Viva Bike Vegas was a nice event and a big hit in SNV!

More than 1,700 cyclists ride the down the famous Las Vegas Strip in RTC Viva Bike Vegas 2011

October 15th, 2011 by Ron Callahan

The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC) welcomed more than 1,700 cyclists for RTC Viva Bike Vegas 2011, which offered riders the unique opportunity to ride along the iconic Las Vegas Strip.  The fourth annual cycling event attracted riders throughout the United States, England, Mexico and Canada.
RTC Viva Bike Vegas featured three spectacular routes for cyclists of all skill levels, including a 103-mile century ride as well as 60-mile and 17-mile routes.  Century riders traveled from the Las Vegas Strip to the vistas of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and the scenic trails near Lake Mead National Park.  The 60-mile and century rides also included the scenic Red Rock Loop for the first time.
While not a race, timing chips were available to riders who wanted to track their course time for completing Viva Bike Vegas. Cyclists will be able to access their official course time online Saturday evening at www.vivabikevegas.com
After the ride, cyclists and spectators relaxed at the After-School All-Stars Las Vegas Beer Garden at Town Square, sponsored by Miller’s Ale House and Bonanza Beverage.
Proceeds from RTC Viva Bike Vegas 2011 benefit three local charities: Nevada Cancer Institute, After-School All-Stars Las Vegas and Nevada Child Seekers.
Cyclists can also now register early and save money on the RTC 2012 Viva Bike Vegas Gran Fondo ride. Register online at www.vivabikevegas.com. The RTC 2012 Viva Bike Vegas Gran Fondo ride is anticipated to bring more cycling enthusiasts and exhibitors as it partners with Interbike, the largest bicycle trade event in North America.
Nevada Cancer Institute is a team of dedicated professionals committed to advancing the frontiers of knowledge of cancer through research and providing world-class, research-linked cancer services to Nevadans and people throughout the Southwest. The research-linked, comprehensive cancer facility opened late summer 2005 and is dedicated to state-of-the-art research and implementation of groundbreaking methods of prevention, detection and treatment of cancer.
The Greater Las Vegas After-School All-Stars provide at-risk youth with after school programs that afford them opportunities to participate in sports, educational, cultural, and community enrichment programs to build confidence and self-esteem and to encourage youth to say “no” to gangs, drugs and violence and “yes” to hope, learning and life.
Nevada Child Seekers is a non-profit organization created in 1985 by community leaders dedicated to advocating for and engaging in prevention, identification and location efforts on behalf of missing and exploited children. Nevada Child Seekers offers liaison services to family and law enforcement, abduction prevention education and volunteer opportunities to promote the safety of children in our communities.
The RTC is the transit authority, transportation planning agency and regional traffic management agency for Southern Nevada. The RTC’s vision is to provide a safe, convenient and effective regional transportation system that enhances mobility and air quality for citizens and visitors. The RTC encourages residents and visitors to use alternate commute modes to help reduce traffic congestion, clean the air and improve the quality of life in Southern Nevada. For more information, visit rtcsnv.com.

My home town - H-Town getting with it.

Selling Bike Commuting in Houston | Transportation Nation

Selling Bike Commuting in Houston

By gdelaughter | September 29, 2011 – 12:03 pm

Bikeway in Houston's historic Heights neighborhood (Photo by Gail Delaughter.)

As Houston city officials look at ways to relieve congestion on the freeways, they’re encouraged by figures from the League of American Biyclists showing a 62 percent jump in the number of bike commuters.  The idea of cycling to work isn’t always an easy sell in a city known for its car culture and extreme summertime heat, but City of Houston Bicyclist-Pedestrian Coordinator Dan Raine is touting the benefits of leaving your motor vehicle at home — or getting rid of it altogether.

Houston currently has around 460 miles of bikeways covering a huge geographic area (around 500 square miles).  Bikeways include designated lanes on city streets, as well as popular bike trails that meander along waterways and pass through shady parks. Other trails run along rail beds and through historic neighborhoods. Cyclists can also make part of their trip by bus, attaching their bike to a rack on the front grill. If it’s a large park-and-ride bus they can stow their bike in the luggage compartment.

But Raine says it takes more than just new bikeways to encourage Houstonians to cycle to work. There are practical concerns, especially on triple-digit days when a cycling commuter may have a big meeting scheduled with clients. Raine encourages local businesses to provide a place where cycling commuters can freshen up before hitting the conference room. He says some progressive-minded companies are providing showers for workers as part of a commitment to going green.

Raine says commuting by bike means families can get rid of their extra car and the expenses that go along with it. There are fitness benefits, too. In a city also known for its freeway fast food joints, cycling is one way you can work off stress after a tough day at the office and burn some calories in the process.

“I’ve known some people that actually ended up selling their cars and going to a one-car family,” he said. “People lose weight. They find that they just have a little less stress in their life, because they’re able to get out there and get the exercise that they need.”

There’s also the issue of bike security. Raine says businesses can encourage bike commuting by allowing employees to bring their bikes inside, or by providing a secure parking area outside for both workers and customers. He says if there are “honest eyes” keeping watch on the bikes in a well-trafficked area, people will feel more comfortable about cycling for work and errands.

BUDDHA on a bike, suffering? A different word - "dukkha", says more.

"Suffering" sounds so negative and so much more is there! Physical pain, yes.  Emotional and mental pain?  Maybe sometimes. Same with all things.  But equally this state is wrapped up in impermanence and change.  Suffering and its opposite are not to be clung to nor focused on.  Cycling has a synergistic affect in that, as human energy flows into the machine, the cyclist becomes empowered. "Through this moving mechanistic appendage, people gain economic mobility, a healthy lifestyle, a sense of self-sufficiency, and a means of improving their potential" (Perry 1995, p. 159).  Indeed, cycling can be considered as a metaphor for life, offering a powerful sense of personal accomplishment and autonomy.
Suffering is the name given to growth and accomplishment.  The preparation and the will to push for results.  "I will beat my ass today to kick yours tomorrow" (The Sufferfest). I love these videos and I love to suffer apparently.   But lets not be afraid of a little old word. When there is clearly so much more there.  I would like to call it Dukkha.  Make it the same state as the relaxing recovery.  Have a non-descript shit eating grin on my face like what nature did to Andy Shleck and the Buddha.  Read this by Barbara O'Brien on the word:

Life Is Suffering? What Does That Mean?

By Barbara O'Brien

Dukkha: A Little Word With a Lot of Meaning

The Buddha didn't speak English. This should be obvious, since the historical Buddha lived in India almost 26 centuries ago. Yet it's a point lost on many people who get stuck on the definitions of English words used in translations.
For example, people want to argue with the first of the Four Noble Truths, often translated as "life is suffering." That sounds so negative.
But, remember, the Buddha didn't speak English, so he didn't use the English word, "suffering." What he said, according to the earliest scriptures, is that life is dukkha.
"Dukkha" is Pali, a variation of Sanskrit, and it means a lot of things. For example, anything temporary is dukkha, including happiness. But some people can't get past that English word "suffering" and want to disagree with the Buddha because of it.
I've noticed that some translators are chucking out "suffering" and replacing it with "dissatisfaction" or "stress." I'm a bit dissatisfied with that approach, however. Sometimes translators bump into words that have no corresponding words meaning exactly the same thing in the other language. I believe "dukkha" is one of those words.
Understanding dukkha, however, is critical to understanding the Four Noble Truths. And the Four Noble Truths are the foundation of Buddhism.

Filling in the Blank

Because there is no single English word that neatly and tidily contains the same range of meaning and connotation as "dukkha," I think it's better not to translate it. Otherwise, you'll waste time spinning your wheels over a word that doesn't mean what the Buddha meant.
So, throw out "suffering," "stress," "dissatisfaction," or whatever other English word is standing in for it, and go back to "dukkha." Do this even if -- especially if -- you don't understand what "dukkha" means. Think of it as an algebraic "X," or a value you're trying to discover.

Defining Dukkha

The Buddha taught there are three main categories of dukkha. These are:

1. Suffering or pain (dukkha-dukkha)
2. Impermanence or change (viparinama-dukkha)
3. Conditioned states (samkhara-dukkha)

Let's take these one at a time.
Suffering or Pain (Dukkha-dukkha). Ordinary suffering, as defined by the English word, is one form of dukkha. This includes physical, emotional and mental pain.
Impermanence or Change (Viparinama-dukkha). Anything that is not permanent, that is subject to change, is dukkha. Thus, happiness is dukkha, because it is not permanent. Great success, which fades with the passing of time, is dukkha. Even the purest state of bliss experienced in spiritual practice is dukkha.
This doesn't mean that happiness, success and bliss are bad, or that it's wrong to enjoy them. If you feel happy, then enjoy feeling happy. Just don't cling to it.
Conditioned States (Samkhara-dukkha). To be conditioned is to be dependent on or affected by something else. According to the teaching of dependent origination, all phenomena are conditioned. Everything affects everything else. This is the most difficult part of the teachings on dukkha to understand, but it is critical to understanding Buddhism.

What Is the Self?

This takes us to the Buddha's teachings on the self. According to the doctrine of anatman (or anatta) there is no "self" in the sense of a permanent, integral, autonomous being within an individual existence. What we think of as our self, our personality and ego, are temporary creations of the skandhas.
The skandhas, or "five aggregates," or "five heaps," are a combination of five properties or energies that make what we think of as an individual being. Theravada scholar Walpola Rahula said,
"What we call a 'being', or an 'individual', or 'I', is only a convenient name or a label given to the combination of these five groups. They are all impermanent, all constantly changing. 'Whatever is impermanent is dukkha' (Yad aniccam tam dukkham). This is the true meaning of the Buddha's words: 'In brief the Five Aggregates of Attachment are dukkha.' They are not the same for two consecutive moments. Here A is not equal to A. They are in a flux of momentary arising and disappearing." (What the Buddha Taught, p. 25)

Life Is Dukkha

Understanding the First Noble Truth is not easy. For most of us, it takes years of dedicated practice, especially to go beyond a conceptual understanding to a realization of the teaching. Yet people often glibly dismiss Buddhism as soon as they hear that word "suffering."
That's why I think it is useful to toss out English words like "suffering" and "stressful" and go back to "dukkha." Let the meaning of dukkha unfold for you, without other words getting in the way.
The historical Buddha once summarized his own teachings this way: "Both formerly and now, it is only dukkha that I describe, and the cessation of dukkha." Buddhism will be a muddle for anyone who doesn't grasp the deeper meaning of dukkha.

Perry, D., 1995. Bike Cult. NY: Four Walls.

More progress for bikes and NYC...

New York City embraces bicycle culture by adding bike lanes, planning ambitious bike-sharing program

New York City embraces bicycle culture by adding bike lanes, planning ambitious bike-sharing program

Tuesday, October 4th 2011, 10:07 AM
More and more New Yorkers are choosing bicycles as their preferred means of transportation.
Bryan Smith/News

It's official: the bike craze has taken over the Big Apple.

The number of New Yorkers taking the two-wheeled option to commute has doubled in the last five years, according to Mayor Michael Bloomberg's office. They are still a relatively rare sight as they zigzag between the yellow cabs and heavy traffic pouring through Manhattan each rush hour.

But if this can still be a perilous activity, that's starting to change, with 350 kilometers of new bike lanes put down since 2007, bringing the total to 683 miles (1,100 kilometers) and a target of 1,800 miles (2,900 kilometers) by 2030, according to the mayor's office.

Cyclists couldn't be happier with Bloomberg and his prominent transport commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan.

"Their leadership and vision have been tremendous," said Brent Tongco, spokesman for Bike New York, a non-profit promoting bicycle use and safety.

"With many more bike lanes, people feel safer," he said.

Tongco said an attraction to bicycling is part of a broader awareness among New Yorkers about their health and protecting the environment.

Next summer will see 10,000 bikes deployed in the world's third largest bike-sharing scheme after Hangzhou in China and Paris.

The scheme was met with enthusiasm, at least among some New Yorkers, when announced September 14. Within a week, almost 6,000 visits had been made to the official Internet site for the project, where residents could use an interactive map to suggest locations for the future bike stations.

The city has rolled out demonstrations and a large crowd came in the rain at Union Square on Thursday to get their first glimpse of the colorful bicycles.

"I've been waiting for that for ages," said Qinn, a 17-year-old student from the borough of Queens. "The subway is expensive. I can't pay a monthly ticket, while using the bikes will cost 104 dollars a year -- less than the monthly fare for the subway."

Victor Matos, a photographer who has biked in the city since the '70s, said he was worried about the shared bicycles being vandalized, but he said the initiative would be popular, not least for tourists.

The bicycles will be stationed every few blocks in Manhattan and available around the clock, with smartphone apps available to inform users of availability.

After paying the annual subscription, rides will be free for trips of less than 45 minutes, at which point a fee will kick in.

Opponents to the bike trend say the money and attention on such projects could be better spent on protecting pedestrians, including from rogue cyclists. Opponents recently lost a lawsuit seeking closure of a Brooklyn bike lane.

The city says that while bike use is up, the total number of accidents is stable. According to a Hunter College study, some 500 pedestrians are hurt each year by cyclists.

At Bike New York, there is nothing but optimism.

The organization is seeing "very high demand from a wide array of people" for its cycling lessons, Tongco said. This year, 3,650 adults and children took courses. Others come to learn how to repair their machines.