Celebrate Earth Day with 8th Annual Wheelie Ride, reCycle Art events

Earth Day Wheelie 2015 PosterThe Savannah Bicycle Campaign presents the Eighth Annual Savannah Earth Day Wheelie Bike Ride on Saturday, April 18, 2015. The free, family-friendly, police-escorted ride is part of the City of Savannah’s Earth Day Festival and will depart from the south end of Forsyth Park at 3 p.m. An after‐ride party, the Post Wheelie Dealie, will be held at Blowin’ Smoke Southern Cantina, 1611 Habersham St. The total distance of the ride is approximately 5 miles.

Want to volunteer with us at the Earth Day Festival? Browse opportunities and sign up!

This is the first group ride organized after the Savannah Bicycle Campaign’s founding and it remains one of its most popular events. Winding through some of Savannah’s most picturesque historic neighborhoods, the Earth Day Wheelie underscores the fun and benefits of bicycling in Savannah. As with all Savannah Bicycle Campaign Wheelie rides, helmets are strongly encouraged for adults and required for bicyclists under 16. Let us know you’re riding by joining the Facebook event.

New this year is reCycle Art, a collaboration with Art Rise Savannah. reCycle Art will run for the three nights leading up to Earth Day Festival at the Savannah Bicycle Campaign’s headquarters, 1301 Lincoln St. Part auction, performance showcase and workshop,

reCycle Art is brought to the community through a partnership with Art Rise Savannah, and sponsors Forsyth Farmer’s Market, Foxy Loxy, Georgia Bikes! and the Savannah Bee Company. In addition to the show, a city-wide social media scavenger hunt will begin on April 13, at 8 a.m., while a decorated bicycle parade will conclude reCycle Art during the eighth annual Wheelie ride.

Want to make the leap to longer rides? Join us March 29

If you’re an experienced commuter or recreational cyclist, but want to try riding for longer distances, our first Bike Curious ride on March 29 could be just the ticket.

The ride leaves from Savannah Bicycle Campaign headquarters (1301 Lincoln St) at 10 a.m. on Sunday, March 29.

The ride route will include Hunter Army Airfield and other areas on the Southside, and is designed to allow participants to explore the city by bike. The total distance will be approximately 30 miles and the average speed around 15 m.p.h.

Because of the distance and pace of this ride, helmets are required. In addition, it is strongly recommended that participants use a road bike and bring water, equipment to change a tire, cash and valid ID (required to enter Hunter AAF gate).

For route information or other questions, email David Acuff.

 

 

Free valet parking for bikes offered at 2015 Savannah Music Festival concerts

The Wailers
The Wailers perform at Trustees Theater on April 2

We are providing free valet parking for bikes at the following Savannah Music Festival concerts:

Ride your bike, enjoy the music and leave the parking to us! Interested in volunteering to staff the bike valet? Sign up here.

Volunteers on bikes needed for Historic Savannah Foundation Race for Preservation

hsfvolunteersSBC volunteers on bikes will help direct runners at the Historic Savannah Foundation’s  Race for Preservation on Saturday, Feb. 28 from 7:30-9:30 a.m.

Volunteers ride ahead of the runners and welcome them to each historic neighborhood along the course. It’s a fun way to cheer on your friends and neighbors running in the race. Volunteers will receive SBC volunteer and Race for Preservation t-shirts.

To volunteer, email john@bicyclecampaign.org

Metropolitan Savannah Rotary Club hosting oyster roast fundraiser for SBC

Screen Shot 2015-02-17 at 10.16.36 AMLast summer the Metropolitan Savannah Rotary Club selected SBC as its annual service partner and Rotarians have been busy since that time helping launch our New Standard Cycles program and other causes in Savannah.

On Saturday, Feb. 21, the club will host its fourth annual Roastary Oyster Roast on Dutch Island. Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit SBC. Tickets and more information available now on the Metropolitan Savannah Rotary Club website.

SBC and Art Rise Savannah team up for reCycle Art mini-festival

reCycleartCelebrate art, bikes and Earth Day with the Savannah Bicycle Campaign and Art Rise Savannah! We’re partnering to host a brand new mini-festival: reCycle Art!

Part auction, part workshop, part concert, reCycle Art is a unique event that highlights so much of  what is wonderful about our city, from local business to art to advocacy for healthy, alternative  transportation. Along with the art for sale, we’ll also be bringing you a jam-packed week full of fun and free events leading up to the Savannah Earth Day Festival and the Savannah Bicycle  Campaign’s Earth Day Wheelie and bicycle parade on April 18.

Sponsors Forsyth Farmer’s Market, Georgia Bikes!, the Savannah Bee Company and Foxy Loxy will be making this an awesome week of art, sustainability and Savannah!

Read on below for details on all of the fun activities in store for reCycle Art!

Play with your Food! (April 15, 6 – 9 p.m.)

We’ll be kicking off the week with the Forsyth Farmer’s Market and local musician Ben Austin.

We’ll have workshops with your favorite market in town where families (and everyone else) can play around with sustainable and delicious food, while veteran musician and delightful guy Ben Austin entertains with acoustic music throughout the night!

Bicycle Power! (April 16, 6 – 9 p.m.)

Georgia Bikes! takes the stage to talk about serious business: decorating bicycles and the best way to stand out in a bicycle parade! Make sure to come by for ideas on Thursday and bring your bike to decorate on Saturday for the Earth Day Wheelie bicycle parade!

We’ll also have a bicycle-powered video game up and running on Thursday night, designed and  built by SBC’s resident mechanic Jen Colestock and Athens jack-of-all-trades Ben Edwards. Try your hands (and feet) at the game and pedal your way to victory.

Bees in your DIP! (April 17, 6 – 10 p.m.)

Come for the natural, nourishing and delicious beauty and health tips from the Savannah Bee Company, but stay for the awesome and (very) energetic performance from DIP – an Athens band that will make our last night of the auction one of the best!

Bicycle Décor (April 18)

Georgia Bikes! and Art Rise Savannah will be teaming up at the Earth Day Festival to help you decorate your bike before embarking on the Earth Day Wheelie’s bicycle parade in style.

Foxy Loxy Cold Brew and Treats (April 15 – 17, 6 – 9 p.m.)

Come hungry and ready for some cold brew coffee! Foxy Loxy will be bringing their yummiest and most sustainable foods throughout the week for you to try, while selling cold brew coffee by the eco-friendly growler.

An Instagram Scavenger Hunt (April 13 – 18)

Running April 13 at 8am to April 18 at 11am, this scavenger hunt will help you explore Savannah and the very awesome sponsors of reCycle Art! Solve the challenges and post your pictures toInstagram with #recycleartsav for points and raffle tickets. Each challenge location you complete gets you one free ticket to the Earth Day Wheelie’s raffle!! Remember, this is a team activity – so grab your friends and get started!

All events will be held at 1301 Lincoln St, Suite A, at the corner of Lincoln and Henry streets.

Want to learn more about reCycle Art? Send a note to recycleartsav@gmail.com for details.

Fourth annual Pedal Medal Award celebration honors people who make Savannah better for bicycling

2015PedalMedalImage

The fourth annual Pedal Medal Award Celebration, presented by SouthCoast Health, will be held on Thursday, Feb. 19 from 5-7:30 p.m. at ThincSavannah.

The Pedal Medal Award honors individuals who are working to make Savannah better for bicycling. Past winners are Sean Brandon of the City of Savannah, Connect Savannah editor Jim Morekis and Jane Love of the Coastal Region Metropolitan Planning Organization.

This year’s Pedal Medal honoree is John Pinkerton of Moon River Brewing Company. John is the originator and driving force behind our annual Matt’s Moon River Cruise event. The event is held in memory of Matt Kohler and aims to educate drivers on safely sharing the road with people who ride bikes.

Louisa Winsor Williams and John Wesley Norvell will be recognized as SBC’s volunteers of the year. Dr. Daniel Piatkowski, assistant professor of urban studies and planning at Savannah State University, will give the keynote address. Beverages and light hors d’oeuvres will be served.

A silent auction will feature exciting items including a beach cruiser from Tim’s Beach Gear, a stay at Ocean Lodge on St. Simons Island, a Club at Savannah Harbor golf package and more!

Purchase your tickets today!

City of Savannah adopts Complete Streets ordinance

complete streets
We have been working in partnership with Healthy Savannah toward an important goal.
On Jan. 22, 2015 we achieved it.

The Mayor and Aldermen of the City of Savannah unanimously adopted a Complete Streets ordinance that will help make our city’s streets safe and appealing for people of all ages and abilities.

The purpose of the ordinance is to “to encourage healthy active living, reduce traffic congestion and fossil fuel use and improve the safety and quality of life of residents of the City of Savannah by providing safe, convenient and comfortable routes for walking, bicycling and public transportation.”

Under the ordinance, all street improvement and new construction projects will be designed to meet the needs of people who walk, ride bikes and use transit, unless specific circumstances prevent inclusion. Among the bicycle-related Complete Streets components listed in the ordinance are shared use paths, bicycle lanes and bicycle parking facilities.

We thank Mayor Edna Jackson and Savannah City Council for adopting this ordinance, which will provide economic, public safety and public health benefits to our community. We are especially grateful to District 4 Alderman Mary Ellen Sprague for endorsing an amendment that significantly strengthened the ordinance.

On the same day that our city’s leaders acted, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx launched the Mayors’ Challenge for Safer People and Safer Streets, which calls on mayors and other local elected officials to take significant action to improve the safety of their constituents who walk or bicycle by implementing Complete Streets practices.

We are grateful to Healthy Savannah, YMCA of Coastal Georgia, Safe Routes to School Resource Center, Savannah Chatham Public School System, Transport Studio, Coastal Region Metropolitan Planning Organization, Chatham Area Transit, Healthcare Georgia Foundation, Georgia Bikes, City of Savannah staff, and other partner organizations for their dedication to achieving this goal.

Savannah State professor seeks participants for “Scofflaw Biking Survey”

cyclingsurvey
Daniel Piatkowski, an assistant professor at Savannah State University, along with his colleagues  at the University of Colorado Denver are conducting a study about bicyclist behavior. The study was referenced in the Washington Post’s Wonkblog in a Jan. 9 piece called “Let’s talk seriously about why cyclists break traffic laws.”

“As cycling grows more common in a city, does peer pressure to obey the law follow? As cities build more bike infrastructure, does that make cyclists less likely to run red lights?”

Dr. Piatkowski and his fellow researchers are seeking participants for a survey, which will take about 10 or 15 minutes to complete. It asks questions about respondents’ travel patterns and experiences as bicyclists under various situations. The survey is part of a larger study intending to better understand our transportation system and what factors might correlate with different behavior patterns.

Take the survey now!