http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress Encouragement, Education & Advocacy for Bicycling in the Real World Thu, 24 May 2012 02:02:01 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Encouragement, Education & Advocacy for Bicycling in the Real World Commute Orlando no Encouragement, Education & Advocacy for Bicycling in the Real World http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/category/cycling-community/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/04/27/no-artificial-limits/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/04/27/no-artificial-limits/#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 22:08:01 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=15190 You may recall, last year I posted a trailer for Ride with Larry, along with a Kickstarter link to help fund the documentary project. Our very own John Alexander, who also has Parkinson’s, went to South Dakota and participated in the last day of Larry’s ride. He shared his story about that ride, here. Another local connection — Larry rides a Catrike, made here in Central Florida. This is a sneak preview of the documentary. Go get some Kleenex before you hit the play button. “I don’t believe in setting artificial limits to myself. Because that’s telling… I’ll be telling myself what I can’t do.” — Larry Smith Learn More: www.ridewithlarrymovie.com Join the Ride: www.facebook.com/ridewithlarry “Ride with Larry” puts a human face on the day-to-day fight against Parkinson’s through the story of Larry Smith, a retired police captain, now beloved small-town baker. After twenty years with Parkinson’s, Larry attempts to ride 300 miles across his state of South Dakota with the support of his family and community to show the power of keeping your body active and mind positive, proving that the best cure is living life to its fullest. The film follows Larry as attempts to push his limits and expand the boundary of [...]]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/04/27/no-artificial-limits/feed/ 2 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/31/first-friday-for-february/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/31/first-friday-for-february/#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:48:20 +0000 Mighk http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=14615 January is already over, and it’s time for another First Friday ride!  As always, we roll out from Loch Haven Park at 6:00 p.m. for a casual, family-friendly, law-abiding, hour-long ride around Orlando. All bikes and all bicyclists are welcome!  Front and rear lights are required; helmets are required for kids under 16, and are a good idea for kids 16 and up.  ]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/31/first-friday-for-february/feed/ 0 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/30/caringbridge-site-for-nick/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/30/caringbridge-site-for-nick/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:50:37 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=14601 Thanks to Greg Bailey for setting up a CaringBridge site for Nick Vollman. Greg posted a link in the comments to our post calling for prayers. You can visit that site for updates on Nick’s recovery and send messages of love and support to Nick and his family in the guestbook. Also, David’s World Cycle is asking for cards, signs, posters and messages of support to post on the wall in Nick’s room at ORMC. From their FaceBook page: Here is a picture of Nick Vollman’s room in ICU. It is so important that we show him all of our support with our messages of encouragement and hope. Help us to plaster his room with cards and pictures and messages to let him know that when he opens his eyes that he is loved and prayed for. Please forward all of your well wishes to the College Park Store address at 2517 Edgewater Dr. Orlando, FL 32804. Attention Nick Vollman. Thanks so much for all the prayers!  ]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/30/caringbridge-site-for-nick/feed/ 2 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/17/prayers-for-nick/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/17/prayers-for-nick/#comments Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:25:46 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=14540 I’m passing on this announcement from the David’s World Cycle family: We are sending out a huge prayer request for our very own Nick Vollman from the College Park store. Please please pray for Nick. He was involved in a terrible bicycle accident. There is tremendous power in prayers and we are asking that everyone please pray for Nick’s speedy recovery! No details on the crash. It happened on Edgewater Drive. Nick is in the ICU at ORMC. He’s seriously injured. Please send prayers, healing thoughts, positive energy… whatever you got!]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2012/01/17/prayers-for-nick/feed/ 11 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2011/06/06/buyselltrade-your-bike-gear-free/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2011/06/06/buyselltrade-your-bike-gear-free/#comments Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:23:59 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=12994 My longtime cycling buddy, Julie Mills, has created a new national website for listing cycling gear. It’s like a craigslist just for cyclists. Check it out! Bike Gear Classifieds – FREE to post BikeFlock.com is an online cycling classified ads and business directory designed by a cyclist, for cyclists. The idea is to bring together local communities to buy and sell bike gear and post information to help cyclists in their daily lives. A lot of effort has gone in to organizing the site so that it’s easy and painless to use. We have also made the site very search engine friendly to attract potential buyers. Many cyclists have boxes of unused bike gear in their garages. BikeFlock.com is founded on the idea of simple ad posting. At BikeFlock.com, users need only register and verify their e-mail address to be eligible for ad posting. After that, users only need to fill-out a simple form–and the listing is up instantly! Each ad will run for thirty (30) days, giving users plenty of time to reap the benefits of such postings. It is FREE to post in all sections of this website, so flock on board and have fun! Be sure to [...]]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2011/06/06/buyselltrade-your-bike-gear-free/feed/ 0 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/12/17/broward-county-approves-bike-sharing-contract/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/12/17/broward-county-approves-bike-sharing-contract/#comments Fri, 17 Dec 2010 14:34:29 +0000 Eric http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=11040 From The SunSentinel: With recent approval of a contract with B-Cycle, Broward County commissioners took a big step in initiating a bicycle-sharing program in the county. The bike-sharing program is intended to reduce traffic congestion as well as reduce carbon monoxide emissions while also providing residents and tourists a cheapr way to travel. “We’re hoping to generate interest and I think that there are a lot of people that want to ride bikes,” said Commissioner Kristin Jacobs who spearheaded the bike-sharing program. “We don’t have a system in our county that makes [bike-riding] as safe as it could be and with launching this with B-Cycle, it’s just the beginning of looking at the county-wide effort to understand where the [bicycle-friendly] gaps are in our system.” To access the public bicycles, 20 bike stations are scheduled to be setup in Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood and Pompano Beach. To rent a bike, users can swipe their credit card or a pre-purchased card that allows rentals daily or monthly, which can be returned at any kiosks. Where exactly the bike stations will be located is still being studied, possibly near the beach or downtown area in Fort Lauderdale. The official launch of the program [...]]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/12/17/broward-county-approves-bike-sharing-contract/feed/ 9 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/11/12/taking-action-and-getting-justice/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/11/12/taking-action-and-getting-justice/#comments Fri, 12 Nov 2010 15:20:48 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=10630 The cycling community rallies and a driver gets 90 days in jail for hit-and-run involving bicyclist. Angelina Everett hit Ed Magos with her SUV in downtown L.A., kept driving and called police more than an hour later. The jail time — rare for bike hit-and-runs — is a victory for cycling-safety advocates.]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/11/12/taking-action-and-getting-justice/feed/ 3 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/10/21/good-vibes-for-marty/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/10/21/good-vibes-for-marty/#comments Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:27:47 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=10461 On Tuesday morning October 11 @ 7 am Marty was on his bike  waiting at a red light to turn left near Horatio and Seneca when a car hit him from behind at approx 30 mph.  Both front and back lights were on his bike.  His helmet certainly saved his life.  He flew up onto the windshield, fell into traffic, but rolled out of the way of an oncoming car.  A witness ran to him, called 911 and then called me.  Marty never lost consciousness.  He was taken by Maitland paramedics to ORMC Trauma. You can follow Marty’s recovery here.]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/10/21/good-vibes-for-marty/feed/ 9 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/17/and-yet-it-was-a-flawless-ride/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/17/and-yet-it-was-a-flawless-ride/#comments Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:27:32 +0000 Keri http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=9675 Some interesting things happened on my way downtown yesterday. I was headed to the Health & Fitness Fair at First Presbyterian Church on Jackson St to promote Bike/Walk Central Florida and CyclingSavvy. My printer crapped out, so I needed to stop and get some fliers printed at Staples. And I was running out of time. As I approached Colonial on Maguire, I could see I wasn’t going to make the light. I remembered that the right turn lane gets a mid-cycle green arrow in the mornings, so I opted to turn right on Colonial instead of going to Fairgreen. Good decision. I had the road to myself to Primrose and got the left turn arrow there right away. Leaving Staples, I decided to head out onto Bumby. In my mind, I was headed for my rat path to go down Robinson. That’s how I normally get downtown. Then I realized it would be a lot quicker to take South to Rosalind. I typically avoid Bumby because the pavement is so awful, but there I was, so I was taking it to South Street. Fortunately, there wasn’t much traffic. A few cars stopped in the right lane behind me at the [...]]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/17/and-yet-it-was-a-flawless-ride/feed/ 40 http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/16/a-boy-and-his-bicycle/ http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/16/a-boy-and-his-bicycle/#comments Thu, 16 Sep 2010 16:00:21 +0000 Eric http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/?p=9660 Here is an op-ed piece from the New York Times about World Bicycle Relief. I’ve written here about similar programs involving girls. I enjoyed this story because it talked about the gory details of how the charity went about doing things. How they designed a bike from the ground up and ended up with a 55 lb., one speed bomb-proof bike, the likes of which could be found in every Sears, Wards and  Western Auto store in America until the ’70′s. Of course it has fenders. Of course it has a bell. Of course the tires are wide. Of course it has Northroad handlebars. See for yourself. You can see more photos of Abel and better pictures of his new bike here.  It’s a reminder of the power of bicycles.]]> http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/09/16/a-boy-and-his-bicycle/feed/ 6