VIB's?

There is little enough parking available for cyclists in NYC, so I was mystified by this convoluted system of barriers protecting/saving/blocking this bike rack on Third Avenue and 49th Street in Manhattan.

I mean, can you park here? Not park here? Valet park here?

Who are they saving this for, David Byrne? He's got his own bike racks.

Weird.

As seen in ... Midtown East

The press.

Waiting for Antonio Pierce of the NY Giants to make his appearance at the 17th Precinct in the Plaxico Buress debacle.

Traffic is a misery today.

With the Christmas season comes the dreaded 'Gridlock Alert'.

I find this fascinating. Like the other 11 months of the year the traffic is ok?

As seen in ... Brooklyn Heights

I have no idea what these guys are doing, but this seems like a really inefficient way to move a car.

As seen in ... Greenpoint

There's nothing like biking down closed streets.

If you missed it, today was the 'Get to the 'Point' 5K run through Greenpoint.

I don't run, but I love all the streets closed to traffic.

For a real kick, try riding the NYC Marathon route before the runners go. It's totally under the radar, but super fun.
No, you don't get to ride across the Verrazano Bridge, but the rest of the route gets closed off pretty early in the morning of the race.

The Night The Lights Didn't Go Out On Broadway

Paul Newman who?

The last time the lights went out on Broadway was just after 9/11 and like many people, I was stuck in another borough, so I've never seen the marquees go dark.

I was back working at 'no wheels allowed' (not even no wheels please), and I was already in craptastic midtown so I figured I'd head over to 44th St. to watch Broadway's tribute to fallen star Paul Newman.

I picked out a good spot. I know it was good because 2 minutes later a Fox News crew almost boxed me out of it, and I got ready to be moved by the sight of the lights going out.



So we stood there - me and the Fox News crew, 8 o'clock came, The Schubert went black, the Marquis flicked the switch for about 5 seconds, they both came back on, the Fox folks and I turned and looked at each other and shook our heads. The Saint James and The Majestic just didn't even bother at all.

So much for honoring Paul Newman.



They asked me if I wanted to be interviewed, but I decided that saying that the tribute was shitty on national tv was probably inappropriate.

As seen in ... The West Village

How cool is this?

The mom who rides this contraption with her two kids told me you can't get the jump seat that sits on the top tube anymore because of the danger that the kid will get a foot stuck in the front spokes, but the older one - who rides in back, still has both feet, so he seems to have done just fine.
I don't know what that extension is called that's attached to the back, that's what got me interested to begin with, but the little footrests on the downtube are my favorite part.

As seen in ... Lower Manhattan

Waiting for AIG to sink or swim, the press camps out.

Oh No They Didn't ...

Oh yes they did...



You know that stuff I was wondering about?
Well, it's a pedestrian zone for hanging out.

In the middle of Broadway.

I don't actually have a problem with this in theory, after all, it's a busy area and there aren't that many places to sit and rest in NYC if you are a tourist or a marathon shopper.

And anything that makes less traffic is a bonus.

Maybe it's just me, but sitting right next to the speeding cabs doesn't strike me as all that restful.

Luckily, the tourists no longer have to walk on the sidewalk now that they have a nice brand new bright green walkway. (Aren't those big bicycle icons cute!)

Midtown, What a Difference a Block Makes

Seventh Avenue - Argh!

But Wait... What's This?



The DOT was busy installing a bike lane and protected buffer zone on Broadway between 42nd and 35th streets today.

Why just seven blocks between Herald Square and Times Square - I don't know. I mean for cyclists, what's the use of a seven block lane connecting two of the busiest, most impossible to ride a bike to and still maintain your sanity, places in NYC?
Now I can get between them - I just can't get to or from them.
It sure looks pretty. But what's up with the sand?



That gritty crap they are gluing to the street is some kind of abrasive sandy stuff - and yes, they were using glue. I'm not sure what the point is. Is that supposed to be the pedestrian part of the path? Were people falling over when they walked down the street?

Still no place to park my bike and back to working in a building that won't allow me to bring one inside - even if I use the freight elevator.
It's the old conundrum... camouflage the bike and hide it among all the food delivery bikes chained to some local scaffold, or suck it up and take the subway.
Oh well.

Apropos of nothing.



Hundreds of people standing on line to meet wrestler John Cena.

"Autographs are available on a first come, first serve basis. Fans who make an Ultimate Nutrition purchase at GNC Herald Square location only will receive the opportunity to take a posed photo with WWE Superstar John Cena.

- All Ultimate Nutrition sales at GNC Herald Square are final. No returns or exchanges."

Dash

My trip down to the Rockaways was more exciting than it normally is.
I fell in a pothole, I forgot my map, and I met Dash.

Dash was laying on the ground panting from the heat when I came upon him and his owner about 500 yards from the Canarsie Pier.
The guy wasn't that far from the entrance (and the water fountain) but I figured, hey, I've got wheels and he's got a hundred pounds of dead weight, so I shared some of my bottle with Dash.



Instant Dog! Just Add Water...

Deja Vu All Over Again

I was riding on the Belt Parkway Bike Path down near Canarsie when I saw this...




I was vaguely mystified until about 10 feet later I ran over these...



Then I remembered.

Last year during the NYC Century, I saw exactly the same warning in exactly the same place and did exactly the same thing.
You'd think I might have figured it out by now - SLOW BUMPS means -
DON"T RUN OVER THE EXTREMELY SHARP PROTRUSIONS STICKING OUT OF THE ROAD RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU.

Tearin' Up The Town

I finally met the guys who rip up the street.
Usually I just end up turning onto streets that have been torn up to await a new surface, but today I ran right smack into the middle of it.
It turns out this process is called 'milling' and it's done by contracted workers who when asked know nothing about when the street will once again have a surface that doesn't slice up my tires.
They just do the ripping up.



Lucky for me, I've discovered the many and varied uses for two great inventions; the 'innanet' and 311.

Turns out, the DOT actually posts a schedule of the upcoming work - both 'milling' and fixing in the 'Weekly Resurfacing Schedule'.
I will probably never check this again, but it's nice to know you could figure out what streets were a mess before riding on them. (This requires far more advance thought than I've ever been willing to apply, but it's better than the "Whatever, fugghettaboutit" answer I got this morning.)

Wednesday
07-23-08

2 Paving Crews
11th Ave (New Utrecht to 61st St)
46th St (11th Ave to New Utrecht Ave)
Navy St (Hudson Ave to Nassau St)
York St (Jay St to Navy St)
2 Milling Crews
Senator St (Colonial Rd to 6th Ave)
E 7th St (Reeve Pl to Quentin Rd)
Contract Milling
State St (Columbia Pl to Flatbush Ave)

Thursday
07-24-08

2 Paving Crews
11th Ave (New Utrecht to 61st St)
Navy St (Hudson Ave to Nassau St)
York St (Jay St to Navy St)
2 Milling Crews
72nd St (5th Ave to 12th Ave)
E 7th St (Reeve Pl to Quentin Rd)
Contract Milling
State St (Columbia Pl to Flatbush Ave)

Friday
07-25-08

2 Paving Crews
11th Ave (New Utrecht to 61st St)
Navy St (Hudson Ave to Nassau St)
York St (Jay St to Navy St)
Middagh St (BQE to Fulton St)
Willow St (BQE to Pierrepont St)
Monroe Pl (Clark St to Pierrepont)
2 Milling Crews
72nd St (5th Ave to 12th Ave)
E 7th Ave (Reeve Pl to Quentin Rd)
Contract Milling
State St (Columbia Pl to Flatbush Ave)

Schedules are subject to change due to inclement weather or emergencies. For updated information call (311) Monday to Friday, 7 am to 7 pm.

Ice Cream and Dirt

Reasons to love cycling on a sunny summer day.

Washington Street Cobbles

Cobbles are a (literal) pain in the ass when you're on a bike.

I've been using the asphalt patches on Washington Street to hopscotch my way along this block for the last couple of months, but it's nice to see the stones get replaced rather than the whole street get asphalted over.

I'm not a fan of the strip-mall look that NYC has acquired over the last decade.
It would be great to keep the last few cobbled streets from going the way of the dinosaur.
Broome, Mercer, Peck Slip, Washington ... even bumping along on my butt, I love these streets.

As seen in...Blissville

I haven't seen one of these in a while, at least not in NYC.

I realize that I'm exposing my ignorance, but I never even knew there was a 'Blissville'.
(It's not called bike dummy because I'm a brain surgeon.)

Waterfalls

I did a little drive-by this morning on my way to work - and yes, the waterfalls are officially up and running.
The Pier 1 Park wasn't open yet - opens at 10 am today, but from what I could see, it looked ready to go.

I'm not really sure why I'm so fixated on these. Normally I don't have much patience with public art installations, but this one is working for me.
I hopped on my bike, took a detour down to the waterfront, and when I felt the spray blowing off the falls - I was happy.

It might just be that simple.

As seen in...Riis Park

As seen in...Fort Tilden

I took a wrong turn at the corner of the Atlantic Ocean and ended up in Fort Tilden.
Corey Kilgannon for The New York Times wrote about Fort Tilden like this:

"TO reach the beach at Fort Tilden, keep the missile silos on your right, the munitions buildings on your left, and head due south of the cannon batteries.

Remember this, because there are no signs to point the way, no scents of sunscreen, lifeguard’s whistles nor flying Frisbees; just these military landmarks, the briny breeze and the roar of the surf.

It is not for everyone. It can be a bit of a hike to the water, and there are no lifeguards. Visitors, in fact, are warned not to swim, because of the dangerous tides. There are no convenient bathrooms, snack bars or other amenities.

The fort, built in 1917 as part of the city’s coastal defenses, was used through two world wars and part of the cold war to keep the enemy — German subs, Japanese bombers or Russian nukes — from reaching New York.

For the explorer, the treasures of Tilden truly unfold. The more you wander the underused pathways of the park’s 317 acres, the more bizarre the place gets.
At Tilden you can do bombs and barracks, or beach blanket bingo. Or both."



Beyond the parking lot, a maze of empty back roads winds its way through the beach grass and wild roses. The road surface is fairly smooth, the sea breeze is cooling - and there is absolutely no one around.
From what I've gathered, the beach at Fort Tilden is used primarily by surf cast fisherman who purchase a permit from the Parks Department which allows them to park somewhat near the water.
For everyone else, it's a hike - or take a bike.





Personally, I suggest a bike. But that's just me.

The Telectroscope

Hullo London. URaQT :)



This steampunk art project proves that it isn't new technology that makes modern communication shallow, it's us.
And you know what? I couldn't care less.



This fabulous thing is the 'telectroscope' and it lived at the Walt Whitman Pier in Brooklyn for the past month. (Sorry, this post fell victim to my flickr debacle, so the installation closed this Sunday)

The brainchild of British artist Paul St. George, there is a whole backstory to this project which can be found at tiscali telectroscope



The short version is that he asks us to imagine that there is a transatlantic tunnel connecting London to New York that has remained undisturbed for a hundred years awaiting the installation of a nineteenth century communication device known as a 'telectroscope'.

Sound familiar?

For those of you who don't know, Brooklyn is home to the oldest Subway tunnel in the world, which was actually 'lost' and remained undisturbed for more than a hundred years until it was rediscovered in 1981. Atlantic Avenue Tunnel

It's pretty amazing. You go down through a manhole cover in the middle of Atlantic Avenue into this perfectly preserved abandoned space.
Go. Do it.





Back to the telectroscope...



Considering how cool the thing itself is, the majority of people looking at each other through it are remarkable only for their unremarkableness. The telectro - helpers have whiteboards on which to write messages, most of which say things like "Hi", "You're Cute!" or "How's the weather?"
On the London end, even the Queen joined in the fun to look through the simulated 'viewer' and wave randomly to passing New Yorkers.
I wonder what she wrote on her whiteboard?
(Photo of the Queen by Matthew Andrews)



Why did I like the telectroscope?
Well somewhere in London there's a couple that wrote this message to me...

"Nice Bike"

Storm Left Everywhere a Little Less Green

So, I came across this article in The NYTimes -
Storm Left Central Park a Little Less Green

"It would be a sad census in any case, but the tally of trees lost in
Central Park to high winds during last Wednesday’s storm comes
with particular ill grace in the middle of the Million Trees NYC campaign.

“You felt it was like a tornado,” said Douglas Blonsky, president of
the Central Park Conservancy and the administrator of Central Park.

According to the conservancy’s survey, 33 trees were significantly
damaged, 24 of which have already been removed."

I know Central Park is a big deal. But I've heard no mention of the damage that was done to old growth trees all around the NYC area. I was out in that storm, and I was clicking my heels together and screaming "There's no place like home" along with everybody else.

I took the top picture from the bike path off the Henry Hudson Parkway, looking down toward the river. I'm not sure if this is technically part of Fort Tryon Park, but I don't imagine those trees fared much better.

I was dismayed by the sight of so many damaged trees while I was riding, but not as dismayed as I was when I discovered that I would have to portage my bike up and over the felled tree blocking the base of the stairs down to Dykman Street.



That is one big ass tree.