Fall 2015

11/5/15

Edited by: Adam Raskoskie

The Charlotte Spokes People (CSP) is an umbrella organization of people just like YOU that want to improve cycling in and around the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area. Thank you for helping us make biking better in town.  We created this group to keep cyclists informed about the multitude of happenings in and around town including: rides, planning meetings, classes, events, and all things BIKE. We’ll be working on a regularly published newsletter this year. Please subscribe so you can keep up to date and help us continue to improve your biking in Charlotte

FEATURED RIDE:

Cranksgiving

Halloween has come and gone, and now that we’ve put the costumes away, it’s time to get ready for the major holiday—Cranksgiving! (What did you think I was going to say?)

Cranksgiving is a multi-city charity bike race that challenges your speed and navigational skills as you endeavor to obtain all the items on your manifest before the two-hour time limit is up. All of the items you collect will be donated to a local charity; this year, the ride benefits Second Harvest Food Bank. Bring your bike and some cash to purchase your donations to Gumbo at 1:30pm, Sunday, November 8^th to register for the event. The ride begins at 2:00. Teams of four and individual riders can compete, and there will be prizes for the winners in both categories!

Want more info about the history of Cranksgiving Charlotte? Go to cltspokespeople.org/cranksgiving/ and like the Facebook page at facebook.com/CranksgivingCharlotte. For more information about Cranksgiving in general, check out cranksgiving.org. We will see you there!

BICYCLE BENEFITS:

Newest Businesses and Poll Results

Who doesn’t love our Charlotte Bicycle Benefits businesses? For $5, you can get a sticker that unlocks a host of special deals and offers at businesses that support our bike community. Our ten newest Bicycle Benefits businesses are listed below with their deals and locations.

• Davidson Public House: 3220 N Davidson St · 980-209-9992 · $2 off $20
  
• Ajbani: 2903 Central Ave · 980-349-4015 · 10% off food
  
• Bonsai Fusion: 25 E. 6th Street · 704-620-1534 · 10% off food or free miso
  
• Moxie Mercantile: 2008 Commonwealth Avenue · 704-877-7879 · moxiemercantile.com · 10% off
  
• Charlotte Cycles: 337 Baldwin Avenue · 704-333-4358 · $10 off any tune up and 10% off parts and accessories
  
• Orrmann’s Cheese Shop: 224 E 7th St · 980-226-3025 · 10% off
  
• Petra’s: 1919 Commonwealth Ave · 704-332-6608 · $1 off draft
  
• Law office of David Demers: 101 N McDowell St #200 · 704-334-3395 · $50 off any traffic ticket
  
• Pure Pizza Central: 1911 Central Ave · 980-207-0037 · 5% off
  
• CLTCH: 1512-A Central Avenue · 704-375-2444 · 10% off $15 or more purchase
  

October’s three most popular new spots were Pure Pizza, Petra’s, and Charlotte Cycles! Thanks to them and all Bicycle Benefits businesses for their support. To see all of Charlotte’s participating businesses, bookmark this site.

IN THE MEDIA:

How to be a Part of the Charlotte Biking Community

The November 2 edition of Charlotte Agenda includes a starter guide to getting involved in Charlotte’s vibrant bicycling community. The Spokes People received a special shout-out for the resources and support we provide to local cyclists! Click here to visit Charlotte Agenda and read the article.

FROM THE CYCLING SAVVY WEBSITE:

Ten Tips for Successful Cycling

1. Ride on the road.
   
2. Know and follow the rules.
   
3. Integrate in the intersections.
   
4. Ride Big.
   
5. Communicate.
   
6. Be mindful of your surroundings.
   
7. Understand how traffic flows.
   
8. Want respect? Act respectably.
   
9. Let it go: don’t escalate harassment.
   
10. Keep it fun!
    

For complete details about each of the ten tips, visit cyclingsavvy.org/ten-tips-for-successful-cycling/.

The next Cycling Savvy class is in December! Take the first step toward confidence to ride your bike anywhere by visiting register.cyclingsavvy.org/groups/north-carolina to sign up.

Upcoming Events

Ride a bike and make new friends at these upcoming events.

Nov 5 (and every Thursday!): Thursday Night Bike Club / 6:30pm / Thomas Street Tavern

Nov 6: 1st Friday Gallery Crawl – Food Truck Friday – Bike Takeover Social / 6:00pm / Queen City Bicycles

Nov 7 (and every Saturday!): Kidical Mass / 2:00pm / Kilgo UMC

Nov 8: Cranksgiving / 2:00pm/ Gumbo

Nov 10 (and every Tuesday!): PMTNR / 7:45 / Common Market Plaza Midwood

Nov 13: Spoke Easy Alleycat / 12:00am / The Spoke Easy

Nov 15 (and every Sunday!): Sunday Slow Riders / 2:00pm / Gumbo

Nov 22: Sunday Slow Riders Pre-Ride Yoga / 1:00pm / 8^th Street Studio

Nov 27 / Critical Mass / 8:00pm / Common Market Plaza Midwood

Dec 5 / Cycling Savvy / Class 1

Dec 11-13 / Cycling Savvy Course

For more details about these and other upcoming rides, go to cltspokespeople.org/calendar/.

Contact Us

CLTSpokesPeople@gmail.com

Please share this newsletter, and as always…

Come ride with us!

Remember to subscribe to the newsletter so you can keep up with the happenings.  

This may be your ONLY email from us.