April 15, 2015
April Momentum Newsletter
Greetings!

You know peak biking season is upon you when Momentum is jam-packed with bicycle news and events! Get your calendars out because there is a lot going on in the upcoming months. Also, be sure to pick up the latest edition of Ride! Magazine, out on shelves now.

For a little blast from the past: check out our recently released 2014 FC Bikes Report that provides an overview of relevant data and FC Bikes' 2014 programs and initiatives to increase the safety and comfort of bicycling in our community. 

Lastly, don't forget to 'like' us on Facebook and 'follow' us on Twitter for the most up-to-date information on bicycle projects, events and news.

 City Bike Projects & Programs  

Community Issues Forum
Wednesday, April 15 from 6 to 9 p.m. at Lincoln Center

The City of Fort Collins, in collaboration with Colorado State University's Center for Public Deliberation, will host a Community Issues Forum on Wednesday, April 15 from 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. in the Columbine Room at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, 417 West Magnolia Street.

 

The forum will provide residents an opportunity to discuss and contribute ideas and opinions to three upcoming planning efforts: the Downtown Plan, the Water Efficiency Plan and the plan to consider updates to the existing Recycling Ordinance. RSVPs are preferred, but not required. Please RSVP here: http://col.st/jYeEg.


Laurel Street Pilot Project Baseline Data Volunteers
2-hour shifts on April 21, 23, 25, 28, 30 & May 2
Data collection is critical for the Laurel Street Pilot Project
 
coming later in 2015 and we need volunteers to help invite Laurel Street users to participate in a brief online survey. 2-hour shifts are available April 21, 23, 25,28 and 30. This is a great task for someone who enjoys a little social interaction with the public. Hurry, there are only a few spots remaining! Click here to sign up.

Call for Breakfast Station Hosts: Bike to Work Day
Deadline: Wednesday, April 29

It's that time of year again! Bike to Work Day is a staple event in Fort Collins.  With over 5,000 participants expected in 2015, it is a great way to engage with a captive community audience. FC Bikes staff help to organize 40 stations along bicycle commuter routes throughout the city, ready to reward those who arrive on two wheels.

 

Want to know more about what we expect from station hosts?  Check out the  Breakfast Station Toolkit that includes information on the following:

  • Organizing a station,
  • How to promote the event,
  • Day of logistics, and
  • Last year's list of stations, including the expected attendance for this year.
Ready to sign up?  Fill out this form with your station details: http://fcgov.2015-BTWD-Breakfast-Stations.sgizmo.com/s3/

W. Elizabeth Enhanced Travel Corridor Master Plan

Interested in shaping the future of West Elizabeth Street?  Make your voice heard and get involved early with the West Elizabeth Enhanced Travel Corridor (ETC) Planning effort, which will focus on enhancing biking, walking and transit in the area!

 

Upcoming events and input opportunities include:

  • Community Listening Sessions: come share your thoughts on transportation opportunities in this corridor.  Light refreshments will be served.  Each session begins promptly at 6:00.  Don't miss a minute of the conversation!
    • Wed. April 29, 6-8 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1709 W. Elizabeth St.
    • Mon. May 4, 6-8 p.m. at Lab/Polaris School, 1905 Orchard Pl. 
  • Community Walking/Transit and Biking Tours: lead or participate in a tour to help City staff get to know your travel experience in the W. Elizabeth Corridor! Show us how you get around - what's working and what could be improved. Tours will be held the weeks of May 4 and 11. Online sign-up and more details coming soon!
  • Online Survey and WikiMap: coming soon!

Visit fcgov.com/WestElizabeth for more details and to sign up for project updates


Planning, Development & Transportation Service Area Open House
Wednesday, May 6 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Everyday Joe's Coffee House
Join us at our upcoming open house that will give citizens the opportunity to learn about upcoming City projects and speak with subject matter experts.  Representatives from Community Development and Neighborhood Services, Engineering, Streets, Parking Services, FC Moves, Traffic Operations and Transfort will be in attendance.  Open house attendees are encouraged to purchase food and beverages from Everyday Joe's.  More information will be available on  www.fcgov.com this month.    

Remington Greenway Construction to Begin
Early May on Remington St. between Mountain Ave. and Spring Park Drive

The Remington Greenway project will be implemented in two phases with the first phase beginning in May. The project aims to create a comfortable street environment for all users. The project will include buffered bike lanes, new intersection designs including a mini-roundabout at Remington and Laurel streets, a rain garden, and other pedestrian improvements. For more information, please visit fcgov.com/remingtongreenway.


 

 

Laurel Street Pilot Project

Early May on Laurel St. between Remington and Howes St.  

Recommended in the City's 2014 Bicycle Master Plan, the Laurel Street Pilot Project aims to improve the safety and comfort of traveling by bicycle along Laurel St., between Howes and Remington streets.  The project will include bollard-protected bike lanes, enhanced shared-lane markings, intersection improvements at College Ave. and Laurel St., and other innovative treatments. The project will be implemented beginning in late-May and evaluated over the course of one-year. For more information, please visit fcgov.com/laurel.


Call for Partners: Open Streets
Deadline: Friday, May 15

Open Streets is back with two events scheduled for 2015: Sunday, June 7 on W. Elizabeth St. and Sunday, September 20 on Remington St. Come be a part of this unique and engaging community event where the streets will closed to motorized traffic and opened up for people to walk, bike, rollerblade, jog, socialize and play!

 

We are looking for businesses to partner with for this event and to host interactive booths and activities along the route in the following categories: 
Active Transportation, Arts & Culture, Healthy Well-being, Local Business, Physical Activity, and Sustainable Living.
Ready to sign up?  Visit out our Open Streets Partner Information page for more information and a link to the application.

 

NEW SESSION: Traffic Skills 101

Thursday, May 14 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm & Saturday, May 16 from 9:30am to 2:00pm at 281 N. College Ave.

Traffic Skills 101 (TS101) is a course for beginners, returning, and

 seasoned cyclists alike that will give you the confidence to ride safely and legally in traffic or on the trail. You will learn how to conduct bicycle safety checks, fix a flat, on-bike skills, and crash avoidance techniques. We recommended this 7.5 hour class for adults and children above age fourteen. 

 

Attendance is limited to 18 participants and registration is required.

 

Registration closes 10 days prior so don't delay!

 

June is Bike Month!

Activities throughout the month of June

Every June, Colorado celebrates Bike Month and here in Fort Collins, we love anything that highlights and promotes people who ride bicycles. Mark your calendars for these events:

  • Join us on Tuesday, June 2 at 5:30 p.m. to celebrate all things bike in Fort Collins for the official proclamation of June as Bike Month. At City Hall, the Mayor will officially declare June 2015 as Bike Month. Afterwards, we'll go for a casual ride to celebrate!
  • Wednesday, June 24 marks the 28th Annual celebration of Bike to Work Day in Fort Collins! Come visit one of many breakfast stations located around the city from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. for free breakfast treats and friendly faces. 

For more information, please visit http://www.fcgov.com/bicycling/bikemonth.php. 

 

Open Streets

Sunday, June 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on W. Elizabeth St.

Open Streets events invite people to experience public streets in ways other than driving.   By temporarily closing streets to motorized traffic, Open Streets provides a safe and comfortable space for people to walk, bicycle, jog, rollerblade and play!

2015 marks the second year for these events in Fort Collins with one planned in June and another in September. For more information on the events, please visit http://www.fcgov.com/openstreets/. 

 

Safe Routes to School Volunteers Needed!
Our fair city is unique in that we have our very own city Safe Routes to School Coordinator on staff. Now we are even more unique because Fort Collins has a school rotation plan in place. Each elementary school in Poudre School District will receive extensive bicycle and pedestrian safety education in PE, from our Safe Routes staff, every three years. We've been teaching at Putnam already. We will be at Blevins, Irish, O'Dea and Fossil next with a few smatterings of events in between. And that's just March - May. HELP! If you like working with youngsters and you're interested in helping, please contact Dot: [email protected] It's so much fun!
Community Events

Special Movie Screening: Inspired to Ride

Wednesday, April 22 at 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Kress Cinema, Greeley

Turn Around Bikes, Greeley, is hosting a special screening of Inspired to Ride: the story of the first trans-America bike race- 4233 miles, 10 states, coast to coast, self-supported. RSVP  required, $5 donation appreciated. Come early of stay late for tons of information about the local biking scene. For more information or to RSVP, please contact [email protected].


 

National Bike Challenge

May 1-September 30

The National Bike Challenge is a nationwide event uniting thousands of current bicyclists-and encouraging countless new riders. In its simplest form it is a logging center for users to record miles ridden and be part of the national community of bicyclists. It is a free and easy way to challenge yourself, colleagues and the greater community to ride more. Users compete on a local, state and national level. The Challenge aims to unite 75,000 riders to pedal 35 million miles from May 1, 2015 until September 30, 2015. For more information or to sign up, please visit https://nationalbikechallenge.org. 



Ride for Reading
Thursday, May 7 from 7:45 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. at Downtown Transit Center
Ride for Reading is a national non-profit organization that promotes literacy and health through the delivery of books (by bicycle!) to schools where lower-income students might not otherwise have books at home. Through the efforts of Dee Wanger, Co-owner at Ridekick International, Fort Collins is a distribution site.  Last year, over 1400 books were shared with students at Laurel School of Arts and Technology  and Harris Elementary, and this year, over 800 books are being collected to share with students at Beattie Elementary.  We're looking for 20 - 30 bike riders to help deliver these books.


 

We'll meet at the new Fort Collins Bike Library (250 North Mason - Downtown Transit Center) and load books into your backpacks or bike racks...bring what you have, then head to the school.

 

Write [email protected] or your onsite coordinator to sign-up to ride by April 29th!

CycloFemme
Sunday, May 10 from noon to 5 p.m.
Once a year, riders around the world unite, taking part in a day called CycloFemme. From those learning to ride, to pro racers, and everyone in between, we discover the joy and empowerment of the ride, together. 

More details to come within the next few weeks. We do know that there will be a road ride, mountain bike ride, and cruiser ride. The road and cruiser rides will start and end at New Belgium Brewing, while the mountain bike ride will start at Spring Canyon Park and end at New Belgium Brewing. Visit the Facebook event page for more information. 

Colorado 4-H Clover Ride

Registration closes: Monday, June 15 

Fort Collins is know as one of the most bike friendly towns in America. It is also home of Colorado State University. Which is the home of the State 4-H office. The Colorado 4-H Foundation would like to welcome you to this first bicycle fundraiser September 7-10. The fundraiser will consist of 4 different rides, all starting and ending in Fort Collins, totaling up to 222 miles and 10,000 feet ascent/descent. 

 

Since it is the first ever ride there are a very limited number of spaces available at the hotel and for the ride (49 people to be exact). Many people have already committed to joining the ride so act fast and register today! For more information, please visit their website or check out this flyer.

 

Fort Collins Gear & Bike Swap

Saturday, June 20 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 119 E. Mountain Ave.

Gearage Logo The Gearage is excited to host the 3nd annual Fort Collins Gear & Bike Swap. The Gear & Bike Swap will take place in front of The Gearage 119 E. Mountain Ave. The Fort Collins Gear & Bike swap is a great place to find a new bike and score good deals on outdoor gear.The event is free to all attendees. Vendor space is available to sell gear and bikes. To register for a swap space contact The Gearage at 970-416-6803 or  [email protected]. 

 

 

Bike News You Might Have Missed 
Resources
Register your Bike
In the event that your bike is ever stolen, registering your bike can help our police department to identify and return the bike to its proper owner.  Register your bike today at: https://secure.fcgov.com/bicycling/.  You'll need to list your serial number, make model and any other unique features about your bicycle. If you bike is stolen, please note on the police report that your bicycle was registered and they will be able to access your information. 

Report an Abandoned Bike
The Fort Collins Bike Co-Op, the City of Fort Collins' FC Bikes program, and the Police Department have partnered to keep bicycles out of the landfill and to get them back on the road.  If you come across a bike that you believe has been lost or abandoned, the Bike Co-Op will take care of it and get it back to its owner or back on the road. Please note, the bicycle must have been in the same location for over 48 hours. For more information or to report an abandoned bike, please visit: FC Bike Co-Op Abandoned Bike Report Form
 
Request a Presentation or Sign up to Volunteer
BAP

Bicycle Ambassadors want northern Colorado to be the safest place to ride a bike, whether on the street or a trail. We train people of all ages and abilities to become ambassadors of safe cycling. Afterwards, they work to reduce the number of motor vehicle/bicycle/pedestrian crashes in our community by increasing knowledge and awareness about how to ride and share roads and trails safely. Check out bicycleambassadorprogram.org for more information.

Just for Fun
Bike lane down center of Korean highway is covered with solar panels. Credit: http://www.treehugger.com/bikes/bike-lane-down-center-korean-highway-covered-solar-panels.html

If you have an event, class or news that you would like included in a future issue of the Fort Collins Momentum Newsletter, please email Becky Moriarty at [email protected]
I Bike FC
Sincerely,

Becky Moriarty

FC Bikes Program Specialist

O: 970.224.6112

[email protected]

 

 

In This Issue
Trail & Roadway Alerts
Interested in trail updates?  Sign up for Parks' Trails Update Newsletter here:
Trail System Status

Transfort wants to remind cyclists to not ride on the MAX guideway.  This space is meant for buses only and is dangerous for cyclists to use.  Please use the Mason Trail which runs parallel to the guideway. 


 
Quick Links
 
FC Bikes |  http://www.fcgov.com/FCBikes
281 N. College Ave.
Fort Collins, CO 80524