MassBike Mid-June Update

Hub On Wheels Family Bike Parade @ Cambridge River Festival: Saturday, June 17

Join Hub On Wheels for a short kid-friendly ride. We'll leisurely go along the Charles River bike path and then into the annual Cambridge River Festival along Memorial Drive. Then, perhaps led by a wonderful marching band, we'll form a Bicycle Parade meandering through the crowd to the Hub On Wheels booth.

START: Noon at the Herter Park parking lot off Soldier's Field Road next to Publick Theater in Allston.

RedBones Bike Party & Benefit: Monday, June 19

IT’S BACK & EVEN BETTER: It’s been a tradition for 10 years: throngs of cyclists gather at RedBones BBQ in Somerville to start Bike Week off right, with delicious barbecue and vegetarian options (tickets are $15), plus a raffle for amazing bike prizes. The original date in May was rained out, but this classic event has been rescheduled and will be even better! Mark your calendars for Monday, June 19 from 5:00-10:00 p.m. Proceeds from the event benefit MassBike and NEMBA. RedBones is located at 55 Chester Street, Davis Square, Somerville.

Click here for more information
http://www.redbones.com/bikeparty2006.html

Volunteer Night: Tuesday, June 20

Do you enjoy hanging out with fellow cyclists and eating gourmet pizza? Then you won’t want to miss our next Volunteer Night. It’s a chance to have some fun and help MassBike with some easy administrative tasks. Just let us know you’re coming so we know how much pizza to order! (617-542-2453 or vance@massbike.org)

For more information about Volunteer Night, click here
http://www.massbike.org/about/vol_night.htm

TAKE ACTION: Only Weeks Left to Save Our Bills!

MassBike has two important bills currently stuck in House Ways and Means. We need your help to get them out of the committee, so they can be voted on. The two bills are the Bicyclists’ Bill of Rights and Responsibilities (H. 1411), which organizes the state’s bicycling laws and requires that drivers look before opening their car doors; and Safe Routes to School (H. 2121), which would earmark a portion of transportation safety funds to help make it easier for kids to bike and walk to school.

You can find out more information on the bills here: http://www.massbike.org/projects/legislation.htm

Please call or email (calling is best!) your State Representative and ask him or her to speak to Chairman DeLeo of House Ways and Means and Speaker Sal DiMasi, and urge them to move MassBike’s bills along in the process. Thank you.

Click here to find out who your State Representative is
http://www.wheredoivotema.com/bal/myelectioninfo.php

We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to the winner of our Summer Appeal bike raffle: Jim Bradley! Jim's name was chosen out of all 124 people who made a special donation to MassBike during our Summer Appeal fundraiser. Thanks so much to all who donated! Your support helps MassBike make your ride better.

Jim won the Cannondale Street Bike donated by Cannondale and Landry's Bicycles. A big thank-you from all of us at MassBike to Cannondale and Landry's for their generosity. We're hoping Jim will be at the RedBones party this coming Monday (6/19) to show off his new wheels. Don't forget to drop by and say hi!

Thanks again to everyone who made a donation!

You can donate to MassBike anytime by clicking here
http://www.massbike.org/about/donate.htm

Register for Bicycling Skills Classes: Arlington, Boston, Duxbury, Natick, Newburyport, Waltham

Want to improve your riding skills? MassBike’s Bicycling Skills classes are a great way to take your cycling to the next level. We have free evening classes (Introduction to Bicycle Safety—this has tips even advanced cyclists will benefit from), and day-long, on-bike classes on the weekends (Bicycling 101 for beginning/intermediate cyclists, and Bicycling 201 for intermediate/advanced). Our classes are taught by certified League Cycling Instructors and cost $40 for MassBike members and riders from MassBike partner rides, and $50 regular. From beginning to advanced cyclists, these classes will help you ride faster, better, and safer!

Intro will be taught in Boston on Wednesday, June 21, or Wednesday, July 12; in Natick on Tuesday, July 11; in Newburyport on Wednesday, July 12; in Arlington on Wednesday, August 2; and in Waltham on Thursday, September 21.

Bicycling 101 will be taught in Waltham on Saturday, July 8; in Natick on Saturday, July 15 (free for Natick residents); in Arlington on Saturday, August 4; and in Duxbury on Sunday, August 15.

Bicycling 201 will be taught in Boston on Sunday, June 25, or Sunday, July 16; and in Waltham on Sunday, October 8.

To register for our upcoming classes, click here
http://www.massbike.org/skills/classes.htm

Massachusetts’ Candidates for Governor Speak on the Environment: Wednesday, July 12

Are you concerned about the quality of your drinking water? Do you worry about sprawl, long commutes and the loss of open space? How do you feel about the proposed Cape Wind project? Do your kids have safe, clean places to play?

Join us for a candidates’ forum on the environment on Wednesday, July 12 at 7:00 p.m., at MIT’s Kresge Auditorium.

Find out where the candidates for governor of Massachusetts stand on the issues that are most important to you. Ask them how they intend to protect the Bay State’s environment over the next four years.

This event is sponsored by the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters, the Environmental League of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Chapter of the Sierra Club, and the Appalachian Mountain Club. Supporting organizations also include Clean Water Action – MA, Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, Conservation and Recreation Campaign, Conservation Law Foundation, Environmental Defense, Friends of the Blue Hills, MassBike, MassPIRG, Trustees of Reservations, WalkBoston.

Kresge Auditorium is the low domed building immediately behind and to the left of the Stratton Student Center at 84 Massachusetts Ave. The #1 Bus from Harvard Square stops at the Student Center. Parking is on Vassar Street.

Space is limited – please click here to RSVP
http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/MLEV/event/index.jsp?event_KEY=14711

Visit MassBike at 12 th Annual Pedro’s Festival, Lanesboro, MA: July 28-30

- Pedro’s Festival is a three day multi-event, designed for recreational bike riders of all ages and levels
- Hundreds of miles of trails, Road Rides, Night Rides
- Pro and celebrity guest riders lead rides at all ability levels
- Mavic Marathon Ride for the Lymphoma Research Foundation
- Skills clinics, contests, games and fun
- Ski Market Ultimate Obstacle Course Challenge
- Clif Bar Activities Arena- Kenda Tire Toss, bike limbo, wheelie & bunny hop contests, Kettler Trike Races, log pull
- Bike Magazine Ride-in Movies
- Family oriented activities, all ages & beginners welcome
- Live entertainment in the evenings featuring On Call Band
- Beer Garden, Gourmet Food
- Free Ride Park at Jiminy Peak Ski Resort
- New GT Demo BMX Track
- Trials demos, box jump demo
- Rides for women, children's rides, including the kid's sticker ride
- On site camping with hot showers

Click here for more information
http://www.pedrosfest.com/2006/index.cfm

Help for Trails: Apply by August 1 for the National Park Service’s Rivers and Trails Assistance Program

The Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program, also known as Rivers & Trails or RTCA, works with community groups and local, State, and federal government agencies to conserve rivers, preserve open space, and develop trails and greenways. The RTCA program implements the natural resource conservation and outdoor recreation mission of the National Park Service in communities across America.

Current Rivers & Trails projects in Massachusetts include: Concord River Greenway (Lowell), Lincoln Green Strip (Allston), Chelsea Riverway (Chelsea and East Boston), Border to Boston Trail (Danvers to Salisbury), Springfield Walks, Town River Public Access (Taunton), and Westfield River Greenway.

For more information about the program, contact Charles Tracy at 617-223-5210 or charles_tracy@nps.gov.

MassBike Still Looking for Office Space

Thanks to your support, MassBike is expanding! We've already outgrown our Park Plaza office! While we will be sad to leave this amazing location, it's time to find someplace where we can flex our muscles a bit. Plus, we really need a closet.

Basic requirements:
- 500-800 sq. ft.
- Built out (or owner willing to pay cost of build-out)
- Common area and at least 2 private offices preferred
- Easy access to T and for bike commuting
- Secure bike parking or allowed to bring bikes into office
- Ready to occupy September 1, 2006
- Downtown Boston preferred for easy access to Beacon Hill; Cambridge or
Somerville OK too

If you know of space that might fit this bill, please email david@massbike.org.