CCAP Connecticut Cycling Festival Hosting two Fun Fall Rides along the Connecticut River on Saturday September 20 CCAP's Connecticut Cycling Festival kicks off with two challenging and picturesque rides starting at 8 a.m. on Saturday, September 20. This is the start of a two day festival celebrating cycling in Hartford. Both Gran Fondo rides start on Elm Street near the Pump House Gallery in Bushnell Park and follow the southern Connecticut River Valley. The 45 mile course will go down Middletown and back while the epic 100 mile ride will go to the mouth of the Connecticut River in Old Lyme. Riders are welcome to ride at their own pace. Come join Paul Lynch riding in the Gran Fondo. Lynch grew up in Colchester Conn, and is 21 years old and now on the USAC Pro Development Team riding in the Gran Fondo. Check-in begins at 6:30 a.m. and both rides are expected to start at 8 a.m. When the riders return at their leisure, any time between noon and 4 p.m., they will be treated to a barbeque in Bushnell Park and EnvisionFest will be underway which celebrates the ingenuity of the city's and state's industries, artists and people, while offering an update on the transformation of Hartford through the iQuilt plan. Registration is $95 through September 12 and $105 the week of September 13-20. The ride is limited to 500 riders so early registration is encouraged. Learn more at cyclingadvancement.com/events/ct-gran-fondo There will be awards for the best time during one well marked, challenging segment for the 45 mile Gran Fondo and three well marked segments within the 100 mile route. Further segment details and Connecticut Bed and Breakfast rest and fuel up stops can be found on the rides with GPS website or in advance by visiting these links: 100 MILE / 45 MILE. During the Gran Fondo ride you can expect fully staffed and stocked rest stops with endless food, drink and medical/mechanical support. All entrants will receive a CCAP Connecticut Gran Fondo finishers T-Shirt. There will be an exceptional post-ride festival with food, drink and loads of entertainment, in partnership with downtown Hartford’s EnvisionFest. The Connecticut Cycling Festival is also hosting a variety of family friendly events and a series of entry level, professional and youth-oriented bike rides and races in downtown Hartford on Sunday, September 21, 2014. Starting on Asylum Street along side the XL Center, the races cover a one mile circuit through downtown Hartford, circling four city blocks and are designed to offer stimulating riding opportunities for riders of all ages. There will be medals and $10,000 in total cash prizes awarded to the top level winning participants. There will even be an Urban Mountain Bike Race, a Freestyle bike show both Saturday and Sunday, music, bands and more family entertainment. As a fundraiser for the Connecticut Cycling Advancement Program (CCAP), the race proceeds and all activities help create a community where youth can learn and thrive through the sport of cycling in and out of schools across the state. The Connecticut Cycling Festival also includes a course-side family-friendly exposition area and food vendors. The CCAP mission is to better the lives of youth and young adults through the sport of cycling. Their goal is to create, sustain and grow high school bike club programs throughout the state. Additionally, the CCAP aims to create a junior travel team for youth 18 years and under and form an elite development team for the state. Cycling is a lifelong sport that teaches an incredible number of principles that make our youth and young adults healthier, happier and better members of a community. More than 200 volunteers are needed to help make this an incredible sports and community event. Please visit http://cyclingadvancement.com/events/ct-cycling-festival/ to learn more or sign up! Volunteers are the hub at the center of the CCAP wheel. Volunteer sponsorship is available for $5,000. About the History of Bicycling in Hartford: Hartford is the home of the development and manufacturing of the bicycle because of the U.S. Businessman, Colonel Albert Augustus Pope who came to Hartford when he outgrew his Boston location and looked for new manufacturing facilities. By the mid-1890s, at the height of the bicycle craze, Pope was manufacturing about a quarter million Columbia brand bicycles annually here in Hartford. A major problem for bicycles in this era was the lack of suitable roads. He formed the League of American Wheelmen to petition governments for improved roads. Perhaps more than anyone in America, Pope was instrumental in the building of modern roads systems in America. Colonel Pope bears the undisputed title ‘Father of the American bicycle." For additional details, see CCAP's info at https://www.bikereg.com/ctcyclingfestival.
Here's some news you can use! Today's press release shows how the federal government is getting increasingly serious about bike/ped transportation. U.S. Transportation Secretary Foxx Announces New Initiative to Enhance Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety
DOT to launch nationwide safety assessment of key bike/ped routes PITTSBURGH – U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced a new initiative to reduce the growing number of pedestrian and bicyclist injuries and fatalities through a comprehensive approach that addresses infrastructure safety, education, vehicle safety and data collection. The 18-month campaign will begin with road safety assessments conducted by U.S. Department of Transportation field offices in every state, and will produce multiple resources to help communities build streets that are safer for people walking, bicycling, and taking public transportation. Secretary Foxx made the announcement at the Pro Walk, Pro Bike, Pro Place conference, the largest gathering of, transportation engineers, city planners and professional bicycle-pedestrian safety advocates and practitioners in the country. “Safety is our highest priority and that commitment is the same regardless of which form of transportation people choose, including walking and biking,” Secretary Foxx said. “This initiative is aimed at reversing the recent rise in deaths and injuries among the growing number of Americans who bicycle or walk to work, to reach public transportation and to other important destinations.” Injuries and fatalities of pedestrian and people bicycling have steadily increased since 2009, at a rate higher than motor vehicle fatalities. From 2011 to 2012, pedestrian deaths rose 6 percent and bicyclist fatalities went up almost 7 percent. The new pedestrian and bicycle safety initiative will promote design improvements to ensure safe and efficient routes for pedestrians and bicycles, promote behavioral safety, and provide education to help individuals make safer travel choices. The initiative will also encourage vehicle safety by drawing on current crash avoidance technologies to alert motorists to the presence of bicyclists and pedestrians. The initiative will begin when the Department’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) field offices survey routes for pedestrians and cyclists with local transportation officials and stakeholders to understand where and why gaps exist in the non-motorized transportation network and strategize on ways to close them. Gaps are areas where the risk of a crash increases due to the lack of sidewalks or other safe infrastructure. The Department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will participate in assessments to gain understanding of non-motorized crashes involving truck and trains. Among the many resources the Department will provide will be a guide to creating “road diets,” in which roadways with lower traffic volumes are redesigned to add space for bicycle riders and pedestrians. Studies show that road diets reduce all traffic crashes by an average of 29 percent, and when used on rural highways that pass through small towns, they can reduce crashes by almost half – 47 percent. Additional resources will help practitioners incorporate small safety improvements into many road projects, address “last mile” safety for people taking buses and trains, and make it easier for jurisdictions to count and plan for people traveling by foot and bicycle. The Department will work with local officials, advocacy groups, and safety organizations to help champion the use of the new resources by practitioners, law enforcement, and safety organizations. It also will convene meetings with practitioners and researchers about practices and policies that have been barriers to creating safer streets for non-motorized users. The initiative will also focus on improving pedestrian and bicycle routes that provide access to bus stops and train stations. Research has shown that lower income communities have disproportionately higher rates of pedestrian deaths, as well as less safe pedestrian infrastructure, despite higher reliance on non-motorized modes and public transportation. Click here for additional information on the pedestrian and bicycle safety initiative. Join Bike Walk Connecticut at the Old State House on Tuesday at noon!
Please register online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Z93SDMV . Next Tuesday, Sept. 16, the Connecticut Department of Transportation will present its Merritt Parkway Trail feasibility study at Greenwich Town Hall. After their presentation the public will have a chance to ask questions and share why they support the trail (or why they do not). Over the last few months ConnDOT has held meetings like this in all the other towns through which the Parkway runs. The meeting in Greenwich next Tuesday will be the final one in this series, so it would be great to have as many supporters there as possible. Read more below. Download and distribute the flier at left. Website: www.merrittparkwaytrail.org Could it be that our advocacy is really bringing about change in the land of steady habits? Seeing full bike racks at schools like this make us think so. We're making strides in raising the profile of biking and walking in Connecticut. Cheers to the next generation of bike ped enthusiasts.
On June 19, 2014, CTDOT hosted a series of meetings with nearly 100 stakeholders from throughout the state to discuss key aspects of TransformCT, the Statewide Transportation Plan. Bike Walk CT was there to represent the interests of the bike/ped community.
The Department has just posted a summary of the events of that day on the project website at www.transformct.info. Look for the "Project Documents" tab on the navigation bar. There you will find a summary of both the morning and afternoon plenary sessions, as well as separate summaries of each breakout group meeting or Council. If you have any more ideas that you want to share with CTDOT, go to the "Contact Us" tab or the "Share Your Ideas" tab to respond to other related questions. Ride Across Connecticut 8am Saturday September 13, 2014
New Haven Green to Southwick MA Join cyclists on Saturday riding on the completed portions of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (FCHT) and the on road where work is underway to complete the Trail. Most of the remaining third is work-in-progress, leaving about five miles in Plainville and Southington waiting to be planned. The FCHT was selected at the trail of the month by the Rails to Trails Conservancy. The Farmington Valley Trails Council, The Farmington Canal Rails To Trail Assn. and the East Coast Greenways Alliance, the sponsors of this ride, are committed to completing this Trail that runs up the central corridor of Connecticut. There will be rest stops at Canal Lock State Park in Cheshire, at the town hall in Plainville, and at the Meadows in Simsbury for lunch. There will be SAG support on the ride. Parking in New Haven is Ignalls Ice Arena at Prospect and Sachem Sts in New Haven. The Green is five blocks south of Ignalls on Prospect St. The ride is 56 miles from New Haven to Southwick MA where a bus will take riders back to New Haven. You can register for the ride, the bus, and lunch at http://bit.ly/1CLgGid The FCHT showcases Connecticut with the southern third running through the Yale campus, by Sleeping Giant, by a canal lock keeper’s house, and later by a restored lock. The middle third of the Trail is on and off the road. This is where work remains to be done. A completed part goes near the center of Southington on the abandoned railroad. From the south side of Farmington the Trail goes continuously to the Massachusetts line and beyond. It crosses far above the Farmington River, goes by former buildings of Ensign Bickford Company, near Simsbury Flower Bridge and through former tobacco fields to Massachusetts. The route: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2596915 There's a TRANSPORTATION FORUM with the gubernatorial candidates on Monday, Sept. 15 at 9 a.m. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. at the Best Western Plus North Haven, 201 Washington Avenue, North Haven. More information
Simsbury Parks and Rec. has pushed back the Teen Mountain Biking Clinic by one week. New dates/time are listed below.
Mountain Biking 101 Clinic for Teens Sat. Sept. 13 & Sunday Sept 14, 1:00-4:00 pm Learn fundamentals. Advance your skills. Gain confidence on the trail. If you're a teen who is proficient at riding a bike, you have a decent level of fitness, and you want to learn how to mountain bike on technical trails through the woods, this clinic is for you. You'll learn: proper body positioning, climbing and descending techniques, braking quickly without skidding or going over the bars (a.k.a. an "endo"), the best lines in technical terrain, how to maneuver around and over things like roots, rocks and logs. Ages 12-17. Girls encouraged to attend. Certified Mountain Bike Instructor: Margie Bowen http://www.simsburyrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=28734 Also, Biking-Traffic Skills 101 on Sun., Sept. 14 still has a few openings. Biking -Traffic Skills 101 Sunday, Sept. 14, 8:30 am – 5 pm For the skills, knowledge and confidence to ride safely and legally on roads and multi-use trails. Through classroom instruction, on-bike drills, and a group ride, this class will cover the bicycle safety check, starting, stopping, shifting, scanning, proper lane/intersection positioning, crash avoidance techniques, and fixing a flat. Completion of Traffic Skills 101 is a prerequisite for other cycling courses including the certification course for League Cycling Instructors. Ages 15 and up. League Certified Instructors (LCI’s): Jim Arnold & Steve Mitchell This class is being sponsored by Mitchell Auto Group. http://www.simsburyrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=28708 Please spread the word. Thank you and safe riding. For questions, contact: Debbie Thibodeau, Simsbury Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee, c. 860-539-0538 Now all your purchases on Amazon.com can help support Bike Walk Connecticut. By using the link below when you go to purchase on the website you will be able to elect to have .05% of your sale go to us. Every little bit helps, so share the link below with your friends and family. http://smile.amazon.com/ch/20-2909972
|
Bike Walk Connecticut
NEWS Send us your bike walk related news and time permitting, we'll do our best to post it.
Topics
All
|