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Whassup at the Wheelhouse
First off, there is major major construction right in front of the shop. It is making it more difficult to get to us. Here are some tips:
- Pedestrians and cyclists will continue to be able to reach us from the west via the RiverWalk and from the east via the Dequindre Cut and Milliken State Park. We are accessed quite easily from anywhere Downtown by hopping on the People Mover and walking here from the Ren Cen stop.
- Drivers have a few options. You can park in the Beaubien Place parking garage that is located on Beaubien at Atwater, just east of the Ren Cen. It's a quick 3-block walk along the Riverfront or Atwater to get here and it is open 24 hours. Other options include GM surface lots (weekdays only) or metered parking on Woodbridge, two blocks north of us. Meters are not checked on weekends.
We have openings on one tour this Saturday, Midtown & Woodbridge at 10 a.m. It includes a stop at 71 E. Garfield, a super-green residential rehab, the N. Cass Community Garden, Bureau of Urban Living & City Bird (2 super-cool indie boutiques) and the Woodbridge Pub! It's already two-thirds full, so reserve a spot today if you are interested at www.wheelhousedetroit.com/tours -- where you can also read full descriptions of all of our tours!
Good news! The Detroit Institute of Arts/Detroit Film Theatre has implemented free valet parking for bicycles on Fridays. The bike racks, with a museum staffer present, are located in front of the courtyard on John R.
Don't forget, this Saturday is the memorial ride for Woody Miller. Meet at the Belle Isle Beach for a 9:30 a.m. ride.
This week at the Wheelhouse
We finally got a new shipment of water bottles in. They are super cute and, even better, they are made of BPA-free plastic made from recycled content AND they are made in the USA. One'll run you just $3.49.
We have 3 great tours this week (of course we are biased): On Saturday 7/31, Cycling History at 10 a.m. and Discover Detroit Dining at 1 p.m. and on Sunday, 8/1, Ford History at 2 p.m. Find out more at www.wheelhousedetroit.com/tours.
In other news, just about every Wheelhouser is playing in the COPA this Saturday. It's been super fun adding soccer into our summer mix. Find out more at www.detroitcityfutbol.com.
Had a nice chat with Adonia from LA. She is a grad student at UC Irvine studying cycling infrastructure in four different cities across the country. Check out her blog, which talks about riding in Detroit, at urbanadonia.blogspot.com.
The memorial service for Woody Miller has been set for August 14 at 9:30. We'll meet at the Belle Isle beach for a lap with his friends and family. More info at the event's FB page.
It's more fun than it looks!
Karen & Kelli are big about talking the FUN aspect of cycling. It's not all about calories and cadence, spandex and Slipstream. Biking is good for you and for the environment but, as far as we are concerned, it's a really good time. We are lucky enough to have a wonderful attorney, Steve Roach, who is with Miller Canfield and is also the Region 1 Rep for the League of Michigan Bicyclists. He is a great guy (with an exceedingly dry sense of humor and a penchant for spandex) who we love. He is a regular Grosse Pointe-to-Downtown bike commuter, and GrossePointeToday.com interviewed him and shot a video of him commuting.
Excerpt:
Motorists may pity the cyclists they pass, especially when it's clear the folks on the bike are not on their way to pick up ice cream. Those who choose to commute by bicycle may strike drivers as masochists, weird fitness freaks or possibly suicidal.
It probably never occurs to the people behind the wheel that the people straddling the wheels are having a good time.
A really good time: "If you get any sort of aerobic exercise, you get enough endorphins you get like a buzz," said Steven Roach, two-wheeled commuter.
Check out the full story here and, in the accompanying video, watch him talk about his helmet and components before getting down to the good stuff: riding!
Women's Night at the Hub 8/11/09
The first Women's Night at the Hub is set for August 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. It's a bike repair workshop for women and trans only.
The Hub is at 3611 Cass, just north of MLK.
3 Chances to Ride on August 1
It is obviously in our own self-interest to remind you that this Saturday, August 1, is our Henry Ford Birthday Tour led by Michigan Trails & Greenways Alliance's Todd Scott. (BTW, his blog M-Bike is really, truly a must-read.) It's going to be really interesting and informative, for sure. But there are two other cycling happenings on the same day we'd like to share with you as well.
In the AM, it's the City to City Kick-Off Ride! Join Kevin and Emily as they head off to Chicago, raising money for Cystic Fibrosis. Join them at Campus Martius and ride them out of town!
From Chicago, Emily will head to Denver. Read this:
Rocking cystic fibrosis so hard that CF will one day stand for "Cure Found" is Emily Schaller's mission in life. In September, 2009, Emily will take her mission on the road. Heading west from Detroit, Emily will ride her bike on a month-long Emily to Ellen for Cystic Fibrosis campaign with the hopes of ending up on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Ellen DeGeneres is Emily's hero and being on The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been her dream for years. "Her show is the perfect vehicle to deliver my story," says Emily, founder of the Rock CF Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to finding a cure for CF. "I want to educate as many people as I can about cystic fibrosis and emphasize how the never ending fight of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has made it possible for me to live my life to the fullest."
Emily will ride her bike 1,400 miles from Detroit, MI to Denver, CO. The first 300 miles from Detroit to Chicago will be part of her Rock CF Foundation's City to City Ride with six other riders. From Chicago, she will head west to Denver. Because Emily and her CF doctor decided that riding through the desert is not a great idea, her modes of transportation from Denver to Burbank, California will be adventuresome. A canoe trip down the Colorado river? A donkey ride through the Grand Canyon? A moped along Route 66?
Swallowing forty pills a day, taking breathing treatments and undergoing chest physical therapy are all part of her daily routine. And because her body can't absorb nutrients normally, she expects her daily intake of 3,000 calories to almost double on the ride. Exercise has improved Emily's lung function and has allowed her to complete two half marathons in one year. Riding across the country, she hopes to shine a light on what the future holds for the cure of cystic fibrosis.
Emily, you rock!
Read more about City to City and register for the send-off ride here.
Then, in the afternoon, you can hit up The Hub's Safe Streets Youth Ride Fundraiser. It's a 2:30 p.m. start time, and you'll be riding with graduates of The Hub's Earn-A-Bike program. The ride ends at the U-M Detroit Center for refreshments and snacks. Register online at http://safestreetsyouthride.eventbrite.com/.
We Like Bike!
42 Below Vodka is sponsoring the 42Ride, in which -- you guessed it -- 42 cyclists are riding across the country from NYC to LA. The 21 riders that are taking a northern route were in Detroit last night, and we met up with them at their visit to CityFest. What a great group of people. Alex almost took off with them, we're pretty sure. We were particularly excited to meet Jacquie Phelan, three-time NORBA champ, member of both the US Bicycling AND Mountain Bike Hall of Fames and founder of WOMBATS (Women's Mountain Bike and Tea Society), a group that works to increase the number of women in the sport of mountain biking. Us being a female-owned shop and she being an outspoken advocate for women in the sport of cycling, well, we hit it off. Hopefully we'll be seeing her back in Detroit soon!
Read more about Jacquie at her blog.
Safe riding to all the 42Riders! We hope you enjoyed your stay in the D!
Everything is better by bike...especially good food
One of our (awesome) customers, Ashley, works for a new service called Hotspokes! They deliver food for the Cass Cafe and the Bucharest Grill Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call Bucharest at 313-965-3111 (Is everyone in Detroit addicted to their schwarma or what?) and Cass at 313-831-1400 (lentil-walnut burgers, mmm) and ask for bike delivery!
She said yes!
A couple that rented our tandem a couple of weeks ago returned very, very happy. He proposed to her on the MacArthur Bridge to Belle Isle and she said yes! Here's a pic of the bride-to-be moments after her acceptance.
Congrats, Tom & Susan!
Ride of Silence Recap
It was a wonderful Ride of Silence last night from Belle Isle to Downtown and back. About 225 cyclists turned out to celebrate cycling, draw attention to "Sharing the Road" and honor cyclists that have been injured or killed by motorists when cycling. Many thanks to event chair Steve Roach of the League of Michigan Bicyclists and to Macomb Cycle & Fitness for the post-ride bar-b-que.