen. Here's a video. As reported in the news.