Archive
Miami on Momentum Magazine!
Issue #47 of Momentum Magazine features a spotlight article on greater Miami (City of Miami and Miami Beach), written by local freelance journalist and green mobility advocate Dina Weinstein. In the article we get a fly-by look at the cycling core of the city, as well as a smattering of voices highlighting the various issues facing the south Florida cycling community as we go through our growing pains.
Overall I liked the article; short and sweet, it has a very upbeat tone that touches upon our constant battles but doesn’t miss the fact that Miami is a great place to ride a bike.
I actually pitched to write this article when it was announced to the Momentum writers, and when it was given to Dina, I ended up chatting with her for about an hour about cycling in Miami Beach. Though none of my actual quotes made it in, I can see some of the subjects we touched upon scattered about, and brought to attention by quotes from people far more in positions to speak with authority than I. Which is to say I am glad that it was to Dina that I lost the assignment, and she did an awesome job.
Slow Bike Miami gets a mention in the calendar of cycling activities at the end of the feature, and sadly, that’s where I spotted a factual error, as it lists us as organizers of leisurely weekend rides, which we do not organize formally. Slow Bike Miami is all about sharing our journey on two wheels in the greater Miami area.
If you arrived here via the Momentum feature, please accept our apologies for the misunderstanding. Though know that you can certainly find weekend rides on Miami Beach once a month with the Miami Beach Bicycle Center, as well as others organized by Emerge Miami, the South Florida Bike Coalition, etc., the info for which is all provided on the article itself.
Check out the Miami article online, or track down a printed copy by subscribing (I do!) or requesting your local bike shop to bring in free copies to distribute.
Here We Go – Again
Things have been very quiet here at Slow Bike Miami for some time now due to me being busy having started a new college degree. Summer has arrived, though, so it’s time to get on the bike and ride to our heart’s content.
Slow Bike Miami will be re-starting with semi-regular posts as of next week. I had thought of merging this with my regular blog (which you can find at DMPerez.com), but I’ll keep them separate for now. If you want to know more about the other things I geek about, by all means feel free to drop by DMPerez.com and see what I write about there.
Catch you here next week, and we’ll go riding together. Well, after I get a new seat for my bike. But I’ll say more about that later.
Bike Miami Days in Coconut Grove
On Sunday, April 25, we had the first Bike Miami Days event of 2010, held in Cocount Grove, one of the oldest and picturesque areas of Miami. As it was last year, the April event was co-sponsored by the Dutch Consulate in celebration of Queen’s Day, which means the Dutch community of Miami was out in full force (seriously, where are you hiding?) and, thanks to the free T-shirts they were handing out (Go Green, Go Dutch, Go Bike), the Grove was a very orange place. My wife and I missed last year’s event so were were especially happy to be able to make it and party with the Netherlanders, huge fans of the Netherlands that we are.
We actually rode our bikes all the way from South Beach to Coconut Grove, using the Metrorail for the middle part of the route. Taking the bikes on the train was, in general, no problem, except for the fact that bikes have to go in the last cart but there is no actual space for them to be parked comfortably, so they end up being right in the way (thankfully no one requested to see if we had the completely useless bike permit for the train).
A Very Orange Bike Miami Days
On Sunday, April 25, we had the first Bike Miami Days event of 2010, held in Cocount Grove, one of the oldest and picturesque areas of Miami. As it was last year, the April event was co-sponsored by the Dutch Consulate in celebration of Queen’s Day, which means the Dutch community of Miami was out in full force (seriously, where are you hiding?) and, thanks to the free T-shirts they were handing out (Go Green, Go Dutch, Go Bike), the Grove was a very orange place. My wife and I missed last year’s event so were were especially happy to be able to make it and party with the Netherlanders, huge fans of the Netherlands that we are.
We actually rode our bikes all the way from South Beach to Coconut Grove, using the Metrorail for the middle part of the route. Taking the bikes on the train was, in general, no problem, except for the fact that bikes have to go in the last cart but there is no actual space for them to be parked comfortably, so they end up being right in the way (thankfully no one requested to see if we had the completely useless bike permit for the train).
Update & New Bike
Rumors of me giving up my bike are greatly exaggerated. 
I’m around, but my first semester back in university has been very busy. On top of that, having had my bike stolen left me grounded for a few weeks, though that isn’t the case anymore. However, I have realized that I need to reduce the amount of projects I have going in order to better follow through with them.
In the very near future (read: as soon as I get some time from school), I will be migrating Slow Bike Miami from its own website into a consolidated part of my personal site, DMPerez.com. I’ve already directed readers there for the last two posts I made, so I might as well just make it official. By doing this, I can blog more easily about my bike adventures alongside my regular blog posts about all the other stuff I’m into.
If you arrive here by going to www.SlowBikeMiami.com, that URL will redirect to the proper category on my blog. If you read this via the RSS feed, I will likewise redirect so you don’t miss anything. The disruption should be minimal, if all goes well.
And to make this more than just a newscast, let me introduce to you all my new bicycle, a metallic blue Electra Townie!
Yes, I like Electras. 
Elam Stolen
This morning, when I left the house and passed by where I park my bike, I realized that it wasn’t there: Elam was stolen overnight.
You can read the fuller account of the event at my personal blog.
Needless to say, I am angry and sad. I barely had four months with my bike and I had yet to get back on the bus-n-bike routine after it was hit by a bus three weeks ago.
A police report has been filed and all local area bike shops notified. We’ll see what happens.
At least for the time being, one half of Slow Bike Miami is sans bike, and thus on hiatus.
Editorial: The Tragic Catalyst
Last weekend, on Sunday, January 17, 44-year old Christopher Lecanne was killed in a hit-and-run accident while he bicycled on Key Biscayne, a popular area for road cyclists. The driver of the car was under the influence and after hitting Lecanne, dragged his mangled bike for about 4 miles before it became dislodged from under his car. He was arrested and charged, though a few days ago he posted bail and is currently out of jail.
The event has touched a nerve in the Miami cycling community and seems to be turning into that tragic catalyst that may fuel some actual changes in the city/cities/county of Miami. At least one hopes so.
I wrote an editorial for TransitMiami.com entitled The Tragic Catalyst. I hope it is the last such editorial I ever have to write.
There will be a Memorial Ride for Mr. Lecanne this Sunday on Key Biscayne. My wife and I won’t be attending because we’re both down with a nasty cold, but we certainly extend our sympathies and prayers to the Lecanne family and will be there with the great bicycling community of Miami in spirit.
What A Way to Start 2010!
I’ve been away from Slow Bike Miami for a bit because I needed a break and because I needed to just go ride my bike and remind myself why I love this after tackling some fairly weighty subjects here.
Along the way 2010 came around and I made a resolution to go car-lite/car-free during this year!
Today I took the first step towards that resolution, and had a most unfortunate accident as my bike rolled off the bus bike rack and was hit by the bus. You can read all the sordid details on my personal blog.
I’ll keep riding, but obviously Elam will need to visit the bike shop for a couple of days first. I’ll keep you updated.
A Very Informal Count
Yesterday morning I took the scenic route back home from the synagogue, going down all of Lincoln Road Mall, to the Oceanwalk Promenade, then up 5th St before heading home (see the MapMyRide.com Map). On a whim, I decided to count all the bikes I came across my way, whether parked or with riders. Everyone knows we have a lot of bicyclists here in the Beach, but I wanted to have a very rough headcount. It was 10 AM, and the temp was in the mid 50s, so I figured I would see only those out exercising, and those on their way to/from/already at work.
When all was said and done, I counted 146 bikes, including me, with about 85 of them being spotted just along Lincoln Rd. I am no urban statisticians, but that seemed like a lot of bikes for a 3/4-mile long stretch, let alone for the 2.5 miles of my entire trip. And that fills me with joy.
Check out these pics.
Read more…
Bicycle Film Festival Review: The Short Films – Pt 2
I did a review of the BFF as a show and of the first eight short films presented at the screening. Below are the reviews for the remaining nine short films from BFF Program 3.
Urban Bike Shorts
Pixel Gear Bikes – A short 1-minute video of 8-bit Paperboy-like bike riders doing stuff like riding in the city blowing red lights, pulling tricks and eventually crashing against a car door that opens suddenly. 1980s Nintendo synth music completes the package. Cute.
Cooking Up Bike Co-Ops in Los Angeles – This 5-minute documentary was just fantastic and represents another part of why I like film fests, the chance to see pieces that introduce people to situations they may not be aware of. The doc takes us to discover the Bicycle Kitchen, Bike Oven & Bikerowave, three different bike co-ops in LA, non-profit spaces where volunteers help people learn how to repair their own bikes, and the amazing community that has gathered around them. A short but inspiring film, you can view it in its entirety at Streetfilms.
