For some reason, cycling has become politicized. If you ride a bike or are in favor of making your community more bike and pedestrian friendly, people assume you must be some kind of a liberal freak.

Far from the truth.

Though there is some conjecture about how this came to be – perhaps it’s because the original ISTEA  bill funding bike accommodations was sponsored by Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan in 1991?   Who knows.

Either way, to the chagrin of many,  making communities bicycle friendly  has become fodder for the political parties rather than an intelligent discussion in the investment for our countries future and the health and dare I say welfare of our citizens.

Next time you have a conversation with a conservative about why the country needs to make these changes, show them this article about the king of conservatives and founder of the National Review, William F. Buckley . 

Yes, Buckley,  captain of conservatism,  was calling for New York to become more bike friendly when he ran for mayor in 1965!    Buckley even spoke of elevated bike ways.  He envisioned residents cycling to work and for exercise. [continue reading…]

In his column today, Richmond Times Dispatch writer, Michael Paul Williams –  a cyclist himself – discusses the recent announcement by the UCI to award the World Cycling Championships to Richmond, Virginia in 2015.

In various discussions flowing through the cycling community, some commuter and recreational cyclists who don’t really follow or care about racing have been less than excited by the Worlds announcement.  “So it’s nine days of the hammer heads riding in the City.  What’s the big deal?” [continue reading…]

This month’s Richmond Magazine  features a great article on Richmond Cycling Corp’s Craig Dodson and how he’s changing the lives of inner city youth. 

It hasn’t been an easy road for the organization but clearly RCC is making a difference in the future of these young men and having a positive impact on the community.

Congratulations, Craig!

Data from the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey show that Richmond leads Virginia cities in bike commuting, with 2.2% of workers getting to work by bike. This makes Richmond 42nd out of the 375 cities reporting, notably just behind Santa Monica, CA.

Next on the Virginia list are Arlington at 1.4%, Norfolk and Virginia Beach at 0.8%, and Alexandria at 0.7%.

Thanks to the League of American Bicyclists for reporting and commenting on the data, and for making a nice spreadsheet available.

The League notes that communities doing the most to promote bicycling have shown the biggest increases in bike commuting, [continue reading…]