Derailed: A Dance Party

No plans for the evening? Why not bike down to the CSI Annex on Bathurst and join Derailed: A Dance Party?
Put on by the Toronto Cyclists Union, here's the scoop:
"Doors at 9:00. Presentations until 10:00. Silent Auction, raffles and dancing all night long.
Members get in free
Non-members $5
Join or renew get in free & get a free beer."
Cheers,

Vanessa

Biking Info

Several biking tidbits in one post for this rainy a.m. It has been so pleasant to get back on my bike these days!
The picture above is shamelessly stolen from an update from the Toronto Cyclists Union. Here is the info about it:
"Prospect Park West Separated Bicycle lane in New York City: After implementation, compared to prior conditions without the bicycle lane, weekday cycling has tripled, sidewalk cycling fell from 46% to just 3%, motor vehicle speeding decreased by 55% and crashes causing injuries are down 63% for all road users."
If they can do it there, we can do it here. And why do we always follow and not lead?

The second tidbit is from the city of Toronto and will interest you if you have your bike locked up on the street all winter:
"Abandoned Bikes to be Tagged for Removal in early April
Cyclists should be aware that the period of annual Spring tagging of bicycles locked to post-and-rings or other street furniture and left to rust over the winter, will begin in early April.
Rusty and damaged bicycles will be tagged, giving the owners 7 days to remove them; after that, Solid Waste will remove the bikes and locks permanently in order to clear the public right-of-way and maintain availability of short-term bicycle parking.
If you wish to keep a bike that has been left outside long enough to rust, now is the time to remove it from the public right-of-way."

And I'm late with this last piece of news, but just in case you haven't heard, the Annex Residents' Association is proposing some interesting, bike-friendly changes to our neighbourhood that I fully support.
The one getting the most media attention is "1. Implement a bike lane on Bloor Street in the Annex from Avenue Road to Bathurst Street within one year, in conjunction with accelerated city-wide infrastructure for bicycle lanes, including along Bloor-Danforth."
All I can say is: YES!
You can read the full proposal on the group's website.
Happy cycling,
Vanessa

Little Women and BIKE Drinks Tonight

Two events to tell you about today... the Randolph Academy on Bathurst, south of Bloor, is featuring a performance of Little Women tonight at 8 pm. It benefits the academy and the Sunnybrook Foundation.

And BIKE Drinks is the Toronto Cyclists Union's ""two-wheeled adaptation of the globally popular Green Drinks, a monthly social for those who work or have an interest in the Environmental movement. Bring along a friend or two to meet your friendly local cycling advocates in a relaxed informal space, get the latest bike related news, hear about upcoming events /campaigns/volunteer opportunities and hang out with other folks that dig bikes!"
It's family friendly and takes place today from 6:30 pm to 9 pm at The Victory Cafe on Markham St.

Cheers,
Vanessa

BIKE Drinks Thursday At A New Location

This in from the Toronto Cyclists Union:

"BIKE DRINKS – Monthly Toronto Cyclists Union Social!
First Thursday of the month starting August 5th, 2010
6:30 to 7:00pm – New member welcome
7:00 to 9:00pm – Bike social

BIKE Drinks kicks off at a special location on August 5th!
215 Spadina Ave. Suite 120 @ Centre for Social Innovation
From 6:30pm - presentation at 7pm
BYO - (Drink sponsor TBC)

Regular location: Victory Cafe - 581 Markham Street (1 block S of Bloor, 1 block W of Bathurst) The Victory Cafe is a family-friendly environment.

We thought it was time to get a regular social started up again and we’re going to kick it off with a special presentation by the bike union’s Yvonne Bambrick.

Yvonne will be giving a short presentation about her recent trip to the Velo-City global cycling conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, and will also share some observations on the 20,000 Velib public bikes and new infrastructure from her short stop in Paris.
* Brand new bike union T-shirts will be available for purchase ($20 including tax)
* Special Announcement regarding a custom painted bike giveaway!

So bring along a friend or two to meet your friendly local cycling advocates in a relaxed informal space, get the latest bike related news, hear about upcoming events /campaigns/volunteer opportunities, hang out with other folks that dig bikes amongst other things, and enjoy an occasional bike related (surprise surprise) special presentation!

This is a great space to share ideas for current projects or future campaigns, along with stories from the road or current events that are of interest to you and / or your community.

BIKE Drinks is our two-wheeled adaptation of the globally popular Green Drinks, a monthly social for those who work or have an interest in the Environmental movement. “Everyone invites someone else along, so there’s always a different crowd, making Green (BIKE!) Drinks an organic, self-organising network.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Drinks

Come on out to the Victory Cafe on the first Thursday of the month and raise a glass with your bike union!

Cheers,
The bike union crew?"

Free Riverside Bike Ride and Brick Works Picnic June 12th

The Toronto Cyclists Union and Evergreen are planning a free outing that sounds lovely: a family friendly ride beside the Don River, followed by an evening picnic with live acoustic music at the Evergreen Brick Works site.
After dinner, cyclists will wheel over to Riverdale park to end the festivities.

It takes place Saturday, June 12 from 5 pm to 8:30 pm and kicks off in the Distillery District. It's Bring Your Own Picnic (and blanket).

Questions about the Brick Works Cruiser Ride and Picnic? Drop the Toronto Cyclists Union an email.

Cheers,

Vanessa

Take a SPIN Tonight At The Tranzac

This looks intriguing and it takes place tonight at TheTranzac on Brunswick as a fundraiser for the Toronto Cyclists Union.

"ONE NIGHT ONLY!
The Toronto Cyclists Union presents SPIN at at the Tranzac Club (292 Brunswick Ave)
THURSDAY MAY 20th 8:30 PM with an opening set by Coco Love Alcorn
$15 / $12 for Bike Union members

An old-fashioned bicycle hooked up to modern-day effect pedals meets the wit of wordsmith in SPIN, a musical, poetic and theatrical investigation of The Bicycle as muse, musical instrument and instrument of social change.
written and performed by Evalyn Parry
with Brad Hart on the bicycle, and Anna Friz on the pedals
original direction by Ruth Madoc-Jones
"Part concert, part theatrical performance, 100% outspoken entertainment, SPIN is an inventive musical show that uses the bicycle as a musical instrument. Welding together social history, social commentary and sonic experiment, award-winning Toronto songwriter and storyteller Evalyn Parry crafts a tale that travels from 19th century feminism to the end of oil; from Annie Londonderry, the first woman to ride around the world in 1895, to Igor Kenk, Toronto’s most notorious bicycle thief, in her pursuit of two-wheeled freedom in a four-wheeled world.
Following the sold-out workshop presentation at the Hysteria Festival last October at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Parry and the Toronto Cyclists Union bring SPIN back to the stage to warm you up for Bike Month in Toronto!"
Cheers,
Vanessa