The Cycling Thread

[Rick Danger]

CyclingNews.com

Kreuziger looking to Giro d'Italia podium
Astana rider to skip Tour de France

By: Susan Westemeyer
Published: December 3, 08:15

Roman Kreuziger is looking to land a podium place at the Giro d'Italia in his first year with Astana. The Czech says that if things go right, he could even end up on the top step.

But that means that he won't be riding the Tour de France this year. Despite rumours that he would be the number two man at the Tour behind Alexander Vinokourov and ready to take over it the Kazakh falters, Kreuziger doesn't expect to ride the Tour until 2012.

"My main race will be the Giro this year.,” he told Cyclingnews from the team training camp in Italy. “I want to do really well there and am convinced that I will.”

"I am convinced that I can ride on to the podium and when everything works out right I think I can win it. I am very motivated.”

But that means that the Tour will fall by the wayside. “Riding the Tour in addition would be too difficult. I will ride the Giro and Vuelta this year, and the Tour in 2012. The Giro is really hard this year and doing the Giro and Tour would just be too much,” said the 24-year-old.

Things will change in 2012, though, when he expects to be Tour captain in Vinokourov's absence. “This is Vino's last season, I am a bit sorry that I won't ride the Tour with him, but that's cycling.”

Kreuziger was the first big name to sign with Astana after it was announced that Alberto Contador was leaving. After five years with Liquigas, he needed a change. “ I still had a year on my contract with Liquigas, but I just didn't have the right morale to ride more races. I just wasn't happy there any more.”

"I had offers from two or three teams, and after weighing all the pros and cons I decided Astana was the best fit.”

He is now happy with that decision. “I feel really good here. I find the 'old-timers' on the team have accepted me really well, and taken me into their family,” he told Cyclingnews. “There are all kinds of great things and new things which I didn't have at Liquigas, which make me happy.”

Kreuziger has a lot of respect for team leader Vinokourov. “As a Kazakh, Vinokourov is very important to the team. He is sympathetic, a very good rider, a very aggressive ride. I can learn a lot from him. If you get along with him, you will get a lot of help.”

"He is willing to help his teammates and that strengthens the team.”

Kreuziger said that he and the team had just started work on his race calendar. “I will start at Algarve. What comes between Algarve and the Giro will be finalised in the next few days.”

The Czech won the U19 world road championship in 2004, finishing second in the time trial. He turned professional with Liquigas in 2006. After two wins in 2007, he had a breakthrough year in 2008, winning the overall title in the Tour de Suisse and finishing second overall in the Tour de Romandie, as well as finishing 13th overall in his first Tour de France.

In 2009, he won the Tour de Romandie, and this year he won the Giro di Sardegna, plus finishing ninth overall in the Tour de France.

[tabler]

Hey guys, Ive done the C2C four times now for various charities. I'm in the middle of building my new mtb from an S-works frame.

If anyone fancies joining me around Easter time, get in touch.

[Rick Danger]

Originally Posted by tabler

Hey guys, Ive done the C2C four times now for various charities. I'm in the middle of building my new mtb from an S-works frame.

If anyone fancies joining me around Easter time, get in touch

Tabler, my new found friend. You never cease to amaze me. I thought you were some old pensioner sitting in a rocking chair somewhere in England enjoying your roses...........

[Rick Danger]

This is one of those cases where I wish I could hit the "Thank You" button ten or more times.

A big THANK YOU to Dill99..................

Originally Posted by dill99

My girlfriend and I were out on a warm up ride for CRITICAL MASS and got some nice shots of SF.

First, thank you for the images of San Francisco. [sigh]. Like I said, I love Frisco.

Secondly, thank you and your lady for supporting Critical Mass, a movement that I have a profound respect for. Critical Mass in New York has literally changed the city. Did you know that New York City has a master bike plan which will include over 500 miles of separated bike paths and nearly 1300 of bike lanes, and 100 miles of car-free greenways throughout the City ? New York City aims to double bicycle commuting over 2007 levels by 2012 and triple it by 2017. I was amazed last Summer while having dinner outside a restaurant on 3rd Avenue in the East Village to look at a nearby street pole and see traffic signs giving crosstown directions specific to cyclists !

For those of you not familiar with Critical Mass, it is a movement that champions and celebrates urban cycling. Critical Mass is a bicycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities around the world. The ride was originally founded in 1992 in San Francisco with the idea of drawing attention to how unfriendly the city was to cyclists. In fact, the purpose of Critical Mass is not usually formalized beyond the direct action of meeting at a set location and time and traveling as a group through city or town streets on bikes. Although for some bigger scale events like the one in Budapest, Hungary there is an activist group formed around it, organizing the rides and communicating the desires and problems of the cyclists to the city council. [source: wikipedia.org]

While some paint Critical Mass as some kind of pirate group that seeks to disrupt auto traffic in cities, I personally challenge that perception. Certainly there may be individuals who join the rides who may take a more radical approach to pointing out the hazards of bike riding in a given city or seek to champion environmental stewardship by more radical means. But Critical Mass as a movement does not in my opinion champion disrespect for the law. As I always keep in mind whether I'm riding my bike or driving my car, I know of NO CASE where a bicycle crashing into a car or truck injured or killed the occupants inside that vehicle. THE CYCLIST ALWAYS PAYS THE SUPREME PENALTY, no matter who had the right of way.

Here's a excerpt from the website of the organization "Time's Up", an environmental action organization:

Originally Posted by http://times-up.org/index.php?page=critical-mass

The bike ride that helped change the whole city.
In New York City during the 1990's, bicycling was extremely dangerous. The number one complaint of cyclists was always safety. Group bicycle rides, like the critical mass, were one of the few places where cyclists could ride together and be safe. Besides their safe and fun dynamic, the group rides steadily attracted new riders which in turn built up the confidence in the riders to become everyday commuters.

In early 2000, the New York City critical mass started gaining huge popularity due to it's celebratory spirit and safe community environment. Bikers of all types would meet the last Friday of every month, as they do in over two hundred cities around the globe, for the monthly critical mass rides. The critical mass ride in New York City has always been a place where new riders could feel safe while building a strong community voice for non polluting transportation.

The cyclists were also fed up with the lack of safe bike infrastructure, and were continuously putting pressure on the City for more bike lanes, bridge access and green infrastructure that most cities around the world already were enjoying.

Some short sighted few in the New York City Police Department attacked the critical mass riders with a vengeance. They tried everything from law suits, tickets, arrests, and harassment, to violence, spying, undercover agitation, divisionary propaganda, and even going to the point of cutting locks and stealing peoples bikes to try and stop the bike movement. However, the bikers were persistent and adopted slogans like 'Still We Ride!' despite the harassment.

Eventually, after much persistence and global media embarrassment, the bicycle community got their way and New York City hired a new and bike friendly D.O.T commissioner who had vision. Today, our new greener, safer and bike friendly city is now enjoyed by all. In fact, the very spot in Times Square where each month thousands of cyclists raised their bikes over their heads is now an auto free zone.

Thank you New York City critical mass for this positive sustainable change!

Since there is no centralized organization for Critical Mass, there is no website that you can access. However, if you'd like to know if there is a Critical Mass ride in your area, there is a Wiki page listing rides all over the world:

http://criticalmass.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_rides

[Rick Danger]

Republic Aristotle v1.7 - beautiful in it's simplicity !



I admit to being a coward. For years I have watched cyclists in New York City riding fixed gear track cycles, but never had the nerve to try one.

Republic Bikes (http://www.republicbike.com/) offers a clean, simple approach to cycling that is both affordable and novel.

For $399, you get a single speed machine with a rear hub that allows you to "flip" between a fixed gear or freewheel. You can choose the color of the frame, saddle, grips, crank, tires, rims, brake cable housing, even the chain. Republic's website states that your bike will be built within two days after you place your order. Your bike arrives 90% assembled. Republic bikes are also sold at retail at Urban Outfitters stores in the USA.

The total assembled weight of the Aristotle 1.7 is 24lbs (10.9 kgs). The frame is TIG welded high tensile steel with track style rear drop-outs and a sealed bearing cartridge bottom bracket There are no braze-ons, cable guides or cable stops. The fork is TIG welded with straight ovalised blades. Handlebars are alloy 500mm riser bars with US&YOU molded track grips. Tires are 700C x 23C (100psi) nylon racing tires. The wheels are 700C 32-spoke, 30mm deep section alloy rims on large flange alloy hubs with nutted axles on both front and rear hubs. The rear hub is an anodized gold fixed/freewheel flip-flop hub with fixed cog and freewheel, both 16T. Brakes are C-Star alloy dual pivot calipers with cam action cable tension release, with forged alloy cyclocross levers. The crankset is a Sugino XD2 165mm alloy crankset with a 44T Sugino 5-bolt chainring. The chain is a KMC Z410 painted chain. The saddle is a 'soft-top' classic track saddle mounted on a 250mm x 25.4mm post. Since the Aristotle is sold as a complete bike it comes equipped with Wellgo pedals and toe clips included. Front, rear and wheel reflectors are also included.

[dill99]

The overall consensus among the riders who participate in CRITICAL MASS is to bring awareness to the fact that we ARE in the lane next to the drivers, we HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY, and if you cut off a rider when you're turning right at a stoplight, YOU'RE BREAKING THE LAW. I don't know how it works in other cities, but here in San Francisco, the courts are on the rider's side. Plenty of arrogant, uninformed motorists are doled out a plentiful helping of justice in the way of fines, damages, and jail time for their irresponsible judgement calls. For more info on the SF riding scene, click on the link.

http://www.sfbike.org/

[Rick Danger]

Originally Posted by dill99

For more info on the SF riding scene, click on the link.

That's what I'm talkin' about ! I'd like to see more information on the cycling scene around the country, if not around the world.

Again Dill99, many thanks............

[Rick Danger]

Dill99 commented that justice is on the side of law-abiding cyclists in San Francisco.

Here is the news story concerning perhaps the most high profile case in New York of police confronting a cyclist who was out on a Critical Mass ride:

DailyNews.com
Ex-cop caught on video knocking bicyclist down not guilty of assault, guilty of falsifying complaint

By Melissa Grace, with Oren Yaniv and Jefferson Siegel
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Originally Published: Thursday, April 29th 2010, 2:58 PM

An ex-cop was acquitted of assault Thursday for knocking a protester off his bike, but he was convicted of lying about how it happened.

The mixed verdict suggests the Manhattan jury relied heavily on YouTube video of the Times Square clash two years ago.

The tape showed rookie Officer Patrick Pogan body-slamming biker Christopher Long, who appeared to swerve to avoid him.

In a sworn criminal complaint, Pogan, 24, claimed he arrested Long after the cyclist purposely rode into him.

Pogan also claimed on the witness stand that he was ordered by his superiors to take action against the two-wheeled bikers during a Critical Mass protest.

Although NYPD brass portrayed him as a rogue officer, jurors found him not guilty of harassment and assault.

He was acquitted of four of seven counts, but Pogan still faces up to four years in prison when he's sentenced June 23. The judge also could give him no jail time.

Pogan, who had no reaction to the verdict and left without comment, has already quit the NYPD. The felony conviction means he can't reapply.

"Fortunately, the jury saw fit to convict, so he will not go back to 'work,' not be rearmed," Long, an admitted pothead and anti-government activist, wrote in an e-mail to the Daily News.

"The charges they convicted on are the most serious, and the assault was brief," Long, 31, wrote in his e-mail.

Long - who won a $65,000 settlement from the city after the incident - called on bikers to join him at a Critical Mass ride set for tonight beginning in Union Square.

"Remember, tell EVERYONE to ride bikes tomorrow, and if they feel unsafe, we will be creating a bubble of FUN," the out-of-work gardener wrote.

Police union President Patrick Lynch blasted the conviction.

"This will have a chilling effect on every new young officer when they realize mistakes now become crimes," Lynch said outside Manhattan Supreme Court as he was heckled by a lone bike activist.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. applauded the outcome.

"This conviction reinforces that no one - even a member of law enforcement - is above the law, and that inexperience is not an excuse to violate the law intentionally," he said.


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_c...#ixzz17ATi8q8O

[Rick Danger]

City Room Blog
New York Times.com

City Pays $98,000 to Critical Mass Cyclists
By ANAHAD O'CONNOR
March 30, 2010, 8:24 pm

New York City agreed Tuesday to pay tens of thousands of dollars to five cyclists who filed a lawsuit saying they were harassed during the monthly cycling group-ride Critical Mass — including one man seen on videotape being shoved off his bicycle by an officer. As part of the settlement, the city will pay the cyclists a total of $97,751, with each plaintiff receiving $500 to $30,000 apiece and their lawyers receiving a total of $35,000.

The cyclists claimed that they were wrongfully detained and arrested during the March 2007 Critical Mass ride, a monthly event in which dozens and sometimes hundreds of cyclists ride through the city in a cluster to advocate nonpolluting forms of transportation.

The city and the Critical Mass riders have clashed for some time. On one occasion in 2004, just before the Republican National Convention, a large number of officers arrested hundreds of riders on charges that included parading without a permit. Critical Mass, meanwhile, has accused the Police Department of harassing riders over minor infractions, such as broken lights or leaving the bike lane.

In one video clip of the March 2007 ride that was posted on YouTube, one rider, Richard Vazquez, 55, is seen being pushed off his bike by a police officer in Times Square. The officer then stands him up, places him over a garbage can, and arrests him. The arresting officer, Sgt. Timothy Horohoe, was eventually reprimanded, according to city records.

“While I’m pleased with the monetary victory for myself and the other plaintiffs, there will be no real justice until the higher-ups in the N.Y.P.D. are held accountable for their actions, and it is not just the low ranking officers who are punished,” Mr. Vazquez said in a statement.

A similar episode in which a different officer, Patrick Pogan, was videotaped knocking another man, Christopher Long, off his bicycle during a Critical Mass ride in 2008 became widespread after it was also posted online and led to assault charges against the officer, who later resigned.

A spokeswoman for the city’s Law Department said that the city did not view the lawsuit as a Critical Mass case per se because the arrests “had nothing to do with the fact that the large group of bikers was riding together, but rather the unique behavior of each individual arrested.” Mr. Vazquez, the department said, was arrested after he ran a red light in Times Square.

Michael Gertzer, the lawyer who handled the case for the city, said in a statement that the settlement “was in the interest of the involved parties and appropriately resolves this litigation.”

Barbara Ross, a spokeswoman for Time’s Up, which promotes Critical Mass, called the settlement “a victory for cyclists, and for anybody participating in the Critical Mass ride.” She added that while the rides sometimes drew hundreds or thousands of riders in the past, they now typically draw only a few dozen riders, negating the need for a police presence.

“The N.Y.P.D. has been harassing the ride since 2004,” she said. “The settlement shows that the concerns that we’ve had over the years are validated.”



For information on Critical Mass and other rides in New York City, check out http://times-up.org/

[Rick Danger]

City News
LA Weekly.com

Long Beach Cops Sieze 40 Bikes, Give 100 Citations During Critical Mass Ride In LBC
By Dennis Romero,
Mon., Nov. 1 2010 @ 4:38PM

It was billed as "Mash LBC," a Halloween-themed bike ride for the anarchic masses. And spooky it was. Long Beach police pulled no punches as 100 cyclists were cited and 40 bikes were seized during Critical Mass' monthly area ride, this one in the LBC over the weekend.

While the LAPD has been trying to make nice with the sometimes rowdy group, known to blast through red lights and smoke joints in the open, Long Beach police appeared to crack down in a big way.

According to accounts given to the the Long Beach Press-Telegram, police set up at nearly the starting point of the ride and ticketed almost everyone in sight.

"We thought they were facilitating us," said co-organizer Ronnie Sandlin. "Instead they pulled us all over and proceeded to give almost everyone a ticket."

And that was the end of Critical Mass Halloween 2010.

Like we said, spooky stuff. Except that now the riders want to go en mass to police headquarters to get their bikes back. And they plan to crash a Nov. 9 City Council meeting.

LAPD leaders are probably shivering with relief.



IN MY OPINION, if I saw a fellow cyclist smoking ANYTHING while riding, I'd probably knock them to the ground myself ! And what's the point of getting high while riding ? I don't know of any city that allows you to WALK down the street smoking a joint, so why should a cyclist think they are somehow immune ?

I still bear the results of being run down by a cyclist while walking in the park with my Mother as a four year old. CYCLING WHILE IMPARED IS STUPID. PERIOD.