UCLA Bicycle Academy: Not called Christmas any more

Monday, December 15, 2008

Not called Christmas any more

They say it is not called Christmas any more, but I just cannot kick the habit. Whatever you call it, don't forget your bicycle and your bicycle friends.

The LACBC, our Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition has come up a with a nice selection of T-shirts for all frame and chest sizes, with marvelous designs, and a good cause it is too. www.zazzle.com/lacbc1. And don't forget one for yourself, after all those missed stops at the gas station, you surely have earned one, or even two.

Next year the Bicycle Coalition (www.la-bike.org) is planning a big membership drive at UCLA. T-shirts are good, but with all the work that waits for us to make the bicycle really viable in Los Angeles, we need smart and angry cyclists who join in and take charge. We could have a cordon of stations at most entries to the campus, and hail cyclists with good news about supporting the bicycle party. Now that the other election is over, we need to vote the bicycle king, and we need to do it soon. Please let me know if we can count on you to be on the sidewalk at the crucial time, and greet, thank, inform, count and recruit our brave and beautiful souls on the saddle. This is going to be a big one, and we want 50 bicycle recruiters placed at 12 points, and the exercise may include a short questionnaire and some counting of the bicycles.

There was also talk about a different kind of bicycle event:

A ride from USC to UCLA, and one from UCLA to USC, 11 miles each way. Crews depart at the same time, they meet twice on the road, and a noisy encounter it may be. Before the return trip, each crew is fed and watered at the other campus in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, as only the bicycle can produce it. And the winner is: The group which sends more cyclists, and offers a kinder welcome to the arriving peloton. -

Lets hear from you if you can help to get this off the ground: velocipedus@gmail.com

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Our Board

Phillip Bonacich (President) is emeritus professor of sociology with an interest in the economy of power in groups. He is a long time bicycle commuter and his daughter, Cory Caletti, is a senior transportation planner and bicycle program manager for the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission. Phillip cycles from Mar Vista.
Michael Cahn (Secretary) has "invented" the Bicycle Academy in 2008. He occasionally teaches a class on the history of transportation for the history department. He is a former board member of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition and previously served as secretary of the Cambridge Cycling Campaign. He runs a secondhand bookshop in Cambridge (UK). He cycles from Santa Monica.
Jack Katz (Director) is professor of sociology with an interest in video documentation of the interactions of cycling in urban traffic. He would like to work with others to evaluate local candidates for political office for their track record on cycling issues. He picked up a 20$ bike at a garage sale on the way back from the car repair place 15 years ago, and would never be without one since. In the morning, he puts the bike on the 20 / 720 bus near Koreatown, and enjoys the ride back from campus.
Michael Manville (Director) is a professor of Urban Planning at the Luskin School of Public Affairs. He rides to campus from West Hollywood. Lucky him, he says he has been able to avoid for car commute for most of the positions he has held in the past. He is an active participant in regional planning issues and contributes to legislative initiatives on housing and transport.
Suzanne Paulson (Director) is a professor of Atmospheric & Oceanic Science and at the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. She rides to campus from Sunset Park in Santa Monica on a quality steel bike. She has cycling company on her commute because her son Ry attends Geffen Academy on campus. He likes to use her panniers to transport his books to school.
Alex Purves (Director) is an Associate Professor of Classics at UCLA. She bicycles to campus from Santa Monica and also cycles with son to his elementary school. She is currently writing a book on Homer, who knew neither bicycles nor cars, but who did sing of the odd collision between chariots and pedestrians.
David Williams (Director) is a professor of Ophthalmology and Neurobiology at UCLA. He does research and teaches on the retina, and would like to see more motorists using their retina to view the road rather than their smart phones. He cycles in Westwood, but prefers places where there are fewer motor vehicles.

Purpose and Membership

The purpose of the UCLA Bicycle Academy is to improve conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians at UCLA. The Academy will
* Advocate for bicyclists’ and pedestrians’ interest on UCLA facilities
* Work with the campus and agencies and communities surrounding the campus in order to improve bicycle and pedestrian access to campus.
* Host social and educational events with a focus on bicycle/pedestrian issues related to UCLA.
Membership is open to current or former staff or faculty or visiting scholars of UCLA. Partners and family members of the above are also eligible as members. Students are welcome to all our functions.