May is Bike Month

Bike Month is just a few weeks away.  With the ongoing pandemic, several of the traditional Bike Month activities, such as the Mall to Mall Ride and Bike to Work Day Corporate Challenge, will take a pause for another year.  However, there will still be important activities planned for the month, starting with the MOTHERLOAD film virtual screening and panel discussion, which will be on Sunday, May 2 at 4:00 pm.

MOTHERLOAD captures a new mother’s quest to understand the increasing isolation and disconnection of modern life, its planetary impact, and how cargo bikes could be an antidote.  Filmmaker Liz Canning cycled everywhere until she had twins in 2008.  Motherhood was challenging, but to Liz hauling babies via car felt stifling.  She Googled “family bike” and uncovered a global movement of people replacing cars with cargo bikes: long-frame bicycles designed for carrying heavy loads.  This inspiring film is not just for mothers or cyclists, but for anyone who likes a good movie.

Registration for the film is at https://fcbc.eventbrite.com/.  Registrants will receive a link to view the film for 36 hours prior to the panel discussion on May 2 at 4:00 pm. We want to register at least 100 people for the event, so we need your help. Invite your friends and family and help us spread the word. Register now so as to not forget and then miss the event!

The panelists include:

• Liz Canning, Director and Filmmaker
• Esmeralda Soria, Esq., Fresno City Councilmember, District 1
• Genoveva Islas, MPH, Founder, and Executive Director, Cultiva La Salud
• Laura Gromis, MA, Executive Director, US Green Building Council Central California

Smart Cycling Class on May 19

Several of the FCBC League Cycling Instructors will be conducting a Smart Cycling webinar on May 19 at 6:00 pm in conjunction with the U.S. Green Building Council Central California and their Bike Safe Fresno program. More details and registration information can be found here

Ride of Silence on May 19

The Ride of Silence is a global event that honors cyclists who have been killed or injured.  It takes place on the third Wednesday in May with a ride-off time of 7:00 pm.  This year, the event will be on May 19, and the ride in Fresno will begin at The Bike Shop at Woodward, with cyclists gathering at 6:30 pm.  The route includes Fort Washington Road, Copper Avenue, Maple Avenue, Shepherd Avenue, and Champlain Drive.  More details can be found at https://fb.me/e/gWTlyR70b

Bike to Work Day is May 21

The national Bike to Work Week will be May 17 to 23, with Bike to Work Day is on Friday, May 21.  With many people still working or going to school online, you can bike to anywhere on May 21.  Submit your pictures riding your bike that week, and we’ll post them on Facebook and Instagram.  

FCBC Strategic Plan and New Guiding Principles

As part of the ongoing strategic planning process, the FCBC Board formally adopted a new mission statement of “FCBC works to build healthy, equitable, and safe communities through advocacy, education, and collaboration that promotes bicycling for everyday transportation and recreation.”  This replaces the prior mission statement of “To promote safe bicycling for everyday transportation and recreation in Fresno County through advocacy and education.”  The proposed vision statement was also adopted:  “We envision a Fresno County that is a beacon of positive transformation where bicycling is safe, enjoyable, and accessible to all, and is an integral part of a sustainable multimodal transportation system.”

Building on the survey results on the core values, new guiding principles were developed and adopted by the FCBC Board:

• We educate and encourage people to ride safely, knowledgeably, and confidently. 
• We create community and social connection through bicycling.
• We promote equitable access to bicycling.
• We promote bicycling for economic vitality, health, and wellbeing.

These guiding principles will help direct all future FCBC activities.

Membership Coordinator Needed

The FCBC Board is in need of a Membership Coordinator on the Board of Directors.  If you are energetic and outgoing and like people and bicycles, this volunteer position may be for you.  Just a few hours each month could help FCBC grow the organization.  However, if you are not yet willing to commit to being a Board member, we would still love to hear from you and discuss how you could help us.  If you have any interest or have questions, please contact us at info@fresnobike.org.

Next Board Meeting

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 15 at 7:30 pm via Zoom.  We will be discussing the Bike Month activities.  Everyone is welcome to join the virtual meeting.  If you would like to participate, please send an email to info@fresnobike.org, and the login information and call-in number will be sent to you.

Membership

If you are not yet a member of FCBC or need to renew, please visit https://fresnobike.org/join  to become a member or renew. 

Check out the latest video by Pedal Junkies, Sara and Tea Gonzalez, re FCBC's efforts to get more people riding bikes to improve our air quality.

Created for the Healthy Air Alliance's Earth Month Celebration 

https://healthyairalliance.org/celebrating-earth-month/