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Showing posts from August 3, 2014

A bike tour of all 50 states? Retired teacher, 71, did just that | Tampa Bay Times

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Dressed in a blue Bike Around Kansas souvenir T-shirt and capri pants, Dianne Franz, 71, moves her 5-foot-9 frame gingerly about her tidy Palm Harbor condo. The retired middle school teacher, originally from Long Island, points to a map of the United States that takes up most of one wall in her study. It's dotted from east to west and north to south with dozens of yellow Magic Marker lines — and that's what she wants to talk about. They trace the routes of the bicycle tours that have taken her to every state in the nation, an accomplishment she has been able to boast about since June 14 when she finished a 575-mile ride across Kansas, her 50th state. She said she has always liked bicycling and went on her first organized tour, Bike Florida, in the early 1990s, while still teaching at Tarpon Springs Middle School. From that point until she retired in 2005, she went on a tour a year. Since then, she said, it has been two or three. How it works Most are camping to

These "Power Lanes" Could Charge An E-Bike (And Phone) As You Ride

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By getting rid of the lead battery, the design concept aims to make electric bikes a lot greener--and a lot easier to use. Most of the world's electric bikes--especially the 30 million produced each year in China--still use lead batteries. In China, lead production has caused mass poisonings, and recycling often causes even more problems when toxic wastewater is dumped in rivers. Though alternative batteries are becoming more common, they also have their own issues with manufacturing and disposal. In Canfi's design,  energy  would be stored in a lightweight capacitor without the heavy metals or  chemicals  used in a typical battery. A simple attachment could be added to any bike to make it compatible with the system. A special bike lane, embedded with coils, would recognize the bike when it rides by, and wirelessly send it  electricity . Solar panels along the roadside could provide enough power to keep the system running.

Winter is coming...

The San Juans. Proven Here. from Yeti Cycles on Vimeo .

Bike the C-Bus registration with t-shirt ends August 15th @bikethecbus

Registration: Registration ($35) including t-shirt ends August 15th. Online registration ends August 29th at NOON. Register today. On-site registration ($40 cash or credit card) and packet/tshirt pickup Friday, August 30, 2013 5:30PM – 8:00PM Where:  Lincoln Theatre – King-Lincoln District (769 East Long Street) Ride: Saturday, August 30, 2014 7:00AM: On-site registration ($40 cash or credit card) and packet/tshirt pickup 8:00 AM:  We ride! Riders can head out on the route Ride begins and ends  at:  Lincoln Theatre – King-Lincoln District (769 East Long Street) Parking Options No rain date, ride will take place rain or shine! Bike the C-Bus is celebrating our SEVENTH year! The ride is a fun way to check out a few of the neighborhoods in and around Columbus. Experience segments of the King Lincoln District, Woodland Park, Olde Town East, Downtown, Short North Arts District, Italian Village, Harrison West, Victorian Village, Arena District, Franklinton, Brewery District and Germ

These Cycling Desks Charge Your Phone--And Your Muscles--While You Work

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At the office or airport, 30 minutes of easy pedaling on a WeBike will get you a full iPhone charge and keep you fit. If you need to charge your phone while you're waiting for a flight at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, or while sitting at the train station in Lyon, you can get a little exercise at the same time. The waiting areas are filled with WeBikes, stationary bikes that power gadgets and a  Wi-Fi  connection as you pedal. It takes about 30 minutes of easy pedaling to charge an iPhone, the same amount of time it would take while plugged into the wall. "It also happens to be the same number of minutes of exercise that the government prescribes for health," says  Katarina Verhaegen , the engineer who developed the bike. The bike was the brainchild of a  Flemish government  minister,  Patricia Ceysens , who was working long hours and couldn't find time to work out. She hacked together a cycling desk for herself, and then realized that

Seattle Designed 'Future Bike' Wins National Competition, Will Go Into Production

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Check out the video below. Nice work! Photo from Oregon Manifest In case you missed it, last week we posted details about  the Seattle designed "Denny" bicycle —the local entry in a  country-wide compeition  to design the bicycle of the future. Thanks to your votes, designers TEAGUE and Sizemore Bicycle have  officially won the compeition,  besting the other teams from Portland, Chicago, NYC and San Francisco. Fuji Bikes will now partner with Teague and Sizemore to begin planning the production of "The Denny," which is slated to debut on the market sometime in 2015. "I just happened to be at the mall at the Lego store with my boy when I got the call," says TEAGUE creative director Roger Jackson. "I started jumping around with him like a giddy little schoolgirl. The response we've had is incredible—the video we posted was viewed in 150 different countries." "I think the handlebar was the key uni

Someone Finally Built the Ultimate Urban Bike @gizmodo

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EXPAND The road to building a dream bike is fraught with potholes—it's easy to throw together a bunch of wacky ideas into a build and end up with something very far from perfect. This is not one of those bikes. This is  Horse Bicycles 's "Merge," a collaboration with  Pensa Design Studios , who set out to build the perfect urban bicycle for the  Oregon Manifest Bike Design Project . And they came pretty damn close. [Keep reading at Gizmodo]

Sheep vs cyclist

The Most Persuasive Evidence Yet that Bike-Share Serves as Public Transit @citylab

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Shinya Suzuki/Flickr Over the past few days, several New York  media   outlets  have reported that Citi Bike, the city's popular but financially struggling bike-share system, will soon get a much-needed influx of cash. The new money would likely go toward improving docking stations and  expanding the network  to other parts of the city. A spokesman for Mayor Bill de Blasio told the  Wall Street Journal  that bike-share "has become part of our public transportation system, and there is a lot riding on its success." Those words come at the same time as a new research study— first referenced here  by former D.C. and Chicago transportation chief Gabe Klein—offers the most persuasive evidence yet that bike-share serves as a  genuine form of public transportation . [Keep reading at CityLab]

Topeak DeFender™ iGlow X

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DeFender™ iGlow X combines a compact road fender set with Integral Glow (iGlow) illumination technology for safety at night and low visibility conditions. Lightweight polycarbonate is tough and flexible. Adjustable stainless steel struts and rubber connector system for perfect alignment and good tire coverage. Fits road tires up to 700 x 25c. Attachments Quick Release Center Bolt Clip with Adjustable Rubber Band System on Struts Adjustment Adjustable Angle and Position for Perfect Tire Coverage Material Extruded Polycarbonate with Stainless Steel Struts Lamp 0.5W Super Bright Red LED Battery CR2032 x 4 (included) Control 2 Modes Constant / Blinking Burn Time (approx) 50 hrs / 100 hrs Size (L x W x H) 36.5 x 19 x 10.5 cm 14.4” x 7.5” x 4.1” (front) 51.1 x 39.5 x 14 cm 20.1” x 15.6” x 5.5” (rear) Weight 156 g / 5.50 oz (front) 230 g / 8.11 oz (rear) Art.no. TIG-DF02 [Topeak]

OSAKA BICYCLE BELLS - Roadie Clip On Bell

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Ideal for bicycles with drop-style bars. Light, but durable aluminum clamp. Adaptable for right and left use.  Clips firmly on to brake lever hoods, cable housing, and also some flat bar levers. Does not occupy valuable handlebar space. Find the perfect position for your type of riding.  Size: 2 2mm wide brass/alloy dome Type:  Striker Colors:  Brass, silver, copper, or dark chrome Fit:  8mm (does not clamp to bars) [Osaka Bicycle Bells]