SPOKES CANTERBURY CYCLING NEWS - MAY '07

Contents:
1. BOB PARKER AT SPOKES AGM, 23 MAY
2. MOVIE PASSES TO “THE FLYING SCOTSMAN”
3. LOCAL BODY ELECTION
4. PROPOSED CYCLE TOURING SOCIAL GROUP
5. BIKE TRAILER WORKSHOP
6. UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY BICYCLE USER GROUP
7. COUNCILLORS APPROVE NEW TRIAL OF HILLS ROAD BUS BOARDERS SCHEME
8. PARKING COSTS MORE THAN YOU THOUGHT
9. HANDY TIP: CYCLE HAZARD/INCIDENT REPORTING
10. RECENT SPOKES ACTIVITIES

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1. BOB PARKER AT SPOKES AGM, 23 MAY
The Spokes AGM will be held on Wednesday 23rd of May at the Waiau Theatrette, ECan, 7:30 pm. Reports from the Chair & Treasurer plus an agenda can be read on the Spokes website from Wednesday 9th of May. Our aim is to keep the AGM brief so we can move on to more exciting stuff, like our guest speaker.
The guest speaker for the AGM is mayoral candidate Bob Parker. This will be a great opportunity to hear Bob’s personal values and vision for transport particularly with respect to the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy.
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2. MOVIE PASSES TO “THE FLYING SCOTSMAN”
Spokes has been given some 20 two-for-one (241) passes for the film “The Flying Scotsman”. 241 means that when you have such a pass, you buy two tickets for the price of one. The first 20 Spokes members sending an e-mail to axel [at] can [dot] org [dot] nz will get one 241 pass each in the mail. Send an e-mail to Axel and state your postal address. The passes can be redeemed until 31st May 2007.
The film is based on the remarkable true story of Scottish cyclist Graeme Obree. In 1993 as an unemployed amateur, Obree broke the world one-hour record on a bike of his own revolutionary design, which he constructed out of scrap metal and parts of a washing machine.
From a humble background in Ayrshire, Scotland, Graeme Obree (JONNY LEE MILLER) always had to fight for survival. As a grown man, nothing had changed. When his beloved bicycle shop went bust, Graeme had neither the money nor the sponsorship necessary to realise his dream; to compete at the highest level of world cycling. But it was always clear from his complete passion for the sport and his many local wins that he was destined for greatness. With the unwavering support of his wife Anne (LAURA FRASER) despite the fact that they had recently had their first baby and the help of his close friend and newly-appointed manager Malky (BILLY BOYD), he persevered. With the use of the work shop (and occasional mentoring) of a friendly and peaceful minister, Baxter (BRIAN COX) - and of course his racing bike “Old Faithful” Graeme was finally on his way to the Hamar Velodrome in Norway and the chance to go for the prestigious World Hour Record.
'Hope made him a dreamer. Heart made him a hero.'
Director: Douglas Mackinnon Cast: Jonny Lee Miller (Train spotting), Laura Fraser, Billy Boyd (Lord of the Rings, Master & Commander), Brian Cox (Troy)
Running Time: 1hr 45min. Censors Rating: M
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3. LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS
The local body elections are just round the corner, with the voting period from 21 September to 13 October 2007. As reported in this newsletter, we will have mayoral contestant Bob Parker as the guest speaker at our AGM later this month.
It is nice to see that cycling is taken seriously by some Council candidates. Yani Johanson and Linda Rutland, who are both standing in the Hagley-Ferrymead ward, choose McCormacks Bay as their announcement launch, as it has been the site of some horrific cycle accidents in recent years.
Linda Rutland says: "We want to make safe cycling a real priority for this term, we know more people want to cycle and we need more people to cycle, our transport system is clogged with too many cars on the road and the answer does not lie in building more roads.”
More details on http://thelocaltruth.blogspot.com/
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4. PROPOSED CYCLE TOURING SOCIAL GROUP
Spokes has received the following email:
“My name is Karey Meisner. My partner and I are keen bicyclists. We are paricularly keen about bicycle touring! We have been fortunate in that we have visited a number of different countries for cycling. We enjoy it so much that not only are we keen to keep doing it but keen to connect more with others who are doing it or simply interested in the concept. I was wondering whether it might be ok to advertise in the Spokes newsletter our desire to start a cycle touring social group. Not sure what, where, when etc as this could all be determined by the group but thought to meet...say 6 monthly.....to share experiences, photos and likemindedness. Perhaps to meet those who are interested at my home as a starting point. My contact details are either pamkarey [at] es [dot] co [dot] nz or at 337-9397 (after 5pm).”
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5. BIKE TRAILER WORKSHOP
The third ever make-your-own bike trailer workshop is scheduled to happen on 23 June 2007. Express your interest by contacting Steven Muir, thepope [at] cyclingchurch [dot] org [dot] nz . The venue is still to be finalised. This workshop will focus on making use of light weight aluminium tube (bender is provided) for the frame, a rod end bearing for the hitch, and with participants providing their own wheels. This is expected to result in a good quality trailer for around $80. Participants are welcome to use recycled materials but results are not guaranteed to be as good with the trailers requiring more effort to construct.
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6. UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY BICYCLE USER GROUP
The University of Canterbury Bicycle User Group is for cyclists interested in cycling advocacy issues on and around campus. Come and share your ideas on what's working well for Uni cyclists, what campus cycling improvements you would like to see, and how you think cycling to/from Uni could be more popular, safer and more enjoyable. The first meeting will be held on Thursday 17 May, 12-1 pm at the Student HUB (ground floor of the Psychology Building). Any questions please contact envt [dot] projects [at] canterbury [dot] ac [dot] nz.
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7. COUNCILLORS APPROVE NEW TRIAL OF HILLS ROAD BUS BOARDERS SCHEME
Councillors approved a further three-month trial of the Hills Road bus boarders scheme on 19 April. The scheme, which is part of a nation-wide strategy for encouraging more efficient bus travel, was originally trialled last November. It was subsequently suspended while further amendments to the original plan to enhance the bus boarder scheme were being drawn up. The two Bus Boarders in Hills Road allowed buses to stop for passengers to alight and board without having to pull over. Cars then stopped behind the bus and were unable to overtake, allowing the bus to continue in the stream of traffic. Council staff will now begin consultation and undertake the design and construction of the new bus boarders. (abridged from “The Press”).
For more information, visit: http://www.ccc.govt.nz/WebApps/ProjectNotices/ProjectView.aspx?ProjectId...
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8. PARKING COSTS MORE THAN YOU THOUGHT
“Why parking your car is more environmentally destructive than driving it.” Go to: http://www.slate.com/id/2164257/fr/flyout
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9. HANDY TIP: CYCLE HAZARD/INCIDENT REPORTING
Have you had a crash or run into some hazard while out riding? Now if something needs to be fixed on-site to prevent future incidents, how will Council be able to do something if they don't know about the problem in the first place? Although all motor-vehicle collisions on our roads should be reported to the Police, many involving cyclists aren't. Other unreported incidents occur off-road on pathways or don't involve a motor vehicle. It is estimated that only 10% of cycle crashes get reported.
Christchurch City Council has developed a Cycle Hazard Incident Report (CHIRP) card. It is intended to be a simple method of capturing information on cycle collisions and hazards to cycling, that would normally go unreported. The information from the cards is recorded and added to the data from the Police reporting system, to give a much more comprehensive picture of cycle incidents. That way, sites requiring attention can be identified sooner.
Freepost CHIRP cards are available from Council libraries and service centres; a printable version is also available on the Council website. Carry some with you when you ride! Or you can even fill in incident details directly on-line. Have a look at
www.ccc.govt.nz/Recreation/Cycling/SafetyHealth/CollisionReport.asp
You want dangerous locations fixed? Tell the Council about it!
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10. RECENT SPOKES ACTIVITIES
- Paul de Spa has featured in an article in “The Christchurch Star” last week in which he highlighted issues around the City Mall decision process.
- lobbied City Council about continuing the revised bus boarder trials on Hills Rd
- made arrangements for our AGM and seminar
- held our monthly Spokes meeting
- Spokes member Steven Muir also featured on Radio NZ's Spectrum programme, 12:15pm, Sunday 22nd April discussing his visions of a car-less world and the part cycle trailers could play in this. If you missed this entertaining and informative broadcast, go to: http://www.radionz.co.nz/nr/programmes/spectrum to listen.
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I look forward to seeing you at the AGM on 23 May.
Happy and safe cycling
Matthew Cutler-Welsh
Chair