Thursday Video - Bike Lanes by Casey Neistat

Beware of obstacles in bike lanes!

This week's video is by Casey Neistat from 2011. He had just received a ticket for not riding his bike in the bike lane. This isn't illegal, but the cop told him he always had to ride in the bike lane. So he made this video to show that there are often hazards in the bike lane that make it dangerous to ride there.

Weird Bike Wednesday - Bicycle Powered Washing Machine

Go for a ride and wash your clothes (photo courtesy of Design Buzz)

Now here's an interesting bicycle that was created by industrial designer Mitch Shivers from the Philippines. It's a 30 gallon drum attached to the bike that washes your clothes while you ride. The best part is that you don't have to be stationary like other systems I have seen. You can just go on your normal ride (at a slower pace) and wash your clothes at the same time. Also the washing attachment will force cars to give you reasonable clearance when passing. Additional photos can be found on the Design Buzz website.

Touring Tuesday - Cycling in Tennessee

River crossing by ferry in Tennessee (photo courtesy of Peter C. Koczera)

Tennessee is a very picturesque state with friendly people and drivers who are patient and courteous to cyclists. If you are looking for a place to do some bicycle touring, it's a  good choice. While touring, you might come across a river ferry like the one above. The state operates one on the Tennessee River, and one on the Cumberland River. According to their fee schedule, a car is one dollar and a person on foot is fifty cents. It doesn't say what they charge someone on a bicycle.

If you would like to be part of an organized tour, the Bicycle Ride Across Tennessee (BRAT) is held each fall in mid-September. It's a five day ride with camping each night at one of Tennessee's state parks. The route varies, and visits a different part of the state each year. If you would like to tour on your own, the Tennessee Department of Transportation lists five bicycle routes in different sections of the state. Turn by turn directions are available for each route. These routes are all from previous BRAT rides.

There are many interesting sights to visit in Tennessee, such as:

• Shiloh National Military Park, scene of a key Civil War battle
• Reelfoor Lake, which was formed by the powerful 1811 New Madrid earthquake
• Graceland, home of Elvis Presley
• Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park, home of the W.W.I. Medal of Honor recipient
• Ryman Auditorium, home of the Grand Ole Opry from 1943to 1974

Newby Oval - The 1898 Indianapolis Velodrome

Advertisement for opening races (photo courtesy of Indiana Historical Society)

Indy's Major Taylor velodrome opened in 1982 and hosted track cycling events that were part of the 1982 U.S. Olympic Festival. Over 80 years earlier, The Newby Oval was opened for the 1898 League of American Wheelmen meet. Considering the state of sports at the time:

• Baseball's first World Series would be held five years later in 1903
• The Indianapolis 500 would not be held until 1911
• The National Football League wasn't formed until 1920
• James Naismith invented basketball just 7 years earlier. The National Basketball Association wouldn't come along until after World War II

Hosting the LAW Meet was like hosting the Super Bowl today. To get them to come to Indy, Arther Newby built the Newby Oval in the northeast corner of 30th Street and Central Avenue. It was state of the art at the time, featuring electric lighting (Edison demonstrated his first incandescent bulb less than twenty years earlier) and the grandstands could accommodate 20,000 fans (Today Bankers Life Fieldhouse can only seat 18,000 for basketball games (19,000 for concerts). The track was a quarter mile long and made from white pine. It was one of the fastest tracks in the country and numerous speed records were set there. The LAW meet went well, but railroads raised ticket prices, and the attendance was less than anticipated.

They say timing is everything, and Newby's timing was terrible. After years of rapid growth, LAW membership peaked in 1898. Automobiles were starting to appear, and they drew attention away from cycling. The facility was used for other purposes as well as bicycle races, but it was never able to generate enough revenue to pay its operating expenses. Demolition on the Newby Oval began just four years after it opened.

So did Arthur Newby declare bankruptcy and die penniless? Oh no - He and three other investors later built the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In 1915 the state of Indiana was outbid by a lumber company for the property that would become Turkey Run State Park. Newby and the other investors donated money to the state so they could buy it from the lumber company. Newby was a prominent Indianapolis philanthropist and later gave $100,000 to the Riley Children's Hospital. He also donated $50,000 each to Butler University and Earlham College.

Nearly everything is more expensive now than in 1898, but a look at the handbill above shows there are exceptions. Note the part that says "Wheels checked on grounds .... 5 cents." Today, with Pedal & Park, you get that free at many major events in Indianapolis.

Friday Photo - Cycling Past a Rainbow

Cycling Past a Rainbow on Glacier's Weeping Wall

Here's a sight that would cheer up any cyclist - A rainbow on the Weeping Wall in Glacier National Park. This is along the Going to the Sun Road, which is a National Historic Landmark. The road was the first major project by the National Park Service designed to accommodate tourists in automobiles. Construction began in 1921 and the road opened in 1933.

This photo comes from the Traipsing About: Stories and Insights from the Road website. Its about a couple named Dakota and Chelsea, who spent about three years cycling around the world. The last post on their website is from 2016, when the said they were going to spend some time in one place. That one place is Bend, Oregon.

Thursday Video - Bike Lane Opponents

Coronado, California has won national awards for bike friendliness

This week's video comes from the September 29, 2015 broadcast of the Late, Late Show. James Corden shows people at a public hearing speaking out against bike lanes in Coronado, California. Among their arguments:

• We are covering Coronado with "paint stripe pollution"
• The "graffiti" on streets reduces property values.
• Markings can induce "a dizzying type of vertigo."

Despite the absurdity of the arguments, city officials tabled the plan, at least temporarily. I have no idea how this eventually turned out.

Weird Bike Wednesday - Motorhome Bicycle

Brian Campbell with his motorhome bike (photo courtesy of BikePortland.org)

Brian Campbell in Portland, Oregon built the motorhome bike shown above. Despite its size, the bike is relatively light. The structural pieces are aluminum and the panels are styrofoam roofing panels. It has a fairing and a canopy to protect him from from rain, which is especially important in Portland. This is the only home that he has. He earns some money building these bikes for others, but there isn't a lot of demand. Brian and his bike have been featured on Tiny House Blog and BikePortland.org.

 Here's a video of Brian talking about his bike with some interested visitors. He says he has ridden it all over the country. He also says that he has gone over 70 miles per hour in it, which I find a little hard to believe.