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HUB Cycling: Switching to bike commuting could save you $9,200 a year

From BurnabyNow.com

By Lisa Storey

As people around the region continue to grapple with rising housing costs and the growing challenge of affordability, it’s essential to find innovative ways to address these issues.

One such solution lies right under our noses — cycling. At the end of August, gas prices in Vancouver soared to the highest they have been at $2.13 per litre at many stations.

British Columbia’s consumer price index (CPI), representing changes in prices as experienced by consumers, was 3.8 per cent higher (unadjusted) in August 2023 than in August 2022, with the most significant inflationary increases being:

  • Food: an increase of 6.3 per cent
  • Health and personal: an increase of 5.9 per cent
  • Shelter: an increase of 5.1 per cent

As many people look for unique ways to cut costs, non-profit organization HUB Cycling suggests a sometimes overlooked solution to easing the blow of Metro Vancouver’s affordability crisis: bike commuting.HUB Cycling’s recent Pedaling Towards Equity report finds that people can save up to $9,200/year by switching their main mode of transportation to commuting by bike.

Photo by Eduardo Alemán on Unsplash

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12 best gravel bikes of 2023, according to real riders

From CNN.com

By Heather Balogh Rochfort, CNN Underscored

Gravel bikes — versatile, beefed up road-style bikes with fatter tires and off-road friendly gearing — are the fastest-growing style of bike today, with sales increasing by 109% since 2019. It’s not hard to see why since they appeal to pretty much any type of cyclist. Hardcore mountain biker? Spandex-clad roadie? You’ll both like gravel, and more and more riders are hitting unpaved roads across the United States to try the new discipline.

Gravel bikes have drop bars like road bikes, but with more relaxed frame geometry and lower gearing so you feel more stable on rough, rolling terrain but can still cruise while riding pavement. Wider tires with lots of tread mean you can easily handle dirt or gravel. While they’re not typically meant for extremely technical and rocky terrain, if you’re an experienced off-road rider, you can still take some of the gravel bikes out on flowy singletrack and have plenty of fun.

“Gravel riding gives you the freedom to explore and head off the beaten path, especially if you are coming from a road cycling background,” says Massimo Alpian, a cycling industry veteran and current board member for Ride for Racial Justice. “With this category exploding over the past several years, there are so many options now.”

Ready to call yourself a gravaficionado? We talked with various gravel grinding experts to get the lowdown on the best gravel bikes for all abilities. Whether you’re a first-timer hopping on the gravel ribbon or an experienced cyclist looking to get into bikepacking, here are some of our favorites.

Image courtesy of Kona

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3 Powerful Ways To Boost Your Cycling Recovery!

Taking time off the bike can be annoying, but rest and recovery are just as important as training. Manon and Hank tell you why and how to recover like a pro, making the most of your rest days so all your hard cycling training doesn’t go to waste!

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Trek Bicycles Launches First-Ever Manufacturer-Led Bike Trade-in and Refurbishment Program

From Bicycling.com

BY NATASCHA GRIEF

This week, Trek stores and participating Trek retailers will begin accepting the return of used Trek bicycles in exchange for in-store credit to buy a new bike, the company announced. The used bikes will then be refurbished and sold on the brand’s website, trekbikes.com. This will be the first manufacturer-led trade-in and refurbishment program in the bike industry.

The program, which has been named Red Barn Refresh in a nod to Trek’s storied birthplace, the Red Barn, has a lot of similarities with vehicle trade in programs and purchasing a “certified pre-owned” car.

How does it work?

Once a used bike is traded in, it will be returned to Trek in Waterloo, Wisconsin, where trained techs will repair and replace what’s needed before it is ‘certified awesome’ and resold online to people looking to score a great bike with a lower carbon footprint—and a more affordable price.

 

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8 of the Best San Diego Bike Events to Attend Each Year

From SanDiegoMagazine.com

Pedal your way through these annual cycling adventures

By Cole Novak

Every year, San Diego hosts a multitude of biking events, races, meet-ups, and community rides that allow you to connect with fellow cycling enthusiasts through hilly terrain, coastal cruises, and speedy raceways. Whether you’re a casual two-wheeler or love a good sweat-inducing trek, here are eight annual bike events to plan for in the coming months.

Bikes and Beers San Diego

After a satisfying bike ride, there’s nothing like a cold one. Bikes and Beers is the perfect event for craft beer-loving pedalers around town. Join fellow biking and beer enthusiasts at Alesmith’s tasting room in Miramar before embarking on a 15-, 35-, or 45-mile bike loop through San Diego. The event provides riders with fuel stations, GPS turn-by-turn instructions, ride marshals, and rest stops. It all wraps up at Alesmith’s brewery for brews, live music, and a charity raffle.

Month: November

Registration Fees: Starting at $50

Where to Register: Bike Sign Up

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When Are Inner Tubes BETTER Than Tubeless?

When is an inner tube a better option than tubeless? Tubeless tyres are great for cycling, with a lot of advantages such as lower rolling resistance and excellent puncture protection. However, there are some disadvantages too. Alex and Ollie give five examples of when it would actually be best to use inner tubes on your bike instead of running a tubeless set-up.

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Amazon Prime Day cycling deals: The best deals on the market in the build-up

From CyclingNews.com

By Josh Croxton

The Prime ‘Big Deals Day’ is yet to land, but there are already discounts out there. We’ve rounded up the best of them for you

There’s another Amazon Prime Day just around the corner. Well, it’s technically called the ‘Amazon Big Deals Day’, but it’s the same as any other Prime Day in all but name. October 10th-11th is the official event, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t already deals to be had.

Our team of deal hunters have trawled what’s already on offer, not just on Amazon but across the web too.

We’re all cyclists first and foremost here at Cyclingnews, and pride ourselves on providing solid consumer advice. We’re not going to recommend you buy any old tat just because it’s been reduced; all the products below are ones we’d happily use ourselves.

To take advantage of the Amazon cycling deals, you’ll need to be signed up for Amazon Prime. Amazon offers a free trial period for new users, so just remember to cancel your trial before the first payment is taken.

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Separated bike lanes can reduce crashes by 50%, according to new study released by government

From CambridgeDay.com

By Dan Recht

Debate about the installation of additional separated bike lanes is a major topic this election season. As I was planning how to vote, I was pleased to discover that the U.S. Department of Transportation just last month released a report on the effect of bike lanes separated from car traffic by flexi-posts such as the “quick-build” bike lanes here in Cambridge.

The researchers the agency sponsored at Texas A&M University studied our own Cambridge as well as San Francisco and Seattle; Denver and Austin, Texas were included as well. Across all five cities they found consistently that flexi-posts reduced crashes by 50 percent when compared to bike lanes without them.

 

Photo by Cole Keister on Unsplash

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ArroyoFest – Sunday October 29

The inaugural ArroyoFest was hosted in June 2003, a full seven years before the first cicLAvia on 10/10/10. The event was ahead-of-its time and left an indelible impression on those who had the opportunity to explore the parkway on two feet or two wheels that morning. Five years in the making, the 20-year anniversary event will once again provide the public the opportunity to experience the historic parkway – opened in 1940 – up close. Until then here are a few articles, resources, and images documenting that very special day in 2003.

 

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Best rear bike lights 2023 — boost your day & night visibility with a bright back light

From Road.cc

by EMILY TILLETT
Running one of the best rear bike lights with plenty of lumens should mean all but the most idiotic drivers will notice you from a good distance
Over the years we’ve clocked up thousands upon thousands of cold, dark winter road miles to test hundreds of rear lights. These are the best rear bike lights you can buy, from brilliant budget beamers to retina-ripping radiants that demand even the dopiest driver’s attention.

A rear light is a legal requirement when cycling at night, and using one that’s brighter than the legal minimum seems like a sensible way of helping drivers see you — or at least defanging ‘but I didn’t see them’ excuses. The best bike rear lights have long run-times, can be seen from a good distance, and are sufficiently tough and waterproof to fend off day-to-day abuse.

Cycling rear lights universally use one or more red light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to generate their light. LEDs are very efficient, putting out lots of light for modest electrical power, which makes them cheap to run but effective at boosting visibility. Most rear bike lights are now rechargeable, taking power from a USB source like a standalone charger or your office computer. Battery-powered lights are still available and have their adherents who appreciate being able to revive a dead light at any filling station or corner shop.

A flashing red light says ‘bike’ to most drivers; we recommend using a constant light as well so your position can be easily followed. It can be hard to track the position of a flasher on an otherwise unlit minor road. Rear bike lights are increasingly intended as day-time safety lights too, with super-bright flash or pulse modes designed to be impossible for drivers to ignore. They can be very annoying to other riders though; please use them only when necessary.

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