Could this be the year a solo rider wins the B.C. Bike Race?

In the bicycle capital of America — Portland — there is a war going on over bicycle access.

Just the opposite in Issaquah, where everyone seems on board with becoming a mountain biking destination — more along the lines of Moab than Whistler.

Sun Peaks is open, and check this out: The trails are tacky.

We’ve all had bicycles worth fighting to keep, of course. But attempted murder? That would seem to be carrying things just a bit too far, wouldn’t you say?

It’s just a short blurb in the local paper. But you have to wonder what might have been going on in Hiromi Monro’s 41-year-old existence that led him to do a stunt drop off a loading dock without so much as a helmet on — causing him to die from blunt-force trauma (see comments queue as well).

Wish I could have been there at the finish of the BC Bike Race. Bike magazine was, thanks for their report.

I’d go for this: Fully enclosed bike parking pods with showers!

Fighting back: What’s the value of a YouTube video? If Christopher Long, a Critical Mass cyclist, wins his case, it could be $1.5 million. Long, who was riding in a New York event, is suing the city’s police deprtment for assault after an officer filed a false report. A YouTube video shows an officer assaulting the cyclist.

BC Bike Race, Day 3: Morons are removing course flags to screw up the race. The racers are overcoming the morons.

The only bad thing about having 25-year-old Tyler Farrar, Washington State’s first Tour de France cyclist, in the upcoming Tour will be having to listen to the announcers try to pronounce his home town of “Wenatchee.”

BikeJuju: Naked cyclists are a blogger’s best friend.

The Adventure Life recalls the recent bike recalls. Worth a look-over to make sure your steed ain’t on a list.

Dave Wiens will speak at REI Boulder on July 7. Hope someone blogs it. Hope someone asks how Dave plans to kick Lance’s ass again in the Leadville 100 this year, what with Lance having the Giro & Tour (by then) under his belt.

Seattle’s Cascade Bicycle Club is auctioning off bib No. 10,000 for this year’s Seattle to Portland classic. Current bid is $120 but c’mon all you bikin’ ex-Microsofties, we can do better than that…

Fluidride Cup, No. 3, courtesy of PinkBike. Cool vid by Andy Tran.

BC Bike Race, Day 2, courtesy of Bike magazine.

Bicycles and Icicles: Cool blog this time of year. Downright cold the rest of the year.

Mountain Biking 198 conducted a poll on your next bike’s chances of being a 29er. Here are the results. I have a feeling they’re skewed. With all the mountain biking I do, I see nowhere near a third being 29ers. The only time I see a 29er at all is strictly XC riding, and flat at that. They don’t do so well on the steep tight switchbacks, and they ain’t much on jumps and drops either. They’re fine for certain riders (esp. tall ones) and certain applications, but they’re like the frame equivalent of going tubeless. They’ll stay on the margins, more power to ‘em.

I almost got a Knolly Delirium T, but it’s a bit of a tank and it cost way too much. Now Knolly has marked ‘em down, by as much as $1k they say, so if you’ve been waiting, check it out. The name makes my Top 10 of all time btw.

Seattle Times: New bike racks in downtown Bellevue. Believe it or not, bike rack shortages are the single most annoying thing about riding in any downtown.

Bicycle Retailer: REI Awards $10,000 to Adventure Cycling. Onward with the Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route!

Biking Bis: Louisiana governor signs 3-feet-please law, something Washington State, the No. 1 bike friendly state in the union, just can’t quite get done, alas.

Cyclelicio.us: The Bicycle Book is here!

If you don’t cycle, you might not get why bike lanes need to exist on streets paralleling bike paths. Here’s why, from SeattlePI.com and the Seattle Dept. of Transportation.

Bike magazine is covering the epic BC Bike Race

So is the Norona Life blog.

More bikes than cars in Amsterdam.

A cop driving a cruiser hits a cop riding a bike. All I wanna know is, was a citation issued?

Also bummed that I can’t be in B.C. for the start of the fabled, the legendary, the epic, the agonistic and ecstatic BC Bike Race today.

And thirdly bummed that it’s so friggin’ hot out here in NorCal that this pobo can’t ride!!!

Are we hot or not?

In today’s Nod Nod Wink Wink category, we have “Astana Names Contador as Astana Team Leader.” Now we all know who calls the shots on any team Lance Armstrong is on, right? I mean, we just do. So why pretend?

Who can rule Lance Armstrong out (of winning the Tour)? asks Bicycle.Net in an otherwise reality-based rundown of Tour contenders. Me. I do. Um, over here. Lance will not win. Even if he’s still doping. Next question…

I like Race Face. Never had a problem with any of their components. Now they have a new breakout crank line that’s dazzling on the eyes and not too severe on the pocketbook. Full details from Mountain Bike Action.

Finally someone does an unspun, detailed, informative review of Stan’s NoTubes wheels. Talk on the street is that Stan’s rims are soft. Light, yes. Durable, no. MTO (Bill Lobe) gives the full rundown. Some good lines too: “I found them to be stiffer than my in-laws.” More true than the wheels as well…

Registration opens Feb. 24th for this exercise in self-punishment. Only 400 spots open, so you’d better jump on it fast. I’ve never raced this event but have a friend whose friend did it practically solo when the rest of the team disintegrated on her. That is one tough woman. The map shows the scope but not quite the depth of this ugly, wonderful challenge.

Read more…