7.31.2009

Bike Share Demo in Golden Gate Park This Sunday!


As experts in sharing modes of transportation, you are invited to check out a fun way to get around this Sunday in Golden Gate Park.

The SFMTA and City CarShare, in partnership with BIXI of Montreal, are bringing a Bicycle Sharing Equipment Demonstration to San Francisco!

Test ride the bikes on car-free JFK drive and learn more about this exciting new mode of urban transportation. Through this demonstration project, City CarShare hopes to encourage awareness and increased civic conversation about Bike Sharing for San Francisco. Does bike sharing have the potential to build a greener city while encouraging healthy living? Come and see and tell us what you think.

Look for the City CarShare tent in Golden Gate Park just inside the Car-Free Sunday road closure on John F. Kennedy Drive at Conservatory Drive East Sunday, August 2 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

7.30.2009

stern grove sexiness

Summer in SF usually stinks of pea soup fog, but now and then we experience hot sunny days. And it's even better when those days fall on a Sunday so we can lounge in the sunshine at Stern Grove. I've been attending the concerts religiously this year. And so have most other SFers. The Grove offers free valet bike parking for cyclists. Perhaps this hip young woman took advantage of that perk.


Her outfit was so amazing that I had to do a 360 degree view of her.

A pencil skirt on a man's frame fixie. She's got some cajones.

Cycle style leaves its mark at the Grove.

7.29.2009

the shoe is part of the outfit!

The best thing about rolling up a pant leg and getting on your bike is that you get to show off your shoes.

And socks! (When was the last time someone noticed your cute argyle socks?)

F would be for Fluevog.

Whatever your footwear fancy, be sure to flaunt it!

7.26.2009

Critical Mass

Critical Mass is this Friday, the 31st, and is always on the last Friday of the month. Meet at Justin Herman Plaza on the San Francisco Embarcadero at 6p.

Is Critical Mass a protest or a celebration? I've never know. What do you think?

CM has its own special vogue. Sometimes people wear funny outfits. Sometimes people come right from work.

Sometimes people are just plain gorgeous.

Everyone is always expressing their own unique style.

And everyone comes to have fun!

7.24.2009

more rouge et noir


That's my kind of girl! Stunning smile paired with stunning red coat, black tights and red flats. Even the Chrome logo matches. Rouge et noir from head to toe!

7.22.2009

[Gordon Price] Vancouver's Insane Experiment

Last weekend, after years of debate, the City of Vancouver experimentally converted one of the outbound lanes of the Burrard Bridge to a bike lane, leaving two outbound traffic lanes where there had been three. This should have been a problem on the afternoon peak. The media were out in force, ready to interview angry motorists and stream live video of gridlock. And as Gordon [Price] documents on his blog, nothing much happened.

Info thanks to Tom Radulovich and my old boss Jarrett Walker

VTA Vogue

I commute for about a million years every day. So, it means a lot to me when the cyclists on the trains I ride make a little extra effort to look nice. I noticed this woman immediately in her blouse, slacks and strappy sandals waiting on the platform.

She looked absolutely nothing like the computer/bike nerds I usually ride with, who are very sweet and will look things up in their mobile wi-fi access laptops if you ask nicely. But they are usually just wearing t-shirts and jeans.

7.21.2009

The Sunday Side Of The Street

Our second Mission based Sunday Street has come and gone. The streets are so beautiful when they are free of cars. People are free to live life out loud, in the open, without worry about what could happen.


You can see it on the faces of the people- relaxed, happy, peaceful, open.



When you can just hang out on your bike, and let the world swirl around you, the cycle chic is completely secondary.



But, Lance Armstrong has no problem being second this year, so I am sure the chic won't mind either.



I hear Dutch bikes are the new fixies. We already knew they were the new black. Still will be in 20 years.


BART Vogue

Bike vogue on transit is definitely its own category. Statistically, this is probably the 24th Street Station, but it looks just like 16th Street.

This chyck caught my eye biking in leggings and short jean skirt which is really a perfect outfit to bike in if you think about it. Her elegant black fixie and ergonomic seat tell their own story.

I love the way this photo came out with the flash keeping some things still with others blurry from the long shutter speed to make up for low light.

7.20.2009

Nerd Fetish

I have a nerd fetish for which I am widely teased. A cute guy who can fix my computer has an infinitely better chance of getting into my pants than one who can't. So, you can imagine that the Mountain View Caltrain station provides nearly enough fodder to give me a seizure. Computer guys... who ride the train with their bikes... Wow!

The problem, from a Velo Vogue standpoint, is that they usually wear jeans and a t-shirt to work. That doesn't give me much of an excuse to take their photos. I was impressed with this guy's office casual garb.

Lest you think the Caltrain isn't completely packed with bikers, and we don't really appreciate the increased bike capacity on the trains, below is a more typical view of the station shortly before a bullet train arrives. That girl's pretty cute too.

7.18.2009

"Excuse me, can I take your picture?" or Fully Suitted

Here's another one I chased and hollered down the block for a photo opportunity. Once I got his attention, he was absolutely accommodating. I asked him where he was going on his bike dressed this way: "to work" he answered.

"Where do you work?" I asked.
"The DA's office," he answered, and I looked at him with puzzlement. It wasn't the answer I expected. "District Attorney," he clarified.

Valencia Street keeps surprising me....

7.17.2009

Valencia and Duboce

It's a strange location for a biker bar (Zeitgeist). But when I think of this intersection, I think of the bar. From the outside, it's an auto-dominate edge to our little almost-bike-heaven of Valencia Street, the mucky patch that you must cross before getting to main street, I mean, Market Street.

My photos came out a little blurry, but this lovely lady was well-coordinated. Her shirt matched her bike. Her jacket matched her shoes. And throw in a splash of fun with the floral "skirt" over her pants. The floral print is what first caught my eye.

7.16.2009

Bike Share in Newport Beach!

European style’ bike-sharing to begin in Newport
July 8th, 2009 · posted by Pat Brennan, green living, environment editor
A Newport Beach foundation will become the first to offer “European style” bike-sharing in Orange County, allowing users to grab a bike at one bike station and leave it at another.

Click to continue reading

VV Profile: Jeff Selzer


Occupation: Co-Founder Bike Arc & General Manager Palo Alto Bicycles

Hometown: Mountain View

Bay Area Zip Code/Area Code: 94040/650

Helmet or no helmet: A bit of both

Miles from home to work: 10 miles

Type of bike(s): Ritchey Breakaway/Klein QPRO XX/Calfee Tetra Pro

Describe what you like best about your bikes: They are all very fast!

Describe your cycling experience in the Bay Area: I have been associated with cycling in the Bay Area since the early 80's I was in school at Cal Poly in SLO and we would take road trips to Hellyer Park, and races like Burlingame and Cats Hill. I moved up here in the early 90's and have never
looked back. The riding here is second to none anywhere in the world!

Favorite time or place to ride: Favorite time: Anytime I am awake! Place to ride: I love riding to the coast. Down 84 to San Gregorio back through Pescadero back up to Skyline and down Page Mill. Great climbing, awesome
scenery.

Artist most commonly played on iPod at the moment: ELVIS BABY!

Describe your personal style: Casual low key.

In a nutshell, what is Bike Arc?
Bike Arc is a modular outdoor bike parking system that gives a bike a place of honor in the world!

What fancy adjectives would you use to describe the Bike Arc? Beautiful, artistic, efficient and FUN!

How is Bike Arc contributing to a better biking community? Our hope is it will help elevate the bike to a position of respect as a mode of transportation. On a side note, a person who used the Umbrella Arc we have off of High Street in Palo Alto said it made him want to commute by bike to work (he works in downtown Palo Alto) because he felt good about leaving his bike locked in the Arc.

In your opinion, how do cyclists contribute to a better community - period? This is such a vast question... We contribute by decreasing auto congestion on the city streets. We help reduce noise pollution, exhaust pollution, and visual pollution. We are improving our health which lowers the burden on the health care system. And finally we are improving our mental and physical stamina. It is hard to overstate the value of getting on a bike and riding it!

What do you foresee in bicycling cities of the future? Well there are currently some cities in Europe that are starting to adopt a car free community. Cars are required to stay on the out skirts of the city. The only access is on foot or by bike. Wow - what a great idea. For here in the US in the next 5 years??? I would like to see cycling treated by our politicians with a greater level of respect. We are still seen as the little redheaded stepchild. Right now we have something like 1% mode share (people who commute by bike). What would 5% look like or 10% - wow, that could have a major effect on our world in a very positive way!

7.15.2009

Happy Birthday, Vélib’!

Vélib’, Paris' famous bikeshare program, is two years old today. Here is a movie from Streetfilms on the system made in honor of its first birthday.


Since 15 July 2007 here are some of the main use trends and developments for Vélib in Paris (courtesy of Eric Britton):
- 53 million rides
- 36.5 million with long term (annual) passes
- 16.5 million daily or weekly tickets
- The Vélib street terminals have issued close to 7 million tickets
- Increased use in conjunction with rail/transit stations
- Stations are being extended at key use points
- Continuous monitoring and technical upgrading at level of bikes, stations, distribution, and software
- Increased night maintenance and redistribution
- The following credit cars are now accepted: Visa, MasterCard, Europay, American Express and JCB (with computer chip only, American-style cards do not work)
- Stations now offer full text instructions in English, Spanish, German and Italian, as well as French (which Pariens still occasionally use)
- No bikes or parking slots at your station? Try clicking 4, then 5 on the terminal. It will show you the status of nearby stations for both bikes and parking slots. It also scrolls if you are really desperate.
- iPhone on Vélib

New communes in surrounding area
- 17 already have stations opened between April and June
- 136,556 trips in the new areas
- Program has Vélib extensions to 30 communes in the surrounding area (many of them small cities in their own right)

For more, in French

7.14.2009

Bicycle Film Festival comes to SF!












The Bicycle Film Festival comes to SF July 14 - 18, 2009!

TUESDAY 14 JULY BIKES ROCK -
BLONDE REDHEAD+ SPECIAL GUESTS

WEDNESDAY 15 JULY BIKES ROCK -
BLONDE REDHEAD+ SPECIAL GUESTS

THURSDAY 16 JULY
JOYRIDE ART SHOW
Mulitple Locations
Ever Gold Gallery - 441 O'Farrell St
Market St. Gallery - 1554 Market St. Between Van Ness and Franklin

AFTER PARTY at the Cellar 9PM - 2AM - 685 Sutter Street between Mason and Taylor
42BELOW Vodka Open Bar 10PM - 11PM

FRIDAY 17 JULY
VICTORIA THEATRE 2961 16th St. near Mission St.
7:00 PM | PROGRAM 1 - Where Are You Go
9:00 PM | PROGRAM 2 - Fun Bike Shorts
10:00 PM | AFTER PARTY TBD

SATURDAY 18 JULY
VICTORIA THEATRE 2961 16th St. near Mission St.
12:00 PM | BFF STREET PARTY
1:00 PM | PROGRAM 3 - The Third Wheel - Trailer
3:00 PM | PROGRAM 4 - Keirin Queen/Onna Keirin Oh

5:00 PM | PROGRAM 5 - Parasol
7:00 PM | PROGRAM 6 - I Love my Bicycle: Story of FBM Bikes
9:00 PM | PROGRAM 7

7.13.2009

Bicycle Music Festival Part 5: Let the Good Times Roll!

Sonya Cotton and Shake Your Peace keep the good times rolling!

It's kind of like following The Dead, only different.

Don't forget to wear the latest hippie threads!

So get on the bus! Or your pal's xtracycle!

Whatever your ride, be sure not to miss it next time around!

Simple Sunday


Sunday should always be this easy. You can't go wrong with balloon tires or sailing.

7.12.2009