Hit the bricks for Natasha

photo by Bill Hughes

University of Miami law students and the South Florida Bike Coalition are having a ride on Saturday to honor and remember a UM law student who was fatally injured while cycling last September. The ride is dedicated to Natasha Pettigrew, who was a Green Party candidate for the U.S. Senate in Maryland when she was hit by an SUV during an early-morning ride. The Miami event  starts at the law school at 10 a.m.

Ride at night? Get lights!

Strategies for Getting Around Without Bike Lights (or Pants) from BICYCLE TRANSPORTATION ALLIANCE on Vimeo.

Virginia Key trails a hit on opening day

Downtown Miami is just across Biscayne Bay from the new Virginia Key trails.

Photo copyright Tyrone Minton.

Hundreds of mountain bike enthusiasts, maybe even 1,000, turned out on Sunday for the inaugural day of the Virginia Key mountain bike trails. The weather was picture-perfect and the trails a satisfying mix of sweeping scenery and challenging ups and downs. Congratulations to trail advocates John Voss, of the Oleta River Adventure Association and now the Virginia Key Bicycle Club, and Mary Jane Mark, the farsighted owner of Mack Cycle & Fitness.

State to show Brickell safety plans

The state Department of Transportation is holding a public information meeting Wednesday night, Feb. 23, about the Brickell Avenue Safety Project. This is not the improvement project that generated such a storm over speed limits a few months ago, but a shorter one between SE 5th Street and SE 8th Street. It provides for longer left-turn lanes on both the northbound and southbound sides of Brickell, closing the median at Brickell and SE 6th Street, and some new signage and traffic signals.

Wednesday's meeting starts at 6 p.m., and it's to be held in the fellowship hall at First Presbyterian Church, 609 Brickell Ave.

Bertonatti trial postponed

Carlos Bertonatti's manslaughter trial in the death of cyclist Christoph LeCanne was postponed again today. Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Bronwin Miller granted 90 days on a defense request for more time because the prosecution had submitted additional witnesses.

Bertonatti and his father were in court, clean-shaven and somber in their business jackets as their attorney stood with the defendant to make his request.

Outlook dim for texting bills

Several members of the Florida Legislature have filed bills that again propose to forbid text-messaging by drivers, a behavior that every cyclist knows can put us at risk at any time. The version that's thought to have the best chance of passing is sponsored by Republican Sen. Nancy Detert of Venice.

Detert's bill (S158), however, would not make texting a "primary offense." That means that a cop who observed a driver texting would have to have see some other infraction to be justified in stopping the driver. Detert told the Fort Myers News-Press that she thought the bill had a better chance of passing this way.

Radio series tells history of bicycling

The BBC is running a radio series about the history of bicycling. You can find the current installments by clicking here. Each remains available for just seven days, so don't dawdle. Thanks to Penny McCrea for pointing it out to me!

Congratulations to Brandt Absolu and his crew at the new FIU Bike Repair Service, which opened last week to offer repairs and advice to fellow students. The part I love is that fixing bicycles is just the start of what they have in mind. Look for good things from these young men and women.

Bike center a joy to behold

Bicyclists working or visiting in Washington, DC, have been buzzing for a couple of years about the new bicycle center recently completed at the west side of the capital's Union Station. For the rest of us, now comes the definitive write-up and lavish collection of photos -- far beyond what I got to see during the National Bike Summit last March.  The article's from plusmood.com and the photos from KGP Design Studio. Enjoy! And think about how to get one of these in Miami ...

Trail advocate builds case for trains

There's a nice article today about Herb Hiller, the guru of Florida bicycle tourism, in the Daytona Beach News-Journal.  Writer Mark Lane captures Herb's essence:

Any conversation with Hiller, a wiry man with a close-cut white beard, theatrical eyebrows and gray hair tied in a ponytail, tends to spiral toward the Big Picture.

"I'm interested in unmarketed travel. Travel not because you saw a discount somewhere. But travel as way to work things out. To live a more fully-involved life. To realize yourself."

Read more at the News-Journal.

Imagine the savings if more of us biked

This chart provides something to think about. I failed to make a note of where I found it. Perhaps the National Building Museum? When I find out I'll update.
Meanwhile, the cost-of-driving calculator should keep those wheels turning in your brain.

What if cyclists recorded their close encounters?

A London stagehand started recording his bicycle rides with a helmet-mounted video camera. Ben Porter thought it would help him explain to his friends how dangerous biking can be. Now, I'm not a big one for stressing the dangers -- too many people are already unreasonably afraid -- but if I ever had to go to court a tape like this one of Porter's would come in mighty handy.