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Case Cycling finished the collegiate track season on September 22nd by achieving its second-ever national ranking.

Only in its second year, Case Cycling’s track program sent two riders to the USA Cycling (USAC) Collegiate Track Nationals in Colorado Springs, CO. Graduate student Jenna Tomasevich and senior David Takahashi competed over three days of intense racing against the best in the country. Tomasevich placed 48th in the Individual Women's Omnium and scored enough points to place Case Western Reserve University in 15th place overall for Division II.

Tomasevich had this to say about her experience at Track Nationals:

“Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to be racing at nationals when I started as an undergrad at Case five years ago … [and] I couldn’t be prouder to have represented my wonderful team and my university at the national level.

May is Bike Month nationwide.  The Heights Bicycle Coalition is supporting local celebrations of Bike Month through collaborations with Heights cities, schools and more.  All are welcome to participate in these free Bike Month activities in the Heights:

The biggest bike-to-school program in the nation is right here in Northeast Ohio, and it grew even bigger this year. 

Despite the cold and snow, winter has been a busy season for Bike Cleveland. We recently moved our office to the Sustainable Cleveland Center in Tower City (230 W. Huron Rd, Cleveland, OH 44113). Please stop by and visit us at our open house on April 4th, from 8-9pm, then check out La Camioneta, our sponsored film in the Cleveland International Film Festival, premiering at 9:40pm. We will have refreshments and plenty of great bike information. We hope to see you there!

Beer Lovers and Bike Lovers Unite! Cleveland Beer Week is October 18 through 26, and you can help kick it off with Cleveland Beer Week's only bicycle-themed event!

Join Century Cycles as they close out their 19th season of Night Rides on the Towpath Trail with their 4th Annual "All Hail the Ale!" Night Ride on the Towpath Trail. The fun begins at 7:00pm in the parking lot of the Century Cycles store in Peninsula, Ohio (1621 Main Street), where you can cycle-your-own smoothies using the blender bike! Arrive a little early to allow time for parking and getting your bike and gear ready. You'll need your own bicycle, helmet, and a headlight. The store will be open before the ride starts in case you need to purchase any gear or need help with your bike.

Cleveland’s bike enthusiasts have spoken! Due to the sold out crowd for last year’s inaugural safari on two wheels – Wild Ride at the Zoo – this year we’re planning two!

Every year, Crank-Set Rides hosts a ridiculous Zombie-themed event called The Dead Ride. Picture it: hundreds of cyclists on bikes... dressed as the undead. Drooling, moaning, peeling skin off their arms and picking bones out of their teeth.

This is the season to get in the spirit of zombies and mix it up with riding in Cleveland's amazing fall weather. The ride started in 2010, at Cranky's Pub on W25, where Crank-Set also hosted an Alley-Cat race to accompany it. The riders get their makeup done, ride around town, stop at various localities to terrorize the city a bit, and then end with a great after party. It truly is a unique event.

In recent years, The Dead Ride has been hosted at Lincoln Park Pub, to help accommodate the hundreds of participants on their large back patio. The site of this is most definitely a memory to keep. Usually a dozen makeup artists will dress your wounds (with more blood) and send you off on your most interesting evening.

Rewarding Rides is the creation of two friends: Mohammed 'Mo' Farunia and Gabriel 'Gabe' Williams. Each year Mo and Gabe will use cycling as a tool to raise money for a charity of their choosing; embark on a different cyclling tour with a varied destination, distance, and charity. Through the rides they promote healthy living and their motto, "Do something nice for someone, today and everyday."

Mo and Gabe's first tour took place in May of 2011. They cycled from Lakewood, Ohio to Athens, Ohio in 2 days, covering over 180 miles. During this first ride, the two were able to raise over $1,600 for St. Jude's Research Hospital.

On June 25 of 2012, Mo and Gabe rode from Lakewood, Ohio to Chicago Illinois and raised funds and awareness for Good Works Inc. of Athens, Ohio. The 5 day ride spanned a little over 400 miles, camping and meeting nice and interesting personalities along the way.

VeloSano, an annual cycling event to raise money for cancer research, has joined with two inaugural funding partners, ensuring that 100 percent of all proceeds will benefit life-saving cancer research at Cleveland Clinic. Inaugural founding partners include the Cleveland Indians and The Donna M. and Stewart A. Kohl Fund at the Cleveland Foundation. Supporting partners are MCPc and KeyBank.

After taking 17,573 bike rides to school, it's clear that the students who participated in Century Cycles' Bike to School Challenge in May embraced using their bikes for transportation. Thanks to a new contest, it's also clear that the students found artistic inspiration in their bicycles, too.

You're Invited!

You have been riding your bicycle in the name of the Rust Crown for months. 5 months to be exact. You have dutifully logged your miles in Endomondo. You have encouraged your friends and family to join in the challenge. You have participated in forums. You have discussed the miles. The points. The fact that you would do anything short of implanting a cyclo chip in your dog's skull to beat to beat Pittsburgh at something Cleveland definitely knows better: BIKES.

But have your efforts paid off? Did Cleveland win?

Of course the suspense is over: Cleveland logged more miles, but Pittsburgh scored more points and took the Rust Crown home. If you've got it in you to ride to Youngstown, you can join the Cleveland delegation for the crowning ceremonies and to show some Cleveland pride. Contact RustCrownCLE@bikecleveland.org

The 2013 Bike to Work Day series kicked off in May with over 450 people celebrating the joy of arriving to work by bike. On Friday, May 17th people on bikes were greeted at Energizer Stations and Bike to Work Day Parties where they were offered free coffee, breakfast,

Upcoming Bike To Work Days, Summer 2013

June 28

July 26

August 30 

September 27

October 25

All these Bike To Work days offer coffee and pastries at Bike to Work Day Parties from 7 to 9:30 a.m. at the Downtown Cleveland Bike Rack.

massages, free bike tune-ups and much more.

We still have 30 days left in the Rust Belt Battle of the Bikes and Pittsburgh is already preparing to celebrate. Case and point: Our friends in PGH have taken the official Rust Crown Chalice, built by our very own RustBelt Welding, ransom. They said if Cleveland wants it back we need to log 150,000 miles in the month of September in the National Bike Challenge.

Touring Tips: Roadside Repairs

Bob Polk of Bob's Bike Tours has been offering guided tours of Downtown Cleveland, Ohio City, and Tremont since 2011.  He is now also the face of Cleveland Bicycle Advertising, providing an eco-friendly, fun, and personable alternative to ho-hum advertising.

Bob's passion for bicycling, baseball, and Cleveland lead him to start an Annual Ride for the Tribe.  Bob said, "I was sitting in the bleachers at an Indians game in late September 2011, it was the 7th inning and, if I remember, we were on our fifth pitching change, which gave me plenty of time to daydream.  I was thinking ahead to next Spring, and thought, how about a bicycle ride to the game!  What a perfect way to kick-off the bicycling season."  He thought, combining the three things he loved; riding, baseball, and Cleveland, this was a no-brainer.  As they say, the rest is history.

Mountain Bike Racing Is On

It’s time to race your mountain bike in Northeast Ohio.  Are you a traditional 26 inch wheel kind of rider with front or full suspension?  Are you a 29er rider sitting high with your 100 or more millimeters of travel?  Are you a trendy 27.5 (aka 650B) wheel rider?  Maybe you are one of the single speed unicorn mountain bike riders.  Well, here are some races for you.

The Heights Bicycle Coalition will again host Wednesday evening rides that showcase the Heights and neighboring communities. These are social rides open to all cyclists of all ages. The rides often conclude at a local restaurant or pub for refreshment.

Free Wheelin' Wednesday rides, starting at 6:30 p.m. from the Coventry Peace Park in Cleveland Heights.

• June 12, Little Free Libraries, ride to three Heights Library mini book houses providing free books in the Fairfax, Canterbury and Noble neighborhood, led by Sarah O’Keeffe.
• June 26, Tour of Heights Community Gardens, led by Alice Stratton.
• July 10, Forest Hill Park and neighborhood history and the Rockefeller family connection, led by Joy Henderson.
• July 24, Cleveland Heights Pub Crawl, including The BottleHouse Brewery, Rockefeller’s Restaurant, Melt and Winking Lizard Tavern, led by Tom Ligman.
• August 14, Wade Oval Potluck, ride to University Circle for a potluck picnic and Wade Oval Wednesday concert, with music by Otis & The Shoreway Saints Rock/Motown/British Mod, led by Lee Reis.
• August 28, Democracy in Action: Civil Rights History of Cleveland Heights, led by Susie Kaeser and Joy Henderson.

Local cyclists are invited to contribute their own answers at a Ride of Silence in honor of Sylvia Bingham

 Most people who ride regularly in traffic have had the adrenalin-raising experience of being “buzzed” by a motorist: you’re riding along, minding your business, riding legally on the right side of the road, and some idiot passes you within a foot or two of sending you to the hospital, or worse.  Your fight-or-flight response kicks in: maybe you make a futile, angry hand gesture -- or you catch up to them at the next red light, and engage in an angry (and, usually, unfulfilling) “discussion” of the finer points of traffic law.

The Towpath Trail is one of Northeast Ohio's most popular bicycle paths by day. Riding it by moonlight is an entirely different experience that bicyclists of all abilities can enjoy on Century Cycles Night Rides on the Towpath Trail, now back for their 19th year this spring.

Allow us to introduce ourselves.  Our mission is to offer a bicycle education - based workspace, and to advocate for bicycling in a way that fosters a healthier, safer, and more sustainable community.  Although our workspace happens to be located in Bay Village, our organization is not just for Bay rresidents, but for everyone in the region.

Our education offerings this year will focus on teaching basic bicycle maintenance and safe bicycling techniques.  Class times and dates will be posted on our website as they are finalized.

In line with our mission of sustainability and education, the cooperative also repairs donated bicycles and sells them back to the community.  This keeps usable bicycles from ending up in a landfill, and at the same time  provides education opportunities for our volunteers. Of course it also allows the public to purchase low-cost bicycles that have been freshly tuned-up.   All proceeds help fund the Cooperative.

Our first year of operation was a busy one.  We were able to develop collaborative relationships with many organizations throughout the region.  We continue to seek creative, collaborative relationships with any business or organization interested in furthering bicycling in our community.

During open hours, all are welcome to see our mission in action by stopping at our workspace in the basement of the Bay Village Community House, at 303 Cahoon Rd.. There you'll learn more about our mission by talking with volunteers.  You can also view and purchase used bicycles, and you can even bring your bicycle to work on it.  Because we are 100% volunteer-operated, our workspace hours vary from week to week.  Current open hours are posted to the Open Shop tab of our website, www.villagebicycle.org.  You may also contact us at info@villagebicycle if you have any questions, are looking to collaborate, or would like to get involved.

Throngs of folks tumbled through the doors of the Denver Convention Center over the 3 days of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show--NAHBS 2013--in February.  

Grace Gallucci, executive director of the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, will speak at the Heights Bicycle Coalition’s annual meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 23, at The Open Office, 2843 Washington Boulevard, Cleveland Heights, Ohio.  Following a brief annual meeting of the bicycle coalition, Ms. Gallucci will speak about the role of NOACA in regional transportation and environmental planning, and her view of the place of bicycles in the transportation mix.  The public is welcome to attend.

Case Cycling, the cycling team at Case Western Reserve University, is looking for sponsors for its 2014 season. Promotional opportunities include logo placement on team jerseys, the team tent, visibility in social media, and more. 

Beck Center for the Arts and Connect to Beck (C2B) are proud to announce the second annual Bike for Beck bike ride and festival on Sunday, May 19th. C2B and the Beck are excited to build on last year’s triumphant success by offering even more music, food, art, activities, and other cycling-related fun.

East-siders have an opportunity – rare in the Heights – to take a course to become confident riders, taught by a League of American Bicyclists’ certified instructor. The Heights Bicycle Coalition is offering a Smart Cycling class for adults on Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. at Heights High School, 13263 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights.

Extreme sports are on the rise and bicycling is no exception. Enter the Amish Country Roubaix, complete with gravel, dirt and worse. Fashioned after the Paris-Roubaix, a one day professional bicycle race in northern France, this local challenging event will be held Sunday, April 21, at noon from the Holmes County Fairgrounds in Millersburg. It's sponsored by Ride On Wooster Bicycle's Soupcan Mountain Bike racing team.

It’s only been a few short years since we last expanded, but the response was so positive that we decided to do it again!  Over the winter, another 4000 square feet was added to our North Olmsted showroom to enhance our bike and clothing selection, stretch out our service department,  and allow our fitters to have some working room when we are busy.   Cycling is more popular than ever in NE Ohio, and we are doing our best to keep pace with the growth of our favorite sport.

The term “food desert” has seeped from urban planning into general use to describe places – usually in inner cities – where there are no commercial sources of nourishment other than fast food “restaurants” or packaged junk food from convenience stores.  Food deserts are often inhabited by poorer folks: the lack of good transportation options just compounds the problem.

It’s spring and thoughts turn towards … Riding? Baseball?  How about a ride featuring Cleveland baseball history, what could be better! 

Bike Cleveland’s website recently received an overhaul with the generous support of Cleveland GiveCamp. Taking only one weekend the team of local developers were able to give the site new life and new features that will help the whole biking community. Here is an outline of some of the new features:

The Cleveland State Cycling Club is building much hype, and is in the beginning stages of becoming the most exciting school organization on the CSU Campus.  With already 180 "likes" (and counting) on Facebook, students have been engaging throughout the Internet and exploring the new club's personal website (www.CSUCyclingClub.org), where they learn about great reasons to join. For example, club President Michael Hach has been talking with local cycling shops such as Fairview Cycle, Century Cycles, and Cleveland’s new Velodrome, to get CSU Cycling Club members discounts on bicycles, parts, and accessories.

Ride for Miles is a nonprofit organization established by family, friends, and colleagues of Dr. Miles Coburn to educate people about the environment and bicycle safety.  The ride begins and ends at John Carroll University, departing at 10AM on Sunday, September 15, 2013. Participating cyclists will go on a non-competitive, 15-mile bike ride through the Eastern Suburbs of Cleveland.

The funds from this annual noncompetitive bicycle ride go towards funding the Miles Coburn endowed chair at John Carroll.  This project continues Miles' work of educating students and the community about the urgency of environmental activism.

Miles Coburn (1949-2008) was a biology professor at John Carroll University, working just a few hundred yards from the home where he grew up as the second-oldest of seven siblings and a few blocks from his home with his wife and two children.

Trains, Trails, and Limestone – An Inexpensive Ride

Eddy's maintenance classes are low key, informative, and fun!  All 4 of our locations offer convenient classes on a variety of dates. Please call the store you wish to visit and reserve your spot.  You can also welcome to sign up the next time you are in.  Prepayment is required, and is 100% refundable if you are unable to attend.

Cheese.  A Super Bowl’s halftime show.  Bikes.  These are some of the best things in the middle of some of your favorite things: a popular grilled sandwich, the biggest game in football, and a triathlon.

NCN Racing has been organizing racing events since 1987.  Our beloved bike is just part of their many triathlons and duathlons.

Speaking personally with NCN’s race director, Rick Cadwell, this writer asked him a few questions about the cycling portion of his races.

What is unique about NCN races is that bike racers have a timing chip similar to a major running race.  Chips even record transition times between swimming and running.  Results are posted pretty swiftly online.  Their race venues of Bay Village and Avon provide a beautiful view of Lake Erie.  Plus, their routes are flat, and fast.

To inspire a spirit of giving back to bicycling, national bicycle advocacy organization Bikes Belong awarded local bike retailer Century Cycles with a $1,000 "Build More Than Bicycles" Award for its Bike To School Challenge program. The award was presented at Interbike, the bicycle industry's biggest trade show. Century Cycles was one of only three bike shops in the United States to win the grant challenge, which received over 200 submissions.

Century Cycles is offering over 10 different bicycling and maintenance clinics at its stores from mid-November through mid-March, all free to attend with no RSVP required.

Century Cycles is putting the old-fashioned slumber party on two wheels for its 4th Annual Pajama Party Night Ride on the Towpath Trail on Saturday, August 10, at 7 p.m. at the Century Cycles store in Peninsula (1621 Main Street/Route 303).

This month Bike Cleveland will launch a region-wide public awareness campaign aimed at improving motorist awareness of cyclists on Greater Cleveland’s roads. As the number of people riding bikes grows, educating the motoring public on cyclists’ road rights and safely sharing the roads with cyclists takes on increasing importance.