The Lakeville Lions Club is organizing the ride, and proceeds will benefit various community service projects. The cost is $10, and riders will have their choice of four routes from 10 to 100 miles in length. A pancake breakfast and snacks will be provided. Visit the web site for details.

A 14 year old boy was struck in the crosswalk at Niles and Lincoln Way East. From the brief article in the South Bend Tribune, it sounds like this was a classic ‘Ride Out from Sidewalk’ accident: these accidents account for 0.7% of all accidents where the cyclist is entering the roadway. Read the full story. (You’ll need to page down.)

Just inside the back door of the home I grew up in hangs a small, artsy-craftsy sign that reads, “Back door friends are best.” I suppose that sign still hangs by that back door; truthfully, I haven’t checked in years. But I think that’s a very true sentiment. Only your best friends approach your house at the back door. Formal visitors and strangers would never presume to knock on the back door, and most of us would get creeped out by strangers lurking around the back of our homes.

So what does this have to do with biking . . .

This afternoon, I biked up to Buchanan, MI, from South Bend. A pretty traditional route out of the River Park/Sunnymede neighborhood: Wayne to St. Louis to Madison to Niles to Northshore to the new River Trail. Then on up Riverside Dr. to Darden to Lilac (in Michigan, Lilac turns into Copp) to Bertrand Road. West on Bertrand to Mayflower, north on Mayflower to Chamberlain, west to Rynearson, and north on Rynearson into downtown Buchanan.

I want to write about Chamberlain . . . Buchanan’s “back door” for bicyclists entering from the south. Chamberlain has to be the worst stretch of road I’ve ridden in some time. And that’s the problem. See, we bicyclists don’t enter towns via the pristine automobile routes. We enjoy (OK, we are forced by our desire for safety) the backways and byways of Indiana and Michigan’s county roads and enjoy finding a quieter route from place to place. But often, these back door entries are not in the best shape.

Buchanan, MI, just happened to be the town I visited today. But I’m sure many of you could point to county road entry points into many small towns surrounding the South Bend metropolitan area and could provide details of how those roads surely need some attention.

So how about it small towns? If back door friends really are the best, how about you do a bit of sprucing up of those roads we back door friends travel to visit you? I know I’d appreciate it.

The Nappanee community invites all bicyclists to join them for a memorial ride to remember those from the community who have died while bicycling to work. There are two stages to this event: 1) the six-mile memorial ride starts at 9:30 a.m. at the Summit Street entrance into Stauffer Park in Nappanee, and 2) prior to the memorial ride, the Nappanee Area Cycling Club (NACC) is hosting a longer Saturday morning ride of approximately 30 miles — starting at 7:00 a.m., also in Stauffer Park and then ending at the same location at 9:00 a.m.

The three bicyclists of the Nappanee/Wakarusa community who died were of the Amish faith. The Amish use bicycles as a primary means of transportation, year round, and are a leading example of the many utilitarian virtues of the bicycle. Many of the Amish Community will be participating in this ride. Come and support them. The community seeks to make bicyling safe.

The Nappanee Bike-to-Work Safely Committee is organizing the ride along with the Nappanee Chamber of Commerce and invites all Michiana area bicyclists to join them. For more information you may contact the chamber at (574) 773-7281 or e-mail nappaneeofc@kconline.org. You may also contact me at (574) 370-6192 or e-mail at dannysg@verizon.net. 

Following the memorial ride there will be light snacks and drinks offered along with cookies baked by the Amish community. July 11 is also “Embrace the Pace” celebration day for the town, sponsored by the Nappanee Chamber.

Directions: From the intersection of US 6 and SR 19 in downtown Nappanee, travel east to Summit Street, turn north, and travel to the park entrance. This is the staging area for the ride.

Here’s a Google Map:

View Larger Map

Bicycle Indiana is working to establish a clearer, more needs-driven agenda on behalf of Indiana cyclists, and have designed a web-based survey to give every Indiana cyclist a voice in this process! Your input is VITAL, and you are invited to complete the survey at survey monkey: http://tiny.cc/uuffL. The survey will be available for online completion until Wednesday, July 8, 2009.

In appreciation for your time, upon completion of the survey you will be invited to enter your name into a drawing for the following prizes:
GRAND PRIZE (2 winners): $50 gift card for an Indiana bicycle retailer
SECOND PRIZE (20 winners): eco-friendly fleece hat with the “BICYCLE INDIANA” logo OR a copy of the book “Pedaling for Pizza” (signed by its two Indiana authors!)

A while back we wrote about Momentum: The Magazine for Self-Propelled People.

Now they have competition.  Bicycle Times, published by the makers of Dirt Rag, are now covering the same urban/utility/transportation/everyday cycling we cover right here at Bike Michiana.  I noticed Issue 2 today on newstands at the Notre Dame Bookstore, so it must be everywhere.  Check it out!

Witnesses saw two young men jump on the unattended police bikes and ride away. The incident occurred Friday afternoon in downtown South Bend. Read the full story in the South Bend Tribune.

A couple of moms have asked on the Bike Michiana Google Group about riding with kids.  It struck me really hard that I don’t know anything about that!

So I join them in asking you: what are some recommendations you’ve found useful for riding with kids?

According to a report in the South Bend Tribune, a cyclist was hospitalized when she ran into a car near Wayne and St. Joseph streets at about 4:00pm on June 18.

A car pulled out of the Wayne Street parking garage and into her path. The report does not say if she was riding on the sidewalk or the street, nor if she was riding on the right side of the street.

The report goes on to say the woman struck the car and fell from her bike injuring her hip and was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The EcoFest is a Downtown South Bend event that includes a bike race and more: learn what’s new in green technology and healthy living. In addition to the race, there are hands-on demonstrations, Eco Tours, and interactive educational experiences.

For info on the race, and for info on the Eco Fest event.