The city is looking into the feasibility of a plan brought forth by the Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates to make the Carlson Corridor, the intersection located at Carlson and H and J streets, safer for cyclists. We’re looking at how the elements laid out in the plan would improve or enhance all modes of transportation for the corridor,” City Traffic Engineer Hector Barron said. “Right now, it’s all very preliminary in nature because it takes time to get through the process of evaluation.” Once the evaluation process is finished, the focus will be shifted to seeing how much the plan would cost to implement, followed by locating money sources — something Barron said won’t happen for a whi

Although West Sacramento resident Christina Pirruccello is currently undergoing chemotherapy for her second battle with breast cancer in two years, she has, according to friends, remained just as positive, chipper and energetic as she was in her high school cheerleading days. During this financially difficult time, high school friends and alumni have bonded together and created the inaugural Bike 2 Beat Cancer Ride on Saturday. The event will raise money through raffles and a silent auction that will support Pirruccello’s wish of building an education fund for her nearly 3-year-old daughter, Ella. “The community coming together to support her on Saturday is going to help make her wish co

The people who brought you the Wicked ‘Wich food truck and The Greens “Artists-In-Residence” are organizing a free bike-in theater and film festival at The Greens Hotel on Del Paso Blvd. Heights , August through October. (Get it? Bike-in instead of drive-in?) REEL Bike-in Theater is an outdoor film series showcasing award-winning documentaries, acclaimed independent films and classic Hollywood hits like Raiders of the Lost Ark and Best in Show. Festival organizers are hoping the film series will attract the region’s strong biking community to the event. Sacramento cyclists are notoriously supportive of local businesses and are attracted to bike-friendly events. In addition to movies, at

The fourth annual Race for the Ring is coming to Sacramento on July 14, 2012. This text messaged based treasure hunt on bike through downtown Sacramento directly benefits programs at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS). Teams of two will pedal, scoot and wheel their way through downtown Sacramento guided by text message clues in search of more than $10,000 in prizes. Each week leading up to the event, we have interviewed someone who is involved in the race to find out why they are racing for a reason. This week's interview is with Eli Roth. The Sacramento Press: Tell us a little bit about yourself. Eli Roth: I got involved with Race for the Rock (the old name) the first year

The fourth annual Race for the Ring is coming to Sacramento on July 14, 2012. This text messaged based treasure hunt on bike through downtown Sacramento directly benefits programs at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS). Teams of two will pedal, scoot and wheel their way through downtown Sacramento guided by text message clues in search of more than $10,000 in prizes. Each week leading up to the event, we will interview someone who is involved in the race to find out why they are racing for a reason. This week's interview is with Lori Rianda, an employee of event sponsor Bank of America. The Sacramento Press: Tell us a little bit about yourself. Lori Rianda: I have been with B

El Dorado County Supervisors held firm to a 2011 decision to support the Shingle Plan Compromise at a County Board meeting on January 24, 2012. The plan divides use of the Sacramento Placerville Transportation Corridor (SPTC) into two distinct segments. The area from Shingle Springs up to Diamond Springs has been allotted for the development of a heritage railroad. From Shingle Springs down to the Western El Dorado County line, development will focus on establishing a community trail that will serve local residents and connect to Folsom, thereby expanding our regional trail system. Trail and train supporters have been at odds for years over use of the SPTC, but the Supervisor's recent de

For John Weed, Eppie’s Great Race – now in its 38th year – serves as a new year’s celebration. The 58-year-old kayak instructor and whitewater guide has competed in the “no-swim” triathlon 35 times. The 38th annual Eppie’s Great Race takes place Saturday along the American River Parkway and is open to athletes of all ages. Weed said almost 40 years ago, he was hit by a semi truck while on his bicycle. Before that, he had been an avid runner. He came from a family of runners and in college would run 200 miles per week. “The doctors told me I’d never walk again, let alone run,” Weed said.  That same year, the Whitewater Slalom was introduced as an Olympic sport. Weed said he watched it

Oil your chains, pump up your tires and get geared up for Sacramento Bike Month. May is bike month in Sacramento, and there are many bike-related activities and events going on in the region whether you’re an advanced bicyclist or a recreational rider. May is a good month for biking, and it’s the perfect time to campaign for bike awareness, according to Sacramento Area Council of Governments co-chair Sonja Atkins. “I think it’s about getting people out there for their health, for air quality, to save money and for safety,” Atkins said. “There’s so many pieces to this puzzle, and it’s such a great mode of transportation that I see is important in many realms.” The campaign, in its sixth

Four years after she almost died from Lyme disease, Pamela O’Kane is one of three Sacramento women competing for Team USA at the World Triathlon Championships this week in Budapest, Hungary. It’s the second year in a row she’s qualified for Team USA. The 49-year-old lecturer from CSU Sacramento hopes there will be many more such adventures to come. It’s a far cry from how things looked in the spring of 2006. With her kids grown, a job she liked, and a love of athletic pursuits like running, swimming, and biking, she should have been on top of the world. Instead, she started experiencing weird symptoms her doctors couldn’t explain. She lost weight and muscle mass. She developed facial pa

Downtown Sacramento was a blur of baby blue T-shirts Saturday during the 2nd Annual Race for the Rock. More than 250 two-member teams competed for bling in the scavenger hunt, in which clues were sent via text message. The grand prize was a $20,000 Hearts on Fire diamond ring donated by Rogers Jewelry. Proceeds benefited Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services (SFBFS). Unlike many other nonprofit fund raisers, donors got the ball rolling, not the charity. "We wanted to do something that brought the community together and where people could have a good time," said Calvin Curtin of Rogers Jewelry. After deciding to do a scavenger hunt, Rogers chose SFBFS as its community partner. "We tol

The Amgen Tour of California doesn't begin until Sunday, but Levi Leipheimer already is heavily favored to win. "I think it will be a wonderful race," cycling commentator Phil Liggett said at a news conference Friday. "Levi Leipheimer will still win, but what the hell." Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong echoed that sentiment about the winner of the last three Tours of California. "If I were looking at it like an analyst, I would say that Levi, Dave (Zabriskie) and Michael Rogers are the big three," Armstrong said. "I guarantee you that Levi will kick (Mark) Cavendish's ass on hills." Cavendish would do the same to him on sprints, Leipheimer said under his breath. He note

Do you remember the feeling of riding a bike for the very first time? I do. I can recall the feeling of freedom, of gliding through the air under my own power, of the wind rushing past my hair and face. That was a magical feeling that can only happen once – the first time I learned to do something. But more than that, it is one my best childhood discoveries and memories. My entire body was uplifted and carried magically through space and time, and I felt that the whole world was mine and mine alone, until I crashed because I didn't know how to stop the bike. Do you remember the first hard crash on your bike, leaving your knees bloody and your palms numbed and bruised from hitting the pav

Amgen Tour of California teams were announced Friday morning. The roster includes seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong as well as Levi Leipheimer, winner of the last three consecutive Tour of California races, among others. The Sacramento Press will continue to cover the Amgen Tour of California, which rolls through the city Sunday, May 16. This will include a pre-race press conference May 14 and race day coverage. The following is a press release about the team announcement, via Bob Burns of the Sacramento Sports Commission. The world-class roster of teams and cyclists scheduled to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California has been announced by race presenter AEG.

The first bicycle was used as a replacement for a horse, required a saddle and was propelled like Fred Flinstone's car. According to University of California, Davis, Bicycle Program Coordinator David Takemoto-Weerts, an early bicycle-like invention was a "Draisine," a 19th-century invention of German forest ranger Karl Von Drais, for whom the the proto-bike is named. Similar machines were tweaked by engineers until bikes evolved into what we use today. Takemoto-Weerts helped facilitate the purchase of a Draisine, part of the Pierce Miller collection that U.C. Davis bought in 2000 for a little under $400,000. It is now one of the dozens of historic and modern bikes displayed at the U.S. B

At 9:00 am, nearly a hundred cyclists showed up for  Sacramentos first Tweed Ride sunday for the all day neighborhood bike ride. Amazing as  the idea gave birth just a little over a month beforehand. Thanks to powerful internet networking the idea traveled fast and soon the restaurants that accepted  to participate got what they reserved, a lot of love from the enthusiasts dressed in fine vintage tweed.  The scramble to amass the finer vintage look was on and the final result a best dressed contest showed us the need for such an event.  The enthusiasm was contagious as was the creative impulse for both vintage bike and dress alike. Many cities have such a ride already in place. New York,

At about 9 a.m. Thursday, three-time Amgen Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer announced via a "tweet" that he was going to defend his title in 2010. It was part of a high-profile Twitter conversation started by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that went something like this: "@schwarzenegger: Great news for American cycling fans and CA. The 2010 Amgen Tour of California will be better than ever. @lancearmstrong will you join us? @lancearmstrong: Absolutely! @schwarzenegger, I've decided to ride the #Amgen Tour of California in 2010. Can't wait. What about you @levileipheimer? @levileipheimer: I'll definitely be racing the 2010 Amgen Tour of California, defending my title." Then at 4:30

Bikes, beer and beards - all were in abundant supply this weekend at the second annual Sacramento Bike Games, which lasted all of Saturday evening. A select group of people received phone calls Saturday morning from the event's organizers telling them where to meet up for the first event, a skid-stop competition held on the American River Bike Trail at noon. After that, the action moved to Discovery Park, where the Pick Up, Footdown and Trackstand events were held. While Footdown and Trackstands have been explained in previous articles in this storyline, Pick Up is probably unfamiliar to readers. In Pick Up, objects of successively diminishing size have to be picked up by players riding

Sacramento's newest bike rack is just in time for this weekend's Amgen Tour of California. There it sits, on the corner of 19th and O, right outside of Zuda Yoga Center. The smell of fresh concrete, a green metal masterpiece, new paint - it's the real deal.  The Sacramento-themed bike rack, which has a depiction of a bicycle inside the State Capitol Building, was installed earlier this morning. The work of art already had a blue bike locked to it this afternoon.  Zuda's owners, spouses Anne Marie Kramer and Bill Prysock, had been actively "trying to get a bike rack installed" outside their business for approximately six months, said Yoga Coordinator Amanda Johnson.  Johnson added, "We a

 It's always been a struggle for me when I bring my bike to Yosemite or any other national park.  Because of the difficulty of siting any kind of mountain bike trail, you're stuck on the paved roads with the Winnebagos and tour buses.  Frankly, that scares the snot out of me.  I wind up riding in places I shouldn't be, and that's bad too.  The International Mountain Bike Association has been working for years to improve off-pavement bicycle access in National Parks and many other places.  The Park Service has finally come up with a proposed new policy which will make it a little easier to site some trails in national parks.  There is one week left for you to get your comments in on the new

Friday evening, you may have run into a crowd of cyclists pedaling their way downtown, uptown, and back again. The racing term for this group is a peloton. These rather enthusiastic riders were in the midst of the Sacramento Alley Cat bike race.  The Alley Cat is an unsanctioned bike race, checkpoint-to-checkpoint, where the emphasis is placed not on speed, but on knowing the layout of the city. Races are always open course, taking place in street traffic.  40 riders took off for the five checkpoints of the race which stretched from Lucky Lefty's on 16th Street all the way to West Sacramento and back.  Many others who came chose not to race, but remained at Lucky Lefty's, watching a bik