Table of Contents From the President Bike Education in 2006 Proposed By-laws Changes OKHT Design Contest OKHT Recap Polar Bear Ride LBC Banquet Cyclocross Season KyMBA Thanks

From the President
Officially Bicycle-Friendly

September 29, 2006, marked another step in Metro Louisville’s march to recognition as a premier city for cyclists. That was the day that area cyclists learned that the League of American Bicyclists had awarded Louisville bronze status under its Bicycle-Friendly Communities Program. The announcement of the award was made by yours truly and Mayor Abramson at the groundbreaking ceremony for the upgrading of Beargrass Creek Trail.

The 2005 Bike Summit set a goal for Louisville to be certified as a bicycle-friendly community by 2008. Thanks to the hard work of the City and the cycling community, we beat that goal by two years! We have the plans in place that will move us up to Silver and then, Gold, which we targeted for 2014. And if we keep up the momentum, we’ll beat each of these goals, too.

A copy of the application for the award will be uploaded shortly to the City’s Bike Louisville Web site (www.louisvilleky.gov/bikelouisville). The upgrade of the Beargrass Creek trail is a long time coming. It will be widened, its drainage improved and a new signature entrance will be created at the corner of Lexington Road and Grinstead Drive. As part of the effort to create networks that allow cyclists to travel throughout the city, Beargrass Creek Trail will become a key connector between the Levee Trail-RiverWalk to Cherokee Park-Seneca Park Loop and, eventually, along Taylorsville Road to the bike routes in the new parks along Floyds Fork. And all will connect to the 100-mile loop that will ring Louisville Metro.

Another good thing happening in the local cycling community is the new energy and direction at KyMBA, the Kentucky Mountain Bike Association (see article). KyMBA is making a concerted effort to repair what many had seen as a very broken relationship with Metro Parks and the City Administration. In addition to shoring up its relationship with Metro Parks, the MTB club has started several outreach programs, including Take a Kid Mountain Biking and sponsoring two local high school cycling teams, that should increase its profile. As a sign of support and to encourage interested LBC members to try this other form of cycling, starting with our November-December schedule, we’ll experiment with listing several of KyMBA rides on our schedule.

Finally, don’t forget one of LBC’s oldest traditions: The 2007 Polar Bear Ride on New Year’s Day. Regardless of the weather, you can’t miss this ride. Even if you only ride a mile or two and focus on the chili and swap meet, there’s no better way to start the New Year.

In the meantime, I hope Santa brings you every cycling toy on your list.