Knightly Rescue from Miami Beach Road Rage

I’m ashamed to tell you this Mr. Construction Worker with an East Coast accent and sandy hair but, I usually cross the street when I see a group of hard hats clustered. I won’t again. You were near last week when, after 25 minutes of circling for a parking spot,…

Political Protest on Wheels

Kyle Munzenrieder “Where did all these beautiful people come from?” asked a shoeless man wandering along strumming his guitar for pocket change. Maybe he felt a sense of kinship with the 35 cyclists who had gathered at the corner of Lincoln Road and Washington Avenue for a politically charged, alley…

Farewell to a Miami Biker

Last week, Miami lost Abraham “Al” Chasser, who built the oft-mentioned and little-understood “Farm” in Little Haiti (usually referenced in terms of the gigantic tree-house on the property), now owned by Chasser’s son Ray. Al was ninety-one when he passed away. Chasser lived an exciting and supremely independent life –…

This City . . . Has A Bike Committee!

Well, it happened: last week, we wrote that Miami mayor Manny Diaz was expected to announce the formation of a bicycling committee at last Thursday’s City Commission meeting. He did: from high on the dais, the mayor announced the formation of the Miami Bicycle Action Committee, a subcommittee of the…

A New Day For Bikes In Miami?

Last week a group of bicycling advocates, including members of the Green Mobility Network, Emerge Miami, and others, met with Miami Mayor Manny Diaz to lobby for the city to take a stronger stand on biking. Although there had been several mass emails about the meeting before it took place,…

Bike Blog: Friday Flotsam

Flotsam: Behind the times, that’s what I’ve been. Toiling away, rummaging through my drawers for long-lost, outdated maps of vague bike routes that I got from the county when I first moved here a year ago – and the answer was before me all along: the internet, man – it’s…

It’s Bike Month!

This guy is just thrilled about bike month. Now, therefore I, Charlie Crist, Governor of the State of Florida, do hereby extend greetings and best wishes to all observing March 2008 as Florida Bicycle Month – Gov. Charlie Crist. Thanks, Charlie – it’s a lot better than that State of…

The Fastest Man in the World

In honor of the last dwindling hours of the last day (thanks to Mr. Leap Year) of Black History Month, the Bike Blog presents this honorific post to one of the greatest bicyclists of all time, Marshall W. “Major” Taylor…

Need a Car-Ectomy?

It’s like a parasite – a tapeworm taking over your intestines, a leech lapping your vitality like so much vitamin water. It’s emptying your pockets, it’s making you fat; it swallows your time and hacks it back out in your face. It’s your car, man, and it’s killing you slowly…

Dacra A Wet Blanket on Bike Lanes?

Last week, the Bike Blog chatted with Kevin Brown, a planner for the City of Miami assigned to the upcoming project on Northeast 2nd Avenue – a plan which includes bike lanes. The news was surprisingly good . . …

Bike Blog Shout Out To Transit Miami

For those who don’t already know it, Transit Miami is one of the best blogs in town; lately, it’s been one of the best bike blogs as well. This past week or so, they’ve run a number of good articles on biking in Miami, calling for a bike sharing program…

Politicians Get Peek-a-Boo from Bicyclists

Last Saturday, Miami bicyclists riding with Emerge Miami’s Critical Mass were afforded a rare opportunity to engage their elected officials when the ride came upon Commissioners Joe Sanchez, Marc Sarnoff, and Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, schmoozing with locals at the recently-established Legion Park Green Market. The politicians greeted the over…

Bike Blog: Poor, Poor M-Path

A few weekend events are listed below (email the Bike Blog if you’d like your event posted). But first, we wanted to address this comment, left on the New Times website regarding our recent feature on biking in Miami: Ken Murray wrote: “I have been commuting on my bike since…

On Bike Efficiency — And Pricks

The Bike Blog is pleased to see the many comments on our recent bike feature. What with the back and forth, we did want to clarify one point of fact. After being called “a prick,” for remarking that bicyclists should “just get out of the way of those of us…

Old Lady vs. Car

Okay, so there’s no cycling in this video. But in the spirit of bicycle/pedestrian brother/sisterhood, the Bike Blog presents this amazing video, courtesy of another bike blog, Bike Lane Diary. Enjoy, — Isaiah Thompson…

Screw You, Old Man: A Bike Blog Parable

There’s this guy who lives near me. He’s probably in his sixties, mostly bald, perpetually shirtless. He has a house on Normandy Drive, kitty-corner to my apartment building. The house has a small driveway, and parked in that driveway is this man’s chief joy in life, a white convertible. Most…

Tonight: Beer for Bicycles!

Friends, the day of deliverance is come. Just last week, someone posted a comment on the Bike Blog suggesting that downtown club PS14 had a weekly drink special for bicyclists. – By the way, what’s up with there not being a good word for people who ride bicycles? ‘Cyclists?’ Woof…

Bike Blog: To Run A Red

Behind the wheel, I obey traffic laws. On my bike, I pay respect to one law and one law only: survival. If I stop at an intersection, it’s because I’ll get hit if I don’t; beyond that, a red light just means I’d better look both ways before blowing through…

Bike Blog 2008 Wish List

What I really, truly want in 2008, besides peace on earth and free beer, is a flying bike. But putting that dream aside for a few minutes, the Bike Blog has put together a slightly more realistic wish list for the coming year. Any suggestions, additions, or vitriolic ammunitions? Leave…

Bike to Florida City

Good news — two quickies, bikers: First, this Friday will mark the opening of the last stretch of the “Miami-Dade Busway Project,” a six and a half-mile multi-use path from the Dadeland South Metrorail that connects all the way to Florida City – that’s about twenty-one miles. The busway is…

Bike Lane Bureaucracy

Last night, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) held a meeting – one of many held already, one of many more to come – to solicit input from an advisory panel made up of seven Miami Beach residents on the upcoming Alton Road repaving project, expected to go into 2009…