As always, Portland is an inspiration. The town that, way back in the ’70s, tore down one freeway and cancelled plans for five more that would have chopped the city into little withered bits. The town that set up one of the earliest “urban growth boundaries” to prevent the fast-buck artists from buying up all the farms and forests, turning them into cookie-cutter subdivisions, and condemning the region’s residents to long, dreary hours of staring at the bumper in front of them during rush-hour crawls.

The town that made the bicycle a centerpiece of urban culture–a culture that is lively, creative, and prosperous, and one that shows how supporting bikes and transit over cars is actually good for business as well as for your soul.

Now, one of the longtime “playas” in the Portland scene, Mia Burke, has come out with a book on the benefits of bicycling culture–Joyride: Pedaling Toward a Healthier Planet–which Diane Dulkin reviews on Huffington Post.

Dulkin doesn’t talk too much about the book itself, being almost too enthusastic about its subject. But she does come up with some gratifying tidbits, a couple of which I want to quote here:

Car-centric building is simply too expensive — for ourselves, our planet and our communities. We can’t afford our obesity epidemic or the climate-changing pollutants we send into the air and our lungs. And we can’t afford car-centric sprawl and its many miles of asphalt, where roads separate instead of connect us….

Portland built its entire 300-mile network of bike ways for the cost of a single mile of urban freeway.

When we visited Portland early this year, we found a healthy, happy, happening city–an inspiration.

But we’ve got to turn this inspiration into policies here in LA. Don’t neglect your local LA politicians. Let Portland be an inspiration here too–an inspiration to you to nag your city council member, LADOT, Metro, and the mayor’s office.

Want someone else to do it for you? Join the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition–they’re on it.

Let’s get going!

WE ARE CLOSED SUNDAY SEPT 5th and 6th!

Happy Labor day and enjoy the Bicycle Film Festival.

Love your bike, your bike culture, your street life? Gotcha, then: we’re going to lay out a couple of opportunities for you to give a little back by working for nothing….

Okay, not really for nothing, but for no pay. But it’s a chance to leave complaining to the do-nothings and help make some real on-the-ground improvements that will help you and your cycling buddies every day you ride.

First of all, before you can ask for bike-friendly streets, you gotta show that there are bikes to be friendly to. (Okay, I know motorists didn’t have to do this, because GM et al were pushing hard to get states and cities to lay down free roads for drivers from the mid-1930s on…but that was then, and then is now.) Well, if any of you lives in Glendale (and I know you do), here’s your chance: LACBC is looking for volunteers to help with a cyclist and pedestrian count in that city on September 22nd & 25th 2010, and you can volunteer here.

Next chance: you wanna be famous? Okay, here’s another opportunity, to build your online content creator portfolio at no cost or profit to yourself. Yes, it’s LACBC again, looking for a “social media intern” to work on their Facebook, Twitter, blog, and website. Become a cycling celebrity! Take your first steps towards that Pulitzer Prize! Email Aurisha (whom you’ve seen around Orange 20) and let her know you’ll work for the cause!

Help grab back our fair share of the streets!

Friday closing at 7:00 NOT 8:00
Sat Closing 7:00 NOT 9:00
Sunday 4:00 NOT 6:00

Monday Labor Day Closed

Super Special sales on lots of close out items and complete bikes all weekend.
Gatorskins 35$
Ole School Pake frames 170$
Lots More…we don’t even know yet