March 2024

Spring is around the corner, and daylight saving time is already making the days longer.  Budding trees and the annual Blossom Ride also mark the change in seasons.  If your bike has been in storage for the winter, now’s the time to get it ready to ride.

In this month’s Newsletter:

• FCBC is partnering with Rubber Soul Bicycles for a weekly Tuesday bike ride to Sycamore Island.

• Cycling and menstruation is a delicate issue that may affect up to half the riding population.

• On March 2, FCBC assisted the Reedley Lions Club with Blossom Ride activities.

• Last month FCBC hosted a tour of Class I bike paths in northeast Fresno.

• The California State Legislature is working on a new slate of bills, including many related to bicycling.

• The next FCBC general membership meeting and FCBC Board meeting are scheduled for Thursday, March 14 at 6:30 and 7:00 pm, respectively.

Weekly FCBC Rides with Rubber Soul Bicycles

FCBC is partnering with Rubber Soul Bicycles for a weekly 15-mile ride to Sycamore Island led by Jon Stewart with the bike shop.  The ride is both on and off pavement, and it departs from the bike shop at the northwest corner of Blackstone and Nees Avenues at 8:00 am every Tuesday.  From the bike shop, the ride goes through residential streets into Woodward Park.  The ride proceeds on the old Highway 41 and along the San Joaquin River to Sycamore Island and then returns to the bike shop by 9:30 am.  Sign up here for the weekly series of rides.  After registering, you may attend any week of your choosing.  Rain cancels the ride.

Cycling and Menstruation

FCBC Board member Edna Pedroza has a digital booklet available for those who are affected or want to know more about the delicate topic of cycling and menstruating.  Here’s an excerpt:

I was curious to know about whether or not the topic of feminine care was even a concern for women when it came to biking. I mean let’s not be coy, it happens and biking isn’t exactly conducive to the ease of the situation.  So I asked a couple of questions to get the dialogue going in hopes to shed some light on this obscure topic.  

1. What do you do to prepare to ride while on your period?
2. Do you think the topic of menstruation and bicycling is an important one to have? Why or why not?

You can read more here.

FCBC at the Blossom Trail Ride

One of the great traditions in the San Joaquin Valley is the annual Blossom Bike Ride, which starts and ends in Reedley.  The Reedley Lions Club has organized the event for over 30 years, with the most recent event taking place on March 2.  FCBC and Teens That Care set up a kids bike rodeo, and The Bike Station was also on hand to assist bike riders and repaired 14 bikes, as well as donating 21 refurbished kids bikes.  Stay tuned for the next free bike repair clinic to be held in the Tower District in Fresno.

Northeast Fresno Class I Bike Path Ride

On February 25, FCBC hosted a group ride that took over 30 riders on Class I bike paths in northeast Fresno.  The 12-mile ride was led by Sean Zweifler, City of Fresno Active Transportation Advisory Committee (ATAC) District 1 representative.  Many of the bike paths in northeast Fresno were constructed on decommissioned railroad rights of way.

Legislative Update

February 17 was the last day for bills to be introduced in the California Assembly or Senate.  There are several bicycle-related bills working their way through the legislative process, as highlighted below:

• Senate Bill 961 requires truck side guards and speed limiters that restrict vehicles to 10 mph of the speed limit.

• Assembly Bill 2290 establishes the Bikeway Quick-Build Project Pilot Program that requires each Caltrans district to implement a low-cost bicycle facility part of the Caltrans Maintenance Program by the end of 2027.  Projects funded by the SB-1 Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Program that include a bicycle facility if identified by a bicycle plan or active transportation plan.  It would also prohibit funding from the Active Transportation Program for Class II bike routes unless on a residential street with a speed limit of 20 mph or less.

• AB-2345 would prohibit anyone under 12 from riding an e-bike and directs the CHP to develop by June 30, 2025 a skills waiver that would be issued to e-bike riders who do not have a driver’s license.  Such e-bike riders would also be required to have in their possession the waiver and a California ID card while operating an e-bike.

• AB-2259 would require the California Transportation Agency, which is over the DMV, the CHP, Caltrans, and the Office of Traffic Safety, to develop and make available electronically and in print form by September 1, 2025 a bicycle safety handbook.  A similar bill was vetoed last year over concerns of the cost of printing the handbook.

• SB-1216 would prohibit funds from the Active Transportation Program to place Class III bikeways on roadways with speed limits of 30 mph or higher beginning in 2025.

Next General Membership and Board Meetings

The next general membership meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 21 at 6:30 pm via Zoom.  The general membership meeting is for members and nonmembers to meet with the Board prior to the official Board meeting to ask questions or raise issues for the Board to consider.  After the meeting concludes, at 7:00 pm at the latest, the Board meeting will begin.  Board meetings are restricted to members only.

If you would like to participate in the meeting, register here, and you will immediately get the Zoom link.

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 your membership.