2012 OC Gran Fondo

2012 OC Gran Fondo

If you missed riding in The Tour, the Olympics, or even if you rode both, stretch your legs at a fundraiser on one of the 4 routes offered at the 2012 OC Gran Fondo. While primarily a fundraiser for  “Be A Hero Become A Donor” foundation (BAHBAD) and St. John Neumann Youth Ministry, there’s lots of free goodies and support along the various routes, and a pasta meal at the end!

Not enough? How ’bout this: 101 and 64 mile riders will receive a free RACE CUT jersey by Hincapie, while the 11 and 30 mile riders will receive a free high quality OC Gran Fondo water bottle! If that’s not enough, Bianchi has a special offer for new bike purchases.

Update 9/24/12: Latest registration, parking, and Ride instructions are posted here. If you missed this year’s ride because you’re in the Tour de Cure, mark your calendar now for the OC Gran Fondo happening on October 5th, 2013.

Register before September 1st because prices go up after that.  If you want to guarantee your jersey size for the ride, please register by August 17th.

Entry:
Before September 1st              After September 1st
VIP – $199                                                 $249
101 –   $99                                                  $110
64 –     $99                                                  $110
30 –     $25                                                    $30
11 –     $20                                                     $20

 

Much more info at the website.
Ride strong, ride safe, have fun.

A Slice of Irvine

After reviewing data charts from the upcoming Alliance for Biking and Walking conference in Long Beach, we noticed that while full of facts and figures, we couldn’t find specifics as seen below:

Irvine01-12 Pie

A Slice of Irvine

This chart shows the fault of most cyclist injuries and death to be that of the cyclist as determined by the appropriate authority. Of the 6 fatalities and 445 injuries represented here, you may use the specific CVC code such as 21453=”fail to stop” to get a clearer picture of the specific action on the part of each party. In contrast, there were only 2 pedestrian injuries recorded for the same time-frame, so despite the trend in other cities, pedestrians have an easier time of it than cyclists in Irvine.

Why pick on Irvine?

We’re not – really!
Irvine is one of the most bike friendly cities in the county offering multiple class1 and class 2 cycle paths, and is basically flat. It also happens to be where we are holding our next cycling seminar and we encourage you to attend.

As can clearly be seen, cyclists are their own worst enemy, and through our classroom and road skills portion of the course, you will gain the knowledge of how to avoid becoming a statistic, and have greater confidence when on the road. This class has sold out the last two months, and seating is limited.

If you’re not attending any of the great conferences in Long Beach next week, sign up now!

One might wonder if alcohol played a part in the above injury and death chart, and the answer is yes. There were 12 alcohol involved injuries but no fatalities. 6 were on the part of the cyclist, 2 on the part of the motorist, and 4 that could go either way because the field was marked “not stated”. So if you think it’s safe to drink and ride, think again and sober up before rolling out.

The OCBC uses information like this to better understand the underlying cause and issues related to cyclist injury and death throughout the county. With this level of understanding, we can make informed  suggestions to city planners or other interested parties on how to minimize cyclist conflict in the county.

Ride strong – ride smart – ride safe!

August Cycling Workshop – Irvine – Full

Update 8/8/12: This class has been filled – THANK YOU! – there is a survey to be placed on a wait / cancellation list  or to reserve a spot in September’s class on the registration page for your convenience.

The OCBC, JAX Bicycles, and the Bicycle Club of Irvine present an Urban Cycling Workshop August 15 & 19.  The 9 hour course is $35, and includes materials, insurance, a written exam and (usually) a diploma.JAX Got Class

The classroom portion will be at JAX Bicycles  14210 Culver Dr. #6h, (949) 733-1212, starting at 6pm on the 15th ending around “nine-ish”. The class is a necessary prerequisite for the road portion which will be at Deerfield Park starting at 8am on the 19th.  Full details and registration on our page.

Did you know:…
Irvine, while having one of the most extensive and expansive bike trail networks of all OC cities, still is in the top 10 cities for high cyclist injuries and fatalities in the county? Irvine tied with Westminster as #6 in cyclist fatalities, and #9 for cyclist injuries from 2001-2012.

Skills PresentationMost cyclist collisions during the same time-frame are due to riding on the wrong side of the road (don’t do that!), failing to yield right of way at intersections, speeding (!), failure to stop at signs and signals (always do that!), and failure to move left or right in a safe manner, or failure to signal.

 

 

 

 

Making a Point

These are basic skills taught in the class and practiced in the park. You can help make any city you ride in that much safer by attending and successfully completing this course.

 

 

 

You will also make yourself less likely to become a statistic on our scorecard!

IRVScorecardThis scorecard is compiled from the Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) and is subject to revision by the administrating authority, the California Highway Patrol.

Pictures of an on-road portion of the class are here.

The Tax on Winning and a Bikelane – opinion

Recently much has been made of the fact that the US is about the only country in the world to tax its athletes at the London Olympics should they have the luck, skill, and where-with-all to stand on the finishers podium to receive their due in front of their peers. Not only will the athletes be taxed on the prize money that accompanies the medal, they will also be taxed on the metal content of the medal itself!

The following table is provided as an illustration:

Winners Tax Table (amount per medal)

Winners Tax Table (amount per medal)

Is this really a problem? Apparently some people think so, as we discover that this last Wednesday, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduced a bill  that would exempt U.S. Olympic medal winners from paying the IRS tax on the medals they win and the cash payments that come with them.

Thinking that this all has to be some urban legend, we did some fact- checking over at Snopes and learn that just as there is a price for freedom, there is a price for winning. Who knew?

Currently the US is #2 in the Women’s team pursuit qualifying round just a few short seconds behind the  women of Great Britain and just barely ahead of Australians, while Kristen Armstrong took gold in the Women’s time trials, her final ride before retiring . It’s too bad that Amber Neben finished 7th. Do you really think thoughts of possible tax burdens hinder their performance?

We hope Dotsie Bausch and her team mates Sarah Hammer, Lauren Tamayo, and Jennie Reed, hold off Australia and upset Great Britain in the finals tomorrow. Live action commentary and complete race results are available at cyclingnews.com.

If Dotsie podiums, perhaps we could hold a bake sale or something in Irvine if the tax burden is too much for her to bear alone.

And speaking of Irvine, we received word of a bike lane closure 8/7/12 from 9am to 3pm on the southbound side of Carlson Ave. between Michelson Dr. and Palatine, so be careful in that area next Tuesday.

Update 8/5/12

They Did IT!

Lauren Tamayo, Sarah Hammer, Dotsie Bausch and Jennie Reed

The US women held off Australia and won Silver with a 3:19.727 time! Fantastic!

Great Britain won Gold with a World Record 3:14.051 time, and the Canadians overcame the Australians for bronze with 3:17.915 compared to the Aussies 3:18.096

Since the US wasn’t really expected to be in the finals, the 2nd place finish is huge. Hear from Dotse, “”We wanted it more, these last two days,” Bausch said, holding her silver medal. “We fought every pedal stroke, every lap, every second. I really believe we wanted it more. It’s pretty wild to think of the deep richness of the track programs in New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain, and it’s just been us four and Ben [Sharp, the USA Cycling endurance coach], and we got the silver.”

Lauren (who has been racing track since she was 12), then announced she is retiring from track to set her sights on road. Watch out Kristin and Amber.

Well Done! What an awesome performance! Now, what kind of cookies do you like?