Dear Cyclists,

If you live in Council District 4 of the City of Fresno, or if you ride your bicycle in this District, please make time to attend this meeting. 

Especially if you ever ride your bicycle on Gettysburg Ave between Fresno and Winery.

Location: Thomas Elementary School at Millbrook and Gettysburg
Date: Tuesday, November 29th
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM

Councilmember Larry Westerlund has called this district meeting to discuss the road work that is planned on this stretch of Gettysburg. Currently, the road is configured with two traffic lanes in each direction. Public Works is scheduled to re-stripe the road with a center two-way turn lane, one motor-vehicle lane in each direction, a bicycle lane in each direction, and on-street parking.

If are a regular cyclist on any of the roads in Fresno that have received this treatment, such as Dakota Ave in District 4, Divisadero in District 3, or Van Ness in District 1, you may have noticed the dramatic change for the better it has engendered. This change addresses the requirements of state law AB1358, known as the complete streets act, and is an implementation of the Fresno Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Trails Master Plan that was adopted by City Council. 

Complete streets makes our streets safe and convenient for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, drivers, and transit users.

Please come out in support of this Public Works project. Without constituent support, the project and further projects of it's ilk are unlikely to proceed.

Please forward this and share this with other bicycle riders and residents of District 4.

So National Bike Month has come and is long gone. We had a great Million Mile Challenge this year and tons of great events. We exceeded last years mile total and had 284 people pass their pledges. It is so exciting to see people pass their goals and be on their bikes beyond what they thought possible. Congratulations to everyone who achieved their mile goals. 

Well we took all the data collected from the MMC this year and crunched it into an infographic. We thought it would be a fun way to see what we did and help get people motivated to ride more. It is something you can share with your friends so they can see what you helped do and encourage them to ride and participate next year. If we are going to make a Million next year we need more people riding!

Hope you enjoy the infographic and be sure to share it with everyone you know!

Really cool news for Mountain Bikers! Starting tomorrow through September 4th, China Peak has a lift-served Mountain Bike Park open weekends, Saturdays and Sundays, from 9a - 4p. They even have rental bikes available. Bike park summer passes are available on-line or you can purchase day use tickets at the resort.

Here are the proposed routes for Summer 2011:

For pricing and more information click here: www.skichinapeak.com/summer.aspx

We are honored to share that the League of American Bicyclists (National Organization) has awarded the Bronze Medal Designation to the City of Fresno as a Bicycle Friendly Community.

The City of Fresno is the first City in the San Joaquin Valley from Sacramento to the Tehachapi Mountains to receive this prestigious honor. This achievement and award is a credit to the leadership of the City of Fresno with our Mayor, City Council, City Managers and Public Works Department Director and Assistant Director/City Engineer, Measure C funding, the many volunteer hours by the bicycle community, public and private partnerships, and all the effort that went into the City of Fresno Bicycle Master Plan (BMP) and the award winning I Bike Fresno campaign.   

The fact that we led the State of California and 48 other states with implementation of the most new bike lanes of any city in 2010 with 30 miles, in addition, to completing the 3 miles of trail on  the Sugarpine Trail alignment to connect the City of Fresno and Clovis, and one grade separation on Fresno Street north of Nees helped immensely.

The Bike Happy Foundation and Fresno County Bicycle Coalition have been instrumental in community advocacy and encouragement. 

Congratulations Ann Brandon! Your photo was chosen as the Picture Fresno judges' favorite! Enjoy your tea set from Little Leaf and your ibikefresno.org swag!

Congrats to Nico Myers, winner of the Million Mile Challenge bicycle raffle. Rubber Soul Bicycles donated the matte red Trek Drift Cruiser that was given away for participating in the Million Mile Challenge. Nico logged 146 miles on his 1980's Peugeot.

Looking sharp Nico. That bike looks nice on you. 

To everyone who logged miles this year...you guy's rock! While you didn't win the bike, you have bettered yourself and the City of Fresno. Your pedaling helped the City receive a Bronze rating as a Bicycle Friendly Community.

We beat last years mile total by about 24,000 miles! To meet our goal we need more riders! So this next year,  let's all work to encourage our friends to rediscover what we already know...that BIKING = JOY! 

The Million Mile Challenge will happen again next Bike Month in May 2012 but that doesn't mean you put your bike away until then. If you like logging your miles we will be keeping some of the Dashboard active. You will be able to log miles to your user. Plus, keep an eye on the I Bike Fresno Calendar. We have some fun events planned and new, exciting bicycle rides and activities are being created every week it seems. 

Keep pedaling and we will see you in the bike lanes!

We delivered the bike to Nico by bike...yeah, we got some looks. 

An Important Message from Dave Koehler, Executive Director of the San Joaquin River Conservancy:

Let the San Joaquin River Conservancy know about your support for extending the Lewis S. Eaton Trail! An important meeting is coming up and there are two easy ways to voice your support for the Parkway: 

Send an Email Today

Send an email to Melinda Marks, Executive Officer of the San Joaquin River Conservancy at Melinda.Marks@sjrc.ca.gov. Let the Conservancy know that extending the Lewis S. Eaton Trail is important to you. It's important that the Conservancy hears from you today. 

Attend the Conservancy's Meeting

Public comments are encouraged at the upcoming Conservancy Board meeting this Wednesday, where the Lewis S. Eaton Trail extension will be discussed.   The meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 8, 2011, at 10:00am at the Fresno Metro Flood Control District Board Room, 5469 East Olive.

The Conservancy has scheduled an item on their agenda to receive a report on extending the Lewis S. Eaton Trail and River West, the public lands west of Highway 41. For a copy of the Conservancy's June 8 agenda click here. The Lewis S. Eaton Trail agenda item is number G-4. The San Joaquin River Conservancy is the state agency responsible for acquiring, operating, and maintaining the Parkway.   Please show your community support and let the Conservancy know how much you value the Lewis S. Eaton Trail. It's important for the Conservancy to hear from you!  

Thank you! 

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Many of you will not be able to attend the meeting but if you can please send an email. It only takes a minute and can make a huge difference. If you have ridden the Lewis S. Eaton Trail just tell them how much you love to ride it and would love to see it extended. If you have never ridden the Trail, you still understand how important bicycle infrastucture and facilities our to improving the quality of life in Fresno.

Let the SJRC know we support it's extension.   

A big thanks to all of you who rode in the Million Mile Challenge this year. We beat last year's mile total and if we just continue that momentum year round we know we can reach a million miles next year. But what is National Bike Month without some prizes? Drumroll please...

The Trek Drift Cruiser:

courtesy of our friends at Rubber Soul Bicycles:

Thanks again for all who rode this May. Don't stop there! Keep riding, keep logging miles and remember...

BIKING = JOY!!!