On Saturday Family Bikes in Waldo is hosting a watch party for Stage 1 of the Tour de France.  Where do you like to watch the Tour?  I often hit up Jaywalkers at 39th and Rainbow in KCK or Tower Tavern on 31st Street in Union Hill.

Where is is a good place to watch?  Is your bike shop hosting an event?  Let us know in the comments!

The Bicycle Tutor is a great web site with helpful videos covering everyhing from adjusting a derailleur to fixing a bottom bracket. I’m a software guy, not a hardware guy, so this site is gonna be really helpful for things I could probably do myself but would normally hire out.

A couple of photos of this week’s visit to my local tavern… Bikes at Fric & Frac and even more bikes across the street at Miami Ice.

Lieutenant David Dillon of the Douglas County (KS) Sheriff’s Department was hit and killed this morning while bicycling near the town of Eudora.  There aren’t many details yet, but both Fox 4 and KSHB-TV 41 have reports.

Whether you are biking to work, school, or the store, there are many resources available in Kansas City to help you get started or ride better. Check out KCBike.Info’s Commuting Guide to learn more bicycling for transportation in KC.

On Thursday Steve Kraske’s Up to Date radio program will feature the topic of bicycle commuting for work, errands, transportation, etc.  The on-air guests will include KCMO Bike/Ped Coordinator Deb Ridgway and some local bicycle commuters, including the infamous Noah Dunker

Up To Date with Steve Kraske
11:00 am. - 12:00 pm.
KCUR-FM 89.3
or listen online at www.kcur.org

This fall MoDOT will be repaving Bannister Road in southen Kansas City, MO, including some much-needed improvements for bicyclists. First, 134 storm drain grates will be replaced with the new bike-friendly grates that are standard on all new construction.  Second, most of the improved road will include 10 foot shoulders, which will be much appreciated on this high traffic road.

The segment to be repaved is four miles between State Line Road on the west and I-435 on the east. Construction is scheduled for August through November. Bannister Road is one of the few east/west streets that goes all the way across southern Kansas City, including crossing the Blue River.

So why is MoDOT repaving Bannister?  Although the street looks and acts like an urban arterial street, it is actually a state highway, Route W. So, MoDOT is responsible for it, not the city.

Starting on Saturday the MS Society is offering classes for people who would like to learn about riding on the street in traffic. Check out this great opportunity to become a confident city cyclist.

Continue reading ‘Road skills classes coming up’

A few weeks ago City Councilmember Jan Marcason (4th District) addressed concerns she was hearing from constituents and asked for an update on the status of bike/ped on the new Paseo Bridge.  This Thursday Patty Hilderbrand of the Public Works department will present that update to the council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Over the last few months the city has been working to secure funding for the facility, and working with MoDOT to negotiate the technical details of building the path while the new bridge is under construction.  This will be a great opportunity to learn the status of that process. MoDOT didn’t think the city would hold them to their promise to build the path if the money was found, but citizen demands have made it a top priority for Mayor Funkhouser and the City Council.

The meeting is at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday in the 10th Floor Committee Room at City Hall, 12th and Oak.  Bike parking is available near the building’s south entrance. This is an informational presentation, so we don’t need to pack the room this time. If you would like to watch from the comfort of your home or office, it will be broadcast on Channel 2 on KCMO cable systems and on the city’s web site.

For more information, read our Paseo Bridge background page.

A lot of people are concerned about the road rage incident that happened recently at Longview Lake, including some allegations that the police responded inappropriately.  Here is a quick update on the situation…

First, the person accused of harassing the cyclists has been charged with assault and has a court date at the end of July.  He is not getting off without his day in court, and the incident is going through the justice system.

Second, the KCPD is investigating the allegations about the police officers’ response.  A representative of the police department has followed up with the cyclist who reported the incident to explain that he is looking into what happened.  The officer’s commander has been contacted and they are gathering information from 911 tapes, police car audio/video, etc. While it will probably take some time before we hear any news from this type of internal investigation, it is definitely being taken seriously.