Dot Bike

Finally! After what has seemed a long wait since the start of the process the city has actually installed some of the promised racks in the neighborhood.  I had heard rumors that some racks were starting to appear so Debbie and I did a bit of reconaissance on our ride home last evening.

Of the 9 rack requests that had made it through all the bureaucratic steps of the process and been submitted to the contractor for installation we were able to confirm with our own eyes that at least 5 of them have been installed.

On Dorchester Ave. racks have been installed in front of the Dot2Dot cafe (1739), the Plaster Place (1730),  JJ’s Irish Pub (1130) and the Banshee (934).

Here’s a picture of the one near the Banshee and look it’s being used!

A rack has also been installed in front of the Dorchester YMCA at 776 Washington.

Not sure if the one planned at COB Inspectional Services 1010 Dot. Ave. is there as we couldn’t locate  the address and we didn’t check out the one slotted for the Strand Theatre in Upham’s corner.

The racks planned for 1452 Dot Ave. in Fields corner and the Ashmont Grill don’t appear to be installed as of yesterday.

It’s a start.  Thanks to Nicole and the City for getting this going and I am hoping to see more of the over 30 requested racks installed over the coming weeks.

Bike parking issues have recently been in the local news and have been keeping DotBike busy but not in the way that we would wish.  A couple of local business owners have been complaining and have prevented requested city post racks from being installed in Lower Mills near the Ice Cream Smith and Flat Black Coffee and jeopardized a rack on MBTA property at the Savin Hill station.  Not Good!  But the appearance of the new city racks in our neighborhood is all to the good.

The weather was beautiful for the crowds of cyclists that started off from various locations in and around the city and ended up at City Hall for the second Boston Bike Friday.  The Dorchester convoy again represented with 35 riders.  Alas we didn’t win the contest for the convoy with the most registered riders (this ‘honor’ went to Lexington).

Coffee, bagels, fruit and clif bars were breakfast (what happened to those tasty pain chocolat?) and there were plenty of booths giving away schwag and info.

A good warm up for the Hub on Wheels ride coming up on September 21st so don’t forget to register and join the DotBike team.

Saturday morning ride to the Haymarket: A vitaminised journey.

When: Saturday August 30th from 9 AM to 11 AM

Where: Ride from Ashmont to the Hay Market and back along Dorchester Ave.

Join veteran cheapskates Vivian and Elisa on their quest to get the cheapest fruits and vegetable in town. For those who are not familiar with it, every Friday and Saturday a discounted producee market takes place in the Haymarket area of downtown Boston. Fruits and vegetables are sold in outdoor stands at a fraction of what you’d pay for them at the supermarket. They come by the full pallets from the Chelsea warehouses that supply many of Boston’s supermarkets and grocery stores.  The quality can vary, but by choosing carefully, one can get enough fruits and vegetables for two weeks for under $20! It can be loud, crowded and a bit unpolished, but that’s part of the charm of the place. And nowhere else in town you will see such a diverse crowd in one location.

More info about the hay market here

We will meet in front of Ashmont Grill at 555 Talbot Ave. (intersection of Dorchester Ave. and Talbot Ave.) at 9:00 AM. If your bike needs a minor tune-up, you can show up 15 minutes early (8:45) and we’ll try to address that. We will ride on Dorchester Ave. at a leisurely pace and take a more scenic route once we get downtown. We should arrive around 9:45. We’ll take about 30 minutes for shopping and relaxing and head-back around 10:15, to be back in Ashmont around 11:00. It’s about 6 miles each way. You can also join us at any point along the route by calling Vivian ahead of time at 617 290 5822.

Don’t forget your big backpack or a bungee cord if you have a bike rack (there are plenty of empty discarded cardboard boxes to be found to pack your fruits).

What if it rains? We’ll cancel and do it an other weekend.

For info, contact Vivian at Vivian335<AT>juno.com or 617 290 5822

September 21st is the city wide bike ride.  There is still plenty of time to get in shape for the 50 miler and to register for the ride either as an individual or as part of a team.  In fact, you can join the DotBike team.

That’s right DotBike is registered as a team!  If you can ride with is, when you register, after agreeing to the waiver choose to “Join a Team” and then select DotBike from the list of teams.

This is a fantastic event that features 10, 30 or 50 miles routes entirely within the City of Boston as well as entertainment and food.  One highlight of the start of all routes is the opportunity to ride on Storrow Drive while it is closed to cars — though I’ve always thought the section right through Dorchester are also a key highlight.

All routes start and end with a festival at Government Center and there are fun stops with snacks and music throughout the ride.  Volunteers along all routes help with traffic.

Check out this video created by a group scouting the ride last week to see some of the scenic highlights.

The second Boston Bike Friday is coming up this Friday.  The weather is forecast to be great.  The DORCHESTER CONVOY starts in Peabody Square. Hope to see you there.

Check out the city’s Boston Bike Friday page and our event listing for more info.

WHAT: SAFE, GUIDED CONVOYS WITH POLICE ESCORT Lead by experienced cyclists and escorted by Boston Police, convoys follow a fixed schedule and route and originate at locations throughout metro-Boston. All convoys finish at City Hall Plaza Boston.

FREE BREAKFAST, BIKE EXPO AND MUSIC Whether you ride in with a convoy or ride along, join us at Boston City Hall for free food and fun, courtesy of 100.7 WZLX, Mass Commute, Mass Bike, and all our sponsors.

The weather was fantastic, the crowds were large and everyone had a great time at the Dorchester Beach Festival this past Saturday.  DotBikers escorted several families from Pope John Paul Park to the festival and a number of bicyclists arrived on their own.  Many festival goers availed themselves of the free valet bike parking and as an added bonus got a free ABC safety check.

We gave away lots of schwag and info and had a lot of interest.   There was definitely much interest in getting the gaps in the Harbor Trail closed with numerous folks wanting to know how they could help move this forward.  We will continue to work with the various agencies involved to push on this and provide updates and suggestions for how you can help.

A big thanks to everyone who helped out at the festival as well as MassBike, the City of Boston and Officer Rorie at District C-11 for providing us with  goodies for the festival.

DotBikers had a fun and successful time at the two neighborhood community events hosted by Representative Marie St. Fleur this past Tuesday and Wednesday.

At the Tuesday event which was held at the St. Peters School on Bowdoin St. five DotBike volunteers were there to answer questions and provide info to the attendees.  But even more fun than working the crowd was the St. Peter’s teen center bike club.

These youth are planning on riding in the Rodman Ride for Kids coming up in late September.  Many of them had bikes that were in need of some repair and not correctly fitted for the rider.  Vivian worked with them, showing them some minor adjustments that they could make to make riding easier and more comfortable.  He and others will continue to work with this group to get them ready for the ride.  We hope to join them on some training rides so stay tuned for upcoming announcements.

At the Wednesday event at Project Hope on Dudley St. we mixed and mingled with the attendees and helped some of them out with minor repairs. Fun was had by all.

This ride benefits a number of organizations helping children throughout Massachusetts.

See the Rodman Ride for Kids site for information on participation and benefiting agencies.

DotBike is working to assist a group of youth riders based out of the St. Peter’s teen center who are planning on participating in this ride.  We will help them get their bikes fit to the riders and in prime working order, get helmets and other necessary equipment and hold some group training rides.

So stay tuned for related events and chances to help out.

Meet at 5:30 p.m. at the Brewer’s fountain on the Boston Common or at 6:00 at the intersection of Columbia Rd. and Dot Ave. to ride down Dot Ave. See the commute ride page for more info.

You are invited to join Boston’s Emerging Green Builders for a bike tour of green buildings in Boston!
Meet at the Children’s Museum Saturday, Aug. 23rd at 9:30 and ride until 11:30.
Feel free to bring a bagged lunch to eat after on the Esplanade and get to know some other EGBers.
Boston’s Emerging Green Builders mission is to provide students and young professionals affordable and accessible resources for integration into the growing green building industry. See http://bostonnegb.ning.com.

Everyone must bring their own bike and helmet.
If you need to rent a bike, go to:

www.urbanadventours.com
www.landrys.com
www.skimarket.com

These places rent out bicycles for $25-35 per day.

This event is a MassBike Spin Series Ride.