Thanks to team member Mark Szymczak for passing along this inspiring clip about Cycling in Copenhagen
Let's do it in our Tri-Valley cities!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
October and November Updates!
October and November 2009 were excellent months for BCC!
October results:
October was our highest month ever for total trips and miles, saving 317 car trips and riding 1,763 miles by bicycle. This beat September’s 232 trips and 1,683 miles.
Helping us reach October's totals were nine new members who joined our team:
Greg Pinter, Founder of NetInformer, writes:”I commute from home in Danville to my office in San Ramon. It helps the environment PLUS, I just feel better! I appreciate what you folks are doing - it definitely helps to provide encouragement and see others doing the same.”
Russ Riley writes: “Since I retired two years ago from education, I have constantly used my bike to run errands as well as exercise.”
Paul O'Flynn, Software Development Manager at Oracle, says:”I cycle almost every day to work, a mere 3 miles from Dublin to Pleasanton but a ride nonetheless.” As I relayed to Paul, many of our cyclists have short commutes. Every mile matters!
The Gillette Family of Pleasanton: Audrey Gillette emailed to say: “I already cycle the boys [Colin and Decker] to and from preschool 2 days a week, and I even made it on Tuesday in the downpour!“
The Meyer Family of Livermore: Crystal Meyer homeschools her two girls Shannon and Bridgette. They ride their bicycles constantly on errands, to sports practices, to church and all over town. She read my column about BCC in the newspaper and writes, “Our awareness has been heightened tremendously. In fact, Shannon and Bridgette (ages 8 and 10) are planning to work on a Livermore bicycle transportation safety problem/solution with their Lego team this year. They will be consulting the Be The Change Cyclists website and other resources for their research.”
Bekki Livingston writes: “I ride my bike to work as an elementary school librarian in San Ramon. The students love it! I’d like to join your group.”
Don Johnston, Senior Editor, External Relations & Communications, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory states, “As an avid cyclist and occasional bike commuter I enjoyed your column. Count me in. I hope this distinguished group will not only lead by example, but put its considerable collective civic experience to work improving safety for bike commuters as well as leisure cyclists.”
Mark Szymczak: Pleasanton volunteer, Backyard Farmer, Environmental Activist, and Business Owner. In October Mike commuted and ran errands totaling 317 miles!
Bob Belichak, a stay-at-home dad with three kids who lives in Pleasanton. His daily commute is 3 miles to take the kids to school, and his family does almost all their errands by bicycle.
Our big mileage stars in October were Mark Szymczak with 317 miles, Peter Norquist at 300 miles, Ursula Goldstein at 182 miles, and Steve Sherman at 94 miles.
Our most trip stars were Mark Szymczak at 59 trips, Karen Swift at 27 trips, the Meyer Family at 26 trips, Ursula Goldstein at 22 trips, and Steve Sherman at 20 trips.
Best new member showing award goes to Mark Szymczak who also had the highest trips (59) and miles (317) for the month.
Through October, our grand total saved car trips since April 2009 were 930, with 6,172 in emission free miles.
November results:
With the colder weather our trips and miles were down slightly for November, but we still had a good showing at 275 trips and 1,494 miles ridden.
Our big mileage stars were Peter Norquist at 250 miles, Mark Szymczak with 245 miles, Ursula Goldstein at 181.5 miles, Bob Belichak at 129, Russ Riley at 117, Steve Sherman at 90, and David Beals at 80 miles.
Our most trip stars were Mark Szymczak at 47 trips, Russ Riley at 38, Karen Swift at 22 trips, and Ursula Goldstein and Steve Sherman at 20 trips each.
Go team!
October results:
October was our highest month ever for total trips and miles, saving 317 car trips and riding 1,763 miles by bicycle. This beat September’s 232 trips and 1,683 miles.
Helping us reach October's totals were nine new members who joined our team:
Greg Pinter, Founder of NetInformer, writes:”I commute from home in Danville to my office in San Ramon. It helps the environment PLUS, I just feel better! I appreciate what you folks are doing - it definitely helps to provide encouragement and see others doing the same.”
Russ Riley writes: “Since I retired two years ago from education, I have constantly used my bike to run errands as well as exercise.”
Paul O'Flynn, Software Development Manager at Oracle, says:”I cycle almost every day to work, a mere 3 miles from Dublin to Pleasanton but a ride nonetheless.” As I relayed to Paul, many of our cyclists have short commutes. Every mile matters!
The Gillette Family of Pleasanton: Audrey Gillette emailed to say: “I already cycle the boys [Colin and Decker] to and from preschool 2 days a week, and I even made it on Tuesday in the downpour!“
The Meyer Family of Livermore: Crystal Meyer homeschools her two girls Shannon and Bridgette. They ride their bicycles constantly on errands, to sports practices, to church and all over town. She read my column about BCC in the newspaper and writes, “Our awareness has been heightened tremendously. In fact, Shannon and Bridgette (ages 8 and 10) are planning to work on a Livermore bicycle transportation safety problem/solution with their Lego team this year. They will be consulting the Be The Change Cyclists website and other resources for their research.”
Bekki Livingston writes: “I ride my bike to work as an elementary school librarian in San Ramon. The students love it! I’d like to join your group.”
Don Johnston, Senior Editor, External Relations & Communications, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory states, “As an avid cyclist and occasional bike commuter I enjoyed your column. Count me in. I hope this distinguished group will not only lead by example, but put its considerable collective civic experience to work improving safety for bike commuters as well as leisure cyclists.”
Mark Szymczak: Pleasanton volunteer, Backyard Farmer, Environmental Activist, and Business Owner. In October Mike commuted and ran errands totaling 317 miles!
Bob Belichak, a stay-at-home dad with three kids who lives in Pleasanton. His daily commute is 3 miles to take the kids to school, and his family does almost all their errands by bicycle.
Our big mileage stars in October were Mark Szymczak with 317 miles, Peter Norquist at 300 miles, Ursula Goldstein at 182 miles, and Steve Sherman at 94 miles.
Our most trip stars were Mark Szymczak at 59 trips, Karen Swift at 27 trips, the Meyer Family at 26 trips, Ursula Goldstein at 22 trips, and Steve Sherman at 20 trips.
Best new member showing award goes to Mark Szymczak who also had the highest trips (59) and miles (317) for the month.
Through October, our grand total saved car trips since April 2009 were 930, with 6,172 in emission free miles.
November results:
With the colder weather our trips and miles were down slightly for November, but we still had a good showing at 275 trips and 1,494 miles ridden.
Our big mileage stars were Peter Norquist at 250 miles, Mark Szymczak with 245 miles, Ursula Goldstein at 181.5 miles, Bob Belichak at 129, Russ Riley at 117, Steve Sherman at 90, and David Beals at 80 miles.
Our most trip stars were Mark Szymczak at 47 trips, Russ Riley at 38, Karen Swift at 22 trips, and Ursula Goldstein and Steve Sherman at 20 trips each.
Go team!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Greetings from BCC and Blog Action Day
Greetings to readers of Bay Area News Group newspapers! You may be visiting this site because you saw Jim Ott's column in your newspaper or online. We invite you to browse our posts below, and if you live or work in the Tri-Valley region of the East Bay in California and occasionally ride your bike to work or school, please join us! Just send an email to Jim Ott at jott@unclecu.org.
Today also happens to be Blog Action Day 2009! As of this post, nearly 10,000 bloggers around the world are writing about climate change today. Be the Change Cyclists is one of those blogs! After all, we were founded to reduce reliance on oil and make our environment and our bodies healthier. Check out the action at www.blogactionday.org.
For more about Be the Change Cyclists, click on the "Our philosophy" link in the right hand column of this blog page.
Happy cycling!
Today also happens to be Blog Action Day 2009! As of this post, nearly 10,000 bloggers around the world are writing about climate change today. Be the Change Cyclists is one of those blogs! After all, we were founded to reduce reliance on oil and make our environment and our bodies healthier. Check out the action at www.blogactionday.org.
For more about Be the Change Cyclists, click on the "Our philosophy" link in the right hand column of this blog page.
Happy cycling!
Monday, October 5, 2009
September 2009 sets new record!
September set a new record for miles and trips:
Miles: 1683 (1088 in August)
Trips: 232 (173 in August)
Contributors over 100 miles this month:
Peter Norquist 375 miles
David Beals 200 miles
Jim Van Dyke 164 miles – including a longest single commute record of 84 miles when he cycled to a workshop
Steve Sherman 138 miles
Ursula Goldstein 125 miles
Alan and Julie Casamajor 112 miles – This couple rides most errands together; the miles are counted like a car trip, and not doubled.
. . .
Top Trippers:
Steve Sherman 34 trips
Alan and Julie Casamajor 29 trips
Hilary and Kristie Gross 26 trips
Karen Swift 22 trips
And a tie between Ursula Goldstein, Julie Harryman, and Melissa Ott at 17 trips.
. . .
Our best new member showing award goes to Pat Walsh (referred by Julie Harryman) who commuted 14 times and logged 45 miles.
. . .
Inspiring messages from notable BCC team members:
Bob Coomber—whose two wheels consist not of a bike, but a wheelchair—writes: “I'm not commuting anywhere but am averaging 5 miles each day - weekends included (ESPECIALLY weekends!). Lots of trips downtown (4 mile round trip, once daily) and dozens more on paved and dirt trails. I make it a point to get to downtown Livermore while leaving the car at home. And once there, who knows where I'll end up? It may be Pleasanton for lunch (20 mile round trip), Shadow Cliffs (15) or points either direction on the regional trail network. Tomorrow it'll be Bollinger Canyon to Danville on the Iron Horse Trail (10) and a morning of working the East Bay Regional Park District's both at Danville's "Art in the Park".
Amador high school senior Melissa Ott writes in her Green Gal blog (www.greenbeangal.blogspot.com) that the majority of high school students drive “once they get their licenses or have their parents drive them because they don't realize how easy it truly is to ride. There does seem to be some change, though. I used to be one of only two girls at the bike racks. Now there are at least four of us who ride everyday and two or three more who ride every once in a while. And it feels like I see more adult commuters on bicycles, but it could be because I'm more aware of it now than I was before.”
Thanks for cycling. Together we can be the change.
Miles: 1683 (1088 in August)
Trips: 232 (173 in August)
Contributors over 100 miles this month:
Peter Norquist 375 miles
David Beals 200 miles
Jim Van Dyke 164 miles – including a longest single commute record of 84 miles when he cycled to a workshop
Steve Sherman 138 miles
Ursula Goldstein 125 miles
Alan and Julie Casamajor 112 miles – This couple rides most errands together; the miles are counted like a car trip, and not doubled.
. . .
Top Trippers:
Steve Sherman 34 trips
Alan and Julie Casamajor 29 trips
Hilary and Kristie Gross 26 trips
Karen Swift 22 trips
And a tie between Ursula Goldstein, Julie Harryman, and Melissa Ott at 17 trips.
. . .
Our best new member showing award goes to Pat Walsh (referred by Julie Harryman) who commuted 14 times and logged 45 miles.
. . .
Inspiring messages from notable BCC team members:
Bob Coomber—whose two wheels consist not of a bike, but a wheelchair—writes: “I'm not commuting anywhere but am averaging 5 miles each day - weekends included (ESPECIALLY weekends!). Lots of trips downtown (4 mile round trip, once daily) and dozens more on paved and dirt trails. I make it a point to get to downtown Livermore while leaving the car at home. And once there, who knows where I'll end up? It may be Pleasanton for lunch (20 mile round trip), Shadow Cliffs (15) or points either direction on the regional trail network. Tomorrow it'll be Bollinger Canyon to Danville on the Iron Horse Trail (10) and a morning of working the East Bay Regional Park District's both at Danville's "Art in the Park".
Amador high school senior Melissa Ott writes in her Green Gal blog (www.greenbeangal.blogspot.com) that the majority of high school students drive “once they get their licenses or have their parents drive them because they don't realize how easy it truly is to ride. There does seem to be some change, though. I used to be one of only two girls at the bike racks. Now there are at least four of us who ride everyday and two or three more who ride every once in a while. And it feels like I see more adult commuters on bicycles, but it could be because I'm more aware of it now than I was before.”
Thanks for cycling. Together we can be the change.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
New members and a fun quiz!
Let's give a hearty BCC welcome to two new team members:
Pat Walsh, Special Operations Sergeant, Pleasanton Police Department
Eric Harpell, Instructor of Physics and Astronomy at Las Positas College
Thanks for joining our efforts!
. . .
As Be The Change Cyclists, we pride ourselves on being “green” when it comes to cycling.
But are we really?
Here’s a fun and thought-provoking quiz submitted by team member Melissa.
http://connect.sierraclub.org/post/Groups/Bicycle/blog/how_green_is_your_bike_ride.html
Pat Walsh, Special Operations Sergeant, Pleasanton Police Department
Eric Harpell, Instructor of Physics and Astronomy at Las Positas College
Thanks for joining our efforts!
. . .
As Be The Change Cyclists, we pride ourselves on being “green” when it comes to cycling.
But are we really?
Here’s a fun and thought-provoking quiz submitted by team member Melissa.
http://connect.sierraclub.org/post/Groups/Bicycle/blog/how_green_is_your_bike_ride.html
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
August was awesome for BCC!
August 2009 has turned out to be our best month to date, with 1,088 miles commuted on two wheels and 173 times we didn't climb into a car! Way to go team BCC!
Our grand totals now stand at 2,717 miles and 379 trips.
That's a LOT of gasoline saved, and 70,642 calories burned!
Welcome to new members Alan and Julie Casamajor, who are retired but very active! They cycle together in lieu of car trips for errands and trips.
Hilary and Kristie Gross have also joined our small but mighty team. Hilary commutes by bike out of Pleasanton to Concord, and Kristie rides to work at Amador Valley High School.
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." -- Margaret Mead
Monday, August 10, 2009
Welcome David Beals!
We're pleased to welcome David Beals to our club!
David is a database administrator at Transdyn, Inc. (located in Hacienda Business Park in Pleasanton) and he comes to us via PTownBikeAdvocates. Thanks to Jim Van Dyke for sending out a very nice email to that club's members, encouraging them to join BCC!
David lives in Walnut Creek, near the Pleasant Hill BART station. His commute is about 21 miles one way, mostly along the Iron Horse trail.
David notes that he biked this commute 2 or 3 times a week for the past 5 or 6 years, but hasn't been commuting by bike quite as much lately. He's joining us in the hopes we'll help keep him motivated!
To check out David's route (which he logged with a GPS biking trip logger) check it out at: http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=205432
Kudos to David for joining us and inspiring US to ride.
David is a database administrator at Transdyn, Inc. (located in Hacienda Business Park in Pleasanton) and he comes to us via PTownBikeAdvocates. Thanks to Jim Van Dyke for sending out a very nice email to that club's members, encouraging them to join BCC!
David lives in Walnut Creek, near the Pleasant Hill BART station. His commute is about 21 miles one way, mostly along the Iron Horse trail.
David notes that he biked this commute 2 or 3 times a week for the past 5 or 6 years, but hasn't been commuting by bike quite as much lately. He's joining us in the hopes we'll help keep him motivated!
To check out David's route (which he logged with a GPS biking trip logger) check it out at: http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=205432
Kudos to David for joining us and inspiring US to ride.
Kudos as well to Jerry Pentin who has now commuted to work for 17 straight commutes with no end in sight!
Friday, August 7, 2009
Welcome new members!
Let's give a hearty BCC welcome to two new team members! These two commute to work by bicycle several times a week. Thanks to Ursula Goldstein and Pamela Ott for referring these individuals to our team!
Jim Van Dyke is the president and founder of the financial services firm Javelin Strategy and Research http://www.javelinstrategy.com/. Jim is also the founder of PTown Bike Advocates, a cycling and advocacy group that inspired the city of Pleasanton to create its Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee to seek ways to make Pleasanton more friendly to bikes and pedestrians.
Over the years, Jim has forged excellent connections with the East Bay Bicycle Coalition. He encourages BCC members to be on the alert for any hazards that affect bicycle commutes and report such hazards using the EBBC Online Hazard Reporting System. http://ebbc.org/?q=hazards EBBC will forward our reports to the proper authorities. Jim also notes that hazards in Pleasanton should be reported directly via email to the traffic department. Emails can be sent to Mike Tassano, at Mtassano@ci.pleasanton.ca.us.
Julie Harryman is an assistant city attorney in Pleasanton. She discovered the joy of cycling to work during Bike to Work month in May, and just kept on riding! We are pleased that she is joining BCC and helping to change the way people get to work!
Hope to see you out on the road on two wheels! Kudos to all who have already ridden this first week in August. The miles are starting to add up.
Monday, August 3, 2009
July was a great month for BCC!
Congratulations to our small, but mighty team of commuter cyclists. In July we rode 617 miles and saved 79 car trips! This is our highest month since we started in April 2009. May was our second highest at 533 miles and 62 bike trips.
Special kudos to Jerry Pentin who commuted by bike to work in July for over two straight weeks! Way to inspire us, Jerry!
The weather has been great out there—perfect for cycling. Let's see if we can keep the momentum going through August before summer begins to wind down.
The weather has been great out there—perfect for cycling. Let's see if we can keep the momentum going through August before summer begins to wind down.
By the way, congratulations to Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck, and Lance Armstrong for their outstanding performances in the 2009 Tour de France!
Friday, July 24, 2009
Welcome Karen Swift!
Let's give a big BCC welcome to new team member Karen Swift, a just-retired school teacher from Pleasanton who enjoys using her bike to get around town. Karen is on the score board already with 9 trips with 53 miles!
So far this month (July), it's been pretty quiet. I've only heard from a few of you regarding the miles you've ridden. So if you're commuting and running errands on two wheels, let me know at jott@unclecu.org.
The good news is July is ahead of June's mileage total, at 342 (versus 311 in June). This is mostly thanks to Peter Norquist who has logged 150 miles commuting to and from work.
Keep riding and talk to me!
So far this month (July), it's been pretty quiet. I've only heard from a few of you regarding the miles you've ridden. So if you're commuting and running errands on two wheels, let me know at jott@unclecu.org.
The good news is July is ahead of June's mileage total, at 342 (versus 311 in June). This is mostly thanks to Peter Norquist who has logged 150 miles commuting to and from work.
Keep riding and talk to me!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
More new members!
Let's give a great cheer and welcome to new members Peter Norquist and Tim Andrews. Both gentlemen live in Pleasanton and work at the Lawrence Livermore National Lab in Livermore.
Peter Norquist rides a recumbent bike and leaves the car home nearly every day. He's been commuting by bike since 1986! Peter suggests that a handy way to record ongoing cycling mileage can be found at http://www.bikejournal.com/ . We're so pleased to have him on our team.
Tim Andrews joins us saying he is "very pleased to see others with this approach to environmental activism, and the personal conviction to encourage others." For June he rode to work 16 times on a 12 mile round trip. He has been riding to the Lab for 28 years, which equates to some 70,000 miles. "I have been fortunate enough to continue at a steady rate for a long time," he writes. "It has had significant positive effect on my health. And, it has saved 3,000 to 4,000 gallons of gas."
We wish we could mark their miles up on the big board, but because both Peter and Tim joined us in July, we'll start counting their miles this month.
Peter Norquist rides a recumbent bike and leaves the car home nearly every day. He's been commuting by bike since 1986! Peter suggests that a handy way to record ongoing cycling mileage can be found at http://www.bikejournal.com/ . We're so pleased to have him on our team.
Tim Andrews joins us saying he is "very pleased to see others with this approach to environmental activism, and the personal conviction to encourage others." For June he rode to work 16 times on a 12 mile round trip. He has been riding to the Lab for 28 years, which equates to some 70,000 miles. "I have been fortunate enough to continue at a steady rate for a long time," he writes. "It has had significant positive effect on my health. And, it has saved 3,000 to 4,000 gallons of gas."
We wish we could mark their miles up on the big board, but because both Peter and Tim joined us in July, we'll start counting their miles this month.
It's nice out there, so make a commitment to ride this week and email me at jott@unclecu.org.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Welcome new BCC members!
This week we welcome Ursula Goldstein, Bob Coomber, and Mike Centrelli to our team.
Ursula Goldstein is a member of the Pleasanton Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (known as BPAC) and she's already adding big miles to our scoreboard with a whopping 136 miles for June! Ursula doesn't commute to a job, but she often leaves her car at home to run errands, meet with friends, recycle newspapers, and pick up groceries. She's a great role model and inspiration for all of us about how it is possible to cycle in lieu of driving.
Bob Coomber joins our team as a man very familiar with two wheels, as he utilizes a wheelchair not only to get around town on various errands in lieu if driving, but to hike trails and climb mountains. Bob writes a regular column in the Independent about outdoor adventures, and he is incredibly fit. (Don't even THINK about arm wrestling him!) Thanks for joining us Bob!
Ursula Goldstein is a member of the Pleasanton Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (known as BPAC) and she's already adding big miles to our scoreboard with a whopping 136 miles for June! Ursula doesn't commute to a job, but she often leaves her car at home to run errands, meet with friends, recycle newspapers, and pick up groceries. She's a great role model and inspiration for all of us about how it is possible to cycle in lieu of driving.
Bob Coomber joins our team as a man very familiar with two wheels, as he utilizes a wheelchair not only to get around town on various errands in lieu if driving, but to hike trails and climb mountains. Bob writes a regular column in the Independent about outdoor adventures, and he is incredibly fit. (Don't even THINK about arm wrestling him!) Thanks for joining us Bob!
Mike Centrelli also joins BCC as a dedicated bike commuter to his job at ADP in Pleasanton. His round trip is 3 miles and since he joined us in the final week in June, we're able to post 15 miles and 5 bikes trips to the scoreboard thanks to Mike!
Kudos to everyone who cycled in June. We posted 48 saved car trips for 311 miles. (If you haven't emailed me all your June numbers, I can still update these totals.)
Reminder to everyone that for your miles to get on the big board, you need to email me when you cycle. The best email address is jott@unclecu.org.
Let's take advantage of these warmer months to cycle to work when possible!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
BCC Milestone: 100 Car Trips saved!
Congrats to BCC for reaching the milestone of saving 100 car trips and cycling more than 800 miles! Way to go team!
.
BCC made a brief presentation and handed out fliers at last night's Pleasanton Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee inviting committee members to join or spread the word about our group. It would be great to grow our little team of ten members to include other people we see commuting by bike and to encourage others to dust off the bike and cycle to work!
.
Our featured photo in today's update is Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti! Way to go Tim!
Haven't cycled to work lately? Just do it!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Steve Sherman rides and rides
Steve Sherman is amazing! He holds the record for the most bicycle trips to work among our little group of mighty cyclists. He has ridden 28 times to and from work, saving 154 car miles!
And he didn't actually get a chance to ride until May, a month after we started BCC.
Steve -- Thanks for being an inspiration!
In other news, May's 533 miles commuted by bike were significantly higher than our first month, April, which saw 168 miles. That's great growth, but let's keep it going. June is off to a slower start, with only 51 miles.
If you have ridden but haven't told me, please email me at jott@unclecu.org.
Haven't ridden this month? Why not select a day soon and make a difference!
We're also always looking for new members, so tell a friend!
And he didn't actually get a chance to ride until May, a month after we started BCC.
Steve -- Thanks for being an inspiration!
In other news, May's 533 miles commuted by bike were significantly higher than our first month, April, which saw 168 miles. That's great growth, but let's keep it going. June is off to a slower start, with only 51 miles.
If you have ridden but haven't told me, please email me at jott@unclecu.org.
Haven't ridden this month? Why not select a day soon and make a difference!
We're also always looking for new members, so tell a friend!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
BCC Update!
Kudos to Livermore City Attorney John Pomidor for his 70 mile commute this week to and from Orinda. Way to go John!
Special thanks to Steve Sherman for creating a new verb: BCC, as in, "I BCC'd to work today." Steve cycled to work yesterday and maybe today?
Perhaps BCC also suggests an era (like B.C.), when people didn’t use cars: Before Car Commuters. Of course, it also means "blind carbon copy" -- sending a message to multiple unseen recipients, which is what we do when we cycle. We send a message, and we don't always see the recipient drivers as we reduce "carbon." It sort of works. :-)
Cheers to Melissa Ott who has ridden to school every day this week AND helped to create a new and improved format for our blog. Now visitors can click on links to our members and our philosophy, and we keep a running total of our miles along the right side of the site along with cool links. Melissa also adapted her black and white photo of her bike for our picture logo. Thank goodness for tech-savvy teens!
Nice job to Pam Ott who cycled to work Tuesday and to Jim Ott who cycled today.
If you cycled and your name isn't in this update, remember to email Jim every day you ride to work or school so we can track the miles and splash your name all over these updates!
Every day we choose to leave the car in the garage, we inspire others. Let's change the world together. To date we've saved 71 car trips and reduced car miles by 657.
Special thanks to Steve Sherman for creating a new verb: BCC, as in, "I BCC'd to work today." Steve cycled to work yesterday and maybe today?
Perhaps BCC also suggests an era (like B.C.), when people didn’t use cars: Before Car Commuters. Of course, it also means "blind carbon copy" -- sending a message to multiple unseen recipients, which is what we do when we cycle. We send a message, and we don't always see the recipient drivers as we reduce "carbon." It sort of works. :-)
Cheers to Melissa Ott who has ridden to school every day this week AND helped to create a new and improved format for our blog. Now visitors can click on links to our members and our philosophy, and we keep a running total of our miles along the right side of the site along with cool links. Melissa also adapted her black and white photo of her bike for our picture logo. Thank goodness for tech-savvy teens!
Nice job to Pam Ott who cycled to work Tuesday and to Jim Ott who cycled today.
If you cycled and your name isn't in this update, remember to email Jim every day you ride to work or school so we can track the miles and splash your name all over these updates!
Every day we choose to leave the car in the garage, we inspire others. Let's change the world together. To date we've saved 71 car trips and reduced car miles by 657.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Friday update
Well it's Friday and we're wrapping up another successful week of cycling to work!
This week we welcomed new team members Melissa Ott and Tom Gardin who added 94 miles to our totals and saved 6 car trips. Please encourage anyone you know who might be willing to leave the car in the garage and hop on a bike to work to join us.
Special Kudos to Ironman Steve Sherman who rode every day to work this week, including several side trips he would have driven but didn't! In the month of May he has saved 65 car miles!
Others who rode this week include Gina Bloomfield, Pam Ott, Jerry Pentin, and Jim Ott.
Special shout out to Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti who not only cycled to work this week on Thursday, but (spies report) also cycled to a TV30 board meeting to which another local mayor had driven!
To date we've saved 66 car trips and 559 miles. If we divide 559 miles by the three cities represented in our team, we get 186.33 miles per city. If since April 2009 citizens of the other 478 incorporated cities and towns in California cycled 186.33 miles on behalf of their cities, together we all would have saved 89,440 car miles and 4,472 gallons of gasoline--not to mention 10,560 car trips!
In addition, according to the EPA, one gallon of gasoline produces 19.4 pounds of carbon emissions. Our Be the Change team, assuming 20 miles to the gallon, has already spared the Tri-Valley's air of 542.23 pounds of carbon emissions. If all cities had cycled as we have, we would have saved 86,757 pounds of emissions.
Even short trips by bike add up to big savings for our environment when we choose to Be the Change we want to see in the world.
This week we welcomed new team members Melissa Ott and Tom Gardin who added 94 miles to our totals and saved 6 car trips. Please encourage anyone you know who might be willing to leave the car in the garage and hop on a bike to work to join us.
Special Kudos to Ironman Steve Sherman who rode every day to work this week, including several side trips he would have driven but didn't! In the month of May he has saved 65 car miles!
Others who rode this week include Gina Bloomfield, Pam Ott, Jerry Pentin, and Jim Ott.
Special shout out to Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti who not only cycled to work this week on Thursday, but (spies report) also cycled to a TV30 board meeting to which another local mayor had driven!
To date we've saved 66 car trips and 559 miles. If we divide 559 miles by the three cities represented in our team, we get 186.33 miles per city. If since April 2009 citizens of the other 478 incorporated cities and towns in California cycled 186.33 miles on behalf of their cities, together we all would have saved 89,440 car miles and 4,472 gallons of gasoline--not to mention 10,560 car trips!
In addition, according to the EPA, one gallon of gasoline produces 19.4 pounds of carbon emissions. Our Be the Change team, assuming 20 miles to the gallon, has already spared the Tri-Valley's air of 542.23 pounds of carbon emissions. If all cities had cycled as we have, we would have saved 86,757 pounds of emissions.
Even short trips by bike add up to big savings for our environment when we choose to Be the Change we want to see in the world.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Team members
Members of Be the Change Cyclists:
In order of joining - April 2009:
Jim Ott - English professor, Las Positas College / Former Pleasanton School Board Trustee
Jerry Pentin -Owner, Spring Street Studios / Pleasanton Planning Commissioner
Steve Sherman - Attorney / Mock Trial coach Amador Valley High School
Pamela Ott - Economic Development Director, City of Pleasanton
Nelson Fialho - Pleasanton City Manager
Tim Sbranti - Mayor of Dublin / teacher Dublin High School
Gina Bloomfield - CFO UNCLE Credit Union, Livermore, CA
Joined in May 2009:
Melissa Ott, student at U.C. Santa Cruz. Melissa joined our team when she was in high school at Amador and she took the photo for our logo. She is now a non-active member since she lives outside the Tri-Valley, but she supports our efforts!
Joined in June 2009:
Ursula Goldstein, member Pleasanton Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee and former employee (and current consultant) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Bob Coomber, columnist for the Independent newspaper and magazine. Bob's two wheels are his wheelchair. This man is amazing.
Mike Centrelli, Pleasanton resident and employee at ADP
Joined in July 2009:
Peter Norquist, employee at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Tim Andrews, employee at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Karen Swift, former Pleasanton school teacher
Joined in August 2009:
Julie Harryman, Assistant City Attorney, Pleasanton
Jim Van Dyke, president and founder of Javelin Strategy and Research, and founder of PTown Bike Advocates
David Beals, database administrator at Transdyn, Inc. in Pleasanton. David lives in Walnut Creek and he commutes by bike down the Iron Horse Trail
Alan and Julie Casamajor, retired but very active! They cycle together in lieu of car trips for errands and trips. Julie is a PTown Bike Advocate member.
Hilary and Kristie Gross. Hilary commutes by bike out of Pleasanton to Concord, and Kristie rides to work at Amador Valley High School.
Joined in September 2009:
Pat Walsh, Special Operations Sergeant, Pleasanton Police Department
Eric Harpell, Instructor of Physics and Astronomy, Las Positas College, Livermore
Joined in October 2009:
Greg Pinter, Founder of NetInformer of San Ramon
Russ Riley, Retired Educator, Livermore
Paul O'Flynn, Software Development Manager at Oracle
The Gillette Family (Bryan, Audrey, Colin and Decker live in Pleasanton)
Mark Szymczak: Pleasanton volunteer, Backyard Farmer, Environmental Activist, and Business Owner
Bob Belichak: a stay-at-home dad with three kids who lives in Pleasanton.
Joined in February 2010:
Alma Schiefer: Commutes from Walnut Creek to Pleasanton and is a member of the EBBC and the Valley Spokesmen bicycle club.
Tom Hall: Commutes by bike to work within Pleasanton and is a member of Rotary. Tom is also a runner who is frequently found on Sunday monrings running the Pleasanton ridge.
Steve Kowalewski: A semi-retired 63-year-young fellow who commutes three days per week just under 20 miles round trip.
Peg Miller: Commutes 30 miles round trip from San Ramon to Kaiser-Oakland Medical Center.
Joined in April 2010:
Rob Barnett: Rides to work usually three times a week from Pleasanton to San Ramon and back.
Rick Beaumont: Works for Morgan Stanley Smith Barney and occasionally commutes by bike from Pleasanton to Orinda and back!
Joined in May 2010:
Dave Hipple, Engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Joined in June 2010:
Bob Carling, Director, Sandia National Laboratory
Nadine Horner, External Relations Officer, Public Affairs, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Neil McGovern works for Sybase and commutes to Dublin from Walnut Creek. His primary mode of trasnportation is his bicycle!
Mike Rushford, LLNL Physicist & Optics Engineer; Boy Scout ASM outing leader, Cycling Merit Badge counselor and trainer. Mike commutes rain or shine 10 miles round trip to work!
Joined in July 2010:
Ted Sandelin, works in the automotive industry and lives and works in Livermore
Doug Sandelin (Ted's dad), works in the automotive industry in Livermore
Kathleen McCandless, LLNL employee who commutes 10 miles round trip
Joined in September 2010:
Kevin Greenlee, Pleasanton North Rotarian who enjoys using his bike for errands
Dave Pap Rocki, works for Adept in Pleasanton and uses his bike for errands and commuting to work
Alex Haag, commutes from S.F. by BART to Adept in Pleasanton, then rides his bike a mile each way!
Carlos Hung, with NetInformer of San Ramon -- he commutes seven miles round trip!
Joined in June 2011
Doug Matkins, Manager, Clorox R&D Health & Safety -- Doug commutes 31 miles round trip and is an avid bike commuter, adding hundreds of miles to our totals every month!
In order of joining - April 2009:
Jim Ott - English professor, Las Positas College / Former Pleasanton School Board Trustee
Jerry Pentin -Owner, Spring Street Studios / Pleasanton Planning Commissioner
Steve Sherman - Attorney / Mock Trial coach Amador Valley High School
Pamela Ott - Economic Development Director, City of Pleasanton
Nelson Fialho - Pleasanton City Manager
Tim Sbranti - Mayor of Dublin / teacher Dublin High School
Gina Bloomfield - CFO UNCLE Credit Union, Livermore, CA
Joined in May 2009:
Melissa Ott, student at U.C. Santa Cruz. Melissa joined our team when she was in high school at Amador and she took the photo for our logo. She is now a non-active member since she lives outside the Tri-Valley, but she supports our efforts!
Joined in June 2009:
Ursula Goldstein, member Pleasanton Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee and former employee (and current consultant) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Bob Coomber, columnist for the Independent newspaper and magazine. Bob's two wheels are his wheelchair. This man is amazing.
Mike Centrelli, Pleasanton resident and employee at ADP
Joined in July 2009:
Peter Norquist, employee at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Tim Andrews, employee at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Karen Swift, former Pleasanton school teacher
Joined in August 2009:
Julie Harryman, Assistant City Attorney, Pleasanton
Jim Van Dyke, president and founder of Javelin Strategy and Research, and founder of PTown Bike Advocates
David Beals, database administrator at Transdyn, Inc. in Pleasanton. David lives in Walnut Creek and he commutes by bike down the Iron Horse Trail
Alan and Julie Casamajor, retired but very active! They cycle together in lieu of car trips for errands and trips. Julie is a PTown Bike Advocate member.
Hilary and Kristie Gross. Hilary commutes by bike out of Pleasanton to Concord, and Kristie rides to work at Amador Valley High School.
Joined in September 2009:
Pat Walsh, Special Operations Sergeant, Pleasanton Police Department
Eric Harpell, Instructor of Physics and Astronomy, Las Positas College, Livermore
Joined in October 2009:
Greg Pinter, Founder of NetInformer of San Ramon
Russ Riley, Retired Educator, Livermore
Paul O'Flynn, Software Development Manager at Oracle
The Gillette Family (Bryan, Audrey, Colin and Decker live in Pleasanton)
Mark Szymczak: Pleasanton volunteer, Backyard Farmer, Environmental Activist, and Business Owner
Bob Belichak: a stay-at-home dad with three kids who lives in Pleasanton.
Joined in February 2010:
Alma Schiefer: Commutes from Walnut Creek to Pleasanton and is a member of the EBBC and the Valley Spokesmen bicycle club.
Tom Hall: Commutes by bike to work within Pleasanton and is a member of Rotary. Tom is also a runner who is frequently found on Sunday monrings running the Pleasanton ridge.
Steve Kowalewski: A semi-retired 63-year-young fellow who commutes three days per week just under 20 miles round trip.
Peg Miller: Commutes 30 miles round trip from San Ramon to Kaiser-Oakland Medical Center.
Joined in April 2010:
Rob Barnett: Rides to work usually three times a week from Pleasanton to San Ramon and back.
Rick Beaumont: Works for Morgan Stanley Smith Barney and occasionally commutes by bike from Pleasanton to Orinda and back!
Joined in May 2010:
Dave Hipple, Engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Joined in June 2010:
Bob Carling, Director, Sandia National Laboratory
Nadine Horner, External Relations Officer, Public Affairs, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Neil McGovern works for Sybase and commutes to Dublin from Walnut Creek. His primary mode of trasnportation is his bicycle!
Mike Rushford, LLNL Physicist & Optics Engineer; Boy Scout ASM outing leader, Cycling Merit Badge counselor and trainer. Mike commutes rain or shine 10 miles round trip to work!
Joined in July 2010:
Ted Sandelin, works in the automotive industry and lives and works in Livermore
Doug Sandelin (Ted's dad), works in the automotive industry in Livermore
Kathleen McCandless, LLNL employee who commutes 10 miles round trip
Joined in September 2010:
Kevin Greenlee, Pleasanton North Rotarian who enjoys using his bike for errands
Dave Pap Rocki, works for Adept in Pleasanton and uses his bike for errands and commuting to work
Alex Haag, commutes from S.F. by BART to Adept in Pleasanton, then rides his bike a mile each way!
Carlos Hung, with NetInformer of San Ramon -- he commutes seven miles round trip!
Joined in June 2011
Doug Matkins, Manager, Clorox R&D Health & Safety -- Doug commutes 31 miles round trip and is an avid bike commuter, adding hundreds of miles to our totals every month!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Be the Change!
..If you're like us, you care about our world and the environment.
Founded in April 2009, we're a group of people who commute by bicycle to work. Many of us aren't able to ride every day, and sometimes not even once a week. But on occasion we ride to work. Sometimes we even ride two or more days in a row, and a handful of our members do ride every single day to work on their bicycles!
We cycle to work for many reasons, one of which is because we believe in this wisdom from Gandhi:
Be the change you want to see in the world.
We consider ourselves to be pretty smart. We care about our environment, and we know that our country's love affair with the automobile eventually needs to come to an end.
We know that if even once a week every able-bodied person across America rode his or her bike to work, reliance on oil would tumble along with pollution, traffic congestion, and global warming.But we do little or nothing to cut back on driving because the urgency isn’t there. We don’t feel any sense of crisis. And worse, we worry that riding a bike will make us look juvenile or radical or offbeat. And we didn’t get our jobs as industry and civic and business leaders by being offbeat.
An yet, we know we need to take action and so our team has decided it's time to stop talking about alternative transportation and make it real, today, now.So our invitation is for you to join us in riding to work a few days a week—even once a week, or even just a couple times a month, and not during the winter unless you really want to.
Picture the power of us setting an example by riding our bikes to work. Riding with no apology and no embarrassment. Riding because even a single ride makes a difference and means one less trip by car. Riding because it’s healthy, because it’s a nice way to commute, because it inspires others and sets an example. Riding because we want to be the change we want to see in the world.We hope you'll join us. To do so, read the FAQs below and send an email to Jim Ott at jimott@sbcglobal.net.
......................
FAQS about joining:
Who is eligible to join?
Anyone who lives or works in the Tri-Valley region of the S.F. East Bay may join. So if you live in Pleasanton, Dublin, Livermore, San Ramon, Danville or Sunol, or you commute into these cities, you can join. If you don't find yourself eligible, we encourage you to steal our idea and start a club in your region!
How do we track miles?
When you first email our club founder, Jim Ott, you'll need to tell him your round trip miles to and from work. So if your commute is 3 miles to work and then 3 miles home, your round trip commute is 6 miles. Jim will record your name and round trip into a spreadsheet. Then, every Friday morning when you arrive at work, email Jim with the number of times you rode to work that week. (Tip: create a recurring task on your online calendar to alert you every Friday morning to email Jim).
When you email, remember that Jim doesn't need to know the miles, because he has those. He just needs the number of times you rode that week.
A typical Friday morning email looks like this:
Rode 3 times this week.
Jim will reply with a thank you! or a word of encouragement, and he'll record your miles, which are added to all the other team member miles. We total miles and trips monthly and keep a running total.
Remember, we're only tracking miles that would have been driven in a car, so exercise miles or longer rides home after work to burn a few extra calories don't count. Sure, they're good for you, but they don't count for our miles because we're only tracking the miles we're NOT commuting by car.
What about side trips or errands in addition to my commute?
Yes, these miles count if you normally would have driven your car. One of our members rides each Friday to a Rotary meeting in addition to his commute, so he includes these added miles and the number of added trips in his emails. Also, if you run an errand on a weekend by bike or after work instead of taking a car, track and report those miles as well. The spreadsheet has a column for extra miles and extra trips.
What if I'm retired but I ride my bike for errands instead of taking a car?
We love people like you and we have several team members who fit into this category. In this case, you will email Jim each Friday with the number of trips you've ridden plus the number of miles. We track total trips and total miles so we can report out to the world how many car trips and car miles we have saved.
Pretty simple, eh? Now email Jim at jimott@sbcglobal.net and start making those bike miles count by being the change today!
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