Bike2Benefits, a program sponsored by Twin Cities Metro Transit, has been promoting bicycle commuting in the Twin Cities Area by offering custom bike routes to work, maps, commuter accesories and prizes. Their initial goal was to support 500 riders in 2008. By the end of September they had 2,020 members. 701 of the members were given custom bike routes and 974 had successfully completed the program. Some other impressive stats: Bicyclists took 33,797 trips for a total of 267,045 miles. Had each of those bicyclists driven to work alone, they would have burned up 132 tons of CO2. Congratulations to Metro Transit, program director John Siqveland and all of the mappers who worked out the custom bike routes for new commuters.

Joel Cahalan, of the Hub Bicycle Co-op, has been trying to get the necessary permit to run the Powderhorn Park Cyclocross race this fall. As previously reported here, the director of Powderhorn Park rejected the first application for a permit. At the time, Peter Yaeger, Powderhorn Park Director, gave no reason for his refusal. Since then, Cahalan has received a written statement outlining the Park Director’s reasons for refusing the permit. Below is Cahalan’s point by point response. He addresed his response to the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board of Directors.

Park Commissioners,

I have read Peter Jaeger’s statement regarding the Powderhorn bike race and I feel it full of distortions and misstatements. I would appreciate the opportunity to rebut his views in the hopes that you will reconsider his denial of our permit this year. I would like to state that seeing his letter yesterday was the first that many of these concerns have been presented to me. To me, Peter Jaeger’s procedure for dealing with this issue has not been one in which he openly communicated his concerns and allowed us the opportunity to address them. Instead there has been a complete lack of dialogue. I have lived in South Minneapolis for 13 years and have many friends who live within blocks of Powderhorn Park. We are your constituents and we are park users. I urge you give us the courtesy of seriously considering our viewpoints before reaching a decision on this important issue.

Following is a point by point rebuttal of Peter Jaeger’s stated reasons for denying our permit:

Extensive damage to the grounds that is still evident
We are more than willing to have a rain date or call off the event if the park is too wet. We had no prior experience with the effect our event would have on the park last year due to the record rain fall. As Peter states in his letter he did not either and we relied on park officials to make this judgment.
Drought resistant ground cover in effected areas that is a darker shade of green does not seem to me to be ‘extensive damage’. We have held the event three years running and have always had the course in a slightly different spot. There are no visible marks on the park from the first two years. This leads me to believe that last year was an exceptional year due to record rain preceding the event.
The arts fair and other large events have a much larger impact on the park.
Numerous complaints from neighborhood residents
I have had numerous complements about bringing a positive event to the park and neighborhood.
Mud pit was never graded
We did in fact have one of our club member’s rake out some of the ruts after the race.
We offered to do more in a phone conversation with Dave Garmany in October 23, 2007, two days after the race. We were told this was not possible due to union concerns and were told we should pay an additional $500 for grass reseeding. We immediately agreed to this and I have bank statements to verify that indeed $505 was charged to our account on behalf of Minneapolis Parks on October 23, 2007
Concerns organizers will not take environmental factors into account and call the event off.
As stated above we relied of park officials last year and had no prior experience with what effect the event would have. There is no evidence to support the idea that we would proceed with the event without park official’s approval.
Participants continued to use the course after the event
It is more probable that area residents who ride bikes enjoyed using the path post event.
In the event that there were any race participants using the course in the weeks after the race the promoters could have been contacted by park officials and we would have been happy to spread the word within the racing community that it was not okay to ride on the course post race. In the past when these type of concerns have been raised the bike racing community has been very responsive to requests.
Failure to provide youth programming as agreed upon
I personally suggested that The Hub Bike Co-op partner with the park to do some youth programming and got the distinct impression from park staff that this would be a waste of time as area youth would not be interested in attending. To now hear park officials assert that this is something we agreed to do and did not follow through on is personally insulting and I feel another example of poor communication.
I believe that this type of program could still be organized if the will was there on the part of park staff.
Permit fee was set too low and organizers complained that it was too high.
Regardless of whether this is true this is not a reason to deny a permit. We have paid every fee that park staff requested.
Livability factor for neighbors to Powderhorn Park
Livability to me means having local events such as ours that are inspirational and exciting to watch.
Many event participants arrive by bike for our event thus reducing environmental impact and increasing livability.
Overall safety to park users; high speed of biker’s through the park.
The course is clearly marked with caution tape and or flagging.
We had volunteers at critical spots throughout the park monitoring pedestrian crossing.
There were no incidents that would justify this concern that were ever brought to my attention.
The average speed in a race such as this is about 15 mph.

In closing it seems that there are many issues that could be resolved simply by better communication between park staff and our club. I do not believe any of these issues are insurmountable but I have felt a lack of willingness to have an open dialogue about how we can work together. Please consider our request to have park staff work in partnership instead of adversarially.

—
Joel Cahalan
Development Coordinator
The Hub Bike Co-op
Minneapolis MN

Mike Rainville of the Northeast Bicycle Task Force is looking for interested neighbors to be part of the final planning of the Northeast bicycle boulevards, bike lanes, and bicycle-trail planning initiatives. The Northeast Bicycle Task Force, the City of Minneapolis and the TLC have been working together for a long time on planning, and also to secure the funds to finally bring bicycle commuter routes to Northeast. They are especially interested in participation from Audubon Park residents who are avid recreational bicyclists, commuters, and also residents on both Fillmore and Polk Streets.

The meetings of this group have yet to be determined and will run from this fall through the spring. If you would like to participate in the final planning: please contact Laura at the ANA Office, or leave her a phone message 612-788-8790, including your email address and we’ll make sure you receive upcoming meeting information.

If you are looking to be one of the first to use West River Road under the I-35W bridge, you would do well to sign up for the Minneapolis Bike Tour. The tour, schedued for September 14, has special permission to direct its riders under the new bridge. Spectators, motorists and other bike riders will be stopped before getting to the closed area, so the only way to get an early start to riding this section of road is to sign up for the tour.

Minneapolis is looking for volunteers to help with its second annual bike count on September 9 and 10. These counts will establish trend lines to asses the number of bicyclists on the streets of the city and the imapct of lane and bike trail improvements. Volunteers will work 2 hour shifts. The city has a particular need for volunteers during the afternoon rush hour, from 4 to 6 p.m. For more information, or to volunteer, contact Shaun Murphy at shaun.murphy@ci.minneapolis.mn.us or 612.275.5128. Please leave your e-mail address, phone number, a preferred day and time slot, and if desired, a neighborhood where you would like to volunteer.

This summer, during a national summit of bicycle advocates, a Minneapolis Advocate challenged Portland, OR claiming that Minneapolis was gunning to take the number one ranking from Portland. Portland’s response? “Bring it.” Here’s what Minneapolis is doing to “Bring it.”

Reconstruction projects:
3.3 miles of trail between the Camden Bridge and Ulysses St. NE along St. Anthony Parkway. The new trail is now up to the standard 10 ft width.
Replace bike trails from Fulton St to the city limits along East River Parkway. The current trails were buit in 1950 and reconstructed in 1975. The bike trail will be widened to 10 feet. It’s one of the last to be reconstructed since its original installation.
Build the “Missing Link” between the Luce Line State Bike Trail and Theodore Wirth Parkway in Minneapolis. When completed, in mid 2009, the trail will link the Cedar Lake Trail, Basset Creek Trail and Luce Line Trail, allowing cyclists to ride from Downtown Minneapolis to Cosmos, Minnesota, a distance of 72 miles, at least in theory. The Luce Line Trail’s surface turns to gravel west of I-494 and deteriorates to jeep tracks west of Watertown, MN.
One of the biggest success stories for Minneapolis bike trails is the Midtown Greenway. Pavement sensors along the trail indicate that trail use is up 30% between 2008 and 2007. In June, 2008 nearly 247,000 cyclists passed the Hennepin Ave counting station, with a one day record of over 5,000 cyclists. Not bad for a railroad trench that was once filled with broken glass and a hang out for alcoholics and drug users.

The Powderhorn Park Cyclocross Race, an immensely popular race in south Minneapolis, may be canceled because the Powderhorn Park Director has refused to grant a permit this year.

The Hub Bike Co-op has put on this unique Cyclocross race for three years. The race draws a large crowd of beginning and high level cyclocross racers, but the real draw is the funky, urban setting, an eclectic crowd of spectators that includes bike messengers, tattoes and nose rings and unique “primes” like last year’s dollar bills duct taped to hand rails on a steep uphill stair climb. The event is big enough to draw pizza vendors and inspire local residents to break out grills and kegs. If the event got any bigger, it would risk drawing office seeking politicos, a sure buzz killer.

The Parks and Recreation Board denied the permit because of damage to park grounds during last year’s race. Joel Cahalan of the Hub attributes the damage to record rainfall before last year’s event. He has offered to mitigate the problem by creating a rain date this year. Supporters of the event spoke at a Park and Recreation Board Open Time meeting in Mid-August and Calahan has worked the politcal system to get a new ruling. The permit request is in limbo as of this writing.

The Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival has teamed up with the Cable Hayward Area Arts Council to host Bicycle as Art The Art of the Bicycle. The show is looking for original 2D and 3D artwork that uses the bicycle as its inspiration. The exhibit will be open to the public during Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival weekend, September 12-14. Artists have until September 1 to enter their work and September 10 to deliver it to Telemark Resort in Cable, WI. More information

Volunteers are needed to help with the Urban Assault Ride. Scheduled for September 21, this is the first time the ride comes to Minneapolis. The Urban Assault Ride™ is a funky bike scavenger hunt that involves street-smart riding, obstacle courses, and a huge after party.
The event is well known for its checkpoints where zany obstacle courses must be completed before moving on. We’re talking modified Big Wheels, Bike Jousting, The Keg Walk, Inflatable Slides…and much more. The first team to hit all of the checkpoints and cross the finish line wins! Then the party begins with New Belgium beer and lots more two-wheeled shenanigans!

This promises to be a fun event for volunteers and partidcipants alike. For more information

The Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis, Wisconsin, has never been an easy venue to bike to. There were no bike racks, no security and no official encouragement to ride to the fair. That has changed dramatically in 2008. Thanks to the efforts of Jack Hirt of the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin and the enthusiasm of Kathleen O’ Leary of the State Fair, bicyclists will be welcomed with open arms this year. “Pedal to the Park,” the State Fair’s official name for the promotion, will encourage bicycling to the State Fair by offering bike parking near the north and south entrances to the park. If you are a member of the Bike Federation or on the mailing list of some bike shops in the Milwaukee area, you will soon receive an email encouraging you to “Pedal to the Park.” The email blast is expected to reach nearly 30,000 cyclists.

Bikeverywhere has helped with the promotion by producing a custom map of bike routes to the State Fair and sending out promotional materials to bike dealers in the greater Milwaukee area. This is the same assistance that we gave to Summerfest earlier this summer and similar to the custom bike route mapping Bikeverywhere did for the Miller Lite Ride for the Arts. You can download copy of the map here. Eventually the map will also be available for download on the Wisconsin State Fair website.

This year you can add a bike ride to the corn dog/Midway/animal barn experience of the Wisconsin State Fair.