Bike to Work Day....

It was 7:45 AM and I had 75 minutes to hit as many pit stops as possible on my way to the first appointment. I woke up Friday morning and it was like Christmas. So excited to hit the road, meet some people and ask some questions... With my back pack ready to rock with lap top, working girl attire, assorted vanity products--perfume, mascara, deodorant--etc... off I went. The route was Texas to University to 6th to Island to 4th, circle back to Little Italy for meeting.

I came upon surprise pit stop on the corner of Normal Street and University. This one was sponsored by KTUA. They are a planning and landscape architecture company in San Diego. I met a great guy names John. He said their company does a lot of the landscaping/planning for bike paths in San Diego and for master planned communities. I asked him if he's involved with any of the plans on Texas street, he said YES. But....only from University to Madison. We chatted a bit about the overgrown trees and debris on Texas. He said his wife experienced the same thing over on Aldine in Talmadge. She took some of his sheers and cut the trees. I think I will do the same for Texas Street. I took an iCommute sponsored flashing bike light and away i went...Whole Foods bound. Bike count after this stop: 8.

Cruised up to Whole Foods and met Ray. He was manning the pit stop here. He was a really nice guy, the marketing director at Whole Foods. He was genuinely interested in talking to all the bike to work pit stoppers. He spoke about "Health Starts Here" which is a Whole Foods company wide healthy eating initiative. He recommended I look up a fella named Rip Esselstyn who wrote "Engine 2 Diet". It's all surrounded around eating more raw and whole foods, and eating to live. Good fuel stuff. At the Whole Foods pit stop I met a cool dude who was obsessed with talking about this movie called Forks Over Knives. He said it was a compelling look at the power of eating plant based foods and whole foods. I just checked out the trailer and it looks good. Action step--go see this thing--it's playing at the Landmark in San Diego.
www.forksoverknives.com . I started talking about the movie Riding With The Dutch and that there will be a screening of it at the end of June here in San Diego at the Childhood Obesity Conference. Ray asked me how I knew so much about this stuff. I told him I learned about a lot of the active living stuff when I was working for hotels and booked a conference called Active Living Research. Right then, a girl who I had seen at the previous pit stop said, "We work for Active Living Research" We immediately looked at each other, took our helmets off and said, "Amanda is that you?" and "Mandi is that you?" And it was.... A gal I had worked with in contracting the conference a couple years ago was here at the pit stop with me. I hadn't seen her since February 2010 and it was great to reconnect. The organization is headed up by a dude named Dr. Jim Salas, who is chock full of energy, a music buff and a dynamic person to be around. I spent only and hour with Dr. Salas as we toured the hotel and discussed the meeting space but I knew he was someone that changes things. Some people are groupies for rock bands or celebrities, I was a Dr Salas groupie immediately after I met him. In preparing for the site inspection, I needed to learn everything about their business. ALR is very cool and is all about assisting with master planned communities, designing them to provoke an active living. Creating walking paths, bike paths and communities near stores in which you can walk and live healthy. After learning about ALR, it was shortly after I had started the bike commute gig and it was uber inspirational. I asked if Dr. Salas still had the drum sticks I gave him, and Amanda confirmed that he did. ALR does great work--and it was really nice to reconnect. Inspired and motivated, I charged on to pit stop #3, Island and 4th. However, along the way while riding on 6th, I was waved over by another pit stop---this one was sponsored by ReCon. I met a slew of people there, including 1 person dressed as an Owl, and another dressed as a cactus. They were biologists and planners for ReCon. They were dressed in costume to demonstrate the possible endangered species in San Diego. I asked the Owl, "If you were a bike what kind would you be?" She replied: "a road bike. I have a mountain bike, and have road bike envy" It was a suitable reply and I totally understand. My first bike was a mountain bike and was really slow, and heavy. I had road bike envy too, and appreciated her plight. I grabbed a Clif bar and headed to 4th and Island. This one was sponsored by Gaslamp Quarter Historical Association and a Real Estate company that I didn't catch the name. I met a great gal there who had a florescent orange bike pin on. I had pin envy. It was really cute, and she worked for a company called ALTA. She is a planner there and we discussed BIKE STATION. We still need a BIKE STATION in San Diego. 4 pit stops in 75 minutes and I still had an hour before my first appointment so I went to Brickyard for some coffee. I perched up on their patio ready to relax, reflect on the morning and sip upon my coffee... I sat, inhaled, exhaled, took a sip and then a loud, pounding jack hammer started across the street. There is construction on the street over there at G and Front street. Already set up I wasn't going to move so I dealt with the loud construction and carried on. Got to my Anthology gig, and got a text that my 2:30 Appt was cancelled, but added 2 other phone appointments in the meantime. Hopped the bike, headed to InFlux in Little Italy. While there, I solved some contract issues and eaves dropped on the 2 people on either side. From what I gathered, an interview was taking place to my right. 2 girls were grilling one. The candidate seemed polished and that she had a great shot at the job. I was ready to hire her. This came to a screeching halt when they asked her if she had a Facebook page. The girl did not. There was an audible disappointment in her answer. Next question was, "how much do you want to get paid?" she said, "Uh I dunno, about a thousand bucks...but I am really uncomfortable talking about how much you should pay me" I gasped and almost grabbed her by the hand to take her outside for a moment and give her a quick lesson on negotiating for a paycheck. After the facebook and payment issue, it seemed the whole interview went really downhill. Tuned out to the hen house to my right and tuned into the 3 hipsters to my left. From what I gathered they were into websites and fashion and hairstyles. Looks like they were putting on a hair show or a fashion show. One guy was in town from New York. The other hipster kept staring at me. I am not sure if he didn't like the looks of my chai tea or my "I want to ride bikes with you" t-shirt...but he had a starting problem. They spoke about a cool gallery on India street that is perfect for a party. I interrupted them and said, "I am so sorry, I was eaves dropping, but, you just mentioned an interesting venue. I find cool venues for people for a living, where is this thing?" They were oddly not bothered by the interruption and shared all sorts of details about it. This made the staring hipster crack a smile, and now his stares seemed a wee bit more of adoration, instead of angst. Result from this is there is some cool venue in little Italy--somewhere--with a loft space and a floor level and it's all bright white. I think I have to investigate more, they didn't know the name or the streets, and only knew it by walking back there. So, time will tell.

I took my 2 phone appointments sitting on a Little Italy Chair on India street. Slam Dunk--I scored 2 more Sales Coaching gigs. A successful work day and bike to work day down, I decided to head home. On my way, I stopped at my friend Chrissy's brand new sales office. She and her husband started a wine import business called "Quigley Fine Wines". www.Quigleyfinewines.com
Since I am a wine club member, a big fan of wine and had a great day, stopping off for a celebration glass of vino and to see my great gal pal was in order. Their office is awesome....and the sales energy is great. All the sales people were on the phones chatting away and selling wine. I had a glass of something involving the word Devil, and it was a real treat. Since it was "free public transport day" My bike and I hopped on the #2 bus and headed home. All and all, Bike to work day was a great success. I learned a lot about a lot, reignited the flame for ALR and Bike Station.....and have more healthy eating and healthy learning homework than ever before.

Action steps:
Get some sheers, cut Texas street tree obstacles
Learn more about the plan the city has for Texas Street improvements.
Bike Station--get back on the mission

Bike to work day--Plan of attack

Tomorrow is bike to work day in San Diego. My first appointment is at 10:30. This gives me plenty of time in the morning to bike to work and stop at the various pit stops. The plan is to hit the Whole Foods on 7th, then cruise downtown to 4th and Island pit stop, circle back to kettner/broadway, columbia/India--Superwoman change at Cafe Italia, blog entry then work. I want to ask several questions along the way of bikers and of volunteers. The entries tomorrow will be video and photo based, so--brace yourself--it will be seen through the eyes of a curious semi bike commuter. If you know of any good pit stops along the way....OR.....have any questions you'd like to submit for a Bike to Work Curiosity Killed the cat moment.....post your comment here....

Texas Street Hill--Revisited

Well, I had meetings meetings meetings today and so we dart out on the bike to the meetings. With my Puma bag upon my back and my sassy shoes all packed, I took on the Texas street hill--again. I had a meeting at Maria Maria Carlos Santana's lunch spot at Hazard Center. This was motivation to pedal faster. Off I went with tacos on the brain and caution on my mind. Google maps said it would take 27 minutes. RideTheCity.com said 21 - 27 minutes. The route--Texas--straight down to SD River Bike Path to Hazard Center--really straight shot. Texas is an uber busy street through NorthPark and I know it's illegal and unsafe..but..I need my tunes to ride the bike. Adelle told me to do it, so, I did. As I cruised through Texas, passed University and to the corner of Madison/Texas I was stopped at several lights. The lights take forever. It occurred to me--when Bike Route Google Guy and RideTheCity Road Mapper are creating routes...do they take into consideration the time it takes at lights? I mean, how do they pinpoint these times? Who's pace are they using??? I figured I would know how accurate it was when I got there. So....I maneuvered through town, down the hill and proceeded with great caution passed the 8E and 8W merge. I have to admit--I have a dying urge to enter the highway at some point. Mark my words---at some point in my bike life, I will merge onto a freeway on my bike. It's that big big "no no" that just beckons my name every time I cruise past. It's like yelling really loud at church when it's totally silent or screaming "fire" in the airport line. All are illegal--or socially unacceptable--but---it's just so tempting. I made it past both merges without hopping on the freeway, then cruised over to the SD Bike Path--easy peezy. On my way down the Texas Hill I noticed the overgrown trees. They are overgrown more than ever before. At a couple points I had a choice to get hit in the head with a branch, or swerve to the left. So many cars speed down that hill so fast without regard for bike riders that swerving was not an option. However, I was not wearing protective goggles and didn't want to poke my eye out with a tree branch--so--I ducked. Four ducks and sore abs later I made it down the hill. Hopping on the SD River bike path is cool. Birds chirp, trees with a breeze are pretty but, there was an air of creepiness. I felt like at any moment a goblin was going to jump out and attack me on that trail. Note to self: do not ride that trail at night. During the day it is a good link from East to West in Mission Valley---Mission Center to Fashion Valley--perfectamundo! I made it to Maria Maria in record time. I got lucky with another HUGE bathroom at Barnes and Noble at Hazard center. Quick wonderwoman change and a lady spritz or two and away I went. I can never tell if people I meet with think I am crazy or cool when I am all decked out with my lipgloss and business attire but am sporting a grey puma back pack. It's like Trump meets Facebook or something. These are the treasures of running your own business but am still curious what my business cohorts think at first meeting. Post meeting I made my journey back up Texas hill home. I walked the bike most of the hill up, but still was it a good workout! Made it down there in 26 minutes and 59 seconds....google guy and ride the city were right--I don't know how because everyone's pace is different but they hit the timing on the head. The biggest thing I noticed about this trip was the road rage. On my way there, I think it was mostly due to it being lunch hour, everyone was in a hurry and were mad. I think drivers need to take an educational class on the rights bike riders have. I think that would make them more understanding and inspire less road rage. People get so pissed, and speed up passed you so quick when you are in the slightest way of the road. An old man came up to me as I waited at the light on the corner of Texas and El Cajon and said: "I will try not to punch you". Yes, an old man sans 1 front tooth, with a cane, on a street corner who looked like the wind would blow him over if it blew harder, he hit the walk button on the traffic pole and stared straight at me, with a smile and said, "I will try not to punch you." I smiled and said "Thank you". As I rode off--unpunched by a blue hair--I was stunned. What did I do to this guy? And....he wasn't even one of the road ragers....So crazy....

Anyway--that was the day---Texas hill did me well....no one ran me off the road...I got a great work out and did not get punched by an old man. Tomorrow is Ride your bike to work day---the official day---More details on plans for that--later!

Copy Cat Crime.....

As you see, I started my bike adventure back in 2009. It's chock full of info, stories, research and follies along the way. Recently, I found a very similar blog in the local media. Copy Cat--you know who you are...come out come out wherever you are??? Copy Cat--I celebrate your adventures and am happy you are taking the bike challenge plunge--but--I do challenge you to a bike off..... Let's put our blogs side by side starting today--and see who can best illustrate our "pedal powered" experiences.... Are you in?

PS--it's raining today---how'd your first sopping cycle treat ya?

Bike to work day...looming

Well, Bike to Work Day San Diego is this Friday, May 20th. If you go to iCommutesd.com you can sign up and track your trip. You will be eligible to win all sorts of prizes. In addition, there are pit stops names with various goodies including free chain lubes, Clif bars, visits from Zoo animals and the like. Most stops are from 6 a - 9 a. I plan on hitting a couple on my way into my Friday appts. The ones on my route and appeal most to me are the Fehr/Peers, 4th and Island--giving away some sort of "lifestyle" pass...sounds creepy--yet interesting--worth the stop for sure, YMCA downtown and Whole Foods in Hillcrest. The other open area is the topic of bike lockers. We mentioned these bike lockers before. We know they are all over San Diego at various transit stops---but I have yet to see one. In the spirit of Bike to work week/month--extravaganza bonanza--I am going to find one of these lockers and try it out. I am positive they won't be as good as Bike Station...but, let's try out the existing Bike Lockers and see what they got. I looked at the bike commute map on icommutesd.com and could not locate said lockers. Next step, send an email asking for addresses. Mission Bike Locker...here we come...

Finally--various bike sponsors in the city are giving 15% or more off on items purchased bike to work day. 15% off beer and pizza at Blind Lady to wrap up the day seems in order for me.

To the Brewfest

And so we rode 11.4 miles from North Park to Karl Strauss Beach to Brew. It was fun. The glory of riding in a group is to have everyone go together. This day, we had all sorts of mishaps. My perfect day looks like this: We all meet at my house and travel in a wolf pack to the festival. We hold formation on the OB Bike path and we look like BMX bandits--+25 years. However, this day had all sorts of follies. One friend had a flat tire, and then the other friend did. 2 men down, we biked to bike shop, while they drove. 3 of us rode to Old Town to meet our friend the Woodsman. Now there were 4. With plans of the other 2 trailing us by truck to Fiesta Island, we set off for the adventure. My esteemed first mate, who knew of the route in advance, and insisted I don't write it down--because of course he'd remember...asked me "which direction we should go" in the first 5 minutes of the plan. I said, with patience, "Why don't we follow the route we planned--PCH to OB Bike Path to Fiesta Island to Mission Bay Golf Course--which is where we'd pick up Rose Canyon Trail". He said "I don't remember the way ports, but I know where I am going" What the hell is a way port? And...if you know where you're going, why are you asking me where to go? So.....off we went, we got lost a couple times. Each time I was infuriated with each pedal. I was thinking--why did you insist on me not writing it down, then tell me you know where you're going, but then ask me where to go. I let him lead. When we finally figured out the direct route to Rose Canyon, one rider and I were far ahead of the group. We looked back and realized "wayporter" and woodsman were no where to be found. We sat at the entrance to Rose Canyon Trail for 15 minutes before we got in touch with wayporter and woodsman. They decided to take a "quicker" route. In ultimate frustration I asked, "why did you go off the plan?" Wayporter said, "I'll explain later" I told him we were riding to the corner of Damon and Sante Fe and to meet us there. Guess what???? We got there first. Their so called short cut, was a long cut---he must not have known where the wayports were. Finally--we all rode to the entrance of the festival together--to meet the rest of our gang--and a day of fun, festivals and beer had begun. Word to the wise: Rose Canyon Trail is a great way to ride from North PB through Mission Beach. Love that trail. It's not very well lit at night, but, during the day it's great....goes under Garnet and Grande.

Helmet Shame

It's crazy how many people on bikes on the road don't wear helmets. I didn't wear a helmet the first couple commutes....and was scolded by my very good friend/neighbor/avid bike rider...Angela. That was 2 years ago. I would not leave the house on my bike without my helmet. Today I saw 6 people without helmets. The grand finale was a dad and son. The son wore the helmet...the dad did not. Isn't that a bad example to set for your kid? How do you explain that to your son?? "Jr...you need to wear a helmet because it keeps you safe. Daddy doesn't need to wear one because his head is made of steel." His wife may agree, but, really?? You're going to go on a bike ride with your kid sans helmet... Bad news bears...

Shame Shame Helmet less people...you know your name...

Transporting Suits

When my fella texted me today and said "honey, I need a real big favor can u ring me?" I thought, "how can I make this a bike adventure" Once I spoke to him I realized transporting his interview suit in my Puma backpack on my bike up to LaJolla would not be an ideal way of carrying out the mission. So...I drove.... Flaw #1 in bike commuting: when doing a last minute favor for someone, always have a back up car.

Back in the saddle

Ok, well I hit the streets again last week and had great success.... My house to Anthology--17 minutes flat. I loaded up all my gear for a 5 meeting day, had dress clothes in the bag and bike rider clothes on the bike. I landed at Cafe Italia in Little Italy--mostly for the coffee and then for a quick wonder woman change. Much to my delight...the bathrooms at this place are huge! Perfect for a wonder woman change and a quick spritz and primp before a day of meetings. I grabbed my coffee, locked my bike and hoofed it 2 blocks for morning meetings. In the midst of the meetings, I had another client call who we were suppose to meet at 6 pm. I had just enough time between my 10 AM and my 3 pm to ride up 5th to Hillcrest for the next meeting. Then....ride home to grab my car and pick up my client for an airport drop off. Well.........6 p client wanted me to meet her at 1 p. I said, great...I will pick you up. Then...after we hung up, I realized I don't have my car and I can't pick her up. I crafted a plan to ride my bike to her hotel, find a pedi cab along the way and then pedi cab with her to lunch along the bay---I was real excited to do that because it was such a nice day and I thought it would be relaxing for her. Then.....she called again and said she was going to the mall before our meeting and I should meet her there... YATZEE!! I didn't have to do the pedi cab switch a roo. And...so we met...our meeting lasted longer than expected which would make me late for the 3 p meeting...so...I had to grab a cab to 3 p meeting. A gal pal ended up meeting me after the 3 p meeting and dropped me off. Whew--that was a close call. Along my ride in the morning to Anthology--it was such an awesome and easy ride. Florida is still so full of pot holes and although in a park, people fly down that street with little regard for the clearly marked bike lane. I always feel a little nervous riding on it. Pershing takes me straight to B and I rode that straight to Civic Center, cut through the court yard, cruised passed Downtown Johnny Brown's and then cruised over to A street to India. So easy..... Getting back in the groove was easy--even on a really hot day---the key is finding a large Cafe Italia style bathroom...

Updates from Bike Pasts....

Car--I kept my car--bought it outright--no payments--no interest--I own it... good for puppy transport--however, I am still vying for a side car to the bike. I have actually seen some...

2 home dwelling--My fella and I moved in together back in January--Co-habitation Nation-I no longer bike prance between two homes--just one--and....it's on the park and so close to everything.

Island Street Project--I need an update--and am out of the loop. More details to follow.

Bike--no more baby blue Schwin for me...I bought a brand new bike last year---diamondback--road bike. I still have the schwin though...we use it as a "guest bike" Needs new tires.

Running 2 businesses, still work from home BUT have more appointments now than ever. I am guilty as charged for cheating and using my car for convenience, but, I am back in the saddle....starting tomorrow--with my standing Friday appointment at Anthology--I will ride down. North Park to Little Italy--Back in the saddle...let's do this!

Bike Month

It's been a while since a post. And then..........................today I was blasted with bike stuff. A friend who works at SPARK posted an awesome video about teaching kids healthy habits early such as riding your bike everywhere. It reminded me.....why haven't I updated my blog? I have been bike riding, just not writing about it. Last night was the first meeting for 2011 Bike The Bay--my friends Andy and Sandy proudly started this awesome ride years ago, and was one of the bike inspirations for me. Another friend posted a question on her Facebook about daring people to ride their bike to work..I posted back about how riding my bike to work 2 years ago for 30 days changed my life...and then I went back to the blog. It's Bike to Work month, the weather is awesome and it's time to chronicle this stuff again. Going back to my blog I found an old comment from a local reporter that I never read...shame on me--I wish I would have seen it back in November when he posted...tisk tisk hand slapped...I called him back. His post said he's in the early stages of writing an article about bike commuting and wanted to ask me some questions about my experience. I knew I was late, BUT, if someone is going to write about it, I definitely wanted to weigh in...this experience changed my life. He left his contact info in my blog but before calling, I wanted to know who I was talking too. It was probably the OCD, sales person, Nancy Drew investigator in me that lead me to google him--but--I needed to know who I was talking too before I just called an alleged reporter...So...I googled Bob. Low and behold...Bob wrote an article about "Pedal Power" today. He tackled the Bachman Hill--a hill I have had a love/hate relationship with, and he wrote about it. I identified completely with his story of needing to be at a reception, not be sweaty, leave before dark...etc. Reminded me of when i first started bike commuting and I was not wearing a helmet, did not have night lights and sometimes rode on a flat because I didn't know how to change one.... So, I rang Bob. I said "Bob, I just got your comment on my blog about talking to me about Bike commuting and I realize I am really late. I just saw your article today in the newspaper and apologize for not getting back to you." He said, "well it might not be too late. I am in day 4 of bike commuting and still would like to talk" He asked what I was doing now and if I am still biking. I told him I am riding my bike every chance I get unless I have to drive to Orange County on an appointment, but, working from home makes my bike commute real easy:) I am excited to talk to Bob about all the silly things that happen when you make a change like this to your life, all the bag packing and time management, the community tools and resources that are available that I never knew about...and....all the bike-isodes...From finger wagging to Kamikazi red right running to quick super woman outfit changes.... I am really excited for people when they start this journey.....it's empowering. Between the bike to work month, the FB posts, and the blog comments--I am back in the saddle. I wonder if I do a reunion--30 day back at it trial????? And....after reading this I realize....I have a lot of updates to share regarding bikes....next post...update post.