Green Your Commute Day -- May 17th

TODAY (Friday, May 17) is Green Your Commute Day in Downtown Albany, a celebration of alternative transportation.  Commuters and residents are invited to celebrate your environmentally-friendly means of commuting to work in Tricentennial Park from 11:00am – 2:00pm.  Broadway Bicycle Co. and Plaine and Son will be on hand to offer free safety checks, pump air in tires, hand out prizes to all GYCD participants, and lead a lunchtime ride at 12 noon for all interested in taking advantage of the beautiful weather.

Green Your Commute Day brings together for the first time a collaboration of state agencies with the Albany Parking Authority; Downtown Albany Business Improvement District (BID); vRide; Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA); Capital District Transportation Committee (CDTC) and Broadway Bicycle Co. & Plaine and Son. The event coincides with nationally recognized Annual Bike to Work Day, which encourages bicycle commuting as an environmentally friendly transportation alternative.

DEC Commissioner Martens will be among the cyclists riding their bikes to work. He will be greeting DEC participants as they arrive to work on their bikes. “Green Your Commute Day is designed to bring awareness to the environmental, financial and health benefits of alternative transportation for those who work downtown and throughout the Capital District,” said DEC Commissioner Joe Martens. “If you choose to walk, ride a bike, car pool or take a bus to work, you reduce your consumption of non-renewable fossil fuels, air pollution and traffic congestion. The amount of exercise you can get and the money you will save on fuel and auto maintenance is a good reason to join the crowd this Friday to show your support for ‘green’ commuting!”

“We are thrilled to co-sponsor ‘Green Your Commute Day’ and equip bicycle commuters with everything they might need for a safe ride to and from home,” said Heather Rizzi, manager of Broadway Bicycle Co. (Albany) and Plaine and Son (Schenectady).  “Cycling offers many benefits, including a healthy, low-impact, outdoor recreational lifestyle; a tool to combat stress and expanding waistlines and a way to save money and reduce the ‘pain at the pump,’ especially for short trips.”

Everyone who walks, bikes, carpools, or takes the bus to work in downtown Albany on Friday will be eligible to enter a raffle to win restaurant gift certificates, movie tickets for the Palace Theatre, and other fun items donated by the Downtown Albany BID, CDTA, CDTC and the Albany Parking Authority.  

To learn more about how you can “green your commute” in the Capital Region visit Capital Moves. If you are interested in bicycling safety information don’t forget to check out Capital Coexist.  And visit our tables at Tricentennial Park!

NATIONAL BIKE MONTH KICKS OFF WITH SERIES OF EVENTS AND RIDES IN CAPITAL DISTRICT

Plaine and Son (Schenectady) and Broadway Bicycle Co. (Albany) are encouraging new as well as active cyclists to join them in celebrating National Bike Month with a series of special events, clinics and rides during the month of May.  Beginning with an electric-assist bicycle demo day—the first in the region—on May 4^th, followed by both Women’s Ride Day and HRRT Spring Endurance Dirt Series Mountain Bike Race on May 5^th (simultaneously held in Schenectady’s Central Park), a special Mother’s Day Ride will be held in Niskayuna May 12^th (16, 32 and 62 mile options). 

Looking for more? “Dinner & Bikes” talk on May 15^th at the Unitarian Society of Schenectady will feature bicycle activists from Portland, Oregon and discuss ways of growing the Capital District active transportation Movement.  May 17^th Broadway Bicycle Co. will be teaming up with DEC, NYSERA, OPHP, CDTA, APA, Downtown Albany BID and others for “Green Your Commute Day” in downtown Albany.   

Josh Bennett donning a high-vis yellow jacket. “Be safe, be seen” is the theme,“We are thrilled to co-sponsor ‘Green Your Commute Day’ and equip bicycle commuters with everything they might need for a safe ride to—and from—home,” states Heather Rizzi, Manager of Broadway Bicycle Co. (Albany) and Plaine and Son (Schenectady).  “Cycling offers many benefits, including a healthy, low-impact, outdoor recreational lifestyle; a tool to combat stress and expanding waistlines; and a way to save money and reduce the ‘pain at the pump,’ especially for short trips.”

During the month of May, Plaine and Son and Broadway Bicycle Co. will continue to lead weekly group road rides, mountain-bike rides, beginners and women’s rides.   For those seeing a brush-up on their mechanical skills or prepare for on-road repairs, In-House Workshops are offered every Saturday morning at both locations.  Topics include fixing flats, adjusting brakes and derailleurs, trueing wheels, on-road repairs and more. FREE and open to the public.

For more information on any of the events, contact Heather Rizzi or consult calendars at plaineandson.com and broadwaybicycleco.com/events

Dinner and Bikes - May 15th

Celebrate Bike Month and Grow the Capital District Bike Movement

Where: First Unitarian Society Schenectady

1221 Wendell Ave, Schenectady, NY

When: Wednesday, May 15, 2013, 6:30 PM-9:30 PM

Join Portland, Oregon bicycle advocate and writer Elly Blue, filmmaker Joe Biel and chef Joshua Ploeg for a multimedia roadshow of food and bicycle activism!

For $20 you can enjoy a gourmet vegan and gluten-free buffet; participate in an interactive presentation about transportation equity by Blue and watch excerpts of Biel’s forthcoming documentary, Aftermass, a history of bicycle activism in Portland. There will also be time to dIscus local bicycling issues.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $30 at the door.  Purchase your tickets in advance at Plaine and Son (1816 State St., Schenectady), Broadway Bicycle Co. (1205 Broadway, Albany) or online. Sponsored by First Unitarian Society Schenectady.

The annual Dinner and Bikes Tour, a multimedia roadshow of food and bicycle activism, will be putting on events in 27 cities in eleven states in the midwestern and northeast U.S. during National Bike Month in May. The tour is a call to action for communities around the U.S. to take the lead in growing the national bicycle movement. Event presenters include:

Joshua Ploeg is the traveling vegan chef. When not touring the world, he is a personal chef and delighter of secret cafe goers in Los Angeles. His adventure cookbook In Search of the Lost Tasteis a smash hit, as is his controversial raw food cookbook, So Raw It’s Downright Filthy.

Joe Biel is the author of brand new book Beyond the Music. founded Microcosm Publishing in his bedroom closet 17 years ago and now publishes nonfiction books, zines, and movies through Microcosm and Cantankerous Titles. In his “spare time” he makes documentaries on empowering topics from punk to bicycling. On this tour, he’ll be showing selections from Aftermass, a feature documentary about bicycle activism in Portland.

Elly Blue is the author of the newly released Everyday Bicycling: How to Ride a Bicycle for Transportation (Whatever your Lifestyle). She is the founder of Taking the Lane, a publisher of empowering books about unique aspects of cycling. Her writing has appeared in Grist, Bitch, BikePortland, Momentum, and the Portland Mercury, and her own blog. Her second book,Bikenomics, will come out in early 2014.

Currie/ I Zip E Bike Demo Day May 4th

Get charged up to TEST RIDE an electric-assist bicycle!

On Saturday, May 4th, Currie/ I Zip E-Bike will be bringing their fleet of electric-assist bicycles to Plaine and Son (1816 State Street, Schenectady).  Models available test ride include the Vibe, Path, Zuma, Metro, Ultra, Compact, and eFlow.

 

If you’re looking for ways to green your commute, want to get back into cycling but need an extra “kick” to help with the hills, or simply wish to introduce your green-conscience friends to another alternative to fossil fuels, stop by store any time between 10AM-6PM on May 4th to speak with the rep and take an eBike out for a test ride.  Call 518.436.1433 or visit currietech.com for more information.

We dare to to come back *without* a smile on your face!  

Women’s Ride Day May 5, 2013: join us!

Date:  Sunday, May 5th, 2013

Start Time:  11AM

Start Location: Schenectady Central Park -Rose Garden (500 Iroquois Way, Schenectady, NY 12304 )

Cost:  FREE

When women ride, women WIN!  Join Plaine and Son, Broadway Bicycle Company and Specialized at our Women’s Ride Day Event.  Starting in Schenectady’s scenic Central Park Rose Garden, we’ll tour the park and then explore some quiet neighborhood streets and scenic homes of the original GE Realty Plot.  Afterward, enjoy après-ride refreshments at Plaine and Son, shop our wide selection of women’- specific attire and accessories, and take advantage of the opportunity to TEST RIDE a Specialized bicycle designed by and for women.

Whether you’re new to cycling or an Olympic hopeful, there’s something inspirational about finding yourself among a pack of women on wheels, taking to the streets and finding fun, fitness and freedom — all powered by YOU.   This is the perfect ride to introduce bicycling to your interested female friends, sisters, co-workers or in-laws in a supported environment; team participation by female athletes and racers is highly encouraged.  A “no-drop” affair, expect a conversational pace and a lot of FUN!

RSVPs appreciated.  Call 518-346-1433 or email jennlovesbikes@gmail.com .