I was on the Palm Beach Post website trying to figure out how to submit a press release about Bike & Build when this article popped up:
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/treasurecoast/content/tcoast/epaper/2008/04/11/0411mcbike.html
Please be aware of bikes!
Friday, April 11, 2008
A plea...
Please pay attention to cyclists. We don't really "belong" anywhere, and it's difficult for us to avoid all of the hazards we are faced with when riding. Remember, your vehicle weighs at least 500 times as much as my "vehicle." Obviously, I'm yielding to you, as my bike would do very little damage to your car, and you car would do a whole lot of damage to my body (and bike). But just be aware. And bike lanes are not for parking. They are for people to bike in. Here's a great link someone sent me that makes a really good point about paying attention to cyclists:
http://video.bicycling.com/item/PDTY62LZ7LXFMLBJ
So, this all stemmed from a ride last night. I decided to bike from my house, through campus, down 2nd Avenue, to hang out with some people last night. This seemed more reasonable than driving. It was light when I left, but I brought my lights with me in case it was dark when I came back (which, at 11 PM, it definitely was). So I was riding over and doing just fine until I got by the O'Dome, when there were a line of cars parked in the bike lane. I was able to find a break in traffic and cut out into the regular lane. One cool thing about campus is that the speed limit is only 20 mph, and I have an odometer on my bike, so I was doing 20 and keeping up with the cars around me. That's a good feeling. I made it through campus and most of the way down 2nd without incident when a pedestrian decided to walk out in front of me. Like, directly in front of me. There is no bike lane on 2nd, but there is a very wide sidewalk that works for bikes and pedestrians. This man was clearly not paying attention to anything around him, walked directly in front of me, and stopped. I very narrowly avoided him, and he laughed hysterically as I rode away. That was nice. Then, as I was crossing 34th, someone was turning right on red and not paying attention (again) and almost drove into me. (I had the little man in the crosswalk light telling me to go, so I definitely had the right of way.) This time, I got the "I'm really sorry" wave and continued on. I finally made it the 2.3 miles alive and whole. Luckily, on the way back, even though it was dark and late, there was actually much less going on and there were no major incidents to report. So, I did 4.6 miles on the bike yesterday. Not much, but at least I didn't drive there and back.
I'll be doing some fundraising type stuff tonight, fundraising tomorrow, and training on Sunday. Updates to come probably on Monday!
http://video.bicycling.com/item/PDTY62LZ7LXFMLBJ
So, this all stemmed from a ride last night. I decided to bike from my house, through campus, down 2nd Avenue, to hang out with some people last night. This seemed more reasonable than driving. It was light when I left, but I brought my lights with me in case it was dark when I came back (which, at 11 PM, it definitely was). So I was riding over and doing just fine until I got by the O'Dome, when there were a line of cars parked in the bike lane. I was able to find a break in traffic and cut out into the regular lane. One cool thing about campus is that the speed limit is only 20 mph, and I have an odometer on my bike, so I was doing 20 and keeping up with the cars around me. That's a good feeling. I made it through campus and most of the way down 2nd without incident when a pedestrian decided to walk out in front of me. Like, directly in front of me. There is no bike lane on 2nd, but there is a very wide sidewalk that works for bikes and pedestrians. This man was clearly not paying attention to anything around him, walked directly in front of me, and stopped. I very narrowly avoided him, and he laughed hysterically as I rode away. That was nice. Then, as I was crossing 34th, someone was turning right on red and not paying attention (again) and almost drove into me. (I had the little man in the crosswalk light telling me to go, so I definitely had the right of way.) This time, I got the "I'm really sorry" wave and continued on. I finally made it the 2.3 miles alive and whole. Luckily, on the way back, even though it was dark and late, there was actually much less going on and there were no major incidents to report. So, I did 4.6 miles on the bike yesterday. Not much, but at least I didn't drive there and back.
I'll be doing some fundraising type stuff tonight, fundraising tomorrow, and training on Sunday. Updates to come probably on Monday!
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
A different philosophy
Balancing everything is becoming increasingly difficult for me. I have a lot of responsibilities and demands on my time, and trying to make sure that I am fundraising, training, working, spending time with the new boyfriend, volunteering, finding a house, etc. is hard. Training keeps getting set aside. So, I've decided to incorporate cycling more into my everyday life. It means that I'm riding more often, but rides aren't as long. On Sunday, I rode about a mile onto campus and did a 5k, then rode back home. Riding home, I got my first real rain riding experience, which was quite interesting. I slid all over when I hit the paint at a crosswalk, but did okay other than that. Tonight, I went to dinner with friends downtown. I decided to ride my bike down there and back, too. Again, it was only a mile each way, but I got a ride in today. (Everything seems to be very close in Gainesville.) So, I haven't done a long ride in awhile (it rained this weekend), but everything is going pretty well. I spent a couple of nights last week learning how to screenprint and screenprinting t-shirts that my mom and I designed. They came out really well! I will be selling them at the farmer's market, the Orange and Blue football game this weekend, and to anyone who would like them!
Other news:
I went to the bike shop today and figured out what size bike frame I needed. I'll be ordering a 48 Dolce. Thanks to Chain Reaction here in Gainesville for assembling the bike for free and fitting it for free as well!
I also took the safety and policy quiz and passed it with 100% so that I can order my bike. I have my physical set up with my doctor so that I can get all of the paperwork done and be ready to go!
More thanks:
Haile Plantation Farmer's Market, who gives me a booth for free every weekend to fundraise at
Reller Gold (www.rellergold.com), Ed, Kathy, and Kelly, who donated awesome bicycle charms for me to use for fundraising (please let me know if you would like one!)
Cherice Smithers, who taught me how to screenprint so I could make shirts to use for fundraising
My mom and dad, for buying t-shirts for me to screenprint
Matt Kozyra, for his donation
Haile Plantation Farmer's Market Vendors and Patrons, for their donations
Other news:
I went to the bike shop today and figured out what size bike frame I needed. I'll be ordering a 48 Dolce. Thanks to Chain Reaction here in Gainesville for assembling the bike for free and fitting it for free as well!
I also took the safety and policy quiz and passed it with 100% so that I can order my bike. I have my physical set up with my doctor so that I can get all of the paperwork done and be ready to go!
More thanks:
Haile Plantation Farmer's Market, who gives me a booth for free every weekend to fundraise at
Reller Gold (www.rellergold.com), Ed, Kathy, and Kelly, who donated awesome bicycle charms for me to use for fundraising (please let me know if you would like one!)
Cherice Smithers, who taught me how to screenprint so I could make shirts to use for fundraising
My mom and dad, for buying t-shirts for me to screenprint
Matt Kozyra, for his donation
Haile Plantation Farmer's Market Vendors and Patrons, for their donations
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Fundraising!
So fundraising has been rather hit or miss, but I feel like it has been more hit than miss lately...
I wrote hundreds of letters to local construction businesses, former teachers, former/current doctors, the Gator Clubs, pageant directors (I am a former pageant girl), some celebrities, local bike shops, and other businesses that I patronize. The response was lower than I anticipated, but I definitely got some response from it. I may do some follow up calls, but with work 9-6 everyday, this does not seem likely.
My dad has said that he will put in some calls to his former business contacts and see if any of them can help me out. Sweet!
I was also able to get a booth at the local farmer's market every Saturday from here on out to collect donations. I realized that just asking for donations every week is not going to keep working (it worked well the first week though!). I was really fortunate and met a local jeweler when I was there the first time (rellergold.com), who is making sterling silver bicycle charms for me to give to people with certain donations ($15 for smaller charms, $25 for larger charms). I also spent a long time with my mom this weekend designing a logo for a t-shirt. She did a lot of the legwork to find graphics and paid for the first set of shirts. Tomorrow night I will be learning how to screen print and screen printing a bunch of shirts in orange, blue, and white to give to people with at least a $15 donation. I think that the two different items will really give me an opportunity to collect a lot of money this Saturday. I am very excited!
Tonight I dropped off information about Bike & Build to two different Publixes so that I can try to collect donations outside of the stores. I also am expecting a call back from Wal-Mart tomorrow about which dates I will be able fundraise outside their store, and they may match the donations I get. Hopefully all of this works out and the next few weekends will be completely devoted to to fundraising and training!
I'll also start teaching an SAT class on Sundays, so that will factor into the schedule. I donated another $300 today, so my total to Bike & Build is now $800. :)
I wrote hundreds of letters to local construction businesses, former teachers, former/current doctors, the Gator Clubs, pageant directors (I am a former pageant girl), some celebrities, local bike shops, and other businesses that I patronize. The response was lower than I anticipated, but I definitely got some response from it. I may do some follow up calls, but with work 9-6 everyday, this does not seem likely.
My dad has said that he will put in some calls to his former business contacts and see if any of them can help me out. Sweet!
I was also able to get a booth at the local farmer's market every Saturday from here on out to collect donations. I realized that just asking for donations every week is not going to keep working (it worked well the first week though!). I was really fortunate and met a local jeweler when I was there the first time (rellergold.com), who is making sterling silver bicycle charms for me to give to people with certain donations ($15 for smaller charms, $25 for larger charms). I also spent a long time with my mom this weekend designing a logo for a t-shirt. She did a lot of the legwork to find graphics and paid for the first set of shirts. Tomorrow night I will be learning how to screen print and screen printing a bunch of shirts in orange, blue, and white to give to people with at least a $15 donation. I think that the two different items will really give me an opportunity to collect a lot of money this Saturday. I am very excited!
Tonight I dropped off information about Bike & Build to two different Publixes so that I can try to collect donations outside of the stores. I also am expecting a call back from Wal-Mart tomorrow about which dates I will be able fundraise outside their store, and they may match the donations I get. Hopefully all of this works out and the next few weekends will be completely devoted to to fundraising and training!
I'll also start teaching an SAT class on Sundays, so that will factor into the schedule. I donated another $300 today, so my total to Bike & Build is now $800. :)
Biking Update
I went home last weekend (as in 3/29-3/30), so I wasn't able to ride, and I did not get any training in the week before that. I tried to ride on Tuesday after work, and before I even got out of the parking lot of my apartment complex, I ran over a piece of glass and flattened my back tire. There is nothing sadder than that sound of all of the air quickly deflating out of my tire. :( Anyway, by the time I got it changed, it was dark and I missed my chance to ride. I had to tutor on Thursday after work, so I didn't get to ride then either.
However, the Sunday before that (3/23), I did a ride that was a little over 30 miles. It was hard, but it felt good. I almost turned around 10 miles, making it a 20 mile total ride, but pushed myself to 30, and was really happy with the decision afterward. I made sure to stretch afterward and wasn't unreasonably sore the next day, either. This weekend I will be putting in a nice long ride again, but I don't think I'll have a chance to ride before then. I'm going to see a pretty awesome dance company on Thursday, had a business dinner last night, and the next post will explain tonight and tomorrow night.
The long awaited fundraising update is coming up now....
However, the Sunday before that (3/23), I did a ride that was a little over 30 miles. It was hard, but it felt good. I almost turned around 10 miles, making it a 20 mile total ride, but pushed myself to 30, and was really happy with the decision afterward. I made sure to stretch afterward and wasn't unreasonably sore the next day, either. This weekend I will be putting in a nice long ride again, but I don't think I'll have a chance to ride before then. I'm going to see a pretty awesome dance company on Thursday, had a business dinner last night, and the next post will explain tonight and tomorrow night.
The long awaited fundraising update is coming up now....
More Thanks!
And I have more people to thank:
Brian Posner
Mr. Carbon
Mrs. Yuzenas
Jasmin Robinson
Nikki Aronson (who is also a Bike & Build rider, on the Providence to San Francisco route)
Thank you so much for your donation and support! I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get this posted.
Brian Posner
Mr. Carbon
Mrs. Yuzenas
Jasmin Robinson
Nikki Aronson (who is also a Bike & Build rider, on the Providence to San Francisco route)
Thank you so much for your donation and support! I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get this posted.
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