An invitation to check out a completely different form of human-powered transportation.

Cyclists, hikers, beachcombers, team prospects, curious spectators, and their kids, grandparents and dogs are all invited to drop in on a dragon boat team practice session to experience these powerful human-propelled vessels first-hand.

The modern dragon boat is a replica of an ancient Chinese river boat. Ours are 48 ft long (not counting the ornamental head and tail) and race with 20 paddlers, a drummer and a steersperson. Paddlers sit two to a thwart and face forward. We switch sides about every 20 minutes.

Lots more info at http://www.BerkeleyRCC.org.

But here are the basics:

Berkeley Marina, M-dock, across the street from Adventure Playground.

Saturday morning 9-10:30 and 10:30-12, Monday and Wednesday evening 6-7, and Thursday evening 6:30-7:30. Arrive 10 minutes early if it's your first time.

Drop-ins welcome, no membership required for the first three sessions, and we provide life-jackets and paddles. Swimming not required.

Small children and dogs are usually okay in the boat, but this is not always a good idea for the first time out.

Ample parking on-stie. Bikes can be locked securely inside the marina gate, or locked inside our powerboat if you are without a bike lock.

We're gearing up for our racing season, but we also support recreational paddling and youth outreach activities, and we have kayaks and an OC-1 available to members.

Paul Kamen
pk@well.com
BRCC Vice Pres.

Just got info about a new charity ride from Oakland to Sactown to support local schools:

General Information
Join us for a fully supported 100-mile ride to the State Capitol on Saturday, May 8, 2010. We plan to register 50 riders. All parent and community riders will be asked to raise $500 or more in pledges.

Why We Ride
Over the past two years, state funding for K-12 education in California has been reduced by almost 20 percent. California currently ranks 47th in per pupil spending and has the highest teacher-to-student ratio in the nation.

Last year four of us rode to the capitol to protest massive cuts in funding for education. This year we're riding again to raise funds and public awareness. We hope this small act will help our schools and inspire others. In Oakland, funding cuts have hit our schools especially hard. At Claremont Middle School and Oakland Technical High School, many elective classes and enrichment programs remain only as a result of parent fundraising. We need your help.

Sounds fun. A ride up to Sacramento. There's no mention in the Ride for a Reason flyer about how riders return from the capitol.The ride website is still under construction, so no details there either. I'm sure there will be some way to get back. Bus? Train? Hitchhike?

"A breathtakingly beautiful challenge in Trinity County, CA"

On this very scenic and challenging ride you will climb, descend, and meander on quiet back roads through the rugged mountains, canyons, and valleys of south central Trinity County and our rural communities of Hyampom, Corral Bottom, Wildwood, and Hayfork. We have put together four great routes which in total make up a figure-eight course of 115 miles. Each of the four ride possibilities uses some of this total course to give riders of varying abilities a perfect choice at the most beautiful time of year for this event in Trinity County. The views from the high spots will give the rider a glimpse of the vastness of the area and the spectacular scenery found in the southern Klamath Mountains.

For Chasing Legends we planned and plotted ways to put the viewer closer than they have ever been. We've all seen gorgeous helicopter shots, long-lens finish line shots, even a few dash-cam team car shots. But you have never before been INSIDE the peloton, until now.

Registration for the Wine Country Century is now open. In recent years this event has sold out very quickly so early registration is essential.

The Grizzly Peak Century is also open for registration today. The rides are on the same weekend, the first in May. The Wine Country on the Saturday and the GPC on Sunday.

Who's going to do both????

Update from Ron: "Registration is now open for the San Luis Obispo Grand Fondo on Oct 23rd. Join members of the mens and womens Columbia HTC pro team for a 20, 50 or 100 mile Grand Fondo on the central coast. For details and registration go to www.slogranfondo.com"

• Season Kickoff Ride on April 17th
• Monterey Ride on September 11th
• Two new rides, Two Bridges & Cosumnes. The details of both rides are still being worked out out, but both promise to be excellent additions to the calendar.
• Return of the Mines Road ride
• Three picnic rides: Sonoma, Calistoga & San Jose
• OYJ/Crankin' Time San Luis Obispo Ride on May 22nd
• Rides scheduled through the end of October (Mt. Tam on October 30th)

If you're a music fan, you're going to love David Byrne's Bicycle Diaries. If you're not, you can gloss through those sections where the Talking Heads front man interacts with local musicians and skip to the observations and impressions. His two-wheeled vantage point provides him with "glimpses into the mind of my fellow man, as expressed in the cities he lives in."

The book is full of musings about cycling, cities and life in general. Byrne's travels on his folding bike take him to London, Istanbul, Buenos Aires, Manilla and San Francisco amongst other places.

Byrne is not just a cycling enthusiast. He deeply engaged with the minutiae of a cycling life including helmets, bike lanes and bike racks and, my favorite, how cyclists interact with the world around them (and vice versa):

Likewise - now don't laugh - cars and trucks should view the bike lanes as if they were sacrosanct. A driver would never think of riding up on the sidewalk. Most drivers, anyway. Hell, there are some strollers and little old ladies up there! It would be unthinkable, except in action movies. A driver would get a serious fine or maybe even get locked up. Everyone around would wonder who that asshole was. Well, bike lanes should be treated the same way. You wouldn't park your car or pull over for a stop on the sidewalk, would you? Well then, don't park in the bike lane either-that forces cyclists into traffic where poor little meat puppets don't stand a chance.

Same with pedestrians-who in New York famously saunter out into traffic wherever they see a little gap. They've got enough brains not to walk out in front of a truck, but they'll step right into the path of a cyclist, thereby initiating a game of urban chicken. The cyclists then have to slam on their brakes to avoid Mr. BlackBerry or Ms. Check-me-out.