Savvy Saturday

Distance Traveled: 20 miles

I left around 8 and headed in to Queens. It had rained the day before and as I passed over the Queensboro Bridge I couldn't help but notice the reflections in from the ponds on the pedestrian walkway. The bridge's superstructure is beautiful to begin with, but there's something about seeing it on a two dimensional plain against a contrasting surface. Not only that, but because of the speed at which I was moving, the separate puddles seemed to meld together into one continuous strand.

My destination was The Arrow Recreation Center. A week beforehand, I was lucky enough to discover that one of Bike New York's Savvy Cyclists class was running the same weekend as the Century Tour. I decided to take the opportunity to see what it was like. The class is free, but requires you to put down a deposit and sign a waver. The deposit is only to ensure your space in the class. When I got there I met Chuck, (the same guide I had met a week before at Bike and Roll. We chatted as more people arrived. There was only one other male in the class (who just happened to be taking it with a female companion). I'm not sure if there's something to that or not. We began with a video from the League of American Bicyclists. It introduced the course and basic information about helmets, and merging lanes. The instructors paused it every so often to clarify and contextualize the information within New York. Basically, the course is built around four tenants which were introduced on the video. They are, Be Visible, Be Predictable, Be Alert, and Be Assertive. Something interesting interesting that the instructors pointed out were the findings of a European study on the bio dynamics of impact. In the end they concluded that a human body can withstand impacts of up to 20 MPH with a solid, stationary object. This means that a cyclist moving at speed, in the proper direction, would, more than likely not be killed by a car. This is another reason why it is a bad idea for people to ride the wrong way down a one way bike lane. Nothing makes me angrier than when I see other bikers coming at me in the wrong direction. Along those same lines I thought it was interesting how the instructors condemned bike lanes. In their words, "bike lanes make you visible, but they put you in a bad position." This is true when you think about it. Except in New York City most all bike lanes are on the right side of the road directly next to parked cars. This leaves you exposed to the possibility of being hit by a door opening, a bus drop off, or any car wishing to park.

After the video, we discussed helmets, and their proper usage. The instructors came around and helped each of us get out helmets on properly (Depicted left). After this we headed outside. The first thing we did was perform an "ABC Quick Check" (Depicted right) "A" is for air:Check to make sure your tires are inflated to maximum pressure. "B" is for breaks: Make sure that they work properly. "C" is for crank, chain, and cassette: make sure nothing is lose. Quick means to check the quick releases on the wheels and seat of your bike has them: If the quick releases are not on tight, the wheels could fly off mid-ride, or your seat could shit position. The final part of the quick check is to ride around a little bit to make sure that everything is working properly.

Using halves of tennis balls, we practiced maneuvers for the rest of the morning. The first exercise we did helped us identify which breaks had the most stopping power and how to use those properties to stop ourselves effectively. We did two high speed runs across the playground once using only our rear breaks, and once using the front. The front break has the most stopping power, and is therefore more prone to flipping the rider over if applied to abruptly when traveling at high speeds. Our next maneuver was an emergency stop. This is where you move as much of your weight as possible as far back as you can go while applying the brakes hard. It's a weird feeling, but very effective. You can feel the weight of the biking trying to pick up from under you, but your own weight manages to counter balance you. We then did a rock dodge (depicted right) and a sharp turn maneuver.

After this we broke for lunch. I went to a Chinese place around the corner, and was amazed to see the Asian cook speaking in English at one point, Chinese to his colleagues, and even Spanish to a few of the customers that came in. I thought that was interesting, and very relevant when discussing the diversity of Queens.

After lunch we journeyed out around Queens to practice the skills we had just learned. One of the interesting things we saw was Kaufman Astoria Studios. This is where The Sopranos was filmed. We continued moving and eventually wound up in Astoria. I always enjoy discovering different parts of Queens, so the ride was very interesting. I felt that the skills we practiced, however, were not very well utilized on the ride. I suppose this depends greatly on the location and traffic conditions.
When we arrived back at the recreation center (which was abuzz with activity between kids playing and another class taking place, all on a Saturday!) the instructors put on a flat tire demonstration. After that, I voluntarily took the test to see if I was eligible to become an LCI (League Certified Instructor). I passed and the two teachers encouraged me to follow through with the process.

Real quick I should note my experience the day before (I was reminded while writing about the flat tire demonstration. On my way to the bus in Philly, my tire sort of exploded. I don't use that word lightly. I needed a new tire. By the time I arrived in NYC with my unusable bike, I had already utilized the bike map to locate the nearest bike shop to the bus stop. It happened to be Chelsea Bikes, about 8 blocks away (Depicted left). I bought a new tire, and used their free air house outside to inflate it. I was in and out in 15 minutes. I think this experience is very important in analyzing the facilitation of cycling in New York. It was that easy for me to get a problem fixed, and I was able to do so because of the resources which were illustrated on the free bike map.

Anyway, I headed to the riverside, and decided to take the long way back to Manhattan. I passed under the foggy Queensboro Bridge and continued heading South down Vernon Blvd. I took the Pulaski bridge (depicted left) into Brooklyn and continued South on Kent St. Now let me say a word about Kent St. Last spring I was up doing my preliminary research for this case study. Whilst in Brooklyn one afternoon I got lost and had to pull up on the sidewalk for a block because I was confused and the street was to narrow for me to slow down and think. As soon as I turned back into the road a black unmarked car drove up behind me with lights flashing. It was the cops! At the time I did not realize that it was illegal. They issued me a court summons for biking on the sidewalk. Not a ticket, a court summons. It may have been because I'm not an NY resident, but regardless I had to go through the whole process of sending in the summons and asking for a dismissal, ect. Luckily for me, the officers made a mistake and wrote that the incident occurred at the intersection of Kent St and Classon Ave. Fortunately for me that was incorrect as Kent st and Classon do not intersect. It was actually Kent Ave. Anyway, I suppose I got really lucky, because the usual fine for that violation is $300. Most people I have spoken with about it including my instructors assured me that they rarely go after cyclists for that. It was most likely because it was the end of the month. I returned to Manhattan via the Williamsburg bridge and called it a day. I had to wake up early the next morning for the Century tour. Unfortunately because this was a learning day I did not get the chance to take a lot of pictures. Here are some great quotes from the class which I found very meaningful:

"Make a good name for bikes out there." - This was in reference to how you should treat pedestrians and motorists in order to promote cycling rather than create animosity.

"Looking is more important than signaling." - This was in reference to how you should act while shifting lanes. So long as a driver sees your intentions, and you [the cyclists] know what is going on around you, the ride will be safe.

"Cyclists fair best when they act and are treated as vehicles." - This was pretty much the theme for the class.