July
2002

Why I love to bike commute



Duncan Thomas, right, receives his prize certificate from Bruce Davis at Hazard's CycleSport. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• The Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition is pleased to announce the results of its "Why I Love to Bike Commute" contest. Judging was done by eight of the Bicycle Coalition Board Directors who said all the entries were good and judging was difficult. Our thanks and congratulations to all participants, especially the four winners:
• Duncan Thomas, $150 certificate for Hazard's CycleSport
• Judy Keim, $100 certificate for Bicycle Bob's
• Talin Lindsay, brunch for two at Citronelle Restaurant
• Alex Trieger, brunch for two at Santa Barbara Biltmore
• We couldn't be more pleased with the winners. Duncan Thomas is one of the founders of the Bicycle Coalition back in 1991. He's also one of our local celebrated triathletes and endurance cyclists.
• Judy Keim and Alex Trieger are longtime Bicycle Coalition members. Judy leads commercial bike and kayak trips around the South Coast through her Pedal and Paddle enterprise. We don't know much about Talin Lindsay, except she's an assistant in UCSB's Germanic, Slavic and Semitic Studies program. And of course they all love to bike commute.
• Below is Duncan's winning submission. Watch upcoming issues of Quick Release for other entries. And keep on bike commuting.

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Why I love to bike commute
by Duncan Thomas

• Do you know how beautiful Santa Barbara is? Now imagine how much better it is outside your car, the sights, the sounds, the smells of the South Coast unmuffled by engine noise and rolled up, tinted windows.
• There are many reasons why I choose to ride my bicycle to work, and all of them improve the quality of my life in the present, and for the future.
• When I arrive at work, I'm ready to go; when I arrive home, I've put the workday behind me and I'm ready to be with my family. Well OK, after a shower.
• Memories: aren't they the rewards of life? Riding home in a hailstorm, while a friend drove by and honked, only to call me later and admit she didn't stop because she knew I would never accept a ride, no matter the weather. Having someone on the side of the road flag me down and tell me to look up and see the missile launch overhead. The smells of acacia in bloom achoo! The ladybug that rode all the way home with me on the handlebars, and was rewarded with a place in my garden. The bee stuck in my helmet which I stopped and shook out. Even the flat tires, when you know that you have the equipment and tools to fix it yourself. The sunrises..the sunsets..the clouds..the sun..the wind..the rain (even in Santa Barbara). Oh, but I have missed all those memories of stopping for gas and being stuck in traffic.
• And the future? Biking to work gives me the knowledge that when I retire, I'll still be able to walk and hike and travel the world, and do more that just see life through a windshield.
• Ready: helmet on. Set: rubber side down. Go commute!

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Coalition gathers support for Gaviota Coastal Trail

• The Bicycle Coalition continues to seize the opportunity to support a continuous Coastal Trail between Gaviota and Goleta. The timing couldn't be better because the National Park Service is currently appraising the importance of our coastal resources. We already sent a letter to the Park Service urging the inclusion of a trail in any future plan.
• More recently, the Coalition's Ralph Fertig created a petition that we put out at Earth Day, Bike to Work Day events, and Mike Hecker's Cross Country Mountain Bike Races. With no trouble, 334 people gladly signed our petition that we mailed to the Park Service on June 20. We didn't know what the response from attendees at those events would be, but virtually everybody who read it essentially said, "yes, we want a trail!" And they signed.
• The Coastal Trail has been a dream for decades to ensure a continuous trail for future generations. We urge that trail access be limited to non-motorized modes of travel—bicyclists, equestrians and hikers.
• The National Park Service had by May 2002 received 230 comments on its request for public input. They have extended the deadline for submitting further comments to September 1, 2002. Information is online at www.nps.gov/pwro/gaviota so you can still tell the NPS what you want. In January 2003, the Park Service will release its draft Feasibility Study. We'll take it from there.

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Why build bicycling facilities?
Word from the President, by Wilson Hubbell

• Organizations like Cars Are Basic and COLAB have questioned why governmental agencies should be spending scarce transportation dollars on bicycling facilities. A small number of bicyclists have also raised this question and argue that appropriately designed roadways make designated bicycling facilities unnecessary and superfluous. The fact is, well designed and well located bicycling facilities can provide transportation, recreation, safety and access benefits above and beyond that of the average roadway. Here is how¨
• California State Law allows bicyclists to ride on any roadway in an incorporated or unincorporated area of Santa Barbara County that is not designated as a limited access roadway (i.e. certain sections of freeway on Highway 101). Even though bicyclists have this lawful access to the roadways, State and local governmental agencies have established designated bicycling facilities to further provide for the safe and efficient movement of both motorists and bicyclists. There are four primary reasons for doing this:
• While bicyclists have a lawful right to travel on City, County and State roadways, their presence in travel lanes may slow traffic and cause congestion due to the disparity between the average speed of bicycles and the speed of motor vehicles. Class II bikelanes, in particular, do an excellent job of addressing this issue and providing for the needs of both bicyclists and motorists on our roadways.
• Santa Barbara County is one of the best places on earth to ride a bicycle. City, County and State governments recognize the recreational value of bicycling within the County -- for both residents and visitors -- and have taken steps to enhance it. Although as locals we may not all enjoy the East Beach Bikepath, it is clearly a major recreational asset for the City of Santa Barbara.
• Increased bicycle traffic can reduce motor vehicle traffic, motor vehicle emissions and the need for more roadways and motor vehicle parking facilities -- particularly in areas like Isla Vista and at institutions like UCSB. Imagine what life would be like at UCSB without the bikepaths on campus or the Atascadero and El Colegio Bikepaths that serve the area from the east and west.
• Some bicycling facilities, like the Maria Ygnacia Creek Bikepath and the Carpinteria Creek Bikepath, can eliminate access problems created by freeways, railroads and other barriers that inhibit travel by pedestrians and bicyclists within the community. If it were not for the Maria Ygnacia Creek Bikepath we'd all be stuck riding on he Patterson and Turnpike Overcrossings to get from the Goleta Foothills to the beach. Ughhh...
• So, there really are some very good reasons for designated bicycling facilities. Rather than catching flack from Cars Are Basic or COLAB, our local governmental agencies should be congratulated for their foresight in providing them.

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New Cabrillo bikelane



Narrow traffic lanes of ten feet allowed a modest bikelane. Just watch for opening car doors. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• Thanks to the City of Santa Barbara, a recently resealed section of Cabrillo Boulevard has a new bike lane on one side. Jinsong Qi, a Transportation Engineering Associate, deserves credit for envisioning a continuous bikelane on the north side of Cabrillo between Milpas and Castillo Streets. The gap just completed runs four blocks from State to Castillo, but the entire length is a mile and a half.
• Because the Cabrillo Beachway is on the south side of the street, staff reasoned that a north side bikelane made more sense. Traffic lanes were shrunk to 10-feet wide to fit in the bikelane on the north side, and a wide outside lane on the south side. There just wasn't room, explains Derek Rapp, Supervising Transportation Engineer, for anything else.

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New bikepath lights funded by State

• South Coast bicyclists will benefit from new solar lights that will be installed on both the Atascadero and Maria Ygnacio bikepaths. We congratulate the County's Wilson Hubbell on his application that was just awarded $163,000 for the new lights. Funds from local sources add $27,000, for a project total of $190,000. The money came from California's Bicycle Transportation Account (BTA) where 34 projects were given a total of $7.2 million.
• Hubbell reports that, in addition to these new lights, the existing 34 solar lights on the bikepath will get different bulbs that will allow greater spacing. Because they are solar powered, they can be dug up and easily moved without trenching or moving power lines.
• The next BTA funding cycle just closed for applications June 1st. Dru van Hengel reports that the City of Santa Barbara has applied for preliminary work at the upcoming Mission Street undercrossing of Highway 101. And the County has returned for funds to widen the Maria Ygnacio bikepath and help with the Ellwood bike/pedestrian bridge.
• Winning funding like the Bicycle Transportation Account from outside our area gives us better bicycling facilities while enormously leveraging our local money.

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Tri Paradise opens



Mary Ross stands in front of her new Santa Barbara apparel shop. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• Triathlon competitor and Olympic torch runner Mary Ross opened an apparel store in Santa Barbara on June 22. Check it out at 2939 De la Vina Street for mountain biking and cycling clothing, plus inspiration. Or look online at www.triparadisesports.com.

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Commuter Handbook

• Traffic Solutions and Santa Barbara's Downtown Parking program have initiated a program designed to promote transportation alternatives to people driving to work and school. Newspaper ads are being augmented with a 28-page handbook that discusses alternatives.
• The section on biking describes the City's bike locker program and the County Bike map. To get your free copy of the Santa Barbara Commuter's Handbook, phone 963-7283.

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Ortega Hill bikepath questioned



A bicyclist passes the proposed Summerland start of a new bikepath right of the freeway onramp. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• For years, Caltrans and the County have been planning improvements for Highway 101 and Ortega Hill Road between Montecito and Summerland. The projects consist of an auxiliary lane on northbound Highway 101, a new highway shoulder, and an adjacent, but separate hillside bikepath.
• Recently, some members of the Montecito Association have questioned the need for the bikepath. They have called a special meeting on June 24 to discuss the bikepath as well as upcoming bikelanes on North Jameson Lane.
• The bikepath is desirable because it will give bicyclists an alternative to the steeper, winding Ortega Hill Road. Some bicyclists, especially groups of fast racers, will continue to use the existing road. However, most recreational and commuting bicyclists will likely choose the new bikepath. This will help motorists on Ortega Hill Road because they won't be stuck behind slow climbing bicyclists. It will also make it safer for bicyclists who walk their bikes uphill or waver from slow climbing speeds. Impatient drivers won't have to endanger everybody by passing.
• Separately, cyclists following the Pacific Coast Bike Route signs are now directed onto Highway 101 between Montecito and Summer-land. Local bicyclists know enough not to use 101, but touring cyclists traveling up or down the Pacific Coast follow the signs and find themselves climbing Ortega Hill on unswept 101 shoulders next to high-speed traffic. When the new construction is done, cyclists will be redirected to the better bikepath.
• Caltrans has released photo simulations of the new construction. Unfortunately, many of the currently existing shrubs on Ortega Hill next to northbound 101 will have to be removed.
• Immediately after construction, the hillside will be fairly bare. Caltrans however, working with South Coast groups, has included extensive landscaping as part of the project with new oaks and other native trees and shrubs. Yes, it will take a few years for the landscaping to become established, but in time it will, we expect, look better than what's there now. And in the meantime, motorists and bicyclists will immediately benefit from safer driving and cycling conditions.
• Bicycle Coalition members Wilson Hubbell, Ralph Fertig, and Lorien Davy will be representing our interests at the June 24 meeting. Watch for the outcome here.

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Bicycle Coalition election on July 2

• Nominations were made on May 7 for the Bicycle Coalitions' nine positions on the Board of Directors: four officers and five others who serve on the Board.
• Bicycle Coalition members in good standing are eligible for voting either in person at our regular July 2 meeting or by mailing in the ballot from last month's Quick Release. Copies of the ballot will be available at the meeting. Vision statements by candidates are available on our web site www.sbbike.org/SBBC/election.html.

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June meeting topics

• Here's a brief agenda report about what was discussed at our June 2002 general meeting:
• Caltrans' Robert Miller described the proposed Ortega Hill bikepath in view of questions from the Montecito Association.
• The Coalition Board of Directors will meet later this month.
• The City of Santa Barbara has proposed a new ordinance to manage its pedicabs.
• The Coalition will again assist City of Santa Barbara with an annual bicyclist count.
• Winners for the "Why I love to bike commute" contest will be announced soon.
• 88 Magazine for active people is available with our new half-page ad.
• We will try to place the Coalition's new brochure in bike shops and other locations.
• We will help the APCD with bicycle-related activities when it hosts air pollution professionals in Santa Barbara this October.
• Ralph Fertig will represent the Coalition at the Thunderhead Alliance retreat.
• Bike to School Day promotion resulted in 600-700 kids biking to six South Coast elementary schools.
• California's Bicycle Transportation Account funded additional lights for South Coast bikepaths.
• Alternate Coalition meeting times and places, plus a summer gathering, were considered.
• Gary Wissman and Wilson Hubbell reported on Measure D allocations in the City of Goleta.

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Non-standard paths



Tucked below Highway 154, this quiet sidewalk-path fails to meet Caltrans' bikepath standards. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• Bicycle Coalition member David Madajian wondered why the nice path east of Highway 154 between Calle Real and Primavera Drive wasn't a bicycle route on our Santa Barbara County Bike Map. He writes, "It was my son and my favorite stretch to ride to pre-school because it is down below 154 and quiet so we could talk easily."
• It turns out that the path—or "sidewalk"—doesn't comply with Caltrans' design standards for bikepaths. Those standards require a minimum eight-foot wide paved path and two-foot graded clear space on both sides.
• If any government agency puts up signs or publishes maps that call a path that doesn't meet Caltrans' standards a "bikepath" and bicyclists use it, they are inviting liability. If a bicyclist crashes into another user or hits a side fence or wall, the government agency could be held partially liable.
• So, although the narrow path that Madajian discovered is a wonderful, tree-lined alternative to nearby streets, bicyclists should use it with caution.

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VP to attend national advocacy retreat

• The Bicycle Coalition voted on June 4th to send Vice President Ralph Fertig to the Thunderhead Alliance retreat in late August. Thunderhead Alliance members are bicycling advocacy groups like ours. The four-day retreat will take place at Camp Ojiketa, in Chisago City, 40 miles outside St. Paul, Minnesota. Fertig will be paying special attention to strategies that others are using to increase their organizations' effectiveness.
• The Thunderhead Alliance was founded in 1997, with the support of the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition and other American groups. Their web site is www.thunderheadalliance.org.

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County fatalities
by Ralph Fertig

• Nobody likes to think about dying, and it's only after considering this topic for a long time that I've decided to publish information on bicyclist fatalities in Santa Barbara County.
• My data are drawn from newspaper reports since 1990. If fatalities were not reported in local papers, they are not included. What I have can be described as follows:
• 15 people have died while bicycling or as a result of injuries while bicycling.
• All 15 were male.
• Most took place in the South County.
• Two died of heart attacks while riding. Seven collided with motorists.
• Two motorists had high levels of alcohol or drugs.
• Two were bike-bike collisions.
• Two were off-road.
• One was on a bikepath.
• Two were in bike races at the time.
• Youngest was four, oldest was 61, average age is 41.
• Four wore helmets, five did not, the other 6 were not reported.
• Two were at night.
• 
• What does this mean? The most striking aspect is that less than half died from collisions with motorized vehicles. National databases report that nearly all bicyclist fatalities result from collisions with motorists. What I believe our numbers indicate is that Santa Barbara County motorists and bicyclists are more careful around each other than in other places in the US. As for the two heart attacks, the riders were only 45 and 48 years old, so get a heart stress test just in case. And please be careful when driving and when cycling.

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Airport bikeracks



The airport bikerack is where old bicycles come to die. Two are not even locked. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• David Madajian is keeping busy with bicycle ideas these days. He recently biked to Santa Barbara Airport for a three-day business trip. The condition of the airport bike rack disappointed him so much that upon returning, he wrote to the management. "I could only find one small and poorly designed bicycle rack that was filled with bicycles that appeared to be abandoned (many were rusted and had no air in the tires). It would be better to have several well designed racks in a covered area. At the very least the bikes should be marked and removed if left over a certain amount of time, which should be clearly posted."
• He received an immediate reply from Airport Director Karen Ramsdell. "I agree with your assessment of the current situation. I will have our staff tag and get rid of the abandoned bikes. I will also have them look into a more appropriate bike rack. I'm not sure about being able to provide covered bike parking at this point but will look into it." Ramsdell ended by adding, "Please feel free to pass on your observations in the future—we like to hear from our customers."
• So thanks indeed to Madajian for seeing a problem and taking the initiative on it. Sometimes all it takes is a comment to managers who may not be aware of deficiencies. Next time you go to the airport, please check on the bikerack condition. We'll be watching it too.

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Bicyclists are customers

• "Bicycle and pedestrian facilities and programs are an integral part of our nation's transportation system for the 21st century. Our national transportation system must meet the needs of all our customers, including bicyclists."
• — Norman Mineta, US Secretary of Transportation

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Alternate meetings

• The Bicycle Coalition Board met on June 19 to discuss a number of issues. One was a concern that many members cannot attend our monthly noon meetings in Downtown Santa Barbara. It was proposed to have four meetings at another time and place, yet to be determined
• Also, a committee was formed to arrange a bicyclist barbecue in August. Stay tuned.

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Jesse Leyva rides his bike whenever possible
by Erika Lindemann



Jesse Leyva, principal of Brandon School, stands behind his bicycling examples. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

• Brandon School Principal Jesse Leyva first caught my attention as a notable bicyclist in our community when I heard he rode from his home in Solvang to his school in Goleta on Bike to School Day, May 21st, 2002. When asked what motivated him to do this, he simply replied, "it's a lot of fun and the kids were really excited to have me ride into school on Bike to School Day. I was impressed by how much it meant to them." Jesse's chosen route to school is a unique one; he chartered the 30-mile ride on his mountain bike and rode a dirt trail over Refugio pass. "It's a beautiful ride, which goes through small creeks and is off the beaten track. I try to avoid the freeway route."
• Thanks to the efforts of teachers and parents like Paula Perotte, Bike to School Day was a huge success at Brandon, with as many as 100 students participating. On normal school days, the number of children who bike to school has also increased, with about 25 kids or 7% of the students pedaling to school each day. Children would be more inclined to ride to school if they saw more adults riding their bikes for transportation. "Modeling the behavior stimulates the activity," Jesse explained. "Parents have to be the model because kids do what their parents do. Identifying safe routes to school is also very important for parents to feel more comfortable with their children biking and walking to school."
• Unfortunately for our Goleta community, Mr. Leyva will be changing school districts, working next year at Solvang Elementary School. "I will be commuting by bike every day then, because the school is only 3 miles from my house. But I have figured out a longer route so I can get a better work-out," Jesse explained with a smile. Solvang's bicycling community has gained quite a role model. We can certainly look forward to seeing his positive example continue to inspire parents and children alike in the Solvang area and beyond.

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Active members

• Please thank and support the following businesses that are Bicycle Coalition members:
• MarBorg Industries, Santa Barbara
• Oasis Design, Santa Barbara
• Santa Barbara Infrared, Santa Barbara
• Rincon Cycles, Carpinteria
• Lightning Cycle Dynamics, Lompoc
• We're pleased to welcome new Bicycle Coalition members Robert Goettler of Goleta, and Karen Moyes and Debra De Weese of Santa Maria. And we're grateful to the following who renewed their memberships: Richard Duane Rosenbaum, Mark Mittermiller, Tom Weisenburger, Lane Vance, Don McDermott, Bob Swinney, and Wilson Hubbell.

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Andy Singer