tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12750150729959162482024-02-19T09:21:39.489-08:00Be The Change CyclistsWe are a group of Tri-Valley citizens who have decided to be the change we want to see in the world by commuting by bicycle when possible. We're not fanatics, but we know that every ride is one less car trip. If you live or work in the Tri-Valley region of the East Bay in California and occasionally ride your bike to work, join us! To learn how, click on "Our philosophy and how to join our team" in the menu to the right just beneath our logo photo.Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-16114680726255771252012-06-01T08:48:00.002-07:002012-06-01T08:48:50.209-07:00Las Positas College Bike to Work Day!<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now that summer weather has returned, many BCC team members have begun commuting again by bicycle! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Participating in May's Bike to Work Day was a group of dedicated cyclists affiliated with Las Positas College. Kudos to event co-chairs Professor Mike Ansell and LPC President Kevin Walthers (pictured below with other staff and community members). Thanks, as well, to Livermore Cyclery for their support of our trip from downtown Livermore to the college! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4iNLJoz3gxbdnXcqrH4iGzs5mU50O1t1n8nKzj9GA3IjjeMiZ_tkKY1thAmxGU3wvx1DM9x2gqzyK1Y_as-WLXYrixFVnjj5pu_J1EI7a5k91tSwdwZbAc_3Q6LH10QhNzNhZUO42uFLt/s1600/BiketoWork2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4iNLJoz3gxbdnXcqrH4iGzs5mU50O1t1n8nKzj9GA3IjjeMiZ_tkKY1thAmxGU3wvx1DM9x2gqzyK1Y_as-WLXYrixFVnjj5pu_J1EI7a5k91tSwdwZbAc_3Q6LH10QhNzNhZUO42uFLt/s320/BiketoWork2012.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-79903474448290055852011-11-30T14:34:00.000-08:002011-11-30T14:34:09.269-08:00Here comes winter!As is our tradition, Be the Change Cyclists do not need to report their mileage from November through March due to winter conditions. Everyone is encouraged to keep commuting by bike, but we'll suspend reporting during these cold months. <br />
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Thanks for making a difference and for being the change you want to see in the world!Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-32664602081251297582011-07-29T13:59:00.000-07:002011-07-29T14:04:43.888-07:00Keep riding those miles!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv_fsNZ5Fy8-rghYy0engzTKWoc5GHdMRa3cOf0CvP6hhE_p7MNQD_oRnfMdFhY2TP9dSR0E4ljyJbBQMD0pjpJMALiqPDMbCGBRExfhmt3JYRrVU9BmwmgQLepXERxF1sBAvJ4Z26Umo/s1600/IMG_2887.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5634883034331208898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv_fsNZ5Fy8-rghYy0engzTKWoc5GHdMRa3cOf0CvP6hhE_p7MNQD_oRnfMdFhY2TP9dSR0E4ljyJbBQMD0pjpJMALiqPDMbCGBRExfhmt3JYRrVU9BmwmgQLepXERxF1sBAvJ4Z26Umo/s320/IMG_2887.JPG" /></a><br />Yes it's summer and that means prime time to commute by bicycle!<br /><br />Thanks to all you "Be the Change" team members who have been riding and sending in your miles. It's amazing how the miles add up!<br /><br />If you're visiting this blog for the first time and wish to join our team, click on the link to the right for information. We love adding new members!<br /><br />Jim Ott<br /><a href="mailto:jimott@sbcglobal.net">jimott@sbcglobal.net</a>Jim Otthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720109862602572945noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-17603403531811567252011-04-01T09:27:00.000-07:002011-04-01T09:27:17.473-07:00Spring has sprung!<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">March 20 marked the first day of spring, so it’s time to renew our commitment to commuting to work and running </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">errands via bicycle whenever we can. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Several dedicated cyclists continued to ride in January and February and reported in their miles, adding 146 trips and 1,393 miles to our grand total, which now stands at 3,667 trips and 28,505 miles since we started the club in April 2009. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve started getting emails from BCC team members who started riding again in March. If you commuted by bike in March, please email me with your trips. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Otherwise, since it’s now April, let’s all recommit and get back on our bikes to <em>be the change we want to see in the world</em>. Email me each Friday (or at month-end if you prefer) so I can continue to quantify the difference we are making. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are visiting this blog for the first time and wish to join our team, click on the link to the right for information. We love adding new members! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jim Ott</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE27ycL4bNL37zPhyphenhyphenwgH16juixPLaF0IbFzjiDQeHbbN9-1VAO_ceEmbU22HCBLE-ygQWTCrwVzf2lotY-TuLmVyEFBRpz-k68qGLVOcwJS_lCn8Zk8AFlZ7_xUAmIOa7wAeCi86zXnAu/s1600/Josine+Tinman+2010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="height: 112px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; width: 228px;"><img border="0" height="144" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE27ycL4bNL37zPhyphenhyphenwgH16juixPLaF0IbFzjiDQeHbbN9-1VAO_ceEmbU22HCBLE-ygQWTCrwVzf2lotY-TuLmVyEFBRpz-k68qGLVOcwJS_lCn8Zk8AFlZ7_xUAmIOa7wAeCi86zXnAu/s320/Josine+Tinman+2010.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-73630944332920972010-12-28T10:17:00.000-08:002010-12-28T11:19:12.111-08:00How did we do in 2010?<span style="font-family: Arial;">We did a great job in 2010, commuting 18,153 miles by bike and saving 2,021 car trips. Our average commute is now just under 9 miles per trip, and our team stands at 52 members. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The 2010 totals compare favorably to 2009, when we commuted 8,093 miles and made 1,443 trips. Total members in December 2009 were 34, so it's expected our miles would be less. However, we averaged 231 miles per member in 2009 and 349 miles per member in 2010. This is largely because our newer members have longer bike commutes.</span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So who commuted the MOST miles in 2010?</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Now, now. <em>Being the change we want to see in the world</em> isn't about individual victories, but about TEAM, so does it really matter who commuted the most miles? Yes, it does! Congrats to <strong>Alma Schiefer</strong>! Since joining BCC in March 2010, Alma has commuted a whopping 2,744 miles by bicycle and saved 71 car trips! She is our highest contributing team member! You'd think with all those miles we could get a photo of her commuting. But alas, no such photos exist, so we'll have to be content with images of Alma on a non-commute ride up Mt. Diablo. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><img border="0" height="277" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLcLiYbdKLDz_7phQHIbswTy9DRAiXzOjIfxfG67AVcXhIalV7VeguI5oYKvLGoXVh3Tgt7l7y844vXlZNH_pHBtptfz5GVUsItfFpY7_rEWKVXbiht-GLGljvBCjlLRBTgiSnnSlXVTQL/s320/alma_diablo.JPG" width="320" />Go Alma! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Special mention for contributing a combined 4,567 commute miles in 2010 goes to <strong>Mike Rushford, Ursula Goldstein, Rob Barnett </strong>and<strong> Dave Hipple</strong>. And special thanks to <strong>Carlos Hung</strong> for continuing to cycle during these coldest months and even in the rain and reporting in every Friday morning! </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Congratulations to team member Don Johnston!</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don has been appointed to serve on Pleasanton’s Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee. Working for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Don saves between 10-12 car miles per month by cycling. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don sent in the following editorial, published in the New York Times on December 16. It's a good reminder to obey the traffic laws to encourage cooperation between motorists and cyclists (Thanks Don!):</span> </div><br />
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NEW YORK TIMES<br />
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">There Oughta Be a Law. Well, There Is.</span></strong><br />
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Let’s be clear. We like bicycles. They are good for our air, good for our health, and, perhaps even someday, good for our traffic problems. New York City has about 483 miles of bike paths, some going back to the 1800s, and is adding 50 miles of bike lanes a year. City officials have recently been handing out data showing that these lanes “calm” traffic and cut down on fatalities. <br />
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But a lot of people are not particularly calm about bicyclists, and we are deeply sympathetic. Too many cyclists must think that they don’t have to follow traffic rules. That red light? Zip on through. That one-way street? No problem. Cyclists like to call it “salmoning.” If the city is serious about encouraging biking (and, by the way, less than a percent of commuters in New York currently ride bikes), then the New York Police Department and bike riders have to crack down on these cyclists and make them obey traffic laws like everybody else. <br />
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That there are actually rules may come as news to some cyclists. The city’s Department of Transportation has a summary on its Web site. For example, only pre-teenage children are supposed to have bikes on the sidewalk. Cyclists “must have hand on steering device or handlebars.” Also, “Rider cannot wear more than one earphone attached to radio, tape player or other audio device while riding.” Cyclists often complain that the problem is not the bicycles but the cars. It is true that cars and trucks can too easily maim and kill cyclists. But cyclists can too easily injure pedestrians — and themselves. <br />
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The Manhattan borough president, Scott Stringer, listening to complaints from cyclists and other New Yorkers, did a quick snapshot of several locations and found what he called chaos. Over a 22-hour period, his staff members clocked: 741 instances of pedestrians blocking bike lanes; more than 275 vehicles blocking bike lanes, including a school bus and pedicabs; 331 cyclists going the wrong way; 237 cyclists running red lights; and 42 cyclists riding on sidewalks. <br />
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Janette Sadik-Khan, the city’s transportation commissioner, has promised a new education campaign to help riders and drivers and pedestrians get along. The police department also needs to give more tickets to cyclists who break the law. It’s not easy — imagine catching a cyclist going through a red light — but a few more $100-plus tickets, plus an order to read the rules, would certainly calm traffic in New York City.Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-84191381050589749292010-12-12T13:21:00.000-08:002010-12-12T13:21:19.906-08:00Holiday Updates from BCC<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;">The latest news headlines from BCC:</span></strong> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>It's that time of year...</strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">...when during the winter, BCC goes into a bit suspended animation (since some of us hang our commuter bikes in the garage!) Like last year, BCC does not expect you to report commute miles from December through February because of the cold weather and low bike commute miles. For dedicated team members who like to report in every Friday anyway, these miles will be added to our annual totals. But there is no obligation to report in again until March. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">See our grand totals below. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>. . . . . </strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Members in the news:</strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><em>Be the Change Cyclists</em> congratulates Jim Van Dyke for being elected to the board for the East Bay Bicycle Coalition! </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks to Jim for his advocacy and p</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">romoting bicycle riding as everyday transportation. Be sure to join as a member of the East Bay Bicycle Coalition at <a href="http://www.ebbc.org/">http://www.ebbc.org/</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>. . . . . </strong></span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: Arial;">Send in your picture! </span></strong><span style="font-family: Arial;">We want to see your smiling face, so send in your photo to <a href="mailto:jimott@sbcglobal.net">jimott@sbcglobal.net</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks to team member Carlos Hung for sending in this photo!</span> </span><br />
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<strong>. . . . . </strong><br />
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<strong>We're making a big difference! </strong><br />
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Since inception of our online bike commute club in April 2009, we have saved 3,314 car trips and commuted 25,004 miles. This is a powerful statement about what a difference we can make when we leave the car in the garage. <br />
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<strong>Finally, Happy Holidays from BCC. May you get lots of great bike accessories for Christmas! </strong>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-64258419760060670772010-10-06T17:08:00.000-07:002010-10-06T17:08:38.485-07:00Survey finds more people opting to commute by bicycle<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKkKf8hgYcSks00gYvo14BdiUGkHuCh4Mnf4mv59okbn0tSX8Qxw_3e1C9HLGjqoMV_Y0UiuP0WBcKtK8VoiwEa41dIOgookdvDbtvRNMHMx_xzdPMtBjT18LSKrDg5SXouAlLpUa32n3/s1600/bike-commuting-in-portland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; height: 112px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; width: 208px;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKkKf8hgYcSks00gYvo14BdiUGkHuCh4Mnf4mv59okbn0tSX8Qxw_3e1C9HLGjqoMV_Y0UiuP0WBcKtK8VoiwEa41dIOgookdvDbtvRNMHMx_xzdPMtBjT18LSKrDg5SXouAlLpUa32n3/s320/bike-commuting-in-portland.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BCC team member Mike Rushford has sent in an article near and dear to our hearts.</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Seems the League of American Bicyclists found that regular bike commuting in the 70 largest U.S. cities increased 35 percent between 2005 and 2009. </span></div><ul><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kansas City saw the biggest increase, climbing an astonishing 1,095 percent. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Indianapolis followed with a jump of 392 percent. </span></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">New Orleans rounded out the top three with an increase of 155 percent.</span></li>
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These numbers don't include cyclists who bike once or twice a week. So imagine how many more trips by bike have occurred since 2005 thanks to people like us who make the effort to commute by bike when possible. <br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Here's a sentence from the article that will remind you of us: "Any way you look at it, bike commuting is growing more popular due in part to grassroots activism and a growing commitment from cities to embrace cycling as a viable means of getting around." </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">For the full article, here's the link: </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><a href="http://www.wired.com/autopia/2010/10/more-people-biking-to-work/">http://www.wired.com/autopia/2010/10/more-people-biking-to-work/</a>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-14684820221556483582010-09-27T17:40:00.000-07:002010-12-12T15:31:14.863-08:00Welcome new members and other news<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><em>Be the Change Cyclists</em> continues to grow. </strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Between July and September we added FOUR new bike commuters and we're </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">now up to 53 members. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Let's welcome (drum roll please):</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Kathleen McCandless</strong> from the Lawrence Livermore Lab who joined our team in July. Her round trip commute is 10 miles!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Kevin and Yvonne Greenlee of Pleasanton:</strong> The Greenlees enjoy opting for the bike in lieu of the car and do many errands on two wheels. Kevin is also a member of the Pleasanton North Rotary Club and appears to be the busiest retired 50-something fellow in town. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Dave Pap Rocki </strong>works for Adept Technology in Pleasanton and commutes to work by bike. He was accosted recently by BCC team member Jim Ott who spotted him with a bike in town (he had that bike-commuter look) and invited Mr. Rocki to join the club. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Alex Haag</strong> also works at Adept and lives in San Francisco and commutes to work in Pleasanton by BART, then rides his bike to the office from the BART station. He saves <em>60 car miles every day</em> by using alternative transportation. Alex is our kinda guy! BCC was so impressed we had to see what he looks like, so here he is:</span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Hey, don't be shy! Send in your photos for our photo file. Seeing real faces helps inspire us all to ride! </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>In other news,</strong> BCC team members managed to commute 1,922 miles (195 trips) in August, quite a drop from July's total of more than 3,300 miles (332 trips). We suspect not all cyclists are reporting their miles since the weather was awesome in August. (It's never to late to add the miles into the totals for a given month, so email Jim!) </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Remember, <strong>BCC is only as successful as our ability to quantify the miles and trips we all ride. Please email Jim each Friday morning when you arrive at work to report the number of trips for the week. His email is </strong><a href="mailto:jott@unclecu.org"><strong></strong></a><a href="mailto:jimott@sbcglobal.net">jimott@sbcglobal.net</a></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
TOGETHER WE CAN INSPIRE EACH OTHER AND MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE! </div>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-46421238272767486412010-08-17T16:02:00.000-07:002010-08-17T16:06:23.746-07:00Safe Cycling Tips for commuters<span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Did you know? </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><br />Nine out of 10 cyclists killed in 2008 weren't wearing a helmet.<br /><br />Wear your helmet to increase your chances of surviving a crash.<br /><br />For more tips to safe cycling, visit this <a href="http://www.bicycling.com/news/advocacy/share-road?cm_mmc=BicyclingNL-_-2010_08_03-_-slideshow-_-share_the_road">post</a> in Bicycling Magazine.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Thanks to team member Jerry Pentin for sending along this link.</span><br /><br /></span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-41232967110839225702010-08-11T18:27:00.000-07:002010-08-11T18:51:15.478-07:00July results are in!We had our best month <strong><em>ever</em></strong> in July 2010! Miles commuted by bike totaled 3,312, consisting of 332 trips!<br /><br />Our mega-mileage girl for July is Alma Schiefer who commuted 342 miles by bike, followed closely by Mike Rushford at 328 miles and Mark Szymczak at 324. Neil McGovern had a very respectable 300 miles.<br /><br />For shorter-distance commuters who simply can't rack up the big miles, we had a good showing from a number of members this month, including Amador High teacher Tom Hall at 25 trips, the Casamajors at 22 trips, and Ursula Goldstein at 20 trips.<br /><br />If you don't see your name above, please know that every mile and every trip you ride adds up. YOU are a role model for how we need to commute in the Tri-Valley. I know that many of you ride often and regularly. Without you, there is no BCC.<br /><br /><strong>Something new! Our first ever BCC book review, submitted by Neil McGovern: </strong><br /><br /><em>Pedal Power: The Quiet Rise of the Bicycle in American Public</em> by Harry Wray.<br /><br />Neil writes: "I've read several books on biking over the last few years. Some are the 'How Lance Won the Tour' type books, some are history books (The Tour, History of Bikes, etc.), but the ones I enjoy most are the ones about regular people who go sorta nuts about their bikes in a happy way (I'm not really into the Critical Mass 'confront drivers' thing, being as how I am a driver myself and all that - and so are most of them I suspect).<br /><br />Anyway, <em>Pedal Power </em>is one of the books I read that I enjoyed and want to recommend.<br /><br />This book focuses on bikes and politics. The good thing about bike advocacy is that we don’t ask for too much (it is really cheap to paint some lines on the road and the letters ‘Bike Lane’ and it makes a lot of people happy – politicians LOVE this stuff).<br /><br />The book also has a great picture of the future – let’s face it, we all like a happy ending<br /><br />Keep pedaling,<br /><br />Neil McGovern"Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-47650790709821733792010-06-23T10:12:00.000-07:002010-06-25T21:39:14.853-07:00May's miles, new team members, and a video<span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><u>Way to go BCC!</u> </strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Our miles in May totaled 1,657 (which beat April's 1,382 miles), and we took our cars off the road saving 211 trips (better than April's 139).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Thanks to everyone who cycled on May 13 for <em>Ride Your Bike to Work Day! </em></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Through May 2010 we've now ridden a grand total of 12,226 miles and saved 1,957 car trips. Based on the EPA's calculation that one gallon of gasoline produces 19.4 pounds of carbon emissions, and assuming 20 car miles to the gallon, <em>Be the Change Cyclists</em> has spared the Tri-Valley's air of 11,859 pounds of carbon emissions. </span><br /><br /><strong><u><span style="font-family:arial;">Welcome new team members! </span></u></strong><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">We're pleased to welcome <strong>Bob Carling</strong>, Director of Sandia National Laboratory.<br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKltp3FTcYpFfXwtrft0PeDArfHrYjRGFRVLj_6uFv4mkJObQctDXA1V-9_svJniBEefTJOqO4n4NJcJBGWYgGNg5dC2v2hsQyktGW8RpnuqRsYUviJLXH-RN3cE64hqSu6pFEvBo4lpHa/s1600/Bob+Carling.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486025023363632306" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 87px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 118px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKltp3FTcYpFfXwtrft0PeDArfHrYjRGFRVLj_6uFv4mkJObQctDXA1V-9_svJniBEefTJOqO4n4NJcJBGWYgGNg5dC2v2hsQyktGW8RpnuqRsYUviJLXH-RN3cE64hqSu6pFEvBo4lpHa/s320/Bob+Carling.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Bob's been riding his bike to work every day for many years. As a director at Sandia, Bob oversees the Transportation Energy Center in California, and recently traveled to China to speak at a conference about major public-private initiatives designed to accelerate innovation in low-carbon transportation through domestic and international partnerships.<br /></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">We're also pleased to welcome <strong>Nadine Horner, </strong>External Relations Officer, with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY40-bwbAfkFxdjyMtFdM2fVHJpY1R-N7RniissiPsXo50lPbXnoB-xvLJT3AnjX4_tyLytY74hhyphenhyphenr6cskCdInkjZLyS96DM62w-BSonWXdndy-dANyVHTryFlHX4dPdxQiHLOVPPFZTuq/s1600/Nadine+Horner.jpg"></a></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW6C2h1idh-plOoiD5TmTZ-qCUs859MQu6Bd6zyQj_WBft1AIgOym-DCK76UnW6Ht1ee0iDbS6GYG-E6yRf5x7uv_kKDjQRyZdb_KmnVTSW4bYvjRYxejq9kWhJw1i1-3HXZJo8qrYVgpt/s1600/Nadine_Horner.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486936834028261298" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 90px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 122px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW6C2h1idh-plOoiD5TmTZ-qCUs859MQu6Bd6zyQj_WBft1AIgOym-DCK76UnW6Ht1ee0iDbS6GYG-E6yRf5x7uv_kKDjQRyZdb_KmnVTSW4bYvjRYxejq9kWhJw1i1-3HXZJo8qrYVgpt/s320/Nadine_Horner.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Nadine is very active in our community, serving on various boards. Her husand is Doug Horner, Livermore City Council member. Nadine commutes to her office by bike on a regular basis! </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><u></u></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><u></u></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">We now have 39 team members!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><u>Bike safety tips</u></strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Here's a 12-minute video about safety tips when cycling near busses. The video includes many good reminders--both what to do and what NOT to do in traffic. Thanks to team members Alan and Julie Casamajor for sharing this! </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/7949969">http://vimeo.com/7949969</a></span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-86549803693904841922010-06-05T16:34:00.000-07:002010-06-05T16:38:35.086-07:00Rush hour in the NetherlandsFor a vision of what commuting and traffic at rush hour could be, take a look at this amazing clip shared by BCC team member Alma Schiefer...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flixxy.com/netherlands-rush-hour.htm" target="_blank">http://www.flixxy.com/netherlands-rush-hour.htm</a>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-64167946074521705712010-05-13T07:14:00.000-07:002010-05-13T07:20:30.853-07:00Thank you Pleasanton Patch!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgna7AQ1VKZPERIF12KsDLIQxLwcP9BvjmA_47RHAZ7HkIxC-1iag6B25eu0z0N6vEQsoX9e2X87s743CpfMenVoAS_OBHZwXGvu0ydYYfZhs82OjaJqcKwJHjerMIK2iMol7dAMhln2QmJ/s1600/IMG_8806.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470759231248831586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgna7AQ1VKZPERIF12KsDLIQxLwcP9BvjmA_47RHAZ7HkIxC-1iag6B25eu0z0N6vEQsoX9e2X87s743CpfMenVoAS_OBHZwXGvu0ydYYfZhs82OjaJqcKwJHjerMIK2iMol7dAMhln2QmJ/s320/IMG_8806.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Thanks to the Pleasanton Patch for highlighting our bicycle commuter club and our efforts to "Be the Change" we want to see in the world. Readers of the Patch are welcome to join our club! Read about our philosophy and how to join in the menu to the right.Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-11895369374525723342010-05-10T08:25:00.000-07:002010-05-10T08:47:45.344-07:00Vintage photos!<span style="font-family:arial;">Reminder that THIS THURSDAY is <strong>Bike to Work Day</strong>. Let's have a good BCC showing! The weather should be good. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The vintage photos of a <em>younger you with a bike</em> are trickling in. Steve Kowalewski and Melissa Ott sent these great photos below. Don't be shy, send me your photos! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Here's Steve circa 1949. Is that an early Trek, Steve?</span> </span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvAptGWjAjuBA-68CC_Z5PPn4i0ZQWqcpx9EhyATOTu74ELGVGGxYov16asqhY9JUnOgukykf9uA0HL0sy3KOFUGJGKkdOgl5HEa_enF6MFam2EJGXtz1wmurF9FgAY7dG0rB3WnTSl4NK/s1600/Steve+Kowalewski+1949.bmp"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 218px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469665664149086546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvAptGWjAjuBA-68CC_Z5PPn4i0ZQWqcpx9EhyATOTu74ELGVGGxYov16asqhY9JUnOgukykf9uA0HL0sy3KOFUGJGKkdOgl5HEa_enF6MFam2EJGXtz1wmurF9FgAY7dG0rB3WnTSl4NK/s320/Steve+Kowalewski+1949.bmp" /></a></span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><strong>..................</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Here's Melissa in 1997, along with a current photo. Melissa is our youngest BCC member and will be attending U.C. Santa Cruz as a freshman in the Fall. Her dad must be proud.</span> </span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9xyl0fxrVyHaxUzAjS8y42ZdmlMP8xvNL2wOa50aKlPxhsJN4KgIDKAi0D6bA_yd-ImaWX8kDwHKnPGAyjnEjxmvQ35gN6l9CSF2hh7k8XgJwFOaqP-u72H-aixe4wGak4HEeAJOGsRK/s1600/1997+Melissa+riding+bike.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469666199942440418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9xyl0fxrVyHaxUzAjS8y42ZdmlMP8xvNL2wOa50aKlPxhsJN4KgIDKAi0D6bA_yd-ImaWX8kDwHKnPGAyjnEjxmvQ35gN6l9CSF2hh7k8XgJwFOaqP-u72H-aixe4wGak4HEeAJOGsRK/s320/1997+Melissa+riding+bike.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoRlzBial3ZPDCd-pMGWysHcjA9Ph6EcOcsV0MWVCKW1O7aMtRyCGh1yxLs8x_65jM_1cvrpBK5zqrX69zaWrLBoGbD9m4RuWk8yYJkTe6TRn01D_oqNR1i62YfOZmKpUTflk5LL6_rJm5/s1600/Melissa_with_Bike.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 184px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 248px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469666737833154434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoRlzBial3ZPDCd-pMGWysHcjA9Ph6EcOcsV0MWVCKW1O7aMtRyCGh1yxLs8x_65jM_1cvrpBK5zqrX69zaWrLBoGbD9m4RuWk8yYJkTe6TRn01D_oqNR1i62YfOZmKpUTflk5LL6_rJm5/s320/Melissa_with_Bike.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-66506653141632971082010-05-03T12:02:00.000-07:002010-05-04T15:12:02.078-07:00May is here - time to ride!Our miles in April (1,382) exceeded March (1,095) as more of us opted for the bike in lieu of that massive ton of minerals and combustion we call our car. Our best month ever was 1,763 miles in October 2009. Can we beat that in May? YES WE CAN!<br /><br /><strong>May 13 is Ride Your Bike to Work Day</strong>, so let's try to have a good showing!<br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>New team members: </strong>We've had several cyclists join our cause recently. Although I posted these folks to our blog's member roster, we want to officially welcome them! They are Tom Hall, Alma Schiefer, Rick Beaumont, Rob Barnett, Steve Kowalewski, and Peg Miller. Thank you for being the change!<br /><br /><strong>Team member photos: </strong>Remember to send in vintage photos of a younger you with a bike. Here's one of Steve Sherman in a photo from a biathalon from 1991. Check out the state-of-the-art helmet, the Magnum P.I. mustache, and the aerodynamic sunglasses. For contrast, I've posted below a more current photo of Steve during his latest Ironman. Send me your photos!<br /><br /><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7wHmasqLPu5bd3gWJJ9NoKEwAajUeCKX2VdySaLbHoNvAHbyPqWIG6vecbFHMX-zcbdEBh1aIIHVR21lJ0K-XUj5JUH3Gku1Qf6MfRr26Q8YKUZqd1Z0RBIOcgCSIyLZ51FQGEJeEmO78/s1600/SteveBiathlon91.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 244px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467128623522311106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7wHmasqLPu5bd3gWJJ9NoKEwAajUeCKX2VdySaLbHoNvAHbyPqWIG6vecbFHMX-zcbdEBh1aIIHVR21lJ0K-XUj5JUH3Gku1Qf6MfRr26Q8YKUZqd1Z0RBIOcgCSIyLZ51FQGEJeEmO78/s320/SteveBiathlon91.JPG" /></a></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltshuIgmiYUI2m4_HMu8ib6gYdFLbU6XXVQHJ6j0xslTZX_leaxu1WpNKZ35JyQSmCbA0r6ptG-RY9Xxev8jRkqSqs5QZRmLWsgKH0CkvSaSupZEFus58CnWBkLU1v9lzeHQN4Rl-MaWk/s1600/Steve+IM+bike+2008.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 230px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467129797376950930" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltshuIgmiYUI2m4_HMu8ib6gYdFLbU6XXVQHJ6j0xslTZX_leaxu1WpNKZ35JyQSmCbA0r6ptG-RY9Xxev8jRkqSqs5QZRmLWsgKH0CkvSaSupZEFus58CnWBkLU1v9lzeHQN4Rl-MaWk/s320/Steve+IM+bike+2008.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><p></p><br /><p></p><p></p>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-31634557268316027442010-04-09T09:13:00.000-07:002010-04-09T09:28:03.755-07:00Back in the saddle in March!<span style="font-family:arial;">We're off to a great start for the 2010 season! </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">In March, our team logged 1,095 miles and 165 commute trips! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">This brings our totals since inception of the club to 9,188 miles and 1,608 trips.</span><br /><p><span style="font-family:arial;">For fun, below is a picture of me (BCC team founder Jim Ott) with my bike, circa 1975. Email me with y</span><span style="font-family:arial;">our similar youthful bike-related photos, and I'll post them to the site! </span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz_m6yjAJ2i6Es0WizGn23swZybapTkQY_Rd9LL5y3MsXpygu_FClrUju5yLsutX6TECNML1Qq9tXTTtG1UgCJwuBpLVPJuhD2XdXcA4tsIl2VtCbTMNX4fcse_ps-KP-szQ095JYa7DbP/s1600/High+School+Bike.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 204px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458172868872317426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz_m6yjAJ2i6Es0WizGn23swZybapTkQY_Rd9LL5y3MsXpygu_FClrUju5yLsutX6TECNML1Qq9tXTTtG1UgCJwuBpLVPJuhD2XdXcA4tsIl2VtCbTMNX4fcse_ps-KP-szQ095JYa7DbP/s320/High+School+Bike.jpg" /></a>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-20374950148794711822010-03-14T12:22:00.000-07:002010-03-14T12:47:23.626-07:00Get inspired by 4Wheel Bob!<div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Now that winter is winding down, BCC team member Bob Coomber is getting us motivated to get out there on the bike or any other human-powered contraption on wheels. In fact, affectionately known as "4Wheel Bob," Bob uses a wheelchair to get around. After acquiring juvenile diabetes in his early 20’s, Bob struggled with leg, ankle and knee fractures. The solution? A wheelchair!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Since then Bob became the first person in a wheelchair to summit California’s 3rd highest peak: White Mountain, at over 14,200 feet. Bob is also the first in a chair to summit Mt. Diablo and its companion, North Peak, as well as Mission Peak in Fremont. </span></div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><div><br />Inducted into the California Outdoors Hall of Fame in 2007, Bob was one of only 27 Americans to receive the President’s Council on Physical Fitness Community Leadership Award in 2008. He’s also been featured in every Bay Area newspaper, as well as the CBS “Early Show,” ABC’s “World News with Charles Gibson” and the Hallmark Channel. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieSMRxiF26HzeZimGOGLIhaZjfLjUsrhXUvuq-PxKG-KNBqufqnhhGt9LUy9KNhG30_rZYJH0v5HuH58sUN7QMI9IMoLiBN5cugW4f3-1CCch0TCOl41s7fc79Z7iusnfzOyMPdzHhkk-a/s1600-h/bob_coomber_116w-x-174hs.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448576752863538706" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 116px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 174px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieSMRxiF26HzeZimGOGLIhaZjfLjUsrhXUvuq-PxKG-KNBqufqnhhGt9LUy9KNhG30_rZYJH0v5HuH58sUN7QMI9IMoLiBN5cugW4f3-1CCch0TCOl41s7fc79Z7iusnfzOyMPdzHhkk-a/s320/bob_coomber_116w-x-174hs.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div><br />In October of 2010, Bob plans to summit Africa’s highest peak, Kilimanjaro, and be the first unassisted wheelchair to make the journey. The trip will also serve to distribute 200 wheelchairs in Arusha, Tanzania, in partnership with The Wheelchair Foundation of Danville. A potential spring warm up summit attempt of Mexico’s Orizaba (18,490’) is being pondered.<br /></div><br /><div>An inspiring motivational speaker, Bob is popular with everyone from schoolchildren to senior hikers. He loves to inspire others to reach for their goals, no matter what the “perceived” obstacles. Bob has been married to wife Gina for 14 years. They spend what he calls "way too much time" finding new trails to explore all over California and the West. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">So when you find yourself thinking the car is easier to take than hopping on the bike, remember Bob climbing up a rocky trail, making his way to the top of some peak somewhere using only his powerful arms... </span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Check out Bob's new feature page through the East Bay Parks website at </span><a href="https://webmail.unclecu.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.ebparks.org/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><a href="http://www.ebparks.org/bobcoomber">http://www.ebparks.org/bobcoomber</span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></a></a>.<br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><em>Be the change! Commute by bike (or wheelchair)! </em><br /></div></span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-62177338259662644852010-02-24T14:46:00.000-08:002010-02-24T15:05:44.160-08:00Cold and rainy weather does not deter BCC!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs3L9Yhc6-sn-MVLvqz0iveiRmSVsRW_kkbslJInqx56XadbmXPk_0qfqHBn6XUTiGlxsD0YfRBMVu8l2oKQD8iV28RMxpkLqJiq1sDYIXIeBsXHLAi5Rhti9QNiS0cybsAB5nBVKujrf7/s1600-h/Windy+cyclist.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 160px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441950018510843186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs3L9Yhc6-sn-MVLvqz0iveiRmSVsRW_kkbslJInqx56XadbmXPk_0qfqHBn6XUTiGlxsD0YfRBMVu8l2oKQD8iV28RMxpkLqJiq1sDYIXIeBsXHLAi5Rhti9QNiS0cybsAB5nBVKujrf7/s320/Windy+cyclist.jpg" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Okay, well maybe the cold and rainy weather the past few months has detered <em>some </em>BCC cyclists, but not all! </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;">I've had reports of miles commuted from Ursula Goldstein who rode an amazing 180 miles in December and 122.5 miles in January, from Steve Sherman, Greg Pinter, Melissa Ott, Mike Centrelli, Karen Swift, and the Casamajors. (My apologies if I overlooked anyone!)</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;">During the winter, BCC goes into a bit <em>suspended</em> animation (since some of us hang our commuter bikes in the garage!) We don't track miles from December through February, so we'll start officially recording miles again in March.</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;">Nonetheless, kudos to those BCC troopers who get out there in spite of the cold, rain, and fog! </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"><span style="color:#000000;"></span></div></span><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span></div>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-61382230916906939642009-12-15T15:44:00.000-08:002009-12-15T15:49:29.953-08:00Cycling in Copenhagen<span style="font-family:arial;">Thanks to team member Mark Szymczak for passing along this inspiring clip about </span><a href="http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/12/streetfilms-copenhagen-cop15-bicycles-bikes-video.php?campaign=th_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+treehuggersite+%28Treehugger%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo"><span style="font-family:arial;">Cycling in Copenhagen</span></a><a href="http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/12/streetfilms-copenhagen-cop15-bicycles-bikes-video.php?campaign=th_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+treehuggersite+%28Treehugger%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo"><span style="font-family:arial;"> </span></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Let's do it in our Tri-Valley cities!</span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-91970056277030553062009-12-12T13:09:00.000-08:002009-12-12T14:13:33.922-08:00October and November Updates!October and November 2009 were excellent months for BCC!<br /><br /><strong>October results: </strong><br />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.<br /><br />Helping us reach October's totals were nine new members who joined our team:<br /><br /><strong>Greg Pinter</strong>, 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.”<br /><br /><strong>Russ Riley</strong> writes: “Since I retired two years ago from education, I have constantly used my bike to run errands as well as exercise.”<br /><br /><strong>Paul O'Flynn,</strong> 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!<br /><br /><strong>The Gillette Family of Pleasanton:</strong> 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!“<br /><br /><strong>The Meyer Family of Livermore:</strong> 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.”<br /><br /><strong>Bekki Livingston</strong> 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.”<br /><br /><strong>Don Johnston</strong>, 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.”<br /><br /><strong>Mark Szymczak:</strong> Pleasanton volunteer, Backyard Farmer, Environmental Activist, and Business Owner. In October Mike commuted and ran errands totaling 317 miles!<br /><br /><strong>Bob Belichak</strong>, 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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />Best new member showing award goes to Mark Szymczak who also had the highest trips (59) and miles (317) for the month.<br /><br />Through October, our grand total saved car trips since April 2009 were 930, with 6,172 in emission free miles.<br /><br /><strong>November results:</strong><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />Go team!Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-63164422373921544112009-10-15T13:16:00.000-07:002009-10-15T13:33:15.959-07:00Greetings from BCC and Blog Action Day<span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">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 i</span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">f 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 <a href="mailto:jott@unclecu.org">jott@unclecu.org</a>.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Today also happens to be Blog Action Day 2009! </span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">As of this post, nearly 10,000 bloggers around the world are writing about climate change today. <em>Be the Change Cyclists </em>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 <a href="http://www.blogactionday.org/">www.blogactionday.org</a>. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;">For more about <em>Be the Change Cyclists</em>, click on the "Our philosophy" link in the right hand column of this blog page.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:85%;">Happy cycling! </span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-74775025917888604362009-10-05T13:09:00.000-07:002009-10-05T13:16:13.627-07:00September 2009 sets new record!<span style="font-family:arial;">September set a new record for miles and trips: </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Miles: 1683 (1088 in August)</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Trips: 232 (173 in August)<br /><br />Contributors over 100 miles this month:<br />Peter Norquist 375 miles<br />David Beals 200 miles<br />Jim Van Dyke 164 miles – including a longest single commute record of 84 miles when he cycled to a workshop<br />Steve Sherman 138 miles<br />Ursula Goldstein 125 miles<br />Alan and Julie Casamajor 112 miles – This couple rides most errands together; the miles are counted like a car trip, and not doubled.<br />. . .<br />Top Trippers:<br />Steve Sherman 34 trips<br />Alan and Julie Casamajor 29 trips<br />Hilary and Kristie Gross 26 trips<br />Karen Swift 22 trips<br />And a tie between Ursula Goldstein, Julie Harryman, and Melissa Ott at 17 trips.<br />. . .<br />Our best new member showing award goes to Pat Walsh (referred by Julie Harryman) who commuted 14 times and logged 45 miles.<br />. . .<br />Inspiring messages from notable BCC team members:<br />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".<br /><br />Amador high school senior Melissa Ott writes in her Green Gal blog (</span><a href="http://www.greenbeangal.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family:arial;">www.greenbeangal.blogspot.com</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">) 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.”<br /><br />Thanks for cycling. Together we can be the change.</span>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-86757990887130320532009-09-15T18:25:00.000-07:002009-09-15T18:32:03.388-07:00New members and a fun quiz!Let's give a hearty BCC welcome to two new team members:<br /><br />Pat Walsh, Special Operations Sergeant, Pleasanton Police Department<br /><br />Eric Harpell, Instructor of Physics and Astronomy at Las Positas College<br /><br />Thanks for joining our efforts!<br />. . .<br /><br />As <em>Be The Change Cyclists,</em> we pride ourselves on being “green” when it comes to cycling.<br /><br />But are we really?<br /><br />Here’s a fun and thought-provoking quiz submitted by team member Melissa.<br /><br /><a title="blocked::http://connect.sierraclub.org/post/Groups/Bicycle/blog/how_green_is_your_bike_ride.html" href="http://connect.sierraclub.org/post/Groups/Bicycle/blog/how_green_is_your_bike_ride.html">http://connect.sierraclub.org/post/Groups/Bicycle/blog/how_green_is_your_bike_ride.html</a>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-10591398295110543042009-09-02T09:59:00.001-07:002009-09-15T19:27:49.872-07:00August 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!<br /><br /><br /><p>Our grand totals now stand at 2,717 miles and 379 trips. </p><p>That's a LOT of gasoline saved, and 70,642 calories burned!<br /></p><p>Welcome to new members <strong>Alan and Julie Casamajor</strong>, who are retired but very active! They cycle together in lieu of car trips for errands and trips.<br /><br /><strong>Hilary and Kristie Gross </strong>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.</p><p>"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 </p><p></p>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1275015072995916248.post-2843147326532230072009-08-10T14:25:00.000-07:002009-08-10T14:46:49.521-07:00Welcome David Beals!<span style="font-family:arial;">We're pleased to welcome <strong>David Beals</strong> to our club! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">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!<br /><br />David lives in Walnut Creek, near the Pleasant Hill BART station. His commute is about 21 miles <em>one way</em>, mostly along the Iron Horse trail. </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;">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! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">To check out David's route (which he logged with a GPS biking trip logger) check it out at: </span><a title="blocked::http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=" href="http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=205432"><span style="font-family:arial;">http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=205432</span></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Kudos to David for joining us and inspiring <u>US</u> to ride. </span></span><br /><br /><p><span style="font-family:arial;">Kudos as well to Jerry Pentin who has now commuted to work for 17 straight commutes with no end in sight! </span></p><p></p>Be The Change Cyclistshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915936339098789810noreply@blogger.com0