Episode number 2 of the Kansas Cyclist Podcast features an interview with Dale Crawford, longtime Advocacy Director of the Johnson County Bicycle Club, and current vice-president of KanBikeWalk. Dale, through his post at JCBC, as well as his work as a park planner and project coordinator for the City of Olathe, has played a large role in creating the bicycling infrastructure that Olathe enjoys today: an excellent system of interconnecting off-street pathways, and a growing collection of on-street bike lanes and facilities.
Also, with May being National Bike Month, and the second week of May being Bike Week, we have a special segment with Eric Rogers, who runs KCBike.info, and who is in charge of Kansas City’s Bike Week festivities. Activities during the week of May 9-16 include the annual Car Free Challenge, a press conference with KC Mayor Funkhouser, cyclist breakfasts, classes and tutorials, and group rides, culminating on May 16th with a bicycle swap meet, the Kansas City Women On Wheels Bike Festival, and the Tour de Cowtown alleycat race.
Here’s what else is covered during the podcast, with links to more information:
Bicycling News:
- The April 15th death of bicyclist Roy Dale Prewitt of Wellington, Kansas [link]
- Norman, Oklahoma’s new bicycle commuting map [link]
- Kansas Senator Sam Brownback’s endorsement of bicycling trails [link]
- A bike/ped lane coming to Kansas City’s Heart of America Bridge [link]
- The opening of the Midtown Bike Path in Wichita [link]
- Progress of Colorado’s Bicycle Safety Bill through the state legislature [link]
Upcoming Rides and Events:
- Kansas: Highlights include the Bull Creek Bike Bash in Spring Hill, the Kansas Fat Tire Festival at Lake Wilson, Rope ’em Ride in Hays, the Capitol Classic and Cottonwood 200 in Topeka, the Wicked Wind in Wichita, Dirty Kanza in Emporia, and the Lone Star Century out of Gardner.
- Arkansas: Tour de Toad in Conway
- Colorado: The Buena Vista Bike Fest and the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic
- Iowa: The epic Trans Iowa gravel grinder
- Missouri: Trail to a Cure and the Pedaler’s Jamboree, both taking place on the Katy Trail
- Nebraska: The Spoke & Hub Century in Bellevue, the Oak Creek Valley Ride in Valparaiso, and the Nebraska Tour de Cure out of Springfield
- Oklahoma: Lots of Tulsa events, including Tour de Tulsa, Tour de Cure: Tulsa, and the Tulsa Tough festival
- There are many more ride opportunities available nearby, so please view the regional calendar for a complete list.
We also discuss the new trail system that just opened in Melvern, Kansas.
As always, we hope you’ll listen to the Kansas Cyclist Podcast, and consider subscribing to future episodes. We welcome your feedback, so please send in your comments or suggestions.
