November 13/08 1:15 am - Cycling headlines

Posted by Editoress on 11/13/08
 

Councillor braves bike ride
Two-wheeled commute requires courage, Halberstadt admits

It's a cheap, enjoyable and healthy way to travel, as long as you don't get squished by a transport truck.

That was what Coun. Alan Halberstadt was up against Wednesday evening when he strapped on his bicycle helmet and took to Tecumseh Road on two wheels, to see what it's like for the cyclists he's criticized for riding on sidewalks.
Read more at Windsor Star


Bicycle policy makes the city a better place
On it's own, it's really just a small step; some may even see it as a nuisance.

But the new bicycling policy adopted by St. Catharines city council Monday night is the kind of policy that will help make Niagara a more progressive place, friendly for families and the environment, will help reduce our reliance on the automobile and may even help a few of us shed some unwanted pounds.

This policy is sorely needed to encourage more people to get out of their cars.

The statistics in Niagara are quite telling.
Read more at The Standard


Brailsford steps up bid for more women's track medals in 2012
Dave Brailsford will today step up his campaign to secure more medals for British cyclists at the London Olympics when he presses the International Cycling Union (UCI) to include an additional four events for women in 2012.

Brailsford, the performance director at British Cycling, is leading the campaign for parity between men's and women's track cycling events at the London Games, and his visit today to the UCI headquarters in Switzerland coincides with a meeting of the International Olympic Committee's programme commission in Lausanne.

Although the agenda for the two-day meeting has not been made public, it is understood that gender inequality on the track cycling programme will be discussed by the 16 members of the commission, which includes the former British Olympic Association chairman Sir Craig Reedie.
Read more at Guardian


Ukrainian Popovych signs for Astana
Ukrainian cyclist Yaroslav Popovych has signed a two-year contract with the Astana team, which boasts seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong on its books.
Read more at Yahoo


Bio-passport cases must have solid legal basis: UCI
The International Cycling Union (UCI) said Wednesday it believed that cycling stood on the verge of a revolution in the sport's war on doping after incorporating the biological passport into its anti-doping rules.

The passports now being rolled out will allow the establishment of racer profiles to check cyclists' blood-levels and urine samples in the new season ˆ some 800 such profiles have already been drawn up.
Read more at thewest.com


Castelli back in the Pro-Tour
Castelli will be back in pro cycling at the highest levels in 2009 and onward, supplying the Cervélo TestTeam.

This new team, featuring Carlos Sastre and Thor Hushovd, was created to combine the very best, most technical, and most innovative companies in every market segment, and naturally they knew they needed Castelli clothing.
Read more at syklingensverden.com


CAS hears Rasmussen's appeal against 2-year ban
Danish cyclist Michael Rasmussen's appeal against a two-year doping ban was heard Thursday at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Read more at The International Herald Tribune


Ulmer aids Waddell in pursuit of sporting comeback
Former Olympics rower Sonia Waddell is among a stellar lineup of women's athletes joining the rush to try out BikeNZ's women's track programme.

World champions from other sports such as skater Nicole Begg, runner Kate McIlroy and mountainbike rider Vanessa Quin have thrown their muscles behind the Power to the Podium programme.

BikeNZ wants to unearth female athletes to form a talent pool through to the 2012 Olympics in London and beyond.
Read more at Star Times


"It [the season] just ended...training for next season starts tomorrow".
Warrior Part 2 - When A Bicycle Lands in Your Hotel Room!
Read more at XTRI.com


USC seeing bicycling boom
Bikes litter the landscape outside the Capstone dormitory at USC. Mountain bikes, racing bikes, cruisers, even a couple of BMX-style.

On Monday afternoon, there were 48 bikes and hardly any empty slots in the five metal racks. Seven more were locked to trees. One bike frame with no wheels was plopped down next to the bushes.

Capstone's side yard offers evidence USC's effort to encourage students to ride bikes is a roaring success. Despite adding 80 new bike racks on campus in the past three years, the university can't keep up with the demand.
Read more at TheState.com

Collision Course
Cyclists Claim Harassment by Seattle Police
Davey Oil was riding his bike up South Alaska Street toward Beacon Hill on August 31 after spending the day promoting the Bikery-a group that encourages cycling in Seattle-at the city-sponsored Car-Free Sunday in Columbia City. As Oil pedaled across Martin Luther King Jr. Way South, a long line of police cars rolled past him and Oil heard an officer's voice over a loudspeaker. "Hey you, pull over," the officer said.
Read more at TheStranger.com


Judge clears nude bicyclist in Portland
A Multnomah County judge has cleared a Northeast Portland nude bicyclist of criminal indecent exposure charges, saying cycling naked has become a "well-established tradition" in Portland and understood as a form of "symbolic protest."

Judge Jerome LaBarre said the city's annual World Naked Bike Ride -- in which as many as 1,200 people cycled through Northwest and downtown Portland on June 14 -- has helped cement riding in the buff as a form of protest against cars and possibly even the nation's dependence on fossil fuels.
Read more at Oregon News


Bicycles could disappear from Asia, experts warn
It is likely bicycles will have disappeared from China's and India's streets within the next decade, unless governments of the world's two most populous countries make a U-turn in their transportation policies.

A joint study by the Netherlands-based Interface for Cycling Expertise (I-CE) and Indian-based Transport Research and Injury Prevention Program (TRIPP) was conducted in China, India, Taiwan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to measure each government's attitude to cyclists.
Read more at TheJakartaPost.com