September 5, 2010
Mark your calendar: Sat. Sept. 18
We continue to mourn the death last March 17 of Adam Little, 34, of Mount Pleasant, team manager of theSubaru/Gary Fisher Elite Road team. Adam was struck by a driver while commuting. The collision happened on NC HWY 49 N in Concord at 7:30 am. It was daylight, clear and dry. Adam was wearing a helmet and had a bike safety light. He is survived by his wife Melissa and two daughters, Aidan and Welsey. We now hear that Habitat for Humanity of Stanly County is hosting a “Live like Adam” 50k and 100k fundraiser.
To sign up CLICK: Adam
Also the trial of the driver who killed Adam, Stacy Renee Shaw case is concluded. According to the Cabarrus Clerk of Court’s office, she pleaded guilty, and did get 18 months probation, (with an admonition that if she violated that, she’d get 45 days in jail) plus 80 hours community service. At the trial, it came to light that she received a speeding ticket shortly before hitting Adam, and another shortly after, and one for driving with suspended/revoked license. One cannot help but be dismayed by flays in our justice system which allow such lenient sentencing in cases such is this.
Thanks to CABA member Mark Ortiz for researching the trial outcome and Daniel Bennett for alerting us to the ride.
Leave a Comment » | 
Advocacy - National, People, Safety | 
Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
September 5, 2010
Shannon Binns, Founder
DATELINE: Sept. 5, Charlotte Observer – “Sustain Charlotte, is a nonprofit dedicated to inspiring, informing and advancing sustainability across the Charlotte region. The organization provides information and opportunities for greater public engagement in the decisions that shape Charlotte’s future.
“Sustainability is about looking at other consequences of development beyond cost,” said Shannon Binns. “While it may be difficult to put a price tag on the benefit of clean air for example, the returns to the community of getting more cars off the road are tremendous. “”Health-care savings, gains in productivity and reduced energy usage are all aspects (that), while not easily quantified in dollars and cents, greatly contribute to our quality of life.” In April, Sustain Charlotte organized an effort to create a sustainable vision for our city. A cross section of Charlotte interests and local stakeholders assembled to listen as Mayor Anthony Foxx and Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners Chairwoman Jennifer Roberts spoke about sustainability issues. CABA us a proud supporter of Sustain Charlotte, an organization which is long overdue in the Queen City and metro area. To read more: CLICK: Sustain.
Leave a Comment » | Advocacy - Local, Climate change C02 Clean Air, Health Obesity Safe Routes to Schools, People | Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
September 5, 2010
In and around Charlotte >
- Espada Bicycl
es - UPDATE: Espada bike shop staff are almost finished with renovation of the former Beet shop space in the heart of NoDA. Doors should re-open by the end of August. In the meantime check-out their weekly rides on Tues. eves. Congratulations, Nick and Steve. For more info contact: steve@espadabicycles.com (BTW: Espada is espanol for “sword”).
- NE Corridor light rail / bike trail Stakeholder Group begin meetings - The first of 3 meetings begins on Sept. 29 and will be conducted by John Cock of Alta bike/ped consulting firm. John is a devoted and highly regarded urban planner and cyclist and founder of the Charlotte Commuter Mentor Program. Members of the Stakeholder Group include reps from Center City Partners, NoDA, North End Partners, Queens College, UNCCharlotte Cycists, Queens College, and CABA reps Dan Faris and Andrew Street.
- Bike rack update – Linda Construction has installed several racks at Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, the Music Factory and other locations under CABA’s $20,000 bike rack to CDOT to place 100 – 2 bike racks on commercial sites in Charlotte. Other racks will go to 15 Harris Teeters, UNCC Research Park office buildings, Common Market/South End etc. Any suggestions ? Let us know by clicking the cloud bubble below.
- Selwyn Road and East Blvd. bike lanes are completed. The former includes “sharrow” markings as well.
4 Comments | Advocacy - Local, Bike Shops, Bike plans / planning, Meetings, People | Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
September 5, 2010
And the winner is ….
…..John Bascum. John sent us his winning answer a bare 1/’2 hour after the photo was posted ! John wins a FREE CABA membership ($35 value) plus 10% discounts at 14 area bike shops and… a free USAir one-way trip to balmy Denver (NC that is). Includes all the Fat Tire drafts you can chug at Bubba Furgee’s Tap Room.
This is the front entrance to the Ritz Carlton and those bikes are rentals offered by the hotel to their elite clientele
1 Comment | Advocacy - Local, People, Photos | Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
August 29, 2010
A strange ride, indeed
Taking away our freedoms ??
Colorado Tea Party candidate, Dan Mayes says beware of the bike share. Hey, there’s nothing bad about drinking tea, but this guy must have added waaaaaay too much sugar.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes has warned voters that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper’s efforts to boost bike riding, are “converting Denver into a United Nations community.“ “This is all very well-disguised, but it will be exposed,” Maes told about 50 supporters who showed up at a campaign rally a few weeks ago. Maes said in a later interview that he once thought the mayor’s efforts to promote cycling and other environmental initiatives were harmless and well-meaning. Now he realizes “that’s exactly the attitude they want you to have.”
“This is bigger than it looks like on the surface, and it could threaten our personal freedoms,” Maes said. To read more CLICK: Denver Post story
.
Leave a Comment » | Advocacy - National, People | Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
August 23, 2010
NOTE: We hear from one blog reader that Tara has been voted by CL readers as columnist they are most “tired of “….and WBT-1110 radio’s market share has been declining…
Irresponsible journalism at its worst…
Tara Servatius’ column in Creative Loafing a few weeks ago struck a nerve among area bicyclists, and rightly so.
Her rant rendered bicycling as a form of social deviancy getting special treatment from local government thru bike lanes, traffic calming and other allegedly wasteful investments, East Blvd.’s current improvements being a case in point. She characterizes a bicyclist as someone eager to provoke a crash so he or she can initiate a law suit against the innocent driver. Her column was actually a reprint of her earlier live commentary on WBT News Talk radio when she rudely cut off a caller without allowing the person to explain his point of view. At first CABA decided to ignore Tara dismissing her efforts as one more example of shock journalism, assuming that both Tara and her bosses would regard any responses pro or con as a sign their media “brand” was successful. But when we received several emails including one from Melissa Bell of Inside / Out Sports that her shop told CR to cease delivery of Creative Loafing, we decided to take action.
We called the editor and had a civil conversation. He agreed to run a lengthy rebuttal column which was posted immediately on the CL blog. It will be reprinted in the July 28 issue. We hope you like it, and we hope you keep emailing your responses to them. If you are a bike shop or other business you might also consider cutting off delivery of CL.
Our rebuttal is a cooperative response with Ann Groninger, Attny with NCBikeLaw and Melissa .
Thanks to all for your support of bicycling as a community-wide asset.
Martin Zimmerman, Executive Director / CABA
6 Comments | Advocacy - Local, People, Safety | Permalink
Posted by martinzimmerman8
We continue to mourn the death last March 17 of Adam Little, 34, of Mount Pleasant, team manager of theSubaru/Gary Fisher Elite Road team. Adam was struck by a driver while commuting. The collision happened on NC HWY 49 N in Concord at 7:30 am. It was daylight, clear and dry. Adam was wearing a helmet and had a bike safety light. He is survived by his wife Melissa and two daughters, Aidan and Welsey. We now hear that Habitat for Humanity of Stanly County is hosting a “Live like Adam” 50k and 100k fundraiser. 
