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www.sbbike.org Serving Santa Barbara County We’re a countywide advocacy and resource organization that promotes bicycling for safe transportation and recreation.

How to reach us Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition PO Box 92047 Santa Barbara CA 93190-2047 phone 962-1479 email info@sbbike.org web www.sbbike.org facebook facebook.com/sb-bicycle

November 2nd meeting Join us for our general meeting: Tuesday, November 2nd 12:00 noon Granada Garage 1221 Anacapa Street Conference Room, 2nd Floor Santa Barbara

Online email list We sponsor a free online email forum where you can post and read messages about regional bicycling issues. To subscribe, send an email to: sbbike-subscribe@lists.riseup.net

Leave the subject and body blank.

Join our Coalition You can help improve bicycling safety and conditions in Santa Barbara County by joining others in our bicycling advocacy group. See page 6.

Street Skills Clinics The Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition offers Street Skills Clinics. Details at www.sbbike. org/skills/apply.html, or email coordinators at streetskills@ sbbike.org.

Bici Centro program Bici Centro of Santa Barbara is our community bicycle program, helping people who bicycle. Look at www.sbbike. org/bici/BiciCentro.html, or phone 617-3255.

Quick Release is published monthly by the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition, PO Box 92047, Santa Barbara, CA 93190. Subscribe for $30 per year. Issue # 229.

November 2010

Tour of California returns to Solvang The stage will take place After a year withon Friday, May 20th along a out any stage of new, longer, more difficult the Amgen Tour of California in Santa route than the prior time trial circuit. The Solvang Barbara county, the hosting committee has proannouncement that posed several alternatives, it would return in but one won’t be selected 2011 was greeted with enthusiasm. The until early 2011. whole Solvang city As in prior years of the council, local host Solvang time trial, our Bicommittee members, cycle Coalition will again local cyclists, the mepromote “Come for the Time dia, and our Bicycle Trial, Stay for the Weekend.”

Coalition’s represenWe want visiting cyclists tative Ralph Fertig to experience all the great turned out to hear bike rides and hospitality the long-anticipated Unlike most other professional sports, the time trial gives throughout our county. people an opportunity to watch and even talk to the world- There will again be secure announcement on class cyclists as they warm up. Here Dutch Robobank team October 7th. valet bike parking for those members warm up in Solvang in 2009.

Solvang, the city biking in from miles away. that hosted the important individual time trial Cyclists will be offered another “Race of Truth” stage in 2007, 2008 and 2009, was elated that where they will have an unparalleled opportunity tour presenter AEG decided to bring it back. to ride the closed course, one timed cyclist at a Not only will it bring in over a million dollars in time, to cheers of thousands. Those winners will cycling fan revenue to our county, but it will also again be celebrated on the awards podium at the showcase a springtime Santa Ynez Valley to TV end. You can follow developments as they occur at viewers worldwide. www.tourofcalifornia-solvang.com.

Christa Clark Jones brings flair to local bicycling Christa Clark Jones doesn’t own a car and gets around Santa Barbara just fine without one. Locals know her for her work with Brittany Odermann during CycleMAYnia to create the very successful Cycle Chic bicycle fashion show at Casa De La Guerra.

Although originally from our area, she went to the University of California Davis where she majored in Environmental Policy Analysis and Planning. What really charged her up was UCD’s six-week program “Sustainable Cities of Northern Europe” where their great bicycle facilities and culture made a deep impression. So much so that she took her photos, crafted a video, and entered it in an international youth competition about the impact of urban environments on health. It won her a trip to Sydney as a youth delegate to showcase her video at the 2008 annual global summit of the Oxford Health Alliance. You can watch her winning video at http://tinyurl.com/2doztgj.

Christa organizes casual and classy Cycle Chic rides the Christa Clark Jones stands with her town bicycle second Sunday of each month. Join her and others for the on Stearns Wharf after another Sunday Cycle Chic ride—and a deserved ice cream reward. ride, read details at http://tinyurl.com/26w666b.

Almost a hundred new members !

Santa Ynez Valley Cycling Club

SBCAG votes for

better planning

by Michael Chiacos

by Michael Chiacos

Our Membership Drive is going quite well, with 92 new members signed up since April.

We are very close to our goal of 100 new members by the end of the year, and ask everyone to help us with the final push.

We ask you to send a group email, make a phone call, or talk personally with everyone you know who bicycles, urging them to join the Coalition so we can make Santa Barbara County the best place in the world to bicycle. It’s easy to join with the new online membership capabilities at www.BiciCentro. org/join and if you need some suggested text to help nudge your bicycling buddies, email board member Michael Chiacos at mchiacos@gmail.com.

In recent years we’ve seen a huge increase in bicyclists on our streets, an explosion of bike culture, and new services and programs for bicyclists. We ask you to please tap into your personal networks to help us build on this forward momentum.

Membership does matter. More members mean more power to advance our pro-bike agenda and build the bike network!

The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG) dumped its plan to increase per capita greenhouse gas emissions in our region, instead voting for a plan that may be friendlier toward bicyclists.

The state is requiring each community to develop a regional land use plan (called a Sustainable Communities Strategy, mandated by SB 375). These plans guide future development so residents don’t have to drive so far to jobs, have more convenient transportation options, reduce traffic, and emit less pollution. A good plan would lead to more bike friendly development patterns and also encourage alternative transportation like bicycling.

SBCAG’s draft plan was one of the worst in the state—17 out of 18th worst for its ability to reduce per capita greenhouse gases. In fact the plan projected a 6 percent increase in per capita emissions!

The Bicycle Coalition and a dozen other organizations signed on to a letter by the Community Environmental Council, pointing out areas where the plan could do better.

The board discussed these issues at two meetings, asked for more options from staff, and ultimately voted on a target of 0% increase, rather than 6%. We will work to make sure even better scenarios and more bicycle support is encouraged in future plans.

Newly repaved Refugio Road now has bikelanes making life safer for Santa Ynez Valley cyclists.

There’s a new cycling club in Santa Barbara county—this one is located in the Santa Ynez Valley. According to their blog, they may be lacking in numbers, but not in quality. The club has cycling jerseys, offers regular men’s rides each Tuesday, women’s rides each Wednesday, and an open one each Sunday. All rides begin at Dr J’s Bicycle Shop in Solvang. Plus they have monthly club meetings the last Monday of each month featuring invited speakers, and an occasional pot luck BBQ now and then.

A website is forthcoming, but until then, their blog is serving as a source of information about not only club rides and activities, but also regional road improvements (the above Refugio Road bikelane photo is from their blog). Read about what’s happening there at www.santaynezvalleyblog.com.

Bicycling features Dr J’s Bicycle Shop The October issue of Bicycling magazine had an article “America’s Best Shop Rides” describing what they said are the 50 best rides. They wrote about the Solvang bike shop’s ride: “The Sunday morning ride, covering 35-plus miles, delivers rolling hills and tight canyons on its way through wine country. The pack sometimes follows the Zaca Station loop, ending with a fast descent down the newly paved Ballard Canyon—part of the Tour of California’s time trial in 2009.” The ride starts at 10:30 each Sunday from Dr J’s Bicycle Shop, 1693 Mission Drive, Solvang. Phone 688-6263 for ride details.

Quick Release ~ November 2010 ~ Page 2

Trek president buys Montecito house On October 12th, our Bicycle Coalition’s mail box contained a surprise—a new membership application from John and Tania Burke. John is the president of Trek Bicycle Company, America’s biggest bike manufacturer.

The strange thing was that the application was from Quick Release sent to Tim Blumenthal, director of the Bikes Belong Coalition, a national organization sponsored by bike and component manufacturers. A bit of sleuthing revealed that Tim knew that John and Tania had just bought a house in Montecito, so he mailed them his copy of Quick Release. Then John joined us, later emailing, “I just wanted to make sure we were helping the cause so we bought a membership.” Thank you, and welcome!

Street Skills Clinics November 11-20

League Cycling Instructor Robert Caiza, foreground, talks to clinic participants before going on a group ride on city streets.

We are offering a group of four Street Skills Clinics this month. You can chose the ones that interest you. Each one is normally $20, although we’re having a special $50 for #2, 3 & 4. You can learn more at www.sbbike.org/ skills/apply.html. g

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November 11, Get Your Bike Ready To Ride. You will learn all the important aspects of basic and responsible bike maintenance: fixing flats, locking up, basic adjustment and keeping your bike clean.

November 18, Cycling Rights and Responsibilities. Build the confidence to ride anywhere you want. Learn your legal rights and responsibilities on the road. No bicycle is needed.

November 20, Bike Handling Skills. Learn good bike handling skills to becoming a safer, more confident cyclist. In a parking lot, you will learn a number of skills to give you better control of your bike.

November 20, Cycling Group Ride around Santa Barbara. You will practice your knowledge and show a full understanding of vehicular cycling during a managed group ride.

Bici Centro activities Our Bici Centro community bike program is offering bicycle services each week. Details at www.bicicentro.org or phone 617-3255. It’s at 601 East Montecito Street, Santa Barbara.

Monday, women’s open shop 5:00-7:00 PM Tuesday, “Learn Your Bike” classes, 7:009:00 PM g Wednesday, open shop 4:00-7:00 PM g Thursday, open shop 4:00-7:00 PM g Saturday, open shop 2:00-5:00 PM g g

Bike and win prizes throughout November For the whole month of November, Traffic Solutions is hosting another Commuter Challenge. You can win great prizes such as an iPad, cash cards, movie tickets, Horny Toad active wear, and more, by just biking instead of driving.

Participants earn prizes by ditching the single-person car and using sustainable modes of transportation like biking, walking, car-pooling or taking the bus. The trips can be commutes to work, or other ones normally driven. Last year, there were 1600 participants who saved nearly a mil-

lion dollars by not driving.

Register, form a team of five, log your trips and win. The winning employer in each of four size categories will win a bounce house party or picnic for workers. Learn more and register at www.trafficsolutions.info.

Women’s Cycling Survey: they want bikelanes Last spring, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) conducted an online survey that investigated what would induce women to bicycle more for transportation. May Quick Release invited our readers to take the 37-question survey.

It resulted in over 11,000 American participants. When asked “What would cause you to start or increase your cycling?” the top choices were: g More bikelanes, 62% g Completely separated off-road paths, 47% g Better connectivity/more direct routes, 45% g Wider lanes on the roads, 45% g Tax breaks/financial incentives, 38% Additional choices were more bike racks, secure parking, reduced traffic, more safety,

showers and lockers.

A separate fascinating result came from the question, “Do You Wear a Helmet when You Ride?” It turns out that the older the cyclist, the more likely she will wear a helmet. Only 59% of those under 20 wore one, but for those over 60, it was 95%.

Overall, motorized vehicles, especially those with distracted drivers, dominate women’s cycling safety concerns. Furthermore, infrastructure change, particularly the addition of more bikelanes, is the primary factor for increasing women’s cycling.

You can read the survey results at www. apbp.org. Separately, the APBP has started the Women Cycling Project, open to their members and others; check the website.

Recession is making Americans healthier A survey last May by First Command Financial Services reports that we are healthier because we’re reducing spending. 13% are biking and walking more while driving less, 30% are buying less junk food, 45% are cooking at home more, 7% are now growing their own food, and 10% are buying less alcohol. Nearly all said their frugal behaviors are making them healthier.

Coalition works for safe Goleta 101 crossing For over a year, our Bicycle Coalition’s Wilson Hubbell and Ralph Fertig have been working with Goleta’s Rosemarie Gaglione and consultants to craft a safer Los Carneros Road overcrossing.

Our joint concern is how to help north-bound bicyclists weave their way though motorists turning right and entering 101. The railroad bridge will be replaced, and with it, we will be offering less intrepid cyclists a one-way sidepath alternative to weaving through cars on the roadway. When

those sidepath cyclists get to the south-bound freeway on-ramp, they will activate a flashing beacon similar to the one shown here telling motorists not to turn right on the red signal phase.

In addition, there will be colored bikelanes so motorists will be more aware of the presence of people on bikes, and cyclists will know where to go.

We are very grateful to Gaglione and the city of Goleta for their concern and actions to make travel safer for their residents and visitors alike.

Quick Release ~ November 2010 ~ Page 3

Wild ride a wet success

The Environmental Defense Center’s Brian Troutwein, rear center, talked to Ride on the Wild Side cyclists at Goleta Beach on October 16th.

The Environmental Defense Center embarked on a new venture, the bicycle Ride on the Wild Side to South Coast locations where they’re working to achieve what’s best for our environment. A drizzle didn’t dampen spirits of 170 bicyclists who turned out for their two rides. Santa Barbara Middle School student bike checkups, bike valet, food, music, and EDC staff on hand to describe their projects were offered. Read about EDC’s good deeds at www.edcnet.org.

November bicycling events and meetings Here is an abbreviated list of upcoming events in Santa Barbara county. Our website has ongoing updates, details, and live links at www.sbbike. org/meet/meet.html.

November 1-7, 5th Annual Women’s Training Camp.

November 2, Bicycle Coalition General Meeting.

November 4, Education Committee Meeting.

November 4, COAST Annual Fall Gathering.

November 4, Bike Moves.

November 6, Solvang Prelude.

November 11, Get Your Bike Ready To Ride.

November 13, Solvang’s Finest Century.

November 13, UCSB Triathlon Relay November 14-19, Vines to Coast Santa Barbara Cycling Package.

November 14, Cycle Chic Ride.

November 17, High School Bike Program Meeting November 18, Cycling Rights and Responsibilities Clinic.

November 20, Bike Handling Skills Clinic.

November 20, Cycling Group Ride around Santa Barbara.

November 30, Bicycle Coalition Board Meeting.

Quick Release ~ November 2010 ~ Page 4

Santa Barbara High School to start rolling There was a School Bike Program Meeting on October 6th with students and others hoping to increase bicycling at South Coast schools, initially targeting Santa Barbara High School. Traffic Solutions’ Kent Epperson and Daniel Girard had previously been talking to the Dons Net Café members, and the meeting followed from their input.

The group agreed that high schools are a tough market but that a bicycling program is sorely needed. They also didn’t want to pit one type of bikers against another, but instead to deal with bicycling in general.

Earn a Bike Program. SBHS’s Don Riders and others want a way for students to earn their bicycles. Various sources of bicycles

and bike parts were discussed.

Bike Safety. Bicyclist education, a broad awareness campaign, or better infrastructure were suggested to make it safer for students to confidently bike in traffic.

Helmets. Students don’t think that helmets are cool, so various ways to make them so were considered. Custom variations of skate-board helmets, or student-designed, personalized versions might work.

The bottom line is that the message needs to come from the students and they need to have ownership.

Everybody agreed to attend another meeting, probably November 17th at 7:00 PM. Location forthcoming.

New data says Goleta has most bike commuters The US Census Bureau gathers data every year about a number of things.

Of interest to us is their question, “How did you usually get to work last week?” Their survey results are published each fall as part of their American Community Survey.

Because they contact only one in 35 households, the data are not available for smaller cities each year, but after accumulating data for several years, they release it. This what they recently did for Goleta, Santa Maria and Santa Barbara for a three-year span from 2006 to 2008.

(For some reason, figures were not released for Lompoc that’s larger than Goleta.)

The results show that for bicycling to jobs, Goleta’s 6.1% topped Santa Barbara’s

Harris Grade Road safety improvements Our County Supervisors voted on September 7th to prohibit trucks over 30 feet long on Harris Grade Road that winds over the Purisima Hills from Lompoc toward Santa Maria.

That was good new for regional cyclists who like the quiet climb and descent. However, the Supervisors then alarmed them by considering advising them as well to take other routes. Like the very busy Highway 1.

The county cannot ban bicyclists on Harris Grade. Protest emails and petitions were immediately sent to Supervisor Joni Gray.

The result is that no “cyclists-go-elsewhere” advisory signs will be posted. Instead extra “Share the Road” signs will be installed. Our thanks to all who took action.

4.5% and Santa Maria’s 1.1% mode share. For smaller cities like Goleta, the statistical reliability is less than for our large ones. However over time and with added counts, we’ll have an increasingly accurate view of what’s happening. For the time being, this is the best available—and Goleta is the winner.

Plan cities for people One of the overall themes of Velo-City Global was that bicycling is about people. “I don’t care about bikes, I care about people on bikes” was how Mikael Coleville-Anderson, Denmark’s National Bike Ambassador, put it. The idea that we should be planning our cities around people rather than cars has somehow escaped Americans. When presented, it sounds obvious but in reality we have continued to take space away from people. Cities need to again consider people when planning how to move them.

Consider their health, consider the air they are breathing, consider their ability to connect to their neighbors, and consider their quality of life. Bicycles are a solution to all of those issues and more.

— Alison Dewey, Velo-City Global, Copenhagen

Pedal Power update

October Coalition meeting topics

Our education coordinator Christine Bourgeois reports that over 30 junior high students at Santa Barbara, La Colina and Goleta Valley are earning refurbished bikes that they will receive after six weeks of building confidence by learning safe riding skills and basic bike maintenance. Thanks go to the Bici Centro volunteers who prepped 20 bikes to make our Pedal Power programs a reality.

Our October 5th monthly Bicycle Coalition meeting was held at Madam Lu’s Restaurant, with 15 people talking about these topics:

New By-laws & Coalition election Our Board of Directors has unanimously voted to alter our By-laws to increase our Board from 9 to a maximum of 15 members. This is so we can more effectively represent the needs of an increasingly diverse and growing bicycling community, as well as handle a larger work load.

Our upcoming election is this November 2nd at noon in downtown Santa Barbara. Members are eligible to vote, either by coming to the meeting, or clipping the ballot below and mailing it to the SB Bicycle Coalition, PO Box 92047, Santa Barbara, CA 93190.

Our nomination and selection process has resulted in 11 candidates for Board positions, as listed below. After the election, the new Board will choose four officers. Write-in candidates will not be accepted at this time; however we encourage you to nominate other people to be possibly added to our Board at a later date.

BALLOT

Ralph Fertig described changes to our By-laws that lead to an increase in the number of Board members to 15. g Ralph Fertig talked about new US Census results that show Goleta ahead with 6% bike commuters. g New Board candidates talked about their bicycling interests. We heard from John Hygelund, Erik Wright, Robert Caiza, Jim Cadenhead and Howard Booth. g Sarah Grant passed around a map of Santa Barbara locations where new sharrows are going to be installed. g Ralph Fertig talked about the sessions he attended at the Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference in Chattanooga last month. g Results of meetings with Goleta staff and consultants about the upcoming Los Carneros bridge were discussed. g

Vote for any of the following for our Board of Directors:

❑ David Bourgeois ❑ Erika Lindemann

❑ Howard Booth

❑ Michael Chiacos ❑ Robert Caiza

❑ Byron Beck

❑ Nick Davis

❑ Jim Cadenhead

❑ Nancy Mulholland

❑ John Hygelund

❑ Erik Wright

❑ other nomination __________________________ ❑ other nomination __________________________

We thank our active members

Please thank and support these Bicycle Coalition business members: g Bicycle Bob’s, Santa Barbara g Nett & Champion Insurance Services, Santa Barbara g Pedal Power Bicycles, Santa Maria g Chris King Precision Components, Portland, Oregon g Santa Barbara Pedicabs, Santa Barbara g WheelHouse, Santa Barbara g Santa Barbara Bikes To-Go, Santa Barbara g Tailwinds Bicycle Club, Santa Maria We welcome these new members: Marc Sasinski, Cheryl Rogers, Tracy & Jordan Jenkins, Paul Armstrong, Jorge Matos, Travis Madsen, Hunter Becker, Mark Fisher, Todd Stewart, Jonathan Williams, Cielo Rios, Mary Giordano, Owen Srour, Carl Perry, Neal Steward, Dan Fawcett, Pepe Gil, Geraldine Matus, Travis Delbonis Odonnell, Scott Christian, Oscar Pereyra Jr, Jaime Luis, Angus Forbes, Hannah Stonefield, Robert Nabicht, Matt Wu, Paul Mendoza, Rick Alvarado, Candice Becker, Greg Helms, Susan Melican, James Studarus, Jim Balter, Deborah Brown, Catherine Brozowsk, Jon Heffner, Lynette Arnoldi, Gerald Comati, Ko Tsukada, and John & Tania Burke.

We appreciate those who renewed their memberships: Bill Pollock, Dave Everett, Mary Byrd and John Fisher.

Quick Release accepts advertisements. Circulation reaches about 500 people. Ad details and an order form are available online at www.sbbike.org/QR/ad.pdf .

Quick Release ~ November 2010 ~ Page 5

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Make payable to Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition. Mail to Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition, PO Box 92047,

Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition President, Ralph Fertig, 962-1479 sb-ralph@cox.net Vice President, Wilson Hubbell, 683-1240 wilsonhubbell@aol.com Secretary, Erika Lindemann, 569-1544 eglindemann@gmail.com Treasurer, David Bourgeois, 899-3728 stdaveb@gmail.com Director, Michael Chiacos, 284-4179 mchiacos@cecmail.org Director, Judy Keim, 687-2912 jkpedpad@aol.com Director, Byron Beck, 969-1712 Byron@solidrockconstruction.com Advisor, Dru van Hengel, 564-5544 dvanhengel@SantaBarbaraCA.gov

Advisor, Matt Dobberteen, 568-3000 l_bean@ci.lompoc.ca.us matt@cosbpw.net Santa Barbara City Advisor, Kent Epperson, 961-8917 Dru van Hengel, 564-5544 kepperson@sbcag.org dvanhengel@SantaBarbaraCA.gov Executive Director, Ed France, 617-3255 Santa Barbara County edfrance@bicicentro.org Matt Dobberteen, 568-3576 matt@cosbpw.net Road repair contacts Santa Maria Caltrans David Whitehead, 925-0951 x227 www.dot.ca.gov/maintform.html dwhitehead@ci.santa-maria.ca.us Carpinteria Solvang Charlie Ebeling, 684-5405 x402 Brad Vigro, 688-5575 cebeling@ci.carpinteria.ca.us bradv@cityofsolvang.com Goleta UCSB Bob Morgenstern, 968-6869 Dennis Whelan, 893-7009 morgenstern@cityofgoleta.org dennis.whelan@planning.ucsb.edu Lompoc Larry Bean, 736-1261

Member discounts Bicycle Coalition members benefit from discounts. To get your discount at a shop, take your copy of Quick Release to the shop and show them your address label or cut out the label and take it. Discount details are at www.sbbike.org/SBBC/who.html.

Bicycle Bob’s 250 Storke Road #A, Goleta 15 Hitchcock Way, Santa Barbara Bicycle Connection 223 W. Ocean Avenue, Lompoc Hazard’s Cyclesport 110 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara Lighthouse Bicycles, Santa Ynez phone 688-6385 Main Street Cycles 311 East Main Street, Santa Maria Pedal Power Bicycles 1740 Broadway, Santa Maria VeloPro Cyclery 633 State Street, Santa Barbara 5887 Hollister Avenue, Goleta Momentum Magazine, save $5 www.momentumplanet.com/ node/4258.

WheelHouse 528 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara