Take the Lane

It's time to register for Tour de Grand

As the snow was being washed away (soon to be replaced by a sheet of ice!), I got an e-missive from the Tour de Grand folks letting me know that it is time to think about registering for the 2009 ride.

Sunday, June 14 will be the 12th annual Tour de Grand, with eight routes in the Cambridge and North Dumfries area. (10/15K, 25K, 50K, 60K, 72K, 100K and 160K).

You can visit the website (which is not quite updated yet) and if you have ridden before, the registration info will be mailed in early April (just a month away!).  This year, online registration will make signing up even easier.

Last year, 1,000 riders passed through the Duncan McIntosh Arena in Churchill Park in Cambridge, looking for the door prizes, food and fellowship of the ride. As usual, there will be an event T-shirt for the first 600 pre-registered riders.

If you need further info, contact Don Pavey at 519-622-1087 or pavey@sympatico.ca or contact Rebecca LeBlanc at grandregistrar@rogers.com.

One cyclist gets his day in court

Any cyclist knows that the most likely scenario for being hit is to be overtaken by a vehicle. If the cyclist survives and the overtaking vehicle chooses not to stop, there usually isn't much a rider can do to identify the culprit when you're lying in the ditch or curbside all battered and bruised.

But a recent B.C. court ruling reported by the Canadian Press should give heart to any cyclist seeking damages for such an accident without knowing who is responsible.

The case was that of Brian Filsinger, who was knocked off his bicycle on Oct. 20, 2003 in Surrey, B.C. by a hit-and-run driver. Filsinger, who suffered injuries to his left hip, both ankles, lower back and right shoulder (which required surgery), claimed that the driver was 100 per cent responsible for the accident. Within 18 months after the accident, he had to quit his job as a school custodian due to increasing pain from his injuries.

Since there was no motorist to pay the costs, Filsinger went to the Insurance Corporation of B.C. The Insurance Corp. fought the case, saying Filsinger wasn't totally credible and didn't try hard enough to find the guy who hit him. The B.C. Supreme Court ruled that Filsinger contacted police, gave a statement, even turned in a piece of evidence, which was enough to satisfy the court that he sought the driver, or at least expected the driver would be found.

Filsinger was awarded $170,000 for lost income, medicare costs, damages and costs for future care. He will also be awarded court costs and special damages to be determined at a later date.

Nice to know that justice can be done, though I would rather have seen the hit-and-run artist brought to justice.

Cycling reduces cancer

Hey! Politicians . . . and anyone else who cares about rising health costs: pay attention to this report!

A new report by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund, released today in London, England, reports, among other things, that cycling can reduce cancer.

Yeah, that's simplifying a complicated study, but that's the essence: a healthy body can reduce the likelihood of getting cancer. The report makes dozens of recommendations, but among them is one that governments mandate and support walking and cycling paths to encourage physical activity.

More exercise, and healthy food choices, mean a healthier person, and good health and cancer-fighting go hand-in-hand. We knew that. Now the weight of evidence supports what we knew.

What to do with this? Well, let's talk infrastructure spending and rising health costs. Wouldn't it be smart to cut our health costs by investing in walking and cycling infrastructure. Read the report and then share this information with your friends and politicians.

In transitional weather, you can do anything

I love this time of year because it seems like there are so many possibilities. Today and perhaps tomorrow, it will be mild enough for people to sit out back when the sun is out and catch a few rays. While there are riders who will be a-biking throughout the winter, it is the transitional weather that encourages the fair-weather riders to drag their bikes out of storage and give the cranks a spin.

And later, they can go snowboarding.

I was thinking about the options of weather like this while reading a Facebook post from CycleTo.com, which is hosting a ride on Saturday. It's a four and a half-hour trek through the roads of Sonoma County, Calif., starting at a pastry shop (of course) in Petaluma. The reasons given for not attending by some of the invitees to this ride include being out of shape (well, it is early in the season), being signed up for a time trial (not too early for some people, obviously) and having already planned to go snowboarding (hey, where are your priorities?).

Of course, I am not attending. The flight there and back would be murder, though the pastries might be worth it...

London Olympics prepares for cycling patrons

Here's a progressive move: Organizers of the 2012 London Olympics are planning to spend $20.8 million Cdn (about 11.5 million pounds) on walking and cycling paths.

An Associated Press story reports that the Olympic Delivery Authority says the new paths will allow 385,000 spectators to ride or stride to the Games. The authority plants to create two walking/cycling paths and upgrade six others. The new paths will stretch from Finsbury Park to Victoria Park, where 5,000 new bike spaces will be created for Games patrons. 

The authority estimates that 10,000 spectators will walk to the Olympic Park and river area venues on peak days, and that 4,400 cyclists will join them. 

Optimistic and ambitious.

Now someone's got Zabriskie's bike!

It must the season of celebrity bicycle thefts. A week after someone stole Lance Armstrong's time trial bike, someone has walked away with David Zabriskie's TT bike.

According to an Associated Press report out of Salt Lake City, thieves ransacked Zabriskie's home and took the bike, both of Zabriskie's cars, race medals, clothing, electronic equipment and computers, as well as a set of Marvel Sideshow collectibles depicting characters from the movies Hellboy, Alien and Ironman.

Hey, who knew the Tour de France veteran was a geek? 

Bicycle holiday ends with bike giveaway

Here's a pretty cool story from y'day's Record by colleague and fellow cyclist Valerie Hill.

A couple of dozen Waterloo Region cyclists wrapped up their holiday to Cuba by giving their bicycles and gear to local people. For those Cubans who are used to clunky Asian products with push-rod brakes, these bikes are like a dream come true. You can read it here.

A Winnipegger endorses winter cycling

Here's a great commentary from the Friday Globe by a Winnipegger who spells out, at length, the pleasures of winter cycling.

Yeah, there is a real pleasure in being able to make your own way when so many of the auto-fixated cannot.

Ever shed some skin on a ride? Not like this guy

OK, he didn't really shed any skin, but you can guarantee that he got plenty of attention on the course wearing this "skinless" jersey and shorts.

The designer is Tomek Pietek, a 31-year-old Polish artist and web designer in Warsaw. I don't know if you can buy this, but you can contact Pietek through his website.

Cyclists shouldn't forget about bone density

There's a feature in the Los Angeles Times on cycling and osteoporosis, just to give you something else to worry about.

The article suggests that osteoporosis or osteopenia could be in your future, unless you do some cross-training to help maintain or build bone density.

No, I don't think you should go see a doctor immediately after reading the story, but you should have an annual physical and chat with your family doctor, and bring up the subject.

Should you eat more foods with protein? Should you take a supplement containing calcium and vitamin D? Hey, you already know you should eat healthy, but sometimes it's good to have this reminder.

You can read the whole story here.