Fleet Feet Firecracker 5K Fotos

(New! Link to Picasa web album.)

Who can resist alliteration? I went downtown this morning to take some photos of the Firecracker 5K race and a 1K fun run for kids. These are a few of the morning's photos. And if you're wondering why they're sepia, some big dummy
who looks a lot like me forgot to turn it back to color. Duh.

I thought this was kind of sweet. They're holding hands as they run!

This fire hydrant has a sprinkler attachment. It was just past the finish line, and I think the kids found it to be more fun than the run itself.

This little girl was giving me the stink eye the whole time she was in view. Normally, they're lots older before hitting me with that.

At this point, there's about one kilometer to go. I liked the determination in the runner's faces.

Naturally, there are lots more photos (or should it be "fotos?") but I haven't gone through all of them yet. Most of the time, I leave the camera at it's wide angle setting, about 28mm if I recall right, and then crop down to what I want in the final image. It's good to practice panning at races, trying to get the expressions on their faces as they go by. With the Kodak, that's a hit-and-miss proposition because there's a lag between pushing the shutter button and the actual exposure. So I set the camera for bursts of photos. It will take 3 in rapid succession, then twiddle its thumbs while it empties the buffer. I miss a lot of shots that way.

No comment

I did some wandering along old Route 66 in Tulsa this morning. I posted most of the photos in my Picasa web album.

Woman charged with two deaths

Tulsa World Photo

This is from today's Tulsa World.

Woman charged in double bicycle fatality

By Staff Reports
Published: 6/17/2009 12:45 PM
Last Modified: 6/17/2009 12:50 PM

Tulsa World Photo

A Sand Springs woman was charged Wednesday with manslaughter and driving under the influence after she allegedly ran down three bicyclists last week, killing two of them.

Tausha Dion Borland, 38, was charged by the Tulsa County District Attorney's Office with two counts of first-degree manslaughter, leaving the scene of a fatality accident and driving under the influence.

Borland was released from jail last week on $100,000 bond.

(MORE)

If Borland is convicted of DUI, it will be her second offense which is a felony here in Oklahoma. Frankly, I was surprised by the tone of the comments following this article. They almost uniformly condemn her behavior, with one lone exception (so far) by an obvious troll.

Getting hit from behind is very likely every cyclist's worst nightmare. Fortunately, this type of crash is relatively rare, but the truth is that it's responsible for too many deaths.

Hug your loved ones tonight, and ride safe.

Notes of organizing meeting on 11SEP2008

TAOBIKE_GC ORGANIZING MEETING

11SEP2008

7PM

MARTIN EAST REGIONAL LIBRARY

TULSA

OKLAHOMA

THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD ON OCTOBER 9th AT THE HUB (216 N ELGIN) AT 7PM.

Attending:

Ed Wagner

Doug Waldman

Chris Wollard

Steve Monroe

Julie Vega

Paul Tay

George Hall

Mike Schooling

Tom Brown

Richard Hall

Vickie Sanborn

Brian Potter

Ren Barger

Rhonda James

Robyn Stroup

Chris Regan

Andy Wheeler

Some quotes:

On bicycle commuting, "I could go a shorter route if I wanted to risk the roads."

"When I drive my car, I'm grouchy and miserable when I get home."

Rich Brierre is now Director of INCOG.

Tulsa Streets package vote will be held in November. Cyclists need to be in on the planning process up front rather than as an expensive afterthought.

We need to establish a board to work with INCOG on planning. INCOG has stipulations as to representation which was the heart of original organizing document. The INCOG bicycling subcommittee was geographically diverse, skills diverse, not 'wheelmen' running everything. (In the public vernacular, 'wheelmen' are all those cyclists in lycra, not just the Tulsa Wheelmen. It's a derisive shorthand for cycling elitists. More on this later.)

Richard Hall asked, "What do we do if he says 'we don't want you.'" (THIS QUESTION IS YET TO BE ANSWERED.)

We talked about planning and planning documents, where the devil is always in the details. A plan that looks good on a webpage can have nightmarish details at the street level because planners simply draw lines between points. Public Works wants to do cycling projects as simply and cheaply as possible.

Paul Tay wants to find unique solutions for Tulsa. He noted bikePortland.org as a source of information, and wanted stuff thats beyond spandex.

George Hall, a forensic engineer, investigates accidents including bicycle accidents. He is a lifelong cyclist and League of American Bicyclists Life member old enough to persist in calling it LAW, the League of American Wheelmen. "My bikes are almost as old as me." George is interested in safety. He is a civil engineer with a design perspective. He is frustrated at the pace here in Tulsa. A former commuter, George says the time is now with the energy situation, the emphasis on environment, and Complete Streets, though they probably don't know what that truly means in terms of the national organization. Frustrated that word doesn't get down to surrounding cities where we all ride, as there is no organized mechanism to get info to city planners.

Richard Hall (no relation) is a Tulsa Bicycle Club member and President Elect of the Oklahoma Bicycling Coalition. He's encountered problems in his own neighborhood with PW projects, and noted that after work has been approved and built, it is very hard to change.

Mike Schooling endorsed best practices. Mike is another TBC member very active in volunteer work with the Tulsa Tough where he has organized the group assembling bicycles as part of the Kids Challenge. He wants to improve environment for cycling, and notes that Tulsa is already a bicycling friendly city in many ways. He said that Chicago's Mayor Daley rides with Public works on his bike, and that we should do the same with Tulsa councilors. Mike said there are lots of studies touting bike lanes, but none yet that indicate what other facilities do to promote cycling. What effects result from projects such as good signals that detect cyclists, education, enforcement? Cities should be promoting cycling, because what benefits cyclists benefits motorists also. Tulsa doesn't have the money for extensive facilities, so we have to find solutions that work here.

Tom Brown of Tom's Bicycles thinks this group should position itself as the go to experts in this part of OK. These poiticians and planners really don't know what we want, so we have to convince them to listen to us. We can give them useful advice.

Rhonda Link - Ren's mother - wants to see cycling etiquette and education. Noted that an acquaintance single handedly brought bike paths to his town. Offered to assist with vision and fund raising.

Robyn Stewart wants to use bike as basic transportation. She sees more people biking downtown, more than she's ever seen before.

Julie Vega arrived with Ren and is learning more about the HUB. Rode in SF for a year, but finds it kind of scary here. She said there's no specified place to ride and doesn't feel comfortable riding a bike on the road. She wants changes in city laws and wants to do what she can as part of the community.

Steve Monroe wasn't sure what aspect he could do, but came to learn.

Doug Waldman, business owner, commutes from south Tulsa to near the airport, a distance of 23 miles. He takes a relaxing route rather than fight traffic, riding when he can. He puts in thousands of miles back and forth to work and finds Tulsa is not a bad place to ride. "I merge into traffic, but don't fit on Memorial or 169, and people are confused that I stop at sto signs." 99 percent of drivers are friendly. You don't have to spend a lot of money. Bike lanes don't go where you want to go anyway. People think that in a bike lane you don't have to stop.

Vickie Sanborn wasn't entirely sure why she attended, but said her interest is in bicycling safety and more education for people on bikes, both adults and children. She told us of visiting her son in Minneapolis. They were riding on a trail and came to an intersection. Her son 'flew across the street' without stopping. she was shocked, but he said that the law requires motorists to stop - not bicyclists - and the motorists actually yield to cyclists. It was amazing. Vickie is a realtor who commutes on bike, and she'd like to show houses via bicycle as some realtors do in bike friendly communities.

Brian Potter witnessed poor bicycle planning and hostile drivers in Austin TX. He terms the city of Tulsa becoming less courteous than previously. Brian asked that this be added: "Only the native Okie courtesy has kept our roads remotely civilized...Unfortunately, we're losing our native courtesy at a rapid rate. The pavement needs help, but the continuity of streets and availability of routes is really quite astounding." He gave much credit to both Malcolm McCollam and Gary Parker for the on-street route system and establishing the first INCOG bicycling subcommittee. Brian said that he and Sandra Crisp became involved in the plan after it had been taken away from cyclists. It called for mandatory sidewalk riding, for one. The BAG made an important contribution. Brian also noted that Tulsa had more LCIs than rest of the state.

Chris Wofford termed himself as "part of Ren's army."

Ren Barger said that she's usually the youngest person at these meetings. As a student in Chicago, she did "jalopy riding, sidewalk riding, and was completely clueless." A bad crash ultimately brought her home to Tulsa, where she works at Lee's Bicycles. Involvement in the Tulsa Tough lead to LCI training. She like the big festivaland its youth element, the Kids Challenge. Ren took over the Community Cycling Project from Sandra Crisp, rehabing donated bikes for transients and providing them with bicycling education. This is based on a Portland program and is designed for commuting. It has been very successful, but was unfortunately formant for about 6 months. An Urban Tulsa piece sparked fresh interest. The Tulsa Community Foundation offered a building at 216 N Elgin (corner of elgin and brady near spaghetti warehouse) for the Tulsa HUB, ultimately to be a 501c3 with space for the CCP, a retail shop catering to commuters and recreational riders. This is to be a sustainable business that promotes creativity, but it must be Tulsa specific, not a template taken from another city.

Ed Wagner, a lifelong bicycle commuter, moved here from Pittsburgh and discovered that motorists are accomodating for the most part. Was a 'gutter bunny' commuter when first met Brian, hugged the right hand verge and complained of motorists. I'd been riding for a long time, yet the demonstration of lane postioning was an eye-opener. It was so much easier. Shortly after that I attended a Road1 course. Brian was instrumental in setting up both Road1 and the LCI class here in Tulsa. LCI is about teaching, not knowing everything about cycling. I've learned much from waching others, especially Gary and Ren. Some of us learn via experience, and I'm a a slow learner at times.

Some background information: The INCOG bicycling subcommittee had its second interation under Aaron Bell. When he left, the committee fell apart. Patrick Fox lead an informal committee. Now, bicycling advocacy in Tulsa is this group, a small group of interested people. There are different levels to get involved. We have regional and national advocacy. OBC is the state level group, whose main focus is education and legislation. Access. safety, and education are part of their mission statement. OBC is small and diverse. LAB is the national organization. It runs on a shoestring budget of 1.5 million last year. LAB runs the Bike Friendly City program, and certifies the Bike Ed program. The city of Tulsa (specifically the mayor) is interested in BFC status. We regard BFC, Tulsa Tough, and a comprehensive bicyle master plan as parts of a whole. They are interrelated. Tulsa wants BFC status to attract young people for employment. The Tulsa Tough highlights the city as a cool place to live for those with an outdoor lifestyle. The Tough is an opportunity for both bike education and public relations. It's a big effort each spring. The lack of a comprehensive bike master plan was one reason BFC status was denied last year. There is a trail plan on INCOG maps, but a master plan specifies our vision for cycling in city. We need share the road signs, signals that recognize cyclists, etc. INCOG wants input from citizens, and you're citizens. You should have input as to how this impacts your life.

Mike Schooling mentioned PlaniTulsa.org as an opportunity for input. It will be held on Sept 22 and 23 and is meant to solicit planning regrading city development and provide a long range plan. Each table will have a map with stickers highlighting various ideas. It's recommended that cyclists be spread out, not clustered at one table. Mike recommended getting friends, relatives, etc. at the tables. What works well for motorists works for cyclists too, and doesn't necessitate a lot of dollars.

This new organization - if it is to be an organization - doesn't have a name yet. TAOBIKE can offer advocacy leadership and ultimately it may be one organization with 2 wings: one for advocacy and planning, and the other for BikeEd. Since it's a small group, there's little sense in splitting in two, and there will be lots of crossover as we seek to educate motorists, politicians, planners, law enforcement and even cycling advocates. We cannot afford a pie-in-the-sky approach that's not grounded in reality. We face many constraints. But it's good that we have more poeple than we have positions (on the subcommittee/BAG).

In a brief conversation with Rich Brierre, I said that the cycling subcommittee dies each time INCOG has a personnel change. What if we establish an outside group to do the function of that subcommittee, supplying expertise and knowledge. Rich said that if it's a "representative group" he could work with it. The group must have more than one point of view.

Mike asked, "What do we want to be when we grow up?" Some discussion ensued as to what to call ourselves, what our authority would be, and what the makeup of the group would be. Paul wanted 9 members (on the advisory group) each from one of Tulsa's 9 council districts. This would limit the group to Tulsa only, and there was some discussion of regional goals. Paul rightly pointed out that the group should be able to take on any cycling issue it chooses.

Also, there is a list of no cost/low cost ideas compiled by Gary Parker that may be useful in the PlaniTulsa meetings. It will be circulated to the group.

ED WILL WORK ON BYLAWS.

PAUL WILL WORK ON COMPREHENSIVE MASTER PLANS. Brian suggested keeping it short and simple, essentially LAB's 5 Es: engineering, education, enforcement, encouragement, equality, and evaluation. If we can get the City of Tulsa to adopt a bicycling master plan, INCOG may be able to sell that to the other regional members.

THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE AT THE HUB (216 N ELGIN) ON OCTOBER 9TH AT 7PM.

.

Organizing meeting

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TAOBIKE

ORGANIZING MEETING FOR PROPOSED GREEN COUNTRY BICYCLING ADVISORY GROUP

TULSA, OKLAHOMA

1SEP2008

The Green Country Bicycling Advisory Group (working title) will have an organizing meeting on Thursday, September 11th at the Martin East Regional Library at 7PM.

TAOBIKE has long supported local bicycling advocacy, education, and planning in the Tulsa region. In order to work effectively with INCOG and local governments, TAOBIKE is inviting members of the Green Country area to form a standing Bicycling Advisory Group (hereafter referred to as the BAG) to provide input from the cycling community on issues relating to bicycle commuting, bicycle safety, facilities improvement, project identification, project review, and any other relevant bicycling issue. The BAG will perform the same function as INCOG's former Bicycling Advisory Subcommittee while remaining independent of INCOG.

Why do we need a BAG? INCOG's Bicycling Advisory Subcommittee has met infrequently over the last few years because of personnel changes at INCOG. TAOBIKE seeks representatives from throughout the region to participate in a more stable group, the Green Country Bicycling Advisory Group.

The Indian Nations Council of Governments (INCOG) performs regional transportation planning for member governments, seeing that plans meet federal standards and that they are consistent and coordinated throughout the region. INCOG also performs due diligence by seeing that federal funds allocated to a project are actually used for that project. The Bicycling Subcommittee assisted with planning the annual Bike to Work events, as well as providing input on various facility proposals.

Membership in TAOBIKE is entirely voluntary and there are no dues. The BAG will require something more valuable than your money--your time. Members may participate by attending public meetings with government officials, poring over planning documents where the devil is truly in the details, or writing emails in order to initiate a dialog. We don't need large numbers to be effective. But we do need inter-connectedness. Effective advocacy means learning about best practices in bicycling, both from a public policy viewpoint and a personal one. It means much more than just knowing how to ride a bike. Members should educate themselves, their clubs, and the public about the best cycling practices in order to better serve the cycling public. TAOBIKE exists to help advocates in this cause and to represent policies in the interest of the public.

Simply attending this meeting is the first step. It shows an interest in making Tulsa a better place for all cyclists. The next step is to learn more about bicycling. Finally, there's the commitment to spending time on bicycling advocacy. Without committed local advocates, we will not see positive changes that directly effect local cyclists.

ABOUT TAOBIKE

This group was originally Tulsa Bicycling Advisory Group, or T_BAG. All the members of the first INCOG BAG were invited to join. The group was regional, however, not specific to the city of Tulsa. Hence the need for a name change. We've worked with INCOG and Tulsa Public Works regarding the on-street plan and found many areas for improvement. TAOBIKE has been the formative hub for each iteration of INCOG's Bicycling Subcommittee. It is a loosely-organized group of like-minded volunteers.

Severe Weather Alert - Tulsa NWS

I use an add on for Mozilla Firefox called Forecastfox. It puts some tiny icons down at the bottom of the window, displaying a simplified weather radar, the current conditions, and a brief forecast for tomorrow. But it also includes a severe weather alert function, a small red icon that pops up whenever the National Weather Service issues an alert for this area. Very handy during tornado season.

It popped up today with this:

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
FLOOD WATCH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
157 PM CDT MON SEP 1 2008

...HEAVY RAIN ASSOCIATED WITH GUSTAV WILL CREATE THE POTENTIAL
FOR FLOODING TUESDAY EVENING THROUGH EARLY FRIDAY MORNING...

.GUSTAV WILL MOVE INTO EAST TEXAS TUESDAY...THEN SLOW TO A
CRAWL AND DRIFT NORTHEAST WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. THIS SLOW
MOVEMENT MEANS A PROLONGED PERIOD OF VERY HEAVY RAIN FOR AREAS
NORTH AND EAST OF THE STORM TRACK. EASTERN OKLAHOMA...PARTICULARLY
SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA...AND WEST CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
WILL BE IN THE HEAVY RAIN AREA.

AT THIS TIME...IT LOOKS AS THOUGH 4 TO 8 INCHES OF RAIN WILL
FALL FROM SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA INTO WEST CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS. THE HIGHEST AMOUNTS ARE MOST LIKELY TO THE SOUTH
AND EAST. LOCAL AMOUNTS MAY REACH 12 INCHES SHOULD THE STORM
STALL OR MAINTAIN A BANDED PRECIPITATION STRUCTURE WITH
EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS.

FLASH FLOODING WILL BE POSSIBLE IN HEAVY RAIN BANDS WITH HIGH
RATES OF PRECIPITATION. THE PROLONGED NATURE OF THIS EVENT
ALSO MAKES WIDESPREAD AREAL AND RIVER FLOODING A POSSIBILITY.

THE EXACT TRACK AND SPEED OF THIS STORM WILL DETERMINE WHERE
AND HOW MUCH RAIN WILL FALL. THUS...THE FORECAST RAIN AMOUNTS
AND EXACTLY WHERE THE HEAVIEST RAIN WILL OCCUR WILL BE
CONTINUOUSLY UPDATED DURING THE COURSE OF THE EVENT.

THIS MAY BECOME A MAJOR FLOOD EVENT.

We had major flooding here back in the spring and I'm not looking forward to more. Our house is on a high spot, so unless it's a flood of biblical proportions we're safe. But it seems that even a heavy dew can cause Bird Creek to overflow it's banks. That's a PITA for me, because I have to go the long way around in order to get to work. But for the people upstream in Skiatook and Sperry, it's a nightmare. Many houses are on the flood plain.

Yes, I'm such a whiner. Other people are worried that they may lose their houses, and here I am whining about having to drive to work instead of riding my bike.

Man shot in bikejacking attempt

From KTUL news:


NewsChannel 8 - Man Shot In Attempted Theft Of Bike In Tulsa

Tulsa police are looking for suspects in an early morning shooting that happened after an attempted bike theft.

Police say a 53-year-old man told officers he had been riding his bicycle near a gas station when four or five men approached him and demanded the bike. The man refused and says the other men pushed him off the bike.

The victim says he was able to get back on the bike and tried to run away when one of the men began shooting at him. Police say the man was hit in the left leg by one of the shots but was able to ride the bike to a nearby hotel to ask for help.

Police say the man's injuries are non-life-threatening.

Patrick Fox leaving INCOG

(CycleDog Image)

Patrick Fox, Multi-Modal Transportation Coordinator at INCOG, is leaving the agency for another job. Among other things, Patrick is the head of the bicycling advisory group, a committee of local cyclists designed to provide expertise and leadership in bicycling transportation planning. The photo above was taken at a Road1 course he attended last year.

Patrick doesn't just "talk the talk." He commutes to work regularly on his bicycle, so he has a fine appreciation of the situations cyclists face daily here in Tulsa.

He will be missed.

Tulsa's Community Cycling Project

(Image from Urban Tulsa Weekly)

Urban Tulsa Weekly has a very complimentary article on the Community Cycling Project. Major kudos to both Sandra Crisp and Ren Barger. Here's a excerpt:

Two Wheels to Stand On How a "bike kitchen" is helping the city's homeless get back on their feet

BY BRIAN ERVIN


Most of us have cars and, though they might not all be as sexy, sporty or as nice as the Joneses, they still afford us the independence we need to live our lives, go to work and stand on our own two feet (rising gas prices notwithstanding).

And, we tend to take that independence for granted most of the time, except when the inevitable wear and tear or a mechanical malfunction grounds us for a few days until the repair shop restores our autonomy.

For many of Tulsa's homeless, though, lack of transportation is all that stands between them and self-sufficiency.

"That's a big issue for the homeless," said Mack Haltom, associate director of Tulsa's Day Center for the Homeless, about the role of transportation in rehabilitation.

"There's plenty of work for folks, but city buses don't always get them where the jobs are," he added.

That's why Haltom and many of his colleagues sing the praises of the Tulsa Wheelmen bicycle club's Community Cycling Project.

"It meant the difference between working and not working, in many cases," said Gloria Dialectic, a Day Center caseworker.

As CCP coordinator Ren Barger explained, the program provides bicycles, including all the necessary equipment and a full day's worth of safety training, with an entire year's worth of service thrown in--all absolutely free of charge.

Prospective benefactors can contact Barger at ren@leesbikes.com.

(More)

INCOG BAG meeting

INCOG BAG Meeting

(This will be posted to NewOBC, CycleDog, TAOBIKE blog, and the Tulsa Now forum later today.)

25MAR2008 5:30P

Josh, Lisa, Tom, Patrick, Brian, Gary, Me...Monica arrived later

The original bicycling subcommittee had an organizational document describing their purpose. Do we have a similar document describing our goals and mission statement? We are attempting to locate the original. (Found a draft of the original on Wednesday, 26MAR, and it's been distributed.)

This committee represents an opportunity for a fresh start. This is not an official subcommittee of INCOG per Patrick.

We are the cyclist's voice, but do we have a role in planning?

We are to be proactive. Of local enhancement projects, 8 of 20 are funded. Public Works establishes a priority list. We want to bump projects up the list. For instance, the Mingo Valley Trail has been funded and that lead to neglect of other trail projects as money flowed to Mingo Trail. Patrick – we need signage and road markings and that money can go much farther than trails, increasing visibility of cyclist and cycling.

The Delaware bike lane was a joint effort of TU and Public Works.

Tom – we need to put ourselves forward as experts. Bicyclists need smooth streets, signage, and signals that react to their presence. City of Tulsa has a roadway design specification manual drawn from a variety of sources including ODOT and AASHTO. Can we get copies of this? Can we get copies of the AASHTO manual? One advantage of a regional Comprehensive Bicycle Master Plan is that it provides consistency from one municipality to the next. The rules and designs do not change as you cross from one jurisdiction to the next. INCOG has a facilities plan and a Master Trails Plan, but not a Comprehensive Bicycle Master Plan. City of Tulsa is motivated to pursue bicycle related projects, but regionally is questionable.

BAG needs to develop a document supporting the use of enhancement funds to hire a consultant for Comprehensive Bicycle Master Plan. Could Street Smarts be included as part of the master plan? It would include all the LAB E's: Education, engineering, enforcement, encouragement, equality, ...I forget the rest!

P. fox proposes committees to (1) become proactive in priority capital projects and funding of enhancement projects, and (2) improve on the current encouragement programs like BTW, trip tracker. Needs corporate help with promotion re: wellness, green issues, funding for radio, TV, newspaper ads. INCOG is promoting Ecology and Environment with Green Traveler program, ride share, mileage tracker. Summary page gives monthly totals and other information. Monica pointed out that unless corporations have a person tasked to collect the data, it falls through the cracks. We need to promote via other venues, Sustainability Tulsa, Wellness, Typros, health agencies, greens.

Monica - What are the benefits of logging all that information? Unless a company designates someone to compile it, the data will be lost.

Josh brought up the bike bus concept, an idea that deserves more promotion. Link up via Green Traveler?

Could we develop a new Corporate Challenge – pitting companies against each other for numbers of employees using bicycles for commuting and their mileage? We could publish a monthly list of winners in newspaper.

Safe Routes to School. Owen Elementary received funding from the state for projects. 100% of students live within 1.5 miles and there is no bus service. Lots of car traffic as a result. Intent is to promote kids walking and bicycling to school. Of $200K capital projects money, $20K goes to encouragement. PFox local coordinator for the project.

Community Cycling Project – money is available, yet no contacts have been made.

Open house on rail projects, 24APR. Where? Rail blog on line. GET URL

PFox needs help with: Enhancements and Bike to Work.

I agreed to help with writing BAG documents and whatever else need verbiage churned out. (More dummy me.)

INCOG Bicycling Advisory Group Meeting

"We're gettin' the band back together, man."

Yesterday, we had the first meeting of the new Indian Nations Council of Governments bicycle advisory group. Since this was the preliminary meeting, it included introductions and a brief discussion of goals and brought us up to date about on-going projects. This group may be meeting once a month, so there should be more to report shortly.

INCOG BAG Meeting

17JAN2008 1130A

Members

Ed Wagner

Monica Barczak

Josh Gifford

David Darcey

Chris Zenthoefer (not present)

Tom Brown

Lisa Frankenberger

Patrick Fox

Mark Brown (not present)

Glen Sams (not present)

The Big Picture

The subcommittee is composed of people with diverse backgrounds in cycling. There are current and former racers, tourists, and commuters representing a variety of occupations.

We share a common goal – to get more people on their bikes in the Tulsa region – and we realize that the vast majority of existing cyclists are recreational riders rather than transportation cyclists. However, it's critical to recognize the impact of infrastructure, particularly traffic lights and bridges, when it comes to transportation riders. For a recreational cyclist, a road or bridge closure is a nuisance, but easily avoided. For a transportation cyclist, it can represent a major problem if it prevents riding to a destination like work. As the plan evolves, it must encompass the needs of all cyclists.

Naturally, we embrace the traditional five E's of bicycling advocacy: Education, Engineering, Enforcement, Encouragement, and Evaluation. We support the development of a comprehensive master bicycling plan, that includes elements from Complete Streets and Safe Routes to School.

The Nagging Little Details

It's easy to get bogged down in discussions about plan details. A perfect illustration: Patrick showed the group one of Portland's blue bike boxes, and we were sidetracked for a few minutes talking about it. Anyone familiar with the email advocacy groups will be aware of what I've called how-many-bicycling-advocates-can-dance-on-the-head-of-a-pin arguments. The people involved care passionately about their positions, but to the vast majority of readers, the discussion is a waste of time. Unfortunately, I'm one of those people who bite hard on such arguments.

(As an aside, be aware that I use the word 'argument' in its primary definition, a reasoned discussion. If I want the other kind of argument, the knock-down-drag-out kind, I need only say the wrong thing to my spouse.)

Monica yanked us back from that fruitless pursuit and I thanked her for it. For the present, we need to focus on that big picture up above and use it to set our goals, then develop a plan to reach those goals. The plan is a series of steps, some interlinked and some independent, almost like a road map. And the nagging little details are the individual steps necessary to achieve those goals.

Some of those steps may include:

Public service announcements modeling safe and proper bicycle use, both from a cyclist's viewpoint and that of a motorist.

Funding for BikeEd in an effort to reach school children, adult cyclists, and motorists.

Include knowledgeable cyclists in street planning as a normal part of the process.

Efforts to change building codes to incorporate bicycle parking.

Encouraging employers to promote bicycle commuting.

Promoting Bike To Work events.

Comprehensive Bicycling Master Plan, a larger document that includes the Trails Master Plan and much more.

Most of that list is nothing new, but they are popular efforts that have met with some success. As always, the devil is in the details. Another way to phrase that is the large print giveth and the small print taketh away. A plan can have glowing, laudable goals, yet if it lacks supporting details, it will never come to fruition.

Trail Projects and Updates

The locally infamous 'FEMA' bridge project over Little Haikey Creek should start moving dirt this month. The bridge was backordered. It's a pre-fabricated construction.

The Mingo Valley Trail is in negotiations with ODOT over bridge placement at 71^st Street.

The Osage Prairie Trail Extension is looking for funding to continue trail construction north of Skiatook. Ultimately, the plan is to extend it to Barnsdahl, or if possible, Pawhuska.

The River Park Trail will be re-located west of the Creek Nation Casino, possibly funded by the Creek Nation. An astounding information tidbit – the new dual trail costs $290 per linear foot!

2007 Enhancement Grant Awards

South River Parks Extension

Fry Ditch Creek Trail (Bixby)

Mingo Valley (Admiral to I-244)

Osage Trail Trailhead (Skiatook)

Sand Springs, Visual Detection

A word about Sand Springs – the city is looking to attain LAB Bicycle Friendly City status.

ATTN: All Tulsa Bicyclists

(Image from Bike Friday)

By Paul Tay (LINK)

Sharon King Davis and Dewey Bartlett Jr., leaders of the "Complete Our Streets" panel established by Mayor Kathy Taylor and City Councilor Bill Martinson, invite all interested Tulsans to attend a Citizen Town Meeting on Monday, Oct. 29, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. in the Central Center at Centennial Park, 1028 E. Sixth St. (Sixth Street and Peoria Avenue).

The panel invites Tulsans to share their comments by either speaking to the group or submitting written comments. Those who want to speak will be asked to sign in before the meeting begins.

The Complete Our Streets panel is taking a comprehensive look at Tulsa's streets. This includes information gathering, questioning of information, and decision making for recommendations to be submitted by December 4 to the Mayor and City Council.

The panel will focus on three aspects of Tulsa's streets: contracting, smart urban design and financing. A committee has been assigned to study each of these three areas. For further information, you may contact the City of Tulsa Mayor's Action Center at 596-2100.

Thanks, Paul!

Local News: The River Tax (OT)

Tulsa county voters are being asked to fund a major renovation along the Arkansas River, a project that will give the city of Tulsa a truly jewel-like river park. The proposal will cost $280 million and taxpayers will vote on raising the county-wide sales tax to 8.917% from 8.517%. We pay sales tax on every purchase, including food.

Locally, Owasso taxpayers are being asked to vote an increase in the millage rate (real estate tax) to raise $45 million for a new elementary school.

Given the choice, which is a better use of my tax money? Let's see...pay more tax monies to benefit the community I live in, or pay more tax monies to benefit a narrow corridor in Tulsa? That's an easy one.

Honestly, I do think the River Parks can be developed further into a world-class park facility. But since the benefits accrue to Tulsa businesses and property owners, they should pay for it themselves. Building a wonderful park system 15 or 20 miles away from Owasso will not have any positive impact for outlying taxpayers. Tulsa gets the benefits and we get to pay for them.

Would Tulsa taxpayers consider paying for parks here in Owasso? Or Collinsville or Broken Arrow? Of course not!

Some of the arguments in favor of the proposition have been downright silly. The latest was in today's newspaper, arguing that building a new park will attract droves of young people to area businesses, and these new folks will contribute so much money to the economy that the city will be able to rebuild our crumbling roads and road infrastructure. These people must have attended that same voodoo economic course as the Reagan administration.

Don't misunderstand me - I'm not opposed to paying taxes when the money goes to something that provides real, tangible benefits. But when faced with a stark choice - a local school or a distant park - the right choice is very clear.

Tulsa trails...

This was my response to a well-meaning plea for bicycle trails servicing area schools:

Building trails that provide connectivity is certainly a laudable goal. But as always, the devil is in the details. There are a host of questions:

- Where does the right-of-way come from? Most schools have residential housing adjacent. Whose homes will be demolished to make right of way? Think about the elementary and middle schools in your area. Would it be possible to build a trail system that accessed those schools?

- Assuming the right of way can be found, how do you fund the construction? Trails cost roughly $1 million per mile. Should it come out of the school's budget, or is it more the sphere of public works or parks? Does it involve city,state, county, tribal, or federal land? Each entity has to sign off on the plan.

- Who will maintain the trail, or more directly, whose budget will pay for it?

If you're beginning to get the idea that planning and building a trail network involves a multitude of questions, compromises, competing interests, and protracted bureaucratic infighting, you begin to understand why they're difficult to bring into existence. A trail idea will not meet with universal acclaim. Quite the contrary, in fact. The NIMBYs, naysayers, and simple obstructionists show up at every public meeting. They can be quite vocal, and more importantly from the political classes point of view, they vote.

But that's just the political and planning end. Even if you have a trail system, parents have to permit their children to use it. Given the "stranger danger" paranoia that infects so many parents, can we really expect them to let their kids ride a bicycle to school? It would be pleasant to think that one or more parents would ride with them, but the days of Ozzie and Harriet are long gone. If I recall right, less than 20% of families have a stay-at-home Mom. Chances are, both parents are hustling off to work. There isn't time to ride a bike.

Before anyone brings up the idea of bikelanes that service schools, or the idea of utilizing existing sidewalks for the same purpose, let's remember that bikelanes complicate intersections and traffic interactions for adults. Children would have a much harder time negotiating such intersections. And sidewalks offer another level of complication as kids don't obey stop signs and motorists simply don't look for cyclists on the sidewalk. The crash rate is 3 times higher than it is on the street.

I attended an INCOG planning meeting some time ago when they made the initial proposal for the trail network in their service area. One of the planners said the typical timeline is 10 years from concept to completion. And that's true if there are no major complications. Tulsa's trail network is nearing completion, and despite it's wide-spread nature, it doesn't allow full connectivity in that it doesn't fully connect neighborhoods with schools, parks, businesses and shopping. You have to ride on the street to reach many destinations. That will always be true. However, the on-street bicycle route network complements the trail system by using lightly traveled neighborhood streets.

But think again about what I said about stranger danger. Do parents allow their children to use the existing trails and bike routes to reach their schools? Has anyone ever done a count of students biking to and from school on a regular basis? I think that would be interesting information to have before tying to launch a construction project.

Is Tulsa Bicycle Friendly?

Brian Potter asked if Tulsa is a bicycling-friendly city. I almost cringe at the term because LAB often hands out their bicycle-friendly awards based on the facilities available in a particular city. While some amenities are necessary and desirable, it seems that LAB overlooks their own bicycling education program. Being bicycle-friendly involves more than bike paths, parking, or multi-mode transportation possibilities. They're a good start, but not the ultimate goal.

Motorists/cyclist

But our focus is on Tulsa, so let's discuss some aspects of cycling here. The main concern of nearly any road going cyclist is his interaction with area motorists. In general, I'd say that the overall relationship here is good. Most Tulsa motorists are accommodating toward road cyclists. They drive competently and safely, sharing the road with us. There are some exceptions, of course, but in my experience, they're thankfully rare. I should probably qualify that statement by saying that I commute to work regularly, and I see the same motorists day after day. They come to expect a bicycle rider somewhere on the commute. But even when I'm outside my usual hours or usual route, I seldom encounter hostile, irate motorists. I'd like to think that's because I take the lane when necessary, causing motorists to pass only when it's safe, but maybe being a big 220 pound guy has something to do with it too.

Cyclist/cyclist

Most of the cyclists I've met on the road have been courteous and safety-minded. Some few, self-absorbed types have been so intent on their training that they couldn't respond to a simple, friendly wave, but I suspect they're arrogant dicks off the bike too. Occasionally, I've come across sidewalk riders who dart across traffic unpredictably. They're usually kids. I've seen numerous adults riding sidewalks in both Tulsa and Owasso. Once or twice I've met some wrong-way riders too, but again, they're thankfully rare.

Pedestrian/cyclist

I haven't heard complaints involving pedestrian/cyclist incidents that are more routine in cities like New York or Chicago. A few years ago, the River Parks Authority held a meeting about such conflicts at the northern end of the river trail. As I recall, the solution involved painting lines on the trail, dividing it into lanes, and providing more signage. Has anyone heard of other bicycle/pedestrian conflicts?

Law enforcement/cyclists

Most area law enforcement agencies have been positive and proactive regarding cyclist's complaints with one significant exception. I've had contacts with several agencies regarding enforcement or motorist/cyclist conflicts with very good results. Some officers are still woefully ignorant of both safe bicycle practice and bicycle law, but when an opportunity arises to educate his superiors, I won't hesitate to do so. I've been pleasantly surprised at their professionalism. That 'one significant exception' mentioned above involved a department that could not admit their deputy was enforcing his personal bias rather than the law.

Planning/public works/cyclists

The biggest failure I see in this area is in planning. Cyclists are the red-headed stepchildren of area transportation planners and public works departments. We should be getting routine accommodation when it comes to planning and designing streets and intersections, yet that is not the case. Frankly, I don't understand the willful exclusion of cyclists from area transportation planning. It seems our governments would rather design and build expensive infrastructure without any input from those of us who would expect to use it. I'm not talking about adding more linear parks, bike trails, or paths. I'd like to see traffic signals that reliably detect cyclists and building codes that require adequate bicycle parking. I'd like to see streets designed with cycling included as a normal part of the traffic flow. Those streets would be free of easily identified hazards to two-wheeled travel, like rough railroad crossings, wheel-trapping drainage grates, or angled motor vehicle parking.

In conclusion

As I passed the Shell station this morning, gasoline was at $3.10 per gallon. Every time the price spikes like this, more people turn to bicycles for cheap, simple transportation. Most of them begin as recreational cyclists. In fact, as I cruised garage sales on the Tour de Owasso last weekend, every garage I stopped at had a couple of bikes stored in a corner. Now, these folks might not consider riding to work every day, but they'll certainly think about using that dusty old bike to get milk-and-bread-and-eggs from the grocery store. We need to encourage them to try it.

Bike to Work (Forwarded from TulsaNow)

From Patrick Fox, Pedestrian and Bicycle Planner at the Indian Nations Council of Governments:

Hello there my fine TulsaNow friends,

This forum has long provided a great sounding board for a lot of ideas on how to make Tulsa a better, more attractive place to live. It has also prompted a few of you to say "Let's stop talking, and do something about it." Well, now is your chance: The 2007 Bike to Work season is upon us.

Why? There are so many reasons. It's healthy. It's one less car on the road. It's gallons of gas not bought and burned. It's less smog in our air. And, in this persons opinion, among the many elements that make up a "great" city, being a great place to ride a bike is one of them. Bottomline, Tulsa needs to be a bicycle friendly community.

You can do your part! I won't pretend to speak for you.... Maybe you don't give a flip about bicycling, or you just don't have any of those super-attractive tight outfits those hardcore riders are always sporting, or your bike is so old that you still have coaster brakes and playing cards in your spokes. Not to worry! There is no dress code for Bike to Work day, and in case you didn't know, that old Sting-Ray is back in style. And if you don't care about bicycling yourself, that's ok too. More bikes on the road just means more room on the road for your Hummer. I digress.

SO....lube up that chain, hop on, and ride to work with us to our kickoff event on Wednesday, May 16th. We are meeting down at the Blue Dome Diner from 7:00 am to 8:30 am. And breakfast is on us. Well, at least those delicious, homemade breakfast sandwiches they make at the Blue Dome are on us.

Let's make a statement! Everyone who can, ride and join us in solidarity. Should Tulsa be a more Bike Friendly place? You bet it should. How is that going to happen? We have to be a loud voice for change. We have to organize. Mostly, we have to ride our bikes. The more riders we have, the more visibility we have, and the more likely it is that those who can make the changes will notice.

I hope we can make this the largest Bike to Work event in the State. OKC is having their event on that Friday, as is Norman. So help us make sure that we remain the biking capital of Oklahoma on Wednesday May 16th.

More info at http://www.green-traveler.org/


P.S. For those who plan to ride with us all season long (May through Sept 15th) the Bike to Work Tracker is back in business. Track your bike to work miles weekly and be entered to win monthly prizes. All participants will receive a report showing how many miles you have peddled.

http://www.green-traveler.org/tracker.asp

Sunday Musette

Tulsa Little 100

OK, so this is technically Sunday, but most of the following is about yesterday. First, there's this bit from the Tulsa World about the Little 100:

JAMES GIBBARD / Tulsa World

By Staff Reports
4/22/2007

Sts. Peter and Paul Middle School student John Yuan (left), 13, swaps bikes with teammate William Berntson, 12, during the Little 100 Relay Race at Webster High School on Saturday. Students who participate in the event get a chance to win free bicycles. The bike giveaway is sponsored by the Warren Foundation and St. Francis Children's Hospital.

Adam Vanderberg, owner of Lee's Bicycles, and an army of volunteers deserve a huge thank-you as recognition for their efforts on this event.

Tom's Bicycles

Also, I talked with Tom Brown yesterday. He's opening a new shop at 15th and Rockford (Cherry Street to some of you) across from Subway. Tom is very excited about it! For that matter, so am I 'cause it's tons closer to my house. I'll write more on this as it develops. The shop should be open this summer.


An Observation...

As Jordan and I drove through town on the way to Tom's, we spotted numerous people riding bicycles, probably 12 to 15 in all. And of all those folks, only ONE was riding on the road. Though to be fair, he was most likely riding on the road because he didn't have a choice. There wasn't a sidewalk. Also, he was riding one-handed because he held the handle of a push mower in the other one. I wish I had a photo of the guy towing his power mower along Mingo Road.

All the other people on bicycles were riding on the sidewalk. One of them crossed Memorial Drive in a pedestrian crossing while traffic swirled around him. Jordan watched it all in astonishment. So did I.

The city of Tulsa wants to gain bicycle friendly status. We have a long ways to go just in educating cyclists, let alone the motoring public.

Swap meets...

We need one.

There's a post on the Tulsa Craigslist right now about a swap meet this weekend. The author is looking for old bikes, and he's planning to attend a car swap over west of Sapulpa at the Creek County Fairgrounds on the 20th. I may go after work Friday.

Remember - this is a CAR swap meet. I've been to some motorcycle swaps that had a few bicycle too, but they were very unwelcome.

We need a BICYCLE swap meet on a regular basis somewhere around Tulsa.

Any ideas? Post them in comments.

Street repair

It's a sure sign that spring has arrived when the paving crews make their annual appearance. Last week, as I was riding home from work one afternoon into a nice headwind, I encountered a work crew along 66th Street north of Mohawk Park. When the wind shifts around to the north, I ride home through the park because the trees help break up the wind. Anyway, the crew was patching the S-bend section of 66th Street which has been so badly broken down it had only one usable lane. Fortunately, that street is very lightly traveled, so the pavement wasn't a major problem. But it's also a popular route for cyclists and as we move further into spring, it will see more cycling traffic as the Freewheel training rides get underway.

I saw only one worker who wasn't doing something, so I stopped and thanked him for fixing 'my' road. A Tulsa county road crew with everyone working! Imagine that!

Tulsa bicycle maintenance...

Maintenance

I've talked with three people this week regarding bicycle maintenance. There's some interest in setting up a class to cover more than the Road1 course basics. That includes tire repair and the basic ABC Quick check, and not much else. I'd think that a maintenance program would have to cover cleaning, washing, and lubricating a bike, as well as basic brake and derailleur adjustment, cable replacement, and tool selection. I'd put some emphasis on drivetrain maintenance, too, simply because these parts are so expensive to replace. It's sensible to clean and lubricate them in order to get maximum service life.

Sandra and I discussed it briefly, and I have to follow up with some of our local professional mechanics. Honestly, the shop guys are far better informed than I am. In fact, I once said to my wife and daughter, "Everything I know is obsolete!" This induced a bad case of giggles.

Or as Dr. Wally Crankset said, "My mind is a vast suppository of misinformation!"

Anyway, if local cyclists are interested, contact me via the comments below, or email at ejwagnerATyahoo.com. Just be aware that the Yahoo address is my spam trap and I check it infrequently. But comments here on CycleDog reach me immediately.

...one last thing...

I ran into 'Hurricane Hattie' on my way to work this week. Actually, she ran into me. I was riding south on Mingo Road in the dark when a headlight lit up the road behind me. I thought a motorist was cruising along back there refusing to pass. This happens now and then. But that section is wide, with good sight lines. I sat up and twisted around for a better look. Sure enough, it was another cyclist! She caught up to me shortly.

Hurricane was in one of our Road1 classes last year. She said that while she's assigned to day shift, she'll ride to work, but when she rotates to evenings she doesn't feel safe riding on that lonely road. That's certainly true. After 9PM or so, Mingo is deserted. I had a flat out there once and in all the time I spent fixing it, just one car went by.

It's gratifying to see someone apply what we teach in Road1.


...and just one more...

'Ann Coulter' is still around, though she's subsided to a rather small pain-in-the-ass. Bag Balm is my friend.