Sep 07 2010

Another blog about Denver B-Cycle

Sorry to keep blogging about the Denver B-cycle program, but I read an interesting article today…

Let me take a step back:

handlebar mounted bike ringer

I have been pleased to see the latest push for free and cheap bicycles available to locals and tourists in major cities around the world. But some people have been less pleased about the development. Just like some politicians say that “trails are a waste of money” some other politicians complain that the bike sharing programs are a waste of money and a (I’m not making this up.) United Nations plot to advance their communistic agenda.

Well, it turns out the bike share programs are a raging success. In fact, the only problem seems to be in keeping up with the growing demand for the bikes. And as far as critics who worry about problems w/ the program, it seems that the biggest problem so far is broken bells.

That’s right, broken bells. I guess some people get a little too gregarious w/ their bell-ringing finger.

This is just one more piece of evidence that the new bicycle culture is here to stay.

So grab a bike and hit the trail, my friends. If you don’t have a bike to grab, find a bike share program in your area.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/09/07/another-blog-about-denver-b-cycle/

Sep 06 2010

Mineral Belt Loop Trail in Leadville, Colorado

I finally got around to taking some pictures on the Mineral Belt Loop Trail in Leadville, CO.

I’d been on the trail twice before; once while riding a bike and the other time on cross-country skis.

But I didn’t have a camera with me either time, so I didn’t have any pictures to post on the Mineral Belt Loop Trail on the trailsnet website.

So this Labor Day weekend, I finally made it back up there. (And when I say up there, I’m not exaggerating. Leadville is over 10,000 feet above sea level.) This time I was armed with my bicycle and my camera, so I was ready to take some trail pictures. As a result, the Mineral Belt Loop Trail page on the website finally has a trail photo gallery.

If you’re thinking about riding this high altitude trail, here are the basic facts:

  • It’s 12.5 miles long.
  • It’s a paved trail and very smooth.
  • The loop trail is almost like an outdoor museum with all its historic signs and mining memorabilia scattered along the path.
  • Leadville has numerous accommodations for overnight bikers, but none of them are overly fancy.
  • Leadville has some great places for eating. We ate at the Tennessee Pass Cafe and enjoyed buffalo burgers, Reuben sandwiches, and a turkey/bacon sandwich. The food and service were excellent.
For more information about the Mineral Belt Loop Trail, you can visit the American Trails website.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/09/06/mineral-belt-loop-trail-in-leadville-colorado/

Sep 03 2010

B-cycle bike rentals program adds third city

For those who want to visit the big city without a large carbon output or money output, there are many low-cost bike loan programs available.

With the swipe of a credit card bicyclists are able to borrow a bike for a half hour (free) to a whole day. It saves the planet, it saves money, and it saves the renter from facing all the traffic congestion on the road.
I know this isn’t a new program and similar bike rental schemes (as they call it in Europe) are in place world-wide. But it got me thinking…
Wouldn’t it be great to have a similar program available at rails-to-trails trailheads? I know it would have been immensely helpful on a couple of my trips to know there were bikes available, 24 hrs. a day, to be rented at one station and returned at another.
I think I’ll contact the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy about this idea. I’d say it’s worth a trial run.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/09/03/b-cycle-bike-rentals-program-adds-third-city/

Sep 02 2010

New Hampshire may become the next best bike state

I visited New Hampshire on a bike trip last fall. I was impressed by their great rail trails and had a wonderful biking vacation.

Although NH may not currently be the biking capitol of the world, I predict it may become the #1 bicycle destination in the not-too-distant future.

A friend of mine was there recently and brought back some New Hampshire Bicycle Maps. I didn’t see these maps when I was there, so it was fun to peruse them and see the trails I missed. While I was there, I biked on the following trails:

After looking at the six regional bicycle maps from New Hampshire, I’m ready to go back and hit some more rails-to-trails. 
In addition to the awesome bike maps, I also recommend you look at  the New Hampshire trails web page by clicking on this link.
This fall, I recommend you visit some bike trails in New Hampshire. You’ll see the fall foliage from a whole new perspective.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/09/02/new-hampshire-may-become-the-next-best-bike-state/

Sep 01 2010

Interesting facts about bike commuting

A recent newspaper article entitled Power Down: A numerical look at cars vs. bikes prompted me to search the California Bike Commute website for “FACTS ABOUT BICYCLING AS A COMMUTE OPTION.” (their caps, not mine)

Here are just a few of the facts I found in their bike facts PDF file. You can visit their site for the whole list.

• Only 1.67% of Americans commute by bicycle. 
• In Japan, 15% commute by bicycle 
• There are approximately 139 million automobiles in the United States. 
• The number of bicycles in the U.S. is estimated to be about 103 million. 
• One hundred bicycles can be produced for the same energy and resources it takes to build 
one medium-sized automobile. 
• The average cost of a new car in the U.S. is $13,532. 
• The average cost of a new bicycle in the U.S. is $385. 
• In China, bicycles outnumber cars 250 to 1.  
And here’s some good news:
• The number of bicycle commuters doubled between 1983 and 1990, according to the 
Bicycle Institute of America. 

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/09/01/interesting-facts-about-bike-commuting/

Aug 30 2010

My first Everytrail guide to Big Dry Creek Trail in Westminster, CO

It took me a while, but I finally got my first Everytrail guide published.

I’ve been working on a guide for the Big Dry Creek Trail which is located in Westminster, Colorado. Westminster has a lot of great trails, but the the Big Dry Creek Trail is probably the longest. It meanders from Standley Lake in the west all the way to I-25 in the east. As I point out in the guide, there are also lots of spur trails to explore along the way.

There were many steps involved in the creation of the guide. First, of course I “had” to ride the trail. Well I’ve done this numerous times, but this time, I had to stop a lot and take pictures, do research, and write lots of notes about waypoints along the trail.

While riding the trail, I also had to record the GPS information using an iphone app called Trails.

At the end of the ride, I sent the GPS coordinates/waypoints, pictures, and trail information from the Trails app to Everytrail. This was the easy part because I just had to press a couple buttons and, voila, it was sent.

Then, when I got home, I got onto the Everytrail website and compiled everything into a guide.

Finally, I published the whole thing. I had a few problems w/ this part, but a very nice technician from Everytrail gave me so good advice and, before I knew it, I was finished.

I sent the guide to Everytrail for approval on a Sunday and received my confirmation the same day. I was pleasantly surprised w/ this quick turnover time, especially on a weekend.

Now it’s your turn. Check out Everytrail. If you live in Colorado, download my Big Dry Creek guide onto your smart phone. It’s cheap ($1.99) and easy. Then get out there and enjoy the trail.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2010/08/30/my-first-everytrail-guide-to-big-dry-creek-trail-in-westminster-co/