Monkey Electric Alleycat winner

Paul V of McKinney, Texas received his Monkey Electric bike light and is having a lot of fun with them riding at night. Thanks to all who played, and thanks to Monkey Electric for the really cool prize.

Bicycle friendly businesses in Santa Cruz County

Five of the 19 businesses that either made the League of American Bicyclists' list of Bicycle Friendly Businesses or their Honorable Mention list are located where I live in Santa Cruz County, California. They include:

• Ecology Action in Santa Cruz, a nonprofit environmental consultancy working to promote and help implement pragmatic changes to help improve the environment.
  
• California Giant Berry Farms in Watsonville, which prominently features there professional cycling team in all of their advertising.
  
• Santa Cruz Seaside Company in Santa Cruz operates the popular Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk amusement park.
  
• Beckmann's Old World Bakery in Santa Cruz supports cycling advocacy in Santa Cruz and gives a 5% discount to customers who ride to the shop on their bicycles.
  
• Geo. H. Wilson, Inc. in Santa Cruz is a mechanical contractor specializing in HVAC and and steel fabrication.

Read more: Bike friendly employers abound in Santa Cruz County.

See also San Francisco Bike Blog: Bay Area Companies Recognized as Bicycle Friendly Businesses.

Bicycle rescue

Brave men jump into the water to rescue a bicycle. Props to Henry Hine.

Bicycling in the San Lorenzo Valley

The San Lorenzo Valley Press Banner published a story about the walking and cycling conditions along State Highway 9 in Santa Cruz County.

For San Lorenzo Valley residents between Boulder Creek and Felton, Highway 9 is the primary — and sometimes only — option to reach businesses and school by foot or bike. But the two-lane highway is not especially pedestrian or cyclist-friendly.

Blind curves, areas with mere inches of shoulder, falling mountain debris, low-light conditions, inexperienced tourist traffic, drunken drivers and speeders are some of the reasons the road can be a hazard to pedestrians’ health.

The article mentions a possible trail alongside the Big Trees & Pacific tourist railroad that runs between Santa Cruz and Felton. The railroad right of way already a popular bicycling route between Santa Cruz and Felton -- I know people who commute daily along the tracks from the Santa Cruz Mountains into Santa Cruz.

Bike commuter benefit now law!

President Bush signed the Bicycle Commuter Benefits Act into law today.

Congressman Blumenauer of Oregon included a bike commuter benefit provision in HR1424, the $700 billion Wall Street bailout package that passed the house today and was signed by President Bush shortly afterward.

“We are delighted that the bicycle commuter benefits act has passed after a lengthy and persistent campaign spearheaded by Congressman Blumenauer (D-OR),” said League of American Bicyclists President Andy Clarke. “Bicycle commuters will now be extended similar benefits to people who take transit and drive to work – it’s an equitable and sensible incentive to encourage greater energy independence, improve air quality and health, and even help tackle climate change. Thanks to everyone who has helped reach this milestone, especially Walter Finch and Mele Williams, our government relations staff over the years who have worked tirelessly with Congressman Blumenauer, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and many others in Congress.”

The benefit -- up to $20 per month -- begins with the new year in 2009. Employers may reimburse employees, tax free, for "reasonable" expenses related to their bike commute, including equipment purchases, bike purchases, repairs, and storage if the bicycle is used as a "substantial part" of the commuter's trip to work for the month. If you already receive another commuter tax-free fringe benefit (like a Commuter Check or EcoPass), you don't qualify, so multimodal commuters are out of luck.

SEC. 211. TRANSPORTATION FRINGE BENEFIT TO BICYCLE COMMUTERS.

(a) In General- Paragraph (1) of section 132(f) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘(D) Any qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement.’.

(b) Limitation on Exclusion- Paragraph (2) of section 132(f) is amended by striking ‘and’ at the end of subparagraph (A), by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting ‘, and’, and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ‘(C) the applicable annual limitation in the case of any qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement.’.

(c) Definitions- Paragraph (5) of section 132(f) is amended by adding at the end the following:

‘(F) DEFINITIONS RELATED TO BICYCLE COMMUTING REIMBURSEMENT-


‘(i) QUALIFIED BICYCLE COMMUTING REIMBURSEMENT- The term ‘qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement’ means, with respect to any calendar year, any employer reimbursement during the 15-month period beginning with the first day of such calendar year for reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during such calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle and bicycle improvements, repair, and storage, if such bicycle is regularly used for travel between the employee’s residence and place of employment.
‘(ii) APPLICABLE ANNUAL LIMITATION- The term ‘applicable annual limitation’ means, with respect to any employee for any calendar year, the product of $20 multiplied by the number of qualified bicycle commuting months during such year.
‘(iii) QUALIFIED BICYCLE COMMUTING MONTH- The term ‘qualified bicycle commuting month’ means, with respect to any employee, any month during which such employee--
‘(I) regularly uses the bicycle for a substantial portion of the travel between the employee’s residence and place of employment, and
‘(II) does not receive any benefit described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1).’.

(d) Constructive Receipt of Benefit- Paragraph (4) of section 132(f) is amended by inserting ‘(other than a qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement)’ after ‘qualified transportation fringe’.

(e) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2008.

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Elsewhere: RideThisBike, Bicycle.Net, Streetsblog, Biking Bis, Bike Portland, Bicycle Diaries, Trek, Rush Limbaugh. Philly Bike News does a cost analysis.

Montebello Road Hill Climb

I ran into Ahpook this morning on the train. I was in some old torn up cotton pants and a sweat stained t-shirt; I gave him a hard time about the full kit he had on for his quarter mile ride from the Caltrain station to his job.

He's doing the Montebello Road Hill Climb this weekend as part of the 2008 Low Key Hill Climb series. The point of these low key hill climbs is to have fun and meet people. You show up, register, start and climb to the top at your own pace. Some fly up, others ride in groups and chat with their friends.

I haven't decided yet if I'll show up or not. It's supposed to rain over the weekend, so probably not (yeah, I'm a ninny).

Anti Dooring: Information for cyclists and motorists

Anti-Dooring has information and PDF downloads (for stickers) about dooring for cyclists and bicyclists.

I was chatting with the bus driver about this a couple of weeks ago. He told me they call it "catching a door" and that's a point of pride for some drivers. One guy he knows has a door decal on his coffee mug for each door he's "caught" with a bus.

Anti-Dooring.org, via Chico Gino.