11/15/08 Busycle Farewell Report

What a party! On Sat, Nov 15, at the beautiful YMCA in Palo Alto, CA, we not only were blessed with amazing speakers, exhibits and performances, but the volunteers who made it possible for us to enjoy them, pulled from deep within to give us the best they also had. Instead of sounding cliché and saying we could not have done this without our volunteers, I'll go behind the scenes a bit and tell you why this was so. After which, I'll tell you about the fire they helped us build.

The Silent Auction that paid for a lot of the expense of producing such a high quality event for us pushed the bounds of Silvie and George Pierce's marriage. George, a former professional duathlon racing star, saw how desperately much he needs Silvie to raise their two small children as he works feverishly for not one but two different start up business concerns. Nor is his wife anything less than an equal powerhouse. She almost single handedly made our high quality, very professional Silent Auction a strong, efficacious reality that made all of us proud.

c/o Palo Alto Daily News

Tho Silvie expended every extra moment on her sleep deprived tasks, she was just following the pace set by Jeannie Llewellyn. Jeannie, the high energy woman who I had the privilege of co-coordinating this event with, also attends to the needs of her medical doctor husband, her three children (10, 16, 22), the several businesses she owns and the various properties she also manages. It was her always happy, smiling passion that brought our effort to a whole new level as she also made use of Google's interactive spreadsheet to orchestrate the dynamics of our event for for all of us to online take direction from. This had become required since much of Jeannie's work was done at 2 and 3 in the morning......

Faye Saunders and her daughter Chloe kept the bar that Jeannie had set for professionalism at a very high level as well. Faye, who long before our event ever took place, helped Jeannie establish the floor plan for the gymnasium, would, with her teenage girl, expertly manage the food sales as well as the admissions all that took place at the main entrance. Around which we learned a very big lesson. Don't decentralize your show over several different viewing areas. The fact that we had small crowds of people riding bikes in the parking lot, listening to speakers talking in the break away rooms and enjoying the band playing in the main gym all made for a great event for which there was not one big crowd we could excite about our cause. Nor did many who never made it in to the gym even know about all the great treasures that could be had inexpensively in our Silent Auction. Or the great performances that were taking place on the stage as supported by the many vendors who showcased their wares.

Mike Saleski was there with his Kinetic Tiki Bar. According to Ray Hosler, a long haul cyclist, and former, much celebrated San Francisco Chronicle writer, in the report he drew up for the first part of our event:

Mike’s 500-pound machine has 147 gears. With those huge tires he can go almost anywhere, and that includes into the water. He rigs his machine with pontoons for flotation. Oh, it has a flamethrower, but Mike said he couldn’t torch it for this occasion without risk of being arrested.

I saw quite a few familiar faces, enough to think that maybe three to five hundred people had come by through out the day. However turning a large number of them into paying customers never quite materialized because many never came inside where the main stage was located. We had hoped that the lightning bolts coming from the stage would draw them in. However when our headline act, Marla Goody, came down with food poisoning, all that was left was one very talented band that lacked Marla's magnetic drawing power. You see Marla not only has an awesome voice but it is her passion and her personality that causes people to want to be close to the excitement she brings where ever it is that she goes.

Lucky for us, Peter Wagner of Davis, CA was there. He and his nine amazing bicycle creations kept all the kids, young and old, enough occupied that if they did make it inside, they could more readily excuse Marla for not being there to entertain them. As Stan, Tom and Artie played their excellent tunes, people could be seen buzzing all about both indoors and out. While Dave Hershberger's Unwheeldy astounded all those many people who Matthew Blaine helped take rides on it, others wondered at all nine feet of its 240 spokes worth of wheels. The Busycle was also busy. It made its rounds in between the bouncing bikes and draisines and micro bikes, etc, many of which Tom Kabat of woodenbikes.com added to Pater Wagner's bikes that were also merrily scurrying all about. **Some** of Peter's bikes: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27047646@N00/sets/72157594582800375

The young man that gave original cause to this party for it being his 16th birthday, Chris Llewellyn, even added some of his prolific abilities to the talent that was pouring forth from the stage. Chris pedaled his 5 foot tall unicycle into place as he then went about juggling first three, then four, then five clubs with confidence and skill. Wow. Soon the gymnasium honored him with happy birthday song. Video of Chris juggling with the Busycle on his unicycle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tszlet_6Hm4

Chantal Vandereyken poured on the glamor when she and her partner, Yuki, enchanted us with an Argentine Tango Dance exhibition that was so professional and so polished it could have played before thousands of paying customers. The shimmering evening gown that Chantal wore contrasted with the jeans and shirt sleeves she wore earlier in the day when she scrubbed and scrubbed to help get our Busycle clean. Indeed it was an honor to be blessed with the magic that she and Yuki brought to out event.

Dan Selligson's son, Matthew, then thrilled the audience with a masterful diabolo performance. For those of you who do not know, a diabolo, also referred to as a Chinese yo yo is a juggling prop consisting of a spool which is whirled and tossed on a string tied to two sticks held one in each hand. A master showman already at the age of 10, Matthew flung his diabolos high to the multi story ceiling time and again as he unveiled trick after effortlessly skilled trick.

Nor can anything less be expected of Matthew, The shoes he endeavors to fill are extremely large. His dad is the founder of a revolutionary software, just released for the iPhone, that is a bike speedometer/trip tracker on steroids and then some. So much so in fact that it will in all probability be a large part of my ride next summer. In a nutshell, the amazing program Dan has devised, called everytrail.com lets you use the iPhone to associate text and photos with the travels you take as represented by the Google Map platform. Dan's program uses the GPS stamp on the iPhone to let you show your friends what you are seeing as you see it. While doing so, it also lets them read what you feel inspired to write, even hear what you feel compelled to speak about wherever it is that you may happen to visit!! This is all so exciting!!

As for our show, it was definitely one for the ages. We were even honored to have Jobst Brandt. He mesmerized a large crowd of people who did not move from their seats for more than an hour. Those who sat in tell me that the pictures of his Alpan bicycle journeys were spectacular and his command of all the roads and paths he used was cartographic. Most of his audience we never saw again, however, and as such we were unable to enroll them in the Busycle or NBG cause.

Tamara Dena was also there. All the way from Wisconsin! With her new book, "The Pedal Powered Home". The fact that we didn't know she would be a speaker for our event until the day before still left Tamara with a happy place in her heart for the amount of people she was able to reach and books she was able to sell. Her beautiful book shows the reader all the many ways people all over the world are satisfying their electric and water needs by pedaling for them. http://thehumanpoweredhome.com/

The man who brought Tamara from her packed booksignings at the GreenFest show that was taking place in San Francisco over the same weekend, just so happened to be David Butcher. David appeared with us on the documentary we did for Korean TV last January of 08. One of the celebrated inventors in Tamara's book, David exhibited in our main event room with the bicycle he uses to make his coffee, wash his clothes, run his computer and just keep his lights on. More wow . http://www.los-gatos.ca.us/davidbu

We were also honored to have a presentation from Tom Kabat. An engineer for the city of Palo Alto by day, Tom is a man who eats, sleeps and breathes the way bicycles are made. Also a coast to coast cycling veteran, his head is always filled with new and even old bicycle designs. Just as he enjoys learning first hand why some bike styles never made it to the marketplace or even off the drawing board for that matter, in some cases, he also finds great joy in making real some of his two wheel ideas that rely on dumpster discoveries. His excitement for bikes kept an entire room spellbound for the better part of an hour. http://woodenbikes.com

One could not wander around and not be struck by the calibre of vendor talent that had come to support our effort. For example, RideSFO was there. Nor is their offering an event you will want to miss. RideSFO is taking over where the famous Velo Swap left off to allow bike people and bike shops to make their best deals to one another. All at the Cow Palace in south San Francisco you don't want to miss this show. It will define your bike year! Nov 29 and 30. http://ridesfo.com

Michael's Light Toys was also there. In a huge way. With Michael Mallot no less. Besides the fact that his lights are major attention getting (I can say that I am a proud and very satisfied user), Michael also makes it fun to buy the illumination instruments he sells. He was there, excitedly showing his wares as he wore a light bespeckled vest and a helmet that had brightly colored wires made to look like hair dangling from it. http://michaelslighttoys.com

The Grainaissance people made a rare appearance too, Tony Plotkin, a friend I have known since the early 80's exhibited his tasty mochi and amazake rice food products for us to enjoy. A rare sole proprietorship in the food industry, Tony has to more and more keep his marketing budget lean as large food conglomerates more and more endeavor to squeeze his awesome foods into oblivion. Struggling just to get shelf space anywhere for his products, Tony has found that the only way he can remain visible is, instead of incurring the expense of trying to find new customers that he has to rely on his long time satisfied base to keep asking the stores to carry his products. http://grainaissance.com

As for an actual meal, It was all about Jeannie Llewellyn. When James Hall, of Raw Daddy Foods, had to go to China on a moment's notice because his brother had passed away, Jeannie's, company, Dream Dinners, stepped in to fill the void. A franchise operation that makes pre-prepared meals that are then frozen for use usually during the work week by busy professionals, Jeannie deputized her crew to make dinners not for the freezer but for consumption at our show. While she won over many many new fans that night, one man who was fully enamored with her food was Jobst Brandt. He could not tell me enough how much he loved her New Orleans Jambalaya. She sold out of her vegetarian Mirabella Chicken well before the evening was done and her Mediterranean Chicken with Polenta was also a big hit. http://dreamdinners.com

It was the generous contributions of Whole Foods and Clif Bar that rounded out our food offering and a pretty amazing evening.

Thank You YMCA, Palo Alto, Busyclists and Big Thinkers everywhere!!

THX 4 all of U!!

Mark your calendars: Ines Brun comes to America to help send the Busycle to Boston on March 21!! See her astonishing web site: http://trick-bike.com

Silent Auction Supporters
Alex Babysitting | Alex Kids Basketball | Aquarius Theatre | California Pizza Kitchen | Dr Phil Fletcher| Dream Dinners | Human Health Logic | Powered Home | Jill Cohen | Longs Drugs | Michael's Light Toys | Mike's Cafe | Milk Pail Market | La Morenita Mex Restaurant | My Gym | One-to-One Tutoring Service | Palo Alto High School | Positive Massage Therapy | SP Kid Wear | Spa Joli at University Mission Medical Clinic | United Studios of Self Defense | Velo Tech Bike Store | Winter Lodge | The Eyeworks | Whole Foods

Bagpipe Support:
Paul Llewellyn

Unwheeldy Transport Crew (from Sharon Heights in Menlo Park):
Dave Delgado | Martin Krieg | Matthew Blaine | Chris Llewellyn | David Adams

Volunteers (not named above)
Chloe Blanchard | Catherine Blanchard | Kristen Diemont | JohnE Cabrera | Jenny Fitzsimmons | Dwight Harbaugh | Alex Jessup | Nayana J | Jimmy Kang | Moria Kang | Geoff Llewellyn | Mark Lewellyn | Colleen Miller | Debbie Witt | Jason Wong

btw: This report was delayed by my HiWhjeel breaking in half, at slow speed last week. With me on it. Luckily I escaped serious injury because of the butt pak I wear. In terms of then getting the bike repaired, I am also fortunate to have a friend named Tom Schoeniter who was able to free up some time today to get me the fix I needed. A local frame builder, Tom also teaches design at the Academy of Art in San Francisco. He expertly welded and brazed a joint so impeccable that one would have to look pretty hard to know my frame had ever been damaged. Keep an eye on this guy. He has studied with some of the California and Pacific Northwest bike builder greats and he is just now coming into his own. The bikes he builds are all beautiful works of art.....

Bouncing bikes make 11/15 Busycle Farewell Event go Ballistic

As 11/15 rapidly approaches, as we here at the National Bicycle Greenway have seen over the last ten years of our public event history, the excitement for that which is straight ahead is pouring forth like a gusher that threatens to explode out of control. Besides all the new ideas, offers of help and exhibits and sponsors that want to play with us at the Palo Alto YMCA. we just heard from Mr, Bicycle! Peter Wagner will be there! With **nine** of his mind blowing, show stopping bikes (he has built and owns hundreds). I mean Peter is a man whose bikes and bike exploits stand so tall among his Davis, CA contemporaries that American Profile came all the way from Tennessee to do a (http://www.americanprofile.com/article/2511.html) STORY about him. American Profile. is a national magazine that publishes stories "about this country's roots, and the people and places that still make America great".

Nor is great a relative term where Peter and his bikes are concerned. He is a true giant among all those men and women who make Davis, CA one of the top bicycle towns in all of the USA. Like a modern day Robin Hood, he takes the left overs of the bicycle rich and gives to the physically challenged poor. While all those in his immediate neighborhood (especially the kids) get to ride the astonishing creations that are built from those things often disposed of in recycling yards and garbage dumps, Peter also gets people with disabilities on the one bike he has become famous for.

An overgrown bouncing bike, patterned after the Ingo that enjoyed popularity from 1934 to 1937, Peter calls it the Whymcycle. Imagine a "bike" with wheels several feet wide that are between a platform that you stand on to bounce up and down on for forward motion and you will understand what a Whymcycle is. Nor are Peter's creations dainty. He has made versions that have won races that travel over sand, land and through water such as what the Kinetic Tiki Bar Lounge and Unwheeldy that will also be at our show are able to do.

Pictures of Peter's bikes can be found at the bottom of our Busycle Farewell web page (http://bikeroute.com/BusycleFarewell). Peter joins the world's fastest cyclist, the world's fastest bike and the world's top mechanical authority and many other top bicycle people in their field to help us send the world's slowest bike, the Busycle back to a museum in Boston. All this as Marla Goody leads some of the hottest musical talent in the Bay Area to make for a true celebration of historical proportion. 4PM outside show. 6 PM inside the stunningly beautiful YMCA!

I can barely type this, I am so excited!!

Still needed:
- Cyclists for the convoy that will bring Unwheeldy from Menlo Park to our event. 10 AM Saturday
- Cyclists to help clean the Busycle on Saturday at 2PM and then ride it over to the Y
- Bike Parking attendants
- Test ride parking lot attendants
- Runners for Jeannie, Silvie and Faye

To help, reply to Jeannie Llewellyn: jkllew@comcast.net

THX 4 all of U!!

For more event details please visit: http://www.pingg.com/enjs3v6x6kzyrr8jg

Major Bike Party - World's Fastest Cyclist Joins Fastest Race & Commute Bike to Honor Slowest

Legendary bike racer, Fast Freddy Markham,(hear part one of a two part podcast) will be talking about his storied racing career and why one of his bikes is in the Smithsonian, at our 11/15 Busycle Farewell Party. With speed as the theme, wether it be slow as with our Busycle or fast as with Tim Brummer and his Lightning F-40, unequivocally the the fastest race and commute bike on the planet, there will be a lot of action taking place in only **9** days time here at the Palo Alto YMCA.

While TIm has been busy logging 50,000 to and from work miles on  his own F-40 over the last 10 years, Freddy has been adding to the speed successes that have made him famous. Even before 1986 when he won the $18K Dupont prize for being the first man to top 65 mph, this former two time Olympian was already the most feared track bike cyclist at San Jose's Hellyer Park Velodrome. Along the way toward his then shattering 20 different world records, Freddy also just recently won the $25K Nissan One Hour Challenge covering 53.4 miles in a single hour from a standing start!

Freddy & Tim will be joined by other two wheel celebrities, including Fred's daughter, Tanya Markham, the first woman to go 63 mph on a bike. Revered bicycle author, Jobst Brandt, will be giving his widely acclaimed Swiss Alps cycling slide show. Besides Busycle rides and Kinetic Sculpture Vehicles that will astound the young and the old, some of the area's best musical talent will also be hand. Besides the hard charging rhythms of the Marla Goody Band, Las Vegas sensation, Iya Khan, will also be  sounding his tunes. As will celebrated bagpiper, Paul Llewellyn. Jugglers, unicyclists, Yo Yo champions, great food and more.......

All this as show attendees also get a chance to help design Busycle 2.0 and bid on the many treasures that the Palo Alto community and beyond have donated to help send the Boston born Busycle to its museum home on the East Coast, You won't want to miss the biggest bike party the SF Bay Area will have ever seen. Details: http://bikeroute.com/BusycleFarewell

World's Fastest Commute Bike to Honor Slowest

The Lightning F-40, the world's fastest production bike, will help send one of the world's slowest "bikes", the 15-person Busycle, back to Boston when its builder, Tim Brummer, talks about what makes his machines  so fast at the Nov 15 Busycle Farewell Party. Not only have Tim's bikes established a large number of speed successes, including a 5 day, 7 hour crossing of America, but Tim has over 50,000 to and from work miles on  his own F-40. With that in mind, Tim will also talk about why his bikes are great for transportation.

Nor is Tim the only attraction that will be in Palo Alto at the Family YMCA to say good bye to the slow moving comedy that the Busycle is. Besides the Kinetic Sculpture Vehicles that will astound the young and the old, Tim will also be joined by other two wheel celebrities, including Tanya Markham, the first woman to go 63 mph on a bike, authors Jobst Brandt and Martin Krieg and recumbent inventor, Jack Baker, and etc. Some of the area's best musical talent will also be hand. Besides the hard charging rhythm of the Marly Goody Band, Las Vegas sensation, Iya Khan, will also be  sounding his tunes.

Since it is a fund raiser, show attendees will also get a chance to bid on the many treasures that the Palo Alto community and beyond have donated for this cause. And before it leaves for its museum home on the East Coast, this event will give event goers a chance to make history should  they opt to go on one of the last Busycle rides this machine will ever make.

Other Speakers include:
Jobst Brandt Slide show - Biking the Alps
Freddy Markham - World's Fastest Cyclist
Tim Brummer - How I Built the World's Fastest Bike
Jeff Kistler - How to Build a Bicycle Wheel (tentative)

Detaisl - http://bikeroute.com/BusycleFarewell

Marla Goody Band to send the Busycle back to Boston

The amazing and beautiful Marla Goody, a vocal powerhouse beyond compare, has agreed to bring her band to the sprawling YMCA complex in Palo Alto, CA, to help send the Busycle back to its home in Boston. She will be joined by other local bands as yet to be confirmed and there will also be a place on the stage for Chantal V's scintillating tango exhibition. All this as jugglers and unicyclists fill in what empty spots remain.

Legends from bicycling including Jobst Brandt, the author of the timeless book, "The Bicycle Wheel" and Tanya Markham, the first woman to go 63 mph on a bike, will be there. Rumor has it that Fast Freddy Markham, Tanya's dad, and first man to go 65 mph, twenty years before, will also be on hand.

Besides the Busycle rides that will encircle the 1/4 miles track we will have formed in the massive parking lot outside, Kinetic Sculpture Vehicles from far and near will also be offering rides as well as exhibitions.

Don't forget:
Great food from well known culinary artists
The chance to get your photo taken with a real 19th century bike
Silent auction with great prizes from the community and beyond
Etc, etc

The end result will be an epic day of fun and memories that will live on for a long long time....

Martin Krieg's '09 Bike Ride Across US for SF to Boston Bike Map

Besides returning the Busycle to its creators, Matthew Mazzotta and Heather Clark, the main reason I am riding my HiWheel from San Francisco to Boston next year is to bring attention to the NBG Visualization Plan (a business plan less financials). A view of how America could look with a bicycle and greenway economy instead of one based on cars, trucks and high speed roads, this inspiring document is contained in my new book “How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto”.

Before we make the words found in my manifesto real, however, we must identify the network of roads and paths that connect San Francisco with the birthplace of the bicycle in America, Boston. As many of you will likely recall, there was no annual Mayors' Ride in 2007 because I took that time to devise an on line mapping program, that we could use to figure out where the Greenway will run. What I came up with is fun to use and runs like a game as it builds community and, by default, the National Bicycle Greenway.

That is not what we have at our site now, however. Until we locate funding, what we do have now, with humble and deferential thanks to Grey Lowell, has the purpose of beating an on line trail to Bikeroute.com as the place to go to look up as well as learn about the best way to get anywhere on a bike. As routes get added to our present mapping service, they will ultimately form the underlay for the dedicated bike map (where bike roads and not car roads are the reference points) Grey's awesome work will become. It is our hope that my ride will flesh out the investment capital required for this second phase make over undertaking we foresee.

In the interim, and before I hit the road next 5/5, as I am doing fund raisers and those other revenue generating programs that will be needed so I can procure the bio diesel bus that will support my third coast to coast bike crossing, I need your help with the route I will be taking. The San Francisco to Boston bike connection, most of what I will have ridden will become the main trunk line for the National Bicycle Greenway, off of which all the others will feed.

With regard the route inventory below, NBG Director, Faye Saunders, has agreed to help us fill in the blanks flagged below with an asterisk. She will soon be contacting all those Scouts who have ridden Mayors' Ride relay legs for us over the years. If you have not ridden for us and still want to help us make any of these missing connections real, do contact me at NBG@bikeroute.com

1. Oakland to Berkeley
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=115

2. Berkeley to Napa
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=128

* Napa to Sacramento 

* Sacramento to Folsom
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=119
(ALONG AMERICAN RIVER PARWY - NEEDS EDITORIAL COMMENTARY)

5. Folsom to Reno
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=116

* Reno to Salt Lake City
(NEEDS SHORT DISTANCE FROM RENO TO FALLON)
- Fallon to Ely
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=77
- Ely to Baker
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=79
- Baker to Salt Lake City
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=80

* Salt Lake City to Boulder

* Boulder to Denver
- Boulder to Golden
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=69
(DIRECTION OF TRAVEL NEEDS TO BE REVERSED)
- Golden to Denver
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=113

* Denver to Omaha

* Omaha to Des Moines
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/showRoute.php?routeid=96
(NOTES FROM: http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide2005/Omaha/DesMoinesToOmaha.html NEED TO BE ADDED TO ABOVE ROUTE)

* Des Moines to Chicago

* Chicago to Indianapolis

* Indianapolis to Cincinnati
http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide2005/Indianapolis/CincyTOIndy.html
(DIRECTION OF TRAVEL NEEDS TO BE REVERSED & PLOTTED TO BIKEROUTE.COM MAPS)

* Cincinnati to Columbus
http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide2005/Cincinnati/ColumbusTOCincinnati.html
(DIRECTION OF TRAVEL NEEDS TO BE REVERSED & PLOTTED TO BIKEROUTE.COM MAPS)

* Columbus to Pittsburgh
http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide2005/Pittsburgh/PittsburghTOColumbus.html
(DIRECTION OF TRAVEL NEEDS TO BE REVERSED & PLOTTED TO BIKEROUTE.COM MAPS)

* Pittsburgh to Washington DC
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=144
(NEEDS EDITORIAL COMMENTARY ADDED FROM TROY BOGDAN'S DC TO PGH AT
http://www.bikeroute.com/ConnectingRidesFolder/WashingtonDC-PittsburghPA.html )

* Washington DC to Mt Rainier
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=110
(NEEDS EDITORIAL COMMENTARY ADDED)

*. Mt Rainier to Baltimore
http://www.bikeroute.com/BRdC/routeViewer.php?routeid=97
(NEEDS EDITORIAL COMMENTARY ADDED

* Baltimore to Philadelphia

* Philadelphia to New York City

* New York City to Boston

THX 4 all of U!!

Btw: Keep an eye on my '09 ride Visualization Page at http://www.bikeroute.com/HBGR . Soon I will be itemizing an itinerary of needs for the ride that maybe you can help me with...

Ines Brunn WOWS NBG Busyclists

On 7/22/08 German trick bike sensation, Ines Brunn, visited the National Bicycle Greenway (NBG) here in Palo Alto, CA. Besides riding the Busycle and giving our riders and escorts more than few stellar artistic cycling performances (video soon), she also rode NBG Director, Martin Krieg's HiWheel bike. The wheel is 52 inches tall, a little big for Ines as you will see here:

But everyone loved it!!

More info about the NBG, Busycle and HiWheel bikes can be found at Bikeroute.com. A complete repertoire of Ines's two wheel bike magic can be found at

Trick-bike.com

Famous German Bike Queen to Ride with NBG Mayors' Ride Busycle

Ines Brun, the beyond epic German bike acrobat sensation, who can do things on a bicycle that challenge one's imagination as well as the ability to explain that which has occurred, has accepted an invitation to ride the Busycle here next Tuesday night! The excitement for what is ahead is very hard to contain. I mean we're talking about an athlete and body movement magician whose performances are so powerful, and at the same time compelling with their artistic grace, that they fill entire sporting arenas back in her home country. WOW!!

A humble giant, intoxicated with all things bicycle, one would never know that outside of the unprecedented bike tricks she can do, she is a much in demand practicing physicist on assignment in China. And yet it is easy to see why she is coming to us here in Palo Alto, just south of San Francisco and the home of Stanford, to ride our 15 person truck/bike. As a real cyclist, her blood boils so hot for bicycles that in the knowing that what we do here in the U.S. is copied the world around, she wants to use a part of her American vacation to help call attention to the the National Bicycle Greenway vision.

Toward that end, Ines might also join me for all or part of my Mayors' Ride/Author Tour from San Francisco to Boston next summer at http://www.bikeroute.com/HBGR . While I do have her assurance that she will help us send the event off next Spring!

When she comes out in five days time, she will join us as we pedal across town to hear the also legendary band, Norton Buffalo, play the second to last show in the Palo Alto summer concert series. And since she will ride with us on the way to the park and we can't say where or when, spontaneous street theater will surely occur along the way. Bearing witness to a few minutes here, a few seconds there, all as yet on a route or at locations that we will not know until we reach them, the select group of cyclists chosen for this Busycle ride or those who come along as escorts (all invited) will be privy to excitement that few people ever get a chance to view.

If you want to see why I am so excited for us to be entertained by the Babe Rube of cycling, a woman who stands so tall above other champion cyclists that she has no equal, do get a look at her web at

http://www.trick-bike.com

For details, including the location of the Busycle garage: NBG@bikeroute.com

Yahoo Ines!!

THX 4 all of U!!

Washington DC Most Improved Biking City in the Nation!

Washington DC Most Improved Biking City in the Nation!

When I rode solo from the West Coast to Washington DC in 1979, after being celebrated in newspapers and with innumerable acts of kindness that included free meals, hats and t-shirts, etc, I got to the edge of the Nation's Capitol and had to hitch hike to get inside the Beltway freeway system that encircles the city. Once inside, I found myself dodging buses and taxis on a loaded touring bike. Every where I went, people looked at me with pity. I don't remember seeing anyone else on a bicycle.

It was a sad, depressing end to the victory I had won in biking across the US to prove that I had come back from my head injury. Like my long journey back from two months in a coma and paralysis and all the other many debilitations that resulted, Washington, DC is well on the way back to its return to health.

In the chapter of my new book,“How America can Bike and Grow Rich, The National Bicycle Greenway Manifesto”, where I talk about Washington DC, I say:

========================================
it takes the persistent work of the Washington Area Bicyclist’s Association (WABA) to make it possible for cyclists to effectively move about here.
========================================

And indeed they have come a long way. Toward that end, HERE is the Podcast interview I did with WABA director, Eric Gilliland, as WABA was, unbeknownst to them moving toward this award.......

Too exiting!!

6th Annual Pgh to DC Canal Ride Needs Riders

When Nick Hein stepped forward to offer his services as a rider/scout last week, our plan to use this year to keep our focus only on our 22 Mayors' Ride cities changed. This is so because Nick has led rides for us before and since this will be the fourth time he will have done this ride, he knows exactly what we need from him with little or no input from us. He knows when and where to take photos, how to get them to us in the most expedient way and he always keeps us abreast of his maneuverings with timely reports.

So, if you want to learn from an old pro and have 360 miles in your legs, do consider taking part in this years Mayors' Ride relay which makes use of back roads and the historic C&O Canal Trail to get you from Pittsburgh City Hall to Washington DC City Hall. A fully self contained cycle camping journey., every year that we have done this ride, the stories and the photo galleries have all been epic.

Here for example are slide shows for all but the first year:
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/slideshow.php?set_albumName=DC-Pgh2006
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/slideshow.php?set_albumName=DC-Pittsburgh2005
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/Pittsburgh2004
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/2003Mayors

From the Pittsburgh Mayor's send off on July 7th to the Washington DC Mayor's reception a week later on June 14, this will easily be one of the most memorable bike rides you will have ever done!!

Nick will be out of email contact next week, but he can be reached by cell at 304-276-0213

If U wan to do this ride contact me at NBG@bikeroute.com so we con coordinate with you as well as put your name at our schedule/scorecard at http://www.BikeRoute.com/NationalMayorsRide2008

THX 4 all of U!!