Yea! Arkansas Cycling and Fitness website got a new face lift! Take a look....

http://www.arkansascycling.com/

This week's BACA activities.

(1) Ride of Silence: Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas will once again co-sponsor with the Arkansas Bicycle Club the Ride of Silence on May 21, 2008 at 7 :00 p.m. We will meet at the Traihead Circle at the bottom of River Mountain Road (between I-430 Bridge and Big Dam Bridge) and ride to Alltel. Bring your lights. This is a slow-paced, silent ride in honor of bicyclists who have been injured or killed by motorists. We use this ride to not only honor the "fallen" but to raise awareness among motorists, police, and city officials of the need to share the road. Please join use in this very moving event.

(2) Volunteers for Riverfest Bicycle Parking: Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas will offer bicycle parking during the Riverfest event this year. Officially Riverfest policy prohibits admitting bicycles within areas closed to traffic during Riverfest. It does not include the service of bicycle parking which is any more secure than chaining it to a tree or unlit area. WE WANT TO CHANGE THAT. Riverfest’s mission is in part to produce a quality recreational celebration for the benefit of the community and families. Providing a place to park a bicycle you can ride to the event is as much a quality recreational benefit than anything else – more so than forcing your car into a crowded metro center and paying as much as $5 to park it.

Two of BACA’s purposes are to organize, promote and encourage using the bicycle as a means of recreation and transportation and to encourage the development and use of facilities for cycling. We have an opportunity to fulfill these purposes by providing a vital service. Providing bicycle parking at such a large event will not only get out the word about BACA, but will provide a very needed service to the community. We need volunteers to help staff the bicycle parking valet service we will be providing free of charge to encourage people to bike to Riverfest, rather than drive their cars. The bicycle parking valet service will be on the North Little Rock side. If you can’t come Saturday and Sunday volunteers are also needed to help make signage promoting the service.

Contact Ron Rizzardi at rrizzardi@comcast.net or 837-3742 if you are interested in helping - we need you.

Ron Rizzardi,
President, BACA

Join us Friday, May 16th in celebration of National Bike to Work Day. We want a really big turnout this year, especially given the rising cost of gasoline. Burn calories, not carbon!! This is an extremely important advocacy event, where we not only encourage people to commute by bicycle to work but educate the community about the benefits of bicycle commuting. We will leave Murray Park boat ramp or Burns Park boat ramp at 6:45 a.m. The two groups, which will have police escorts, will meet at the Arch Street entrance to the Medical Mile and continue to the River Market where we will have a light breakfast provided by Boulevard Bread Co., free t-shirts and water bottles, and a drawing for fabulous prizes. Don't miss out on this fun event. You can register starting at 6:15 a.m. on May 16th or fill out a registration form at several area bike shops by 5:00 p.m., Thursday. You can also bring a completed registration form to the ride. Forms are available on the website, www.bacar.org. Remember -helmets are required.

Also, be sure to keep May 21st open for the all important Ride of Silence which BACA sponsors along with the Arkansas Bicycle Club. The ride will start at 7:00 p.m. on the Little Rock side of the River Trail. More details to follow.

As of noon today, the Team Rubicon – Central Arkansas LIVESTRONG Ride is still scheduled as planned. The start/finish point is the Alltel Arena parking lot located on Riverfront Drive in North Little Rock.

In the event of severe weather this evening that inhibits riding due to lighting and hail, Central Arkansas LIVESTRONG – Team Rubicon festivities will be moved to River Trail Rentals (RTR). RTR is located on the River Trail between the submarine at North Shore Landing and the boat ramp at North Shore. The address is 300 South Olive Street, see map at:

http://www.rivertrailrentals.com/RTR_map.html

RTR is located right across the street from the original starting point. Come meet and greet Team Rubicon and help support the Lance Armstrong Foundation!

If you have questions, please call Jennifer Shaw at 501.247.8443

This will be a busy week. We started out the week with a commuter challenge yesterday (May 5th). Bicyclist Donnie Van Patter raced Mayor Stodola, who was driving his vehicle, to the River Market. Donnie beat Mayor Stodola by about 45 seconds. Bicyclist Dyron Hamlin raced Mayor Hays. Mayor Hays beat Dyron by only a little over 2 minutes. Boulevard Bread Co. provided delicious bread and coffee at the finish. Once again, the commuter challenge showed that bicycle commuting is a viable alternative to the automobile.

On MAY 7th, you can join Team Rubicon in support of the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Join the ride at 5:30 p.m. at the Enclave apartment complex across from Alltel Arena) and ride the River Trail. There will be a drawing for fabulous prizes prior to the ride.

On MAY 8th, Chainwheel will present a bicycle commuter workshop from 6-7 p.m. Learn all about bicycle commuting and then go to the Arkansas Bicycle Club meeting at 7:00 p.m. at El Chico, down the road from Chainwheel On MAY 9th, there will be a 5K foot race at MacArthur Park, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The race will benefit the integration of MacArthur Park area with River Market, Riverfront Park, the Clinton Presidential Library and Park, Main Street and other Downtown areas. The master plan includes the ultimate goal for Little Rock to become a vibrant urban area linking commerce, entertainment, recreation, work and everyday life within a citywide system of parks, open spaces, and natural settings, friendly to pedestrians and cyclists. For more information, see:

http://www.macarthurpark5k.org/register.html

DON'T FORGET to stop by your local bike shop or go on line at www.bacar.org to register for Bike to Work Day, May 16th.