Velo Allegro Cycling Club http://veloallegro.org The biggest Cycling Club out of Long Beach, California! Join Us!! Sat, 25 May 2013 06:01:50 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 Tour of Long Beach – Saturday, May 11th http://veloallegro.org/2013/04/tour-of-long-beach-make-every-pedal-count/ http://veloallegro.org/2013/04/tour-of-long-beach-make-every-pedal-count/#comments Tue, 30 Apr 2013 07:00:53 +0000 frank http://veloallegro.org/?p=2940 post thumbnail

PrintLong Beach is the “hood” for most Velo Allegro members so it is only logical that our members will be helping to support the Tour of Long Beach.  Velo Allegro is asking its’ members to sign up and ride and help raise funds for Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach.

Join in the fun by participating in the Tour of Long Beach’s 5-mile Family Fun Ride, or a picturesque 31 or 62-mile course on the bike paths and streets of Long Beach or the 100-mile Cruz Gran Fondo which loops through Long Beach then heads south down the Southern California Coast through Sunset Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. All paths lead to a full-day bike festival with live entertainment, food, craft beer garden and much more cycling and family-focused fun. Proceeds will support pediatric cancer research at Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach. Make it a family ride day with rides for all levels and meet  up at the Festival after the ride of your choice!

http://www.touroflongbeach.com/

 

 

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2013/04/tour-of-long-beach-make-every-pedal-count/feed/ 0 St. Patrick’s Day Race Photos http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/st-patricks-day-race-photos/ http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/st-patricks-day-race-photos/#comments Tue, 26 Mar 2013 04:55:11 +0000 frank http://veloallegro.org/?p=2891 post thumbnail

Check out some great race photos from Velo Allegro’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Race presented by ARCO.

 

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/st-patricks-day-race-photos/feed/ 0 Join or Renew Your 2013 Membership Today http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/join-or-renew-your-2013-membership-starting-today/ http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/join-or-renew-your-2013-membership-starting-today/#comments Tue, 19 Mar 2013 23:54:51 +0000 Anthony http://veloallegro.org/?p=2636 post thumbnail

It is never too late to join Velo Allegro if you haven’t done so yet in 2013.  Just fill out our membership form and release waiver and submit it to our PO Box (listed on the membership form).  We hope you can join us in 2013!
PDF File Membership Form – 2013

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2013/03/join-or-renew-your-2013-membership-starting-today/feed/ 0 Test Post http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/community-outr-post/ http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/community-outr-post/#comments Mon, 17 Sep 2012 06:16:15 +0000 Anthony http://veloallegro.org/?p=2337 Test Post

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/community-outr-post/feed/ 0 Club Newsletter – SEP 2012 http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/club-newsletter-sep-2012/ http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/club-newsletter-sep-2012/#comments Mon, 10 Sep 2012 21:49:52 +0000 Anthony http://veloallegro.org/?p=2407 post thumbnail

Velo Allegro Cycling Club Newsletter – SEP 2012

Click here for the September 2012 Newsletter (PDF)

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2012/09/club-newsletter-sep-2012/feed/ 0 Club Newsletter – APR 2012 http://veloallegro.org/2012/04/club-newsletter-apr-2012/ http://veloallegro.org/2012/04/club-newsletter-apr-2012/#comments Sun, 01 Apr 2012 21:37:49 +0000 Anthony http://veloallegro.org/?p=2398 post thumbnail

Velo Allegro Cycling Club Newsletter – APR 2012

Click here for the April 2012 Newsletter (PDF)

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2012/04/club-newsletter-apr-2012/feed/ 0 Club Newsletter – FEB 2012 http://veloallegro.org/2012/02/newsletters/ http://veloallegro.org/2012/02/newsletters/#comments Thu, 02 Feb 2012 03:02:32 +0000 Anthony http://veloallegro.org/?p=2364 post thumbnail

Velo Allegro Cycling Club Newsletter – FEB 2012

Click here for the February 2012 Newsletter (PDF)

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2012/02/newsletters/feed/ 0 What Drivers Can Do To Be More Cyclist Aware http://veloallegro.org/2011/11/cyclist-aware/ http://veloallegro.org/2011/11/cyclist-aware/#comments Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:00:16 +0000 Reuben Arellano http://veloallegro.org/?p=1918 post thumbnail

by Chris Gidney and Alex Margolis
November 10, 2011
Before we begin, this isn’t an anti-driving post, we’re not lambasting drivers. As much as drivers need to be more cyclist aware, follow road rules and drive safely, vice versa also applies!

Learn to share

As a car driver you may think the road belongs to you, but nobody owns the road. Everyone has a right to pass and re-pass on public highways. By law, a bicycle is a vehicle, so treat it like one.

Appreciate that cyclists are helping you

Counter-intuitive to what you may believe, cyclists actually reduce congestion on the roads by not driving cars. They ‘re reducing the time you spend in traffic jams as they’re taking up so much less space. Cyclists have a phrase for this, often seen on t-shirts and posters: One Less Car.

Avoid dooring cyclists

It’s illegal! It can also be fatal, and happens more than you’d expect. Don’t  open any doors without checking there aren’t any cyclists behind you. You could easily sweep them clean off their bikes and it won’t be pretty. Think about the breadth of your door, it’s easily 1-1.5m wide.
Driving with cyclists

Realise cyclists are vulnerable

You’re driving a vehicle hugely heavier and more powerful than theirs. In any impact, they will be the losers. Perhaps it’s best we take after most other European countries which operate ‘strict liabilty’. These regulations result in the motorist’s insurance usually being deemed to be responsible in any crash involving a cyclist. In the same way that a cyclist would be at fault in a smash with a pedestrian. With the driver always at fault in any accident, drivers become evidently more cautious around cyclists.

Helmets don’t equal guaranteed safety

Of course they’re definitely worth wearing, it’s just that drivers often think a cyclist with a helmet is 100% safe. Well, they’re not.
A helmet is designed to withstand head-on impacts of no more than 13mph! Some cyclists choose not wear to wear helmets and a UK study showed they are given more caution by drivers. A cyclist with a helmet, however, is by no means invincible.

Exercise some caution and be patient

90% of cyclist casualties in recent years were caused by careless inattention, firstly by drivers, secondly by cyclists (nidirect.gov.uk) It’s your responsibility to avoid hitting the cyclist, not the responsibility of the cyclist to avoid getting hit by you.
Pay attention and be on the lookout for cyclists at all times, especially when reversing. Use your mirrors as cyclists may overtake slow-moving traffic on either side. They may sometimes need to change direction suddenly, so just be aware of this and observe any indications they give such as looking over their shoulder. Don’t  tempt them into taking risks or endanger them.

Allow plenty of space

When overtaking a cyclist you’re required to give them as much room as you would a car. They may need to swerve to avoid hazards. Always anticipate that there may be a pothole, oily, wet or icy patch or some other obstruction. Cyclists endanger themselves by cycling in straight lines!
Don’t drive too close behind a cyclist as you may not be able to stop in time if they come off their bike or do something abruptly. Unless you have an entire clear, empty lane in which to pass, slow down and wait until there is room to pass. Pass them slowly!
Cars and cyclists

Drive slowly on low-vis roads

On rural roads or those with limited visibility remember that a cyclist could be around the next corner. It could also be an elderly person, a child or an animal. Reducing your speed reduces the risk of something happening.
You can’t see ahead of hills and curves, slow down as you don’t know what’s on the other side. Make sure you can stop the car at all times. At night the need to do so is more exaggerated. You need time for the headlights to shine on the road ahead and recognise that there’s something there.

Cyclists have a right to claim the lane

That’s correct. They have as much right as you do to take up the entire lane. You may think they’re being utterly selfish by doing so, but in fact they’re preventing having an accident. They really aren’t trying to slow you down, it’s just the safest way for them to cycle particularly if there’s a blind bend, a narrowing of the road, a high risk junction, pinch point or traffic lights ahead. Additionally if there’s a narrowing of the road, they’re stopping you squeezing through far too cosily beside them.
Cyclists should never cycle in the gutter as it gives no room for avoiding obstacles and leaves them no room to fall if an accident occurs, meaning they could go straight under your wheels. Not nice.

Beware a left turn

Turning left is how most accidents occur. A cyclist may sneak up, perfectly legally, beside you while you’re waiting impatiently at a red light. It’s not at all illegal for cyclists to filter on the left or right of lanes but it is often difficult to spot them, especially when hidden by your blind spot. You’ll hit the cyclist as they carry straight on and you’ve made a left right into them. Also be vigilant when pulling out of a side street, or car park.

Get on a bike!

Not until you experience what it’s like to be a cyclist on a busy road will you truly be able to empathise with them and realise how careless drivers can be at times. Cyclists can too be careless, but it usually ends in them getting hurt, not you!
]]> http://veloallegro.org/2011/11/cyclist-aware/feed/ 0 Community Outreach http://veloallegro.org/2011/06/community_outreach/ http://veloallegro.org/2011/06/community_outreach/#comments Fri, 24 Jun 2011 06:46:16 +0000 Reuben Arellano http://veloallegro.org/2011/08/community-outreach-in-on-090511/ post thumbnail

Miller Children's Hospital Long Beach

One of Velo Allegro’s mission goals is to benefit the community.  Specifically, we are taking the fight to cancer through our support of the Jonathan Jaques Children’s Cancer Center (JJCCC) at Long Beach Memorial Miller Children’s Hospital.  Giving back through this important health institution is very rewarding.  Over the past few years club members have participated in our annual end of year Christmas toy drive and donated toys, clothing, gift cards and family rated DVD’s.  Most recently, members raised money through a fundraiser dinner at Pappalucci’s Italian Restaurant and participation in the Tour of Long Beach bicycle fun ride.  We will continue to support the JJCCC and the Memorial Medical Center Foundation in their mission to fight cancer.

]]> http://veloallegro.org/2011/06/community_outreach/feed/ 0 Cycle safer http://veloallegro.org/2011/05/cycle-safer/ http://veloallegro.org/2011/05/cycle-safer/#comments Fri, 13 May 2011 14:17:51 +0000 admin http://veloallegro.org/?p=944 post thumbnail

Learn the essential skills for riding safely and confidently visit Bike Safe California. You can also find a bike safety class near you and learn about bike-related state laws, bike lights, helmet fitting and much more.

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