Bike Lanes, Gardena, Safety, Fear

After a harrowing weekend involving a bicycle accident (it was serious, but luckily and thankfully without serious injury) on San Fernando Road and Roswell while trying to get to the LA River Bike Path, it was bittersweet to find that at some point between Friday morning and Sunday afternoon, new bike lanes were painted on Figueroa and Vermont along the paths of my morning and evening commutes.

This is another Good Thing, most definitely, but I can't help but be like the mouse who was given a cookie and wish that there were bike lanes along the narrower, scarier roads, like Rosecrans Avenue. The stretches of Figueroa and Vermont have ample space for bikes, which is probably why there are bike lanes there now-- it's just easier. One thing I noticed while biking along Rosecrans is that drivers seem to become more and more hostile as I get farther west, toward Manhattan Beach. I'm not sure why that is. I know that some drivers get very anxious or fearful around cyclists, which is valid-- I just know how much more fear there is in being the one on the bicycle, hoping not to get hit, and how much more vulnerable a cyclist is than someone in a two-ton killing machine.

I was already quite cautious around cars, and I'm even moreso now. Some things I do as a cyclist that help me assuage some of my fear:

Dayshot: GMBL Granted My Wish

The first time I attempted to use a Gardena Municipal bus, my plan was thwarted because I had my bicycle with me and I did not know that GMBL buses were not equipped with bike racks. I stood there on Manhattan Beach Boulevard forlornly for a few minutes (I did not have a smartphone so I couldn't look up an alternate route) and eventually found my way to wherever I was going. 

So, when I actually began to live in Gardena in August 2010 and got a job in Little Tokyo, I didn't even think to figure out how to get there by bus. I had the privilege of not thinking about it and chose to drive. I eventually moved out of my friend's spare room and signed a lease (gasp) to share an apartment with another friend. There happened to be a GMBL stop directly in front of my apartment building and, upon investigation, I found that one of the lines that stopped there could drop me off within about two blocks of my part-time job in Little Tokyo. Sure, I was disappointed that there were no bike racks on the line, but it was hard to complain when I could jump out of my apartment two minutes before the bus arrived and still make it to work on time.

Then, it happened. The buses were equipped with bike racks! I was surprised and elated when I first saw them, even though their arrival came on the heels of a service change that meant I had to walk two blocks to my stop instead of two minutes (spoiled, I know.) 

Here is a picture of Cornelius the Cerulean Centurion nestled securely in said rack one morning:

Cornelius, racked. 3/26/12

The unfortunate thing is that these racks are made mostly of plastic and feel much less sturdy than the all-metal racks on LA Metro, Torrance, and LADOT buses. I suppose these plastic racks were cheaper. I had trouble putting them back up for the first few weeks, probably because they were new and thus sticky. I still have some trouble with the handles now and then. The other all-metal racks work so smoothly. Ah well. It's still a tremendous help that I can take my bike on GMBL, and I like that I can support my local bus line rather than have to use LA Metro when I need to bring my bike along. 

Dayshots: From J-Town to Gardena // Biking

It's only about 13 miles from Little Tokyo to Gardena, so a few weeks ago, I decided to bike home from East West Players. 

Once upon a time, I saw a cool building and thought that something cool was going to come of it. I was wrong. Three years later, the building is gone. Completely gone.

 A few blocks down, I saw Ghandi.

 Los Angeles needs more pocket parks. This one on South Broadway is not as nice as the little park on Venice & Hope, but it reminded me of the park in Paris where I sat to eat a delicious falafel pita.

I stopped here to drank some water. It was a hot, hot day. Chatted for a minute with a woman about what tough times these are, then got on my way again. 

There is still so much to see and learn of Los Angeles, even after four years.

Dayshots: Gardena to Long Beach // Biking

I biked12-13 miles from Gardena to Long Beach a few weeks ago. I considered taking public transit, but the trip planner said to take the 125, which is slow and often very late (yes, even by LA Metro standards-- I took this line often in 2009 because it was one of the few which run through the little ol' town of Bellflower). And I'd have to transfer to a Long Beach Transit line to get to my final destination. The public transit option wasn't much faster than the biking option, and I didn't have any strict time constraints, so I biked it.

Central & Walnut

It was a good ride, especially along the stretch near CSU Dominguez Hills. There were large plots of flowers, the sidewalks were wide and smooth, and Del Amo Boulevard actually has a really sweet bike lane. The most difficult part was probably the uphill ride over the 91 freeway, when I gave up and walked my bike. I'm a wuss sometimes.

Spider along the LA River

It took me about 90 minutes to get to Carson & Cherry. It may have taken less time if I hadn't taken Gardena Boulevard and meandered through unfamiliar neighborhoods. I didn't realize it would end and just kept turning south and east until I hit a familiar street. The ride made me think about how rarely I travel toward a destination without time constraints, and how the amount of time it takes to get somewhere sometimes seems so important even when I don't have them. It was good to stop and let go of that fixation for a bit. 

CicLAvia - Owning The Streets

I am sitting in the South Bay reading all the #CicLAvia tweets, and I have a smile on my face even though I'm not there and wish I could be. 

I'm seeing Twitpics of people playing tennis in front of City Hall, bikes all over, and people with huge smiles on their faces. It's a gorgeous day to take over Los Angeles streets. 


I'm looking forward to seeing this excitement carry over and hope that the people who are only just discovering a love for Los Angeles because of this event will remember that this Los Angeles is always there, underneath the traffic and the smog. Being able to stand in the center of a usually-busy street in broad daylight, surrounded by people is-- well, anyone who has marched in a May Day Rally or a Pride Parade or AIDS Walk can tell you-- it's empowering. 

Though I'm not there now, I can feel the Los Angeles love in the air, even from twenty miles away, and I'm happy. I hope this love carries on, and that ownership of the streets continues (while respecting traffic laws and safety, of course). Because this is our city, and these are our streets, and this event is only a reminder of that.

A Bike Made Out of Magazines

A creation by Juliana Nguyen:


Amazing.

Bicycle Kitchen Is Hiring!

I put my first road bike together last summer at Bicycle Kitchen. I'm excited to see that they've received a grant and will be able to hire someone to handle some of their operations (I imagine that with the increase in folks using bikes for transit, the workload was getting to be too much for volunteers to handle). It looks like a great opportunity and I am definitely considering applying myself. (Click here to read the full listing.)

The Bicycle Kitchen has been awarded a capacity building grant to hire one full-time staff person for one year. The OpsFac will support the organization's daily operations through a variety of administrative, financial and logistical duties, including inventory and processing donations. This position will interface directly with clients, volunteers and the community. The OpsFac will report to the Board of Directors and work closely with many members of the volunteer staff. 

The largest project over the course of the year will be creating an operations manual to streamline and standardize regular operations. 

I found the listing on Idealist.org, pretty much my go-to website for job hunting in the nonprofit sector. If anyone has suggestions for other sources, please, feel free to pass them along.) Congratulations, Bike Kitchen!

Bike Summit at LA Trade Tech!

I am still traveling so I cannot attend, but you should go! 

http://bikesummitla.wetpaint.com

Ride Against Hate: A Moving Rally Against CA Props 4, 6 & 8

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Updated Ride Info:

Meet at 10:30AM, Flag Poles in front of Admin Building, UCI
End: ~1:30PM, Irvine Spectrum
Distance: ~7 miles.

This is a much much much easier route than I had originally planned, so I hope more of you will try to come!

Don't forget to bring water and lights if you plan on biking back to UCI in the evening.

I encourage the bikeless folks to meet up with us at Irvine Spectrum at 1:30PM for post-ride chanting, flyering, and awareness-raising.

********
Metrolink Info for LA folks:

Getting here:
Take 8:45AM train to Oceanside, get off at Tustin Station (9:41AM).

Leaving the station, turn left on Edinger. Turn right at Harvard, and a right on Bridge. Continue down Bridge, turn left at the Student Center (Pereira) and you will see the Flagpoles on your right in about 80 yards.

Returning to LA:
Irvine Metrolink Station is only 2 miles from Spectrum.

We'll ride together to the station to catch the 6:22PM train to Union Station, arriving in LA at 7:36PM. Woo!

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Note from Narinda:

The original (and freakishly ambitious) plan was to start at UCI and hit various shopping centers up into Orange County, ending in Westminster. Due to a shortage of co-captains and foreboding weather conditions, we decided to make a change.

The route has been cut to 7 miles, and the route is going to concentrate on Church Row (a.k.a. Alton), and we will end at Irvine Spectrum where folks will be free to fraternize/flyer/chat/eat/consume.

For those of you who were interested in coming down from LA, Irvine Spectrum is only 2 miles from the Metrolink station and there is a train to Union Station at 6:20PM. I will be taking this train home after the ride, so we can ride there together! Yay!

See you all tomorrow!!!

Peace,
Narinda

Ride Against Hate

Thank you, Metro, for the inspiration for this (quick and dirty) graphic:


Ride Against Hate
A moving rally through the street of Orange County to get people to vote NO on Prop 4, 6, and 8.

November 2, 2008

Starting point: TBD location, Irvine, CA
Time: 10:30AM

End point: TBD location, Westminster, CA
Time: ~ 4:00PM

Bring your bike. Your passion. Your voice.

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Prop 4: "Prop 4 threatens teen safety by mandating parental notification prior to a minor terminating a pregnancy."

http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/California_Proposition_4_(2008)
http://www.noonprop4.org/

Prop 6: Diverts funding from education to law enforcement, would allow courts to try 14-year-olds as adults.

http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=California_Proposition_6_(2008)
http://www.votenoprop6.com/

Prop 8: Bans same-sex marriage. If passed, it would be the first law in California history to eliminate rights.

http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=California_Proposition_8_(2008)
http://www.noonprop8.com/
---

I'm still putting together the details. Let me know if you want to help map out the route. These props affect all of us. It doesn't matter which one you stand for most.

Let's stand-- and ride-- together.

---
Bring signs, stickers, flags, water bottles.

We'll stop and rest when folks need to, check out some places of interest along the way (suggestions are welcome), talk to people who want to know more about the props and what we're doing, and get acquainted with the places that we whiz by when we take the 405/73/5 freeways.

Wear your favorite shade of green or blue.

It's going to be awesome.

--

November 4th:
Bike to your polling place and VOTE!

I hope that those who are abroad were able to get a hold of absentee ballots!

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So far 40 people have RSVP'd over Facebook saying that they will attend. I am not sure how many are actually coming and how many mean that they will be there in spirit. I did a test-ride today from Irvine to Santa Ana and will be doing another test ride the day before to finalize the route. The ride will be approximately 30 miles long, with rest stops along the way.

More details forthcoming. Please feel free to spread the word and/or email me with questions.

Milestone Monday

Two glorious things happened on Monday, October 20th:

1. My very dirty, very neglected, very abandoned-looking vehicle was picked up by Car Angel. The title has been turned over. The little card needs to be mailed to the DMV. I'm free. For real.

2. Five months after first claiming the frame and starting the project at Bicycle Kitchen, my 10-speed Cerulean Centurion is finished. I went to every Bitchen (ladies + transgender only night) for the last 6 weeks, including one that was canceled, and was finally able to ride home last night. After the last 8 months riding miles and miles with my rusty 3-speed Schwinn cruiser, riding a road bike is just amazing. When I went for the "safety run" on it, it felt wonderful and I had to tear myself off of it.

Pictures forthcoming. After I do about a thousand cartwheels.

To Do in Downtown: TNC & Art Walk

A couple of events that are a must-go this week in Downtown:

The Tuesday Night Cafe season runs from February to October-- it starts indoors at Lost Souls Cafe when there is still a chill in the air, then moves to Aratani Courtyard, in front of the East West Players, for the remainder of the season.

The final show of the season is this Tuesday, October 7th at 7:15PM!

From TNC's Myspace Page:

The (sniff, sniff) Last Show of 2008

So it's October and with rolling tears we are sad that our next show on Oct. 7th is gonna be our last show of 2008. BUT...it's with a cheshire cat smile we are amped to say that it's gonna be the most kick-ass show of the season....damn....check out this line-up!!!

Paolo Espiritu
Jinah Kim
Oymun's 11
The Open Mic
18 Mighty Mountain Warriors
David Tran & Edren Sumagaysay
Sue Jin & Andrew Chiang
Jekai Soulspeak, the Fighting Cocks & Bambu

We'll be back at the courtyard next March to give J-Town a little more TNC. Just so your soul doesn't get rusty this winter, we got a few things lined up that you won't wanna sleep on. Stay tuned for a few parties and of course Midtones! Keep checking back here for more info! See yall soon.

Anyone interested in signing up for The Open Mic should get there by 6:45PM as there are only three slots open during each show.

This is a 10-year-old community event and this show is going to be insanely packed. Expect to stand unless you get there early!

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Downtown Art Walk is on Thursday, October 9th! Come and walk around Gallery Row to see downtown come alive with pedestrians abound after 7PM (beyond Pete's Cafe and Banquette). I've been to only one Art Walk so far, but I am planning on checking this one out.

I stopped by Lost Souls Cafe this weekend and saw the artists of LA Fixed installing "The Metropolis," a series of works focused on bikes, their riders, and the places they ride (mostly in Los Angeles). The opening of the show was Saturday night. It's a pretty cool exhibit and worth a stop along the walk. Cruise down Harlem Place Alley off of 4th (between Main & Spring) to take a look.

From the El Rey to SoDo

Out of necessity, I've finally begun to take my hefty, darling rust-bucket of a bicycle on both Metro Rail and on a Metro bus. I don't think I secured my bicycle properly to the Metro 20's rack last night, but I'll consider it a success since it survived the trip from Wilshire & Western to the El Rey Theater.

A couple of friends had come up to LA to see Jay Brannan perform at the El Rey and another friend came up via Amtrak to meet them after the show. I couldn't pass up the chance to hang out with my Orange County pals, especially since one of them took a train to get to LA instead of driving. We met at the Wilshire and Western, the last stop for the Metro Purple Line (which I feel doesn't get mentioned nearly as often as it should considering it goes to K-town where there are still many things to do after 7PM). While walking down Wilshire and waiting for the Metro 20, my friend and I marveled at the fact that we were wandering around Los Angeles via public transit, something that had never even crossed our minds as a possibility less than a year ago.

We waited at the (recently opened?) Doughboys Lite next to the theater and caught portions of songs faintly through the doors. We were tempted to ask the security guards to let us in just for the last portion of the concert, but opted instead to sit and write until our other friends came out. (Yes, I know, we are very exciting people.)

When the concert ended, I spent a few minutes catching up with my friends and then we parted ways, them in a car headed back to Irvine, and me on my bicycle to the bus stop. I waited for the Metro 20 for about ten or fifteen minutes, only to see it whiz right by all of us at the stop, already crammed with people, its bike rack completely occupied. I considered waiting for the next bus for about five minutes before deciding to just ride my bike rather than wait for the next one.

During the thirty or so minutes that it took to get home, no buses passed me. I expected at least a Rapid to go by, or possibly even another 20, but neither did. The ride down Wilshire was cool and peaceful and mostly downhill, for which I was thankful. I had to climb a few hills down Hoover, but it wasn't too bad. I didn't realize that my hip flexors were aching until I got to Pico, at which point I saw the sweet vision of the 10 freeway in the distance. I've come to love the 10 freeway coming into sight and letting me know that I am almost home.

Upon getting home, I looked up the distance from my apartment to the El Rey and realized that "far" wasn't as far as I thought: 6.5 miles is hardly spectacularly long on a bicycle. I'm sure the ride would have been even easier if I a road bike. Every time I ride a little bit farther, or take a new, unfamiliar bus route, my confidence in my ability to get around LA without a car increases.

I doubt I would have ventured out were it not for the fact that I own an EZ Pass, which eliminated any concerns about fumbling with cash or change for fare. Now that I'm over my bike-on-transit phobia, I imagine that I'll be using the pass even more often. As long as the buses have space for me.

Metro 20 (opens a PDF timetable) travels between 7th & Main in Downtown and Pico & Main in Santa Monica via Wilshire.

Why Bike?

It's easy to stop and look around for a while.

Vermont & 101 Freeway. Sunset.

Nightshot: Commute

I've learned the hard way that Adams is not the best street to bike on during the day, but it's wonderful at night.



I drove to Lost Souls tonight because I was already in my car and I wanted to swing by before closing time. I drove home with the windows down, but it was not at all the same as feeling the cold air whip at my face and creep beneath the layers of my clothes as when I bike. Conclusion: driving makes the journey home much less satisfying.

Got A Rack?

A bike rack, that is.

I've spent the last few weeks storing my bicycle in my third-floor apartment, lugging it up and down the stairs or using the tiny elevator when I am too weak to carry it. I don't mind this too much, but as I continue to furnish my apartment, the presence of my rusty, three-speed Schwinn Breeze is becoming more of a nuisance (read: serious eyesore).

It seems to be an unnecessary one considering there is this gigantic space downstairs in the lobby:

It houses our mailboxes and little else.

Sometimes, people leave free things in the corner near the door.

I found out from a tenant who moved in five years ago that Playa Vista's original plan had been to install a rack there, but apparently that hasn't come to fruition. Is it bureaucracy, budget, or simple neglect?

Do many Downtown apartment buildings have indoor bike racks? It certainly doesn't seem to be very high on the list of generally-sought amenities. Does your building/complex have bike racks at all, anywhere?