It’s more fun than it looks!

Karen & Kelli are big about talking the FUN aspect of cycling. It’s not all about calories and cadence, spandex and Slipstream. Biking is good for you and for the environment but, as far as we are concerned, it’s a really good time.

We are lucky enough to have a wonderful attorney, Steve Roach, who is with Miller Canfield and is also the Region 1 Rep for the League of Michigan Bicyclists. He is a great guy (with an exceedingly dry sense of humor and a penchant for spandex) who we love. He is a regular Grosse Pointe-to-Downtown bike commuter, and GrossePointeToday.com interviewed him and shot a video of him commuting.

Excerpt:

Motorists may pity the cyclists they pass, especially when it’s clear the folks on the bike are not on their way to pick up ice cream. Those who choose to commute by bicycle may strike drivers as masochists, weird fitness freaks or possibly suicidal.

It probably never occurs to the people behind the wheel that the people straddling the wheels are having a good time.

A really good time: “If you get any sort of aerobic exercise, you get enough endorphins you get like a buzz,” said Steven Roach, two-wheeled commuter.

Check out the full story here and, in the accompanying video, watch him talk about his helmet and components before getting down to the good stuff: riding!

Weekend Recap

Wow! What a wonderful weekend for cycling in Detroit. The Bicycle Film Festival was well-attended and fantastic, we had a blast dancing at the Park Bar at the after-party on Friday, the Alley Cat was good times and we spent all day Sunday biking and beaching Belle Isle.

It might have been cloudy, but it was still lovely.

Inspiration from other places

There are a lot of really good people working to make Detroit a more bike-friendly city. With that said, it is frustrating sometimes to see how far behind we are in terms of infrastructure compared to other places that have long realized that cycling is an essential ingredient in a well-balanced urban city.

Here are couple of really sweet biking amenities in places not too far away from us:

The Bike Train connects Toronto residents with cycling destinations in Ontario. They are talking about connecting it to Windsor, which would be wonderful for us here in “North Detroit” — although, we still have the annoying problem of how difficult it is to get bikes across the border (pet peeve!). Cycling Ontario wine country and/or Pelee Island should be on everyone’s list of places to go. Such great times to be had on bikes over the River.

(Amtrak, get a clue. Allow bikes on trains, especially between Detroit and Ann Arbor/Chicago. The Wolverine could blow up.)

Buffalo Blue Bicycle is a low-cost bike rental program targeting resident transportation needs — as opposed to ours, which is more focused on recreation — by creating hubs, so bikes can be picked up from one place and dropped off at another. The website is very informative, with great mapping. A similar system would be so cool here, with hub clusters in Downtown, Eastern Market, Midtown, New Center and Corktown…sigh. Well, it’s never hurt a girl to dream!

CityFest Bike Parking + Tour de Troit Registration Info

Ride to CityFest & Leave the Parking to Wheelhouse!
Wheelhouse is really excited to sponsor free bike parking at CityFest this year! If you’ve ridden there in years past, you’ve certainly noticed the, um, creative places people have had to lock their bikes. Well, this year, you can head to our corral, located at the southeast corner of W. Grand Blvd. and Cass, and we will keep your steed safe — for free! CityFest runs from Wednesday, July 1 to Sunday, July 5. More info and a schedule of performances can be found here.

Tour de Troit Registration Kick-Off Ride
TONIGHT, July 1, Tour de Troit registration kicks off! Meet us at the T-Plex between 5:30 and 7 p.m. to register for this year’s ride, which is set for September 19. For one day only, it will cost just $25 to sign up; when online registration opens on July 2, the price will jump to $30.

After registering, we ride! We’ll do a (free) ten-miler that wraps up at CityFest — just in time to see De La Soul headline!

Read tons more about the TdT and registration here.

Blessing of Bikes

This Sunday, Spirit of Hope Church in N. Corktown is hosting the first annual blessing of the bikes (well, and motorcycles) at their 11 a.m. service. It’s located at 1519 Martin Luther King Jr., Blvd. at the intersection of Grand River and Trumbull.

Ride of Silence Recap

It was a wonderful Ride of Silence last night from Belle Isle to Downtown and back. About 225 cyclists turned out to celebrate cycling, draw attention to “Sharing the Road” and honor cyclists that have been injured or killed by motorists when cycling.

Many thanks to event chair Steve Roach of the League of Michigan Bicyclists and to Macomb Cycle & Fitness for the post-ride bar-b-que.

Dequindre Cut Re-Cap

The opening of the Dequindre Cut was truly lovely. Can’t say much about the speechifying, because we were too busy transporting (where was Jason Statham when we needed him?) 10 bikes from the shop over to the Cut!

Two of our cruisers were used to string the ribbon across the Cut for the grand snip. After the ceremony, there was a parade down the Cut with marching bands, walkers, roller bladers and, yes, bikers! Then we offered free 1/2-hour rentals so folks could ride to the end and back. We estimate we did about 35 or so — and between that and the wind knocking our bikes over, Alex and Kelli were busting butt the whole time! But well worth it — it seems like good times were had by all.

Read more about it at the Metro Times or watch this video!

The Last Word

Kelli & Karen had “The Last Word” in this week’s Real Detroit.

We know we are dorks.

Here’s a sample:

What was the most exciting thing about being down here finally and what was the biggest challenge that you faced?
KK: The challenge was to get the word out, get people to come down here and see biking as a feasible entertainment option — not just for people who ride regularly. One of the most exciting things is when we rent to people from other places. You go to most major cities and renting a bike is not abnormal. They come here and expect to rent a bike and have Detroit deliver for them — it’s not a radical experience for them. Getting to see a city by bike is awesome, and allows a fair view of this town that not many visitors get to see.
KG: On the flipside, I love it when Detroiters and residents and local people come in and are like, “Whoa! That’s whats up.”

Check the whole thing out here!

Also, remember to come out tomorrow between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. for the grand opening of the Dequindre Cut! We’ll be at the Woodbridge (south) entrance with free bike rentals, coupons and of course, info about tours, group rides and all that kind of fun stuff.

Tour de Cure Fundraiser 05/09/09

This Saturday at the Park Bar (2040 Park Ave.) riders from the American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure cycling event are hosting “RIDE it, PARK it, ROCK it”, a fundraiser to benefit the ADA.

Meet at the bar at 1 p.m. and then head out for a casual 8-10 mile bike ride around downtown Detroit starting at 1:30 p.m.  Discounted bike rentals are available through Wheelhouse Detroit.  The ride is being lead by Todd Scott of the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance and will highlight various trails and green spaces in the city.  Following the ride will be drinks at the bar.  The Park Bar is donating a portion of their proceeds back to the ADA.  There is a $10 donation per rider and each rider will receive one ticket for a post-ride drawing.  There are  several cool items to give away!  Additional tickets for the giveaway can also be purchased at the bar.  For more information please contact Anika Halladay at ahalladay@diabetes.org or 248-433-3830, ext. 6694.

Mark your calendars for the 2009 Tour de Cure on Sunday, June 14, 2009, at beautiful Island Lake Recreation Area in Brighton. REGISTER ONLINE NOW at www.diabetes.org/tour.

Spring Training Ride 3/21

On Saturday, March 21, Detroit Bikes!  will host the Second Annual Spring Training (STR) ride.  Given that the Detroit Tigers will soon begin their season, the Red Wings will begin hockey’s second season (playoffs), and the NCAA Final Four will take place at Ford Field, a sports theme ride is a no-brainer (no jokes, please).

The Detroit Bikes! Spring Training Ride will cruise past current and past Detroit sports venues, including Tiger Stadium, Olympia Stadium, Recreation Park, and others.

Wear something that represents your favorite Detroit team (professional, college, high school, etc.), such as a T-shirt, bandanna, whatever, and help us challenge Mother Nature to bring the warm weather on!