ALC Rider Injured In Hit-And-Run

Fellow ALCer Randy Cruz (Team Midnight Ridazz) was injured in a hit-and-run accident in downtown LA recently while commuting by bike. Reportedly, the driver tried to leave but was soon found and questioned by police. Initially, there were no plans to prosecute the driver but that may change soon, thanks to the efforts of many fellow riders who have been contacting both police and local government to complain.

Luckily, Randy survived and walked away with just some stitches in her head, and plans to be riding again as soon as possible! Please send her all your good thoughts, well wishes, and positive energy for a fast and complete recovery, especially with the Ride so close now. I bet she would appreciate a cheery get well message on her ALC homepage! http://www.aidslifecycle.org/5645

We’re all thinking of you, Randy - get well soon, and we’ll see you in San Francisco!! 

Ride Of Silence - May 21st

We’ve all ridden in traffic, and experienced first-hand how distracted drivers can be a significant hazard for cyclists. Our safety rules exist to pre-empt a lot of these problems, and keep us visible, predictable and safe, but sometimes even the safest behaviour isn’t enough - and in a contest between car and bike, the cyclist invariably loses.

Please join other riders and the LA cycling community this Wednesday for the Annual Ride of Silence to show your support, and raise awareness that cyclists are a regular part of traffic!

On May 21, 2008, at 7:00 PM, the Ride of Silence will begin in many cities simultaneously as cyclists take to the roads in a silent procession to honor cyclists who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. Although cyclists have a legal right to share the road with motorists, the motoring public often isn’t aware of these rights, or used to watching out for cyclists in the streets.

The Santa Monica ride meets at Helen’s Cycles on Broadway at 6:30pm for a 7pm ride-out on a silent, slow-paced ride (max. 12 mph); there are separate rides in other parts of town (e.g. Padadena). Check the website for more details: http://www.rideofsilence.org/main.php

See you at Helen’s on Wednesday - please come and help us make a statement! 

All You Need Is Love

The recent news about Chicken Lady’s stroke inspired a change in plans for this Sunday’s training ride - Team 100 joined forces with several other teams to form a special “Ride to the Chicken Lady Coop”, and deliver ride-by best wishes, love and support to Chicken Lady. Thanks to Brian Hodes, Sue and Joy from Team Easton, and Beth for rearranging plans and bringing all the rides together to make this happen - it was a true team effort in ALC spirit!

About 70 riders met at Easton Gym, and there was even a special “get well” shirt for everybody to sign. Chicken Lady had been released home from the rehab center just a day or so before, and has made such an amazing recovery already that we were able to not just wave as we rode by, but actually stop in for a quick visit! Ginger was there, and kept a close eye on everything to make sure all the excitement didn’t get to be too much, so Ken could enjoy the visits fully (thank you Ginger!!!).

The group spread out on the way to Redondo, so there were at least three separate groups of visitors, and Ken had the chance to rest a little in between. He was absolutely thrilled to see everybody, and was so touched by all the outpouring of love and support for him. He loved the card everybody signed for him at the iMartin sale on Thursday, all the email messages from everywhere that we printed out for him, and all the get well wishes and hugs we passed on from everybody else.

He has made an amazing recovery already: just 10 days after his stroke, he is already walking unaided, no longer needs his walker, and is absolutely determined that this will not stop him from being in the Ride in June (in one way or another). So keep sending him your good thoughts for a rapid recovery, and there is a good chance we will see him in SF in less than three weeks!

Pictures from the visit, and all of the ride, are here: http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/4917076_xTM4F#293684794_bxvXi

Thanks to all the organisers who helped to make this happen, to everybody who showed up today, and to all who sent their love and wishes and support. It meant the world to Chicken Lady, and he said it was a really important part of his recovery.

Get well soon, Chicken Lady, and we look forward to seeing you on the Ride in June!

All Stocked Up

A big thank you to Jaime and his team at iMartin for keeping the store open so late yesterday, and offering some amazing discounts so we could all stock up in time for the Ride! Lots of riders came to shop, browse and stayed to hang out and socialise over snacks, pizza, drinks and coffee (thank you Shifting Gears for providing the food and drink - pizza was delicious!!).

We also got to watch the whole slideshow of Santa Barbara pictures on the big screen Stanley set up, and there was much laughing and pointing as people spotted themselves or their friends in the pictures.

There were even some red dresses on display to help with accessorizing, and as a “sneak preview” of the upcoming Red Dress Fashion Shows on Memorial Day Weekend. This will be THE time to get your red dress - we will have a wide variety of glamorous red dress attire to flaunt and pick from, and ALL the money will go to ALC! Check the calendar (and this blog) for more details.

Pictures from the fun evening at iMartin are here: http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/4898277_m5tWH#292345802_ZGxJG