DEADLINE EXTENDED for GrassRoutes Caravan 2008
New Deadline: July 20th. REGISTER NOW!

Do you like riding your bike, camping and meeting amazing people from all over the world? Are you interested in community service projects, cooperative living and art/performance? If you answered yes to all of these questions and you want to make it to St. Paul just in time for the RNC protests, then The GrassRoutes Caravan is for you!

Register now while there's still time! The GrassRoutes Caravan bike ride has extended their registration deadline to July 20th! All attending, whether you want to ride part time or full time, must RSVP to pnc2rnc@gmail.com by July 20th in order to register and be vouched for. There is also a cap for the ride at 50 people. If you can't make the ride, your support is still needed! Visit wwwpnc2rnc.org to see how to help. Also, come to the PNC the weekend of August 15th-17th in Madison and rock the revolution with El Guante at the Memorial Union Terrace down by the lake in downtown Madison. Enjoy workshops, street games, performance, a gigantic free store, bike-in movies and more before sending the GrassRoutes Caravan off on their journey to St. Paul. More info at: www.infopnc.org

See ya soon!

Neverwood Collective - 262-9036

Title : Transportation Options Assistant
Job # : 39167 <UW>
Employer : UW Transportation Services Category : Miscellaneous
Pay : $10.00 /hr # of Positions : 7 On Busline? Yes
Posted : 5/16/2008 Deadline Date : 6/2/2008

Name: Matthew Burczyk
Address: 610 Walnut St. Room 124 Madison, WI 53726
Phone: 608.263.2969
URL: http://www.wisc.edu/trans/
Email: mburczyk@fpm.wisc.edu

UW Transportation Services is looking for a team of enthusiastic students to help build a healthy campus environment by promoting all of the transportation options available to members of the campus community. Student employees will encourage faculty, staff, and fellow students to actively think about their transportation options and consider an alternative to driving alone. Those options include: walk, bike, bus, flex parking, carpool, vanpool, and car sharing. A majority of work time will be spent engaging customers and educating them regarding the safe and effective use of their transportation options.

Responsibilities

* Staffing transportation information kiosks at resource fairs and other campus events
* Flex parking fulfillment
* Bicycle facilities management
* Employee bus pass distribution
* New employee outreach
* Carpool/Vanpool matching
* Bicycle safety and maintenance training

Requirements

* Ability to interact well with people of all backgrounds: students, faculty, and staff
* Basic familiarity with UW transportation system
* Ability to learn quickly and perform a variety of tasks
* UW Student
* Availability to work approximately 10 hours per week

Preferred Skills

* Safe bicycling practices
* Familiarity with Madison Metro bus routes
* Familiarity with campus layout and facilities

To ensure consideration, please submit a resume to Matthew Burczyk no later than June 2, 2008.

Matthew Burczyk
UW Bicycle & Pedestrian Coordinator
610 Walnut St. Room 124
Madison, WI 53726
Phone: (608) 263-2969
mburczyk@fpm.wisc.edu

UW Student Job Center
432 N.Murray St. Rm B8 Madison WI 53706
Ph: 608.262.5627 | Fax: 608.262.9068
uwstudent.jobcenter@finaid.wisc.edu

Bike to work week is well under way and I hope you have had a chance to get out on your bike for your commute to work. Be sure and checkout the remaining bike to work week events at www.bfw.org for remaining events.

The following is a short narrative on one riders bike commuting experience:

Over the last 2 months since beginning bike commuting (34 miles round trip, 3 days a week), I've gotten the entire range of comments from co-workers, from 'That's crazy -- you're gonna die out there' to 'Wow! That's great -- you're my hero.' Seems everyone has an opinion. I just quietly go about my business. The naysayers eventually shut up, and the others seem to want to know more about the whys and hows to commuting on a bike. Their questions run the gamut, but I always impart the benefits that I identify with. One, it gives me an hour each way to mentally gear up (on the way to work) or to unwind (on the way home) while simultaneously getting a workout. Two, it puts my mind and body in touch with reality in a direct way that living in a car takes away. Three, it saves money, promotes clean air, and lengthens my lifespan. In the beginning, all I had was a single reason, but now I'm discovering many more as time rolls on

The Madison Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission will hold a public hearing to receive comments on potential pedestrian and bicycle projects the City should consider undertaking in the 2009-2011 Capital Budget to increase opportunities for walking and bicycling in Madison. The intent of the public hearing is to hear suggestions for new capital (construction) projects. Please note that concerns about routine maintenance and operational issues can be directed to the appropriate agency or the City's Report-a-Problem web page www.cityofmadsion.com/reportaproblem

The hearing will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 27, 2008, in Room LL110 of the Madison Municipal Building, 215 Martin Luther King Jr.Boulevard. [NOTE: If you need an interpreter, materials in alternate formats or other accommodations to access this meeting, please contact the Traffic Engineering Division at 608-266-4761 or TTY (Textnet) at 866-704-2315. Please do so no later than 9:00 a.m. on the Thursday preceding the meeting so that proper arrangements can be made.

Written comments will also be accepted through June 6, 2008, and should be addressed to the Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission, c/o City Traffic Engineering Division, PO Box 2986, Madison WI 53701-2986, or email to traffic@cityofmadison.com

The results of the public hearing and written comments will be used to develop a list of projects to be considered for inclusion in the 2009-2011 construction work program.

In the last legislative session, the motorsports industry sought to shift the balance of the nine-member Governor's State Trails Council (STC) in its favor by adding two seats specifically for off-road motorcycle riders and 4x4 mud truckers. The bill, AB600, found a sponsor in the House and was passed by a nearly unanimous committee vote. But when the session ended a couple days later, the bill's progress stopped.

In response, the current members of the STC – which represent bicyclists, hikers, paddlers, equestrians, the disabled as well as snowmobilers and ATVers – on April 15 agreed to establish a temporary ad hoc committee "responsible for examining and proposing changes to the structure and organization of the State Trails Council in order to ensure that the STC is efficient, effective and inclusive of all citizens and trail user groups," according to the DNR.

The committee will be composed of members of the current council and public (non-STC) members who have experience with various trail user groups and knowledge of appropriate organizational models. The committee will be responsible for reviewing the mission, structure, organization, and make-up of the STC and will make recommendations for improvements at the April 2009 meeting.

You can bet the motorsports community will try to stack the ad hoc committee, so knowledgeable nonmotorized recreation advocates are needed to seek seats by May 24.

More info, including a downloadable application form can be found here:

dnr.wi.gov

Joel Patenaude, Editor
Silent Sports Magazine
silentsports@gmail.com

Thanks for visiting Madvelocity.com. Madvelocity has been around for just over a year and has gone through some changes during that time. These changes have been mostly technical in nature; however in order to better shape the site we have put together a short survey. This survey is intended to make www.madvelocity.com a more successful one stop shop for all things bicycling-related in Madison, Wisconsin. Through this survey, Madvelocity is looking for ways to improve the site, increase readership, participation, and ultimately serve the Madison community better. Please take a few minutes of your time to respond to the following poll:

Take the 9 Question Survey
Current results (if you are curious)

Thanks,

The Madvelocity Team.

Like many cyclists, I'd long toyed with the idea of a pedal-powered commute to work. Every year Bike-to-Work Week would come and I might try a couple of days, but I'd soon fall back to my old four-wheeled habit.

But the seeds were planted for bike commuting, and the news at the gas pump and of global warming helped nurture them.

With the move to a new location in November, the cycling stars finally aligned. I was now close enough to work that it would be almost embarrassing not to ride there. There was an on-street bike lane nearly all the way. And a downsize-inspired career change from the newspaper put me in a job with a more predictable daily travel schedule.

So, on April 14th -- getting an Late start on a New Year's resolution -- I found myself climbing aboard my bike with my lunch and work essentials in an old backpack. I was on my way.

That short ride served up my first surprise. It's 2.5 miles (4 km) door to door and it took me, a devout and practicing slowpoke, about five more minutes to pedal than to drive. And it was fun, not a word I'd used with my car commute. I'd burned a few calories, but felt energized.

It was also a cycling culture shock. As a weekend rider whose routes were mostly rail trails and back country lanes, my full immersion into rush-hour traffic was a bit scary. A Saturday morning peaceful connector has a much different personality on Monday.

I encountered my commuting route with new eyes -- and ears and nose. The bike lane seemed to be the depository for broken glass and winter sand. A sun-cured, one-day-dead chipmunk sharply announced its presence, but so did the fragrance of bacon and coffee from nearby homes, bread from a bakery, and spring brought honeysuckle and jasmine -- delights that would be lost in a car.

Instead of a radio or CDs I've been serenaded by the cry of suburban red-tailed hawks and carried on conversations at stoplights with folks in convertibles. And my resolve has been strengthened as I pedal past my neighborhood gas station and spy the rising price of fuel I'm not burning.

Me: Introvert Computer Nerd who is also a Bike enthusiast. I think of myself as community minded and I am not afraid to stick my neck out. I currently operate this site and perform technical updates, provide content and pay for the site.

You: Geeky or non-geeky bike enthusiast who would like to contribute to the Madison Cycling community. No experience necessary. Just a will and a want to make a difference. I will train and work with anyone who would like to contribute to this site and see it continue.

I started this site because I thought I could bring the Madison cycling community closer together. Technically I have the ability to provide a forum to cultivate this, but alas I am no writer or journalist - just geek who likes to bike and who thought he could make a difference. If you would like to contribute to the site by reporting on Madison area events, adding ride events to the calendar, providing technical support or would like to take over the full administration of the site, please contact me at bicyclingaddict@yahoo.com.