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The good news is that at the end of the night, we got to stand on the deck of an aircraft carrier and proclaim ‘mission accomplished’ even though we didn’t actually complete the job (both had details to finish later). But the real good news is that the rest of this article is basically just pictures and a crappy video. So enjoy that.

The final color – Putting the finishing touches on the new Speedhound Bike poster

Goin’ hard in the paint! from MPLS Bike Love on Vimeo.

Builder’s paradise – A new Speedhound is born

MPLS Bike Love is teaming up with local cycling kit maker Podiumwear Custom Apparel to produce our new thermal jersey.

Designed to match our socks from last “winter,” this jersey is no nonsense black and white (technically cream) for cold weather riding – either as a base layer or over the top of other layers. And the bold BIKE LOVE graphic on the back says it all.

–THE TEAM STORE IS NOW CLOSED –

Fabric
Podiumwear’s ‘Normandy Gold’ fabric is a slightly heavier-weight 100% Polyester micro-grid fabric that provides a high level of moisture management and breathability, while the brushed interior keeps you warm and comfortable on those brisk rides.

Features

• YKK Coil Zipper with Podiumwear Ergonomic Pull
• Contoured Raglan Sleeve Construction
• Soft Tension Elastic at Waist and Pockets
• Three Back Dump Pockets
• Semi Form Fit

Price Point

$100 each – includes:

• TEAM STORE Processing Fee ($5)
• Shipping
• One (1) MPLS Bike Love all weather spoke card
• Two (2) MPLS Bike Love vinyl logo stickers

How to Order

Orders will be placed individually using Podiumwear’s new TEAM STORE.

• Team Store Open – Wednesday, September 19 @ Noon
• Team Store Close – Wednesday, October 17 @ Midnight
• Jersey Ship Date – Jerseys are expected to ship during the week of November 5

–THE TEAM STORE IS NOW CLOSED –

This time, they’re taking a trip around the word to explore the vast beauty of planet and its people. And to do it, they’ve recruited the best adventure cycling has to offer – Matthew Lee (Tour Divide multi-winner, record holder, and Ride the Divide star) and Kurt Refsnider (2011 Tour Divide champion).

Reveal the Path will take you to places like Scotland, Switzerland, Morocco, and beyond. And it won’t disappoint. Whether you’re looking for brilliant landscapes and cinematography, a little philosophy, secretly have a crush on Matthew Lee, or just like bikes, this movie is inspiring. In a way, Reveal the Path reminded me of Bruce Brown’s The Endless Summer, but with a slightly more philosophical bend to it.

So grab your buddies, your bike, a couple of bucks, and come see the WORD PREMIERE of Reveal the Path this Thursday (May 31) at the Riverview Theatre!

There will be 2 shows – one at 7 PM and one at 9 PM. And for all you star-stuck bike and film nerds out there, all four gentlemen mentioned in this little review – Mike, Hunter, Matthew, and Kurt – will be there to sign autographs and flex their calf muscles for the cameras.

Learn more about the Reveal the Path WORLD PREMIERE!

THANK YOU to all of our members, sponsors, forum administrators, and “staffers” for keeping MPLS Bike Love strong and vibrant. Thank you to the City Pages for your recognition. And maybe most importantly, thank you to all of the other groups and individuals working for the same cause – to foster and build a better and more bicycle-friendly Twin Cities.

There’s a very good reason that Minneapolis and Saint Paul are nationally recognized as bicycling leaders and we are just a small part of that.

BIKE LOVE!

Now when you register for the Urban Assault Ride set for 6/10 in Minneapolis, you can enter a Northeast Ride coupon code and receive $10 off of your registration. And the best part? Northeast Ride receives $10 too!

Here are some more details about each ride:

The Northeast Ride, slated for June 2, 2012, will take cyclists on a tour of Northeast Minneapolis. The ride will stop at neighborhood parks for interactive creative activities like lawn games, make your own spoke cards, Johnstock Festival, and more! The Northeast Ride will also take participants through the arts district, touring past the great Northeast creative buildings and historical landmarks like the Casket Arts Building and the Grain Belt Brewery, while using some of the new bike trails and bikeways.

Register for Northeast Ride

The Urban Assault Ride is the biggest bicycle obstacle event series in the nation. The event is happening on June 10, 2012 in Minneapolis. Teams set out on a city-wide quest for ‘checkpoints’ –when you arrive at a checkpoint, you drop your bike and compete in an obstacle course before heading to the next station. The goal is to complete the checkpoints in the shortest amount of time.

Register for the Urban Assault Ride – Minneapolis
Code: MSP12NERide10off

The Summit will also include some great speakers to inspire you and arm you with the knowledge needed to talk to your elected officials about the positive effect bicycling has in our state. The morning session will be kicked off by Jay Walljasper with a presentation entitled The Great Minnesota Bike Success Story: How to Keep it Rolling. We will close the morning session with Christine Fruechte, CEO of the award winning ad firm of Colle + McVoy. Christine will talk about being a Bicycle Friendly Business and the creative and production work they are doing to develop the upcoming, really cool, PedalMN – the bike friendly state media campaign. John Edman, director of Explore Minnesota Tourism, will introduce Christine and the partners that will make the campaign happen.

Minnesota’s first state bikeway will be the Mississippi River Trail (MRT). A signed, mostly on bike friendly road route, from Itasca, through Minneapolis, to the Iowa border and some day on to the Gulf of Mexico. It would become part of the U.S. Bicycle Route System and, if all goes as planned, be the start of a signed network of bike friendly roads that eventually covers the state.

The 2012 Minnesota legislative session may also make history by creating the first state funded Safe Routes to School grant program in the nation. The proposal would allocate $3 million to the grant program and expand the eligibility, from the federal program’s focus on elementary schools, to all schools. And, perhaps most importantly, it will send a strong bi-partisan message (yes there are lots of Republicans and Democrats that have signed on to the bill) that the Minnesota Legislature thinks encouraging and facilitating more bicycling and walking is part of the solution to some of our society’s big problems.

BikeMN will also be involved in other bicycling policy issues this year. Although, it is hard to say which ones will get traction given the fact that the focus of the legislative sessions in the even numbered years is the capital investment/bonding bill. BikeMN’s top policy priority is a bill that would create a class of vulnerable road users and increase the penalties for killing or injuring one when committing another driving offense. BikeMN will also be working on bills that would make it legal for bicyclists to use studded tires and for low speed/low power electric-assisted bicycles to be ridden on trails and on streets without having to follow the motorcycle lighting and equipment and lighting requirements. It would also allow trail and road authorities to ban electric-assisted bicycles if they create a conflict with other users.

BikeMN wants to make bicycling in Minnesota a safe, easy, fun, and cool choice for everyone so that more people bicycle more often. To be successful in this endeavor, we need you to get involved. Let your local and state officials know how important bicycling is to you, your business, and your community by attending the 2012 Bike Summit. And help us spread the word! Please let all of your bicycling friends know about BikeMN and encourage them to attend the Summit as well.

The Summit is sponsored by Quality Bicycle Products and extra bike parking will be provided by Dero Bike Racks.

Together we will do great things for bicycling in Minnesota!

BE THERE FOR BIKES!

Dorian Grilley,
Executive Director, Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota

Are you looking for the perfect gift for that crazy-ass winter cycling friend of yours? Or are you that crazy-ass winter cyclist? Whatevs. This is it!!

We’ve teamed up with DeFeet to produce the warmest socks you may ever put your feet into. And our timing couldn’t be better because DeFeet recently upgraded their super warm Woolie Boolie line into the super warmer Woolie Boolie 2.

Thick, warm, and made to perform, our new MPLS Bike Love socks feature a no frills design to reinforce the no frills nature of winter cycling.

Order Now! – Please note, this product won’t ship until December.

Product Details

• Woolie Boolie 2 sock made by DeFeet
• Fabric –64% Wool, 34% Nylon, 2% Lycra
• Color – Charcoal Gray and Natural
• Cuff – 6″

Sizing Details

• Small (Women 6-8)
• Medium (Men 7-9.5 / Women 8.5-10.5)
• Large (Men 10-12 / Women 11-13)
• Extra-Large (Men 12-14).

Order Now! – Please note, this product won’t ship until December.

For those of you that missed the article introducing the Northeast Ride, I’ll summarize: slated for June 2, 2012, the Northeast Ride is going to be a creative cycling tour through the 13 neighborhoods of Northeast.

And it’s going to be awesome.

Making Progress

We’ve got the website up, have started to plan routes, have our budgets in line, and have begun crafting volunteer roles and activities for participants. We’ve received support from friends in the Minneapolis Public Works program, and from a variety of businesses in Northeast. The pieces are, bit by bit, all coming together.

What does “Creative Cycling Tour” mean, anyway?

Think “Northern Spark” with a little more geographic specificity and route structure between destination points.  Guided tours will leave in increments, touring strategically through the best, most memorable, and historic parts of Northeast. We’ll stop at at least one park in each neighborhood to witness or participate in an ongoing activity. Riders that want to stop can take a break, others can continue on the tour. Ideas for these activities include:

• An old timey bike photo booth (complete with dapper clothes at hand for picture purposes)
• A Northeast time capsule riders can contribute to
• Make-your-own spoke card and bike decorating station

And more. We’re taking suggestions, too – so if you have any great ideas you want to share, let us know! Mainly – stops will have creative activities that are entertaining to watch and fun to participate in. The tour will end at one of the Northeast parks with an expo-style festival featuring music, refreshments, and bike / bike art related exhibitions. There’s rumor of an alley cat contest in the works as well.

Why do you need money? It’s just a bike ride.

We’re planning a lot more than just a ride. We want to make sure the entire event is well-organized, well-promoted, and as safe as possible for the participants. (Especially any wee participants.) After running through several different budgets, $15,000 is the number we came to that will allow us to pull this event off without compromising safety, creativity, or legality. We’re trying to get as much in-kind as possible, but our projected expenses include:

• Printing and promotional costs
• Insurance
• Map / route creation
• Tshirts
• Marking off key streets
• Permits
• Event stands/displays at the participating parks
• Safety needs for riders (first aid kits for tour guides, etc)
• Entertainment and permits for the after-tour celebration
• Volunteer supplies / rider organization needs

Why now?

Why not?

In all seriousness, we’re doing this Kickstarter project now for a few reasons. We have spent the past 6 months doing some of the initial pre-planning, budgeting and networking. We think it’s a great idea and so has everybody we’ve talked to. But we need to know that we’ll have the community interest and support needed to pull this off. We’ve done all we can without starting to incur printing, permitting and promotional expenses. We think that pre-registrations and pledges are a great way to show support, and ensure we’re going to have the resources we need to… well, kickstart this initiative! Isn’t that what Kickstarter is about?

How you can help:

Pledges are awesome, but there are additional options to show your support and help make this ride happen.

• Share the kickstarter page: kickstarter.com/projects/469564467/celebrate-northeast-minneapolis-with-the-ne-ride
• Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/NortheastRide
• Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/#!/northeastride
• Check out and share the site: northeastride.org

And of course, if you want to get really involved you can always join the planning committee. The next meeting is November 22, 5:30pm at Altered Esthetics Gallery.

—–MESSAGE START—–

Dear Members and Friends of BikeMN,

We are sending this urgent message to you because you are a supporter of bicycling in Minnesota.

It’s happening again. Just one month ago, Sen. Coburn (R-OK) failed in his efforts to strip funding for Transportation Enhancements from the six-month transportation extension.

Now, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is taking the lead in trying to destroy Transportation Enhancements.
On November 1, the Senate will finalize the transportation appropriations bill, which sets funding levels for FY2012. Sen. Paul has offered an amendment to redirect all funding for Transportation Enhancements to bridge repair.

We agree on the need to keep our bridges safe, especially in Minnesota. But the lives of pedestrians and cyclists are important too. Thirteen people died when the Minneapolis bridge collapsed in 2007. In 2009 alone, close to 42 pedestrians and 10 bicyclists were killed in crashes with motor vehicles on Minnesota roads, often as a result of poor highway design and a lack of safe non-motorized infrastructure; exactly what the enhancement program was created to fix.

In fact, dozens of vital Minnesota bicycle and pedestrian projects from the Blazing Star Trail in Albert Lea to the Goodhue Pioneer Trail in Zumbrota have been funded out of Transportation Enhancements.

Click here for a full list of Minnesota TE projects to date.

If Sen. Paul’s amendment is successful, it would eliminate approximately $700 million in federal funding for FY2012 that is used to construct sidewalks, bike lanes, bike paths, trails and other infrastructure making it safe for bicyclists and pedestrians to get around. Even if every penny of these funds is diverted to bridge repairs, Senator Paul’s plan will still take 80 years to fix the backlog of bridge repairs we have today by which time all those repaired bridges would be falling down again.

Remember that the TE program represents less than two percent of the federal transportation program and these projects help alleviate traffic congestion, improve safety, get people active, and create more jobs per dollar than highway-only projects.

Remember also that last year, states sent back to Washington $530 million of unspent bridge funds in rescissions. The states are leaving bridge repair funds on the table, unspent, year after year. They should at least spend these funds first.

If the Paul amendment succeeds, it will make it much more challenging to sustain funding for Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, and Recreational Trails in the long-term transportation bill that the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee starts debating on November 9.

We must turn back any amendment to strip Transportation Enhancements.

Last month, more than 75,000 messages were sent nationally to Senators to ask them to stand strong for Transportation Enhancements. Thank you, that was an amazing turnout, but we must do better this time. Every time someone in Congress attacks bicycling and walking, we must push back even stronger than we did the time before. And, we will keep doing it until bicycle and pedestrian funding is protected.

This is the third time in a month that a small group of Senators has targeted Transportation Enhancements, using a different angle each time. It is a waste of the Senate’s time and taxpayer dollars to focus on this small and valuable program when we are in dire need of real and viable solutions to fix our failing transportation system.

Please contact Senators Klobuchar and Frankin today to ask them to vote against the Paul amendment (SA-821) to eliminate Transportation Enhancements. And then please forward this message to your family, friends, neighbors and colleagues with a link to the League of American Bicyclists Action Center. Below you’ll find a sample letter you can customize to send to your Senators, as well.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at dorian [at] bikemn.org or 651-387-2445.

Thank you for your help today, and for passing along the call to action.

Dorian Grilley
Executive Director
Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota

—–SAMPLE LETTER TO SENATORS—–

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has offered an amendment to the 2012 Transportation Appropriations bill that would eliminate all Transportation Enhancement (TE) program funds and re-direct them to pay for bridge repairs. I urge you to reject this proposal, to put an end to the repeated failed attacks on this popular and effective program, and to quit wasting time on a small and valuable program that won’t solve the bridge issue.

Senator Paul’s amendment will not make a difference for bridges. Even if every penny of the TE program is diverted to bridge repair, it would take 80 years of funding to fix today’s backlog of bridge repairs. Meanwhile, the death toll of pedestrians and bicyclists left to fend for themselves on roads and bridges that fail to accommodate them safely would likely continue at more than 50 lives a year.

I agree that bridges, like transit, bikeways and walkways, have been chronically underfunded for years because state Departments of Transportation are spending too many of our transportation dollars on ever-more expensive and ineffective highway expansion projects that we can’t afford to maintain. The choice is not between bridges, transit and bikeways, all of which are vital for the safety and health of our economy and our communities. The real choice is between fixing and improving what we already have versus continued unsustainable highway expansion projects.

Investing in better and safer conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians in Minnesota is not the reason our nation’s bridges are in a poor state of repair. States returned more than $530 million of unspent bridge money in last year’s rescission of funds. The entire TE program is less than two-tenths of one percent of the Federal budget and is barely 1.5% of the entire Federal transportation budget. It would take more than 80 years of TE funding to fix the current backlog of repairs.

On November 9, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will begin discussion of the next transportation bill. THAT is the appropriate time to discuss changes to the overall transportation program, not during the appropriations process. Congress has repeatedly rejected this approach and I urge you to reject this latest attack on the TE program.

Yours sincerely,