Various Items from the Good Ideas to WTF…

I have come across a few different things over the last few weeks that either deserve a little bit of attention or I just wanted to share with the public.

From the Very Good Idea/Resource files:

 The first item pertains to cycling, one of my present passions.  Are you interested in cycling to work in LA but didn’t know enough about the routes or traffic to really feel safe doing so?  There is a program called Roll with It run through the C.I.C.L.E. (Cyclists Inciting Change through LIVE Exchange) that will set you up with a Bicycle Commuting Coach/Mentor to help you plan your route and to actually ride with you to work.  The program is free and is a good way to give bicycle commuting a try with the support of a more experienced cyclist.  You may find that you get to work faster and feel better once you get there than when you commute by car or SUV.  You will also be doing the city a favor by reducing traffic, smog and fossil fuels consumption.   If you are already bicycle commuter in LA, why not sign up to be a Mentor and help spread bicycle commuting across Los Angeles? 

From the Very Cool but WTF File:

KFC has earned the destinction of being the first brand to be visible from space.  Recently KFC built a corporate logo of Colonel Sanders near Area 51 in Nevada.  The 87,500 square-foot logo was constructed of 1 foot by 1 foot individual tiles and can be seen on Google Earth very clearly.  I first read about this on Amber Mac’s (from Call for Help on Canadian Tech TV) Webpage.  She links to her original source, complete with time-lapse video, here.  Very strange ambitions that some folks/companies have, but in some strange way, very, very Cool!

Update: It appears that the largest corporate logo seen from space may be the ReadyMix logo created on the Nullarbor plain of Australia in 1965.  Well, maybe the KFC logo is the first color corporate logo seen from space?

New Bike Shop

I threw my back out this past Thursday and could not go for any rides this weekend on the mountain bike. Kind of a bummer for me. I am really getting to like the Santa Monicas! There are so many trails to ride and so many different places to explore.

So instead of going for a ride, I visited a new bike shop here in West LA named Cynergy Cycles. They are located at the corner of 23rd Street and Santa Monica Blvd in Santa Monica near St. John’s Medical Center. The folks in the shop are really nice and took the time to talk to me as a person, something that we don’t see very often this day and age of big box stores. In fact, I have been boycotting Performance Bicycles ever since I was treated so poorly by their staff in the Santa Monica store over the course of a couple of visits. In fact, not only do I not shop there but I let anyone that will listen know that they should not shop there either! I guess when you are one of the largest volume cycling retailers in California, you can pick and choose who you are nice to! This negative criticism does not include all Performance Bicycle Shops. The Performance Bicycle in Ventura has always been great to me every time that I have gone in there.

But anyway, based on my good experience at Cynergy Cycles, if you get a chance, check them out. You might like what you find! I have a tick in my bottom bracket right now on my mountain bike and I think that I will be taking it to Cynergy to get checked out.

The Tour of Angels

Yesterday, I took part in a GREAT event. I rode in the Volvo Tour of Angels, a fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. It is a bicycle ride through the streets of Los Angeles. The event included a rolling roadblock by the LAPD which meant that we didn’t have to stop for any stopsigns or traffic lights! Have you ever run a red light right in front of a police officer and had them do nothing at all? What is more, they even told us to do so! What a great experience.

There was an Advanced Ride and a Recreational Ride. I rode in the recreational ride that was about 35 miles and only had about 2000 feet of elevation gain, while the advanced ride was about 45 miles and included quite a large set of climbs in Griffith Park. It was really great to ride with over 1000 riders that were out there to have a great time riding their bicycles. There were road bikes, mountain bikes, tandems, parents towing children in bike trailers and sidecars, and kids on bicycles of their own. Cycling can be a very isolating sport and these group rides really put you back into the community of cyclists in Los Angeles.

Next up, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition 6th Annual River Ride on Sunday, May 21, 2006. Maybe I will see you there.