Cycling etiquette races off the road

by Antonette Brotman

Safety first! Mayor Craig Johnson has his own helmet for the Mayor's Challenge, a race within the Tour of Elk Grove. Photo by Mimi Ragano.

Bloody goo coagulated on Erik Loberg’s skinned knee. The crimson pool stopped gushing by the time he made it to a medical tent next to the course and reported the incident to officials.

Loberg said he was on the receiving end of a domino effect caused by another racer who shoved the rider next to him.

The Cedarburg, Wis. racer took the fall with three other riders in the Belvedere Banquets Elite Category race, one of many bike races in the Tour of Elk Grove. There is a biker etiquette that most riders follow when they race together.

“It’s considered a faux-pas to take your hands off the handlebars at any point during a race,” Loberg said.

Actionwheels.com writer Patty Woodworth explained why taking your hands off the handlebars is improper.

“Releasing both hands from the handlebars or hopping the bike over objects in the road can cause a dangerous loss of control,” Woodworth said.

Loberg said it’s even more dangerous when people push riders into each other than when they butt them off the road.

Had the perpetrator pushed someone off the course, only one cyclist would have been affected. But in this case four people went down.

When racing cyclists often group together. This group is referred to as a peloton. Riders leave the peloton by either leaving the front and breaking away or falling back and exiting the rear.

A breakaway is defined in bikeraceinfo.com’s glossary as “One or more riders escaping from the front of a peloton, usually as the result of a sudden acceleration called an ‘attack.’ Riders work together sharing the effort of breaking the wind and hoping to improve their chances of winning. This can also be called a ‘break.’ Some riders do not possess the necessary speed to contest mass sprints and therefore try very hard to escape the clutches of the peloton well before the end of the race.”

Loberg said he wasn’t sure what specifically made the pushy rider upset, but the seasoned cyclist tried to make the best of the situation and placed 65th out of 86 in the event.

“I guess [the pushing rider] was unhappy about something that went down before the sprint,” Loberg said.

The Tour of Elk Grove also attracted local amateur riders who wanted to try their feet at racing. A beginning racer, Jim Boyer, was nervous for his first event. He rode in the Mayor’s Challenge, which is a race where Elk Grove’s mayor rides with the citizens.

Riders generally prepare for the event, building up endurance, speed and skill.

“To do an event like this, you need to train and ride a lot,” Boyer said. “It’s time to see if it pays off.”

Boyer placed 11th out of 31 for the time trial, just after Mayor Craig Johnson, who placed 10th.

Tony Abruscato, president of Special Events Management, the company that coordinated the event, said the race wouldn’t be as exciting without Mayor Johnson.

“His enthusiasm really brings teams and riders in,” Abruscato said.

Johnson, who even shaved his legs for the event, said “Every year, we build on the previous year; this is the best year yet. It brings a spotlight to the community and brings the world’s finest cyclists to Elk Grove.”

There was blood, sweat and bicycles. Elk Grove’s third annual event built upon the town’s growing tradition.

Steve Chromik III finished the Mayor's Challenge with a time of 4:18, placing 24th. Photo by Mimi Ragano.

Copyright 2008

Endothermic vertebrates flock Taste

by Christopher Brinckerhoff

A Chicago seagull eyes some tempting scraps at this year’s Taste. Some say they don’t mind the birds’ presence. But according to experts, the winged creatures present a serious health risk. Photo by Christopher Brinckerhoff.

Chicago – Over a million people loaded Michigan’s lakefront to observe the city’s freedom and fireworks celebration this Independence Day. But thousands more attended. And they didn’t spend any cash.

Taste of Chicago attracted thousands, if not millions, of seagulls, pigeons and other birds. The birds swooped, waddled and pecked their way through Grant Park. Scraps of litter and people offering food drew them in droves.

DeVry student and Columbia native Carlos Quimbay attended the Taste with his girlfriend, Marina Calbo from Ecuador. Quimbay said he was getting some scraps ready to feed the birds, but Calbo told him not to feed them.

“Don’t give them anything because I know they have their own form of finding food in the trees and in the ocean,” Calbo said. “That’s why there’s so many of them. I think it is inhumane for us to throw food at them. Look at how they fight.”

Chicagoans Alah Shatat and Ann Ruyz attended the Taste July 1. Shatat and Ruyz said they saw birds swooping closely to people’s heads. But they felt the birds had a right to be there.

“There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s part of life,” Shatat said.

Sanitation Department worker Gerard Ortense, who worked at the Taste, said they don’t have a problem with the birds.

“It’s the people that are feeding the birds is why they’re flying around like that,” Ortense said.

Chicago Department of Environment Spokesperson Larry Merritt said they do have signs posted on some of the beaches asking people not to feed the birds. Merritt said it’s a public health concern.

It’s what the birds leave behind that’s dangerous, according to Merritt. While the birds feast on human trash and hand-outs, they defecate more frequently in the same areas.

“More bird poop at the beaches isn’t good because there is a thought that there’s a link to E. coli because the E. coli found at the beaches was avian,” Merritt said.

When asked if something should be done to stop people from feeding the birds, Ortense said, “What are you going to do to prevent it? They’re seagulls; they’re all over the place. It’s kind of hard to regulate them.”

Chicago Ornithological Society Secretary Randi Doeker, who has volunteered at the organization for eight years, said people should not feed the birds because they need to find food on their own, and feeding them alters their behavior. Some birds become more aggressive with people.

“But I don’t think that is specific to the Taste” Doeker said. “We share the same world, and we aren’t a predator species from their perspective. We may be a rude species, but we’re not a predator. We’re not chasing them down and trying to kill them.”

Additionally, laws protect some birds, Doeker said. There is an international treaty, The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the United States signed that protects the seagulls because they are migratory birds from the Western Hemisphere. However, the law does not protect the pigeons because they are not a native species. The pigeons are from Europe, Doeker said.

“We don’t want them, just like we don’t want plants that don’t belong in North America because they don’t belong in the ecosystem,” Doeker said. “They take over and they dominate incorrectly. They are not contributing positively to the ecosystem.”

Doeker said House Sparrows are a non-native species that live in building crevasses, and have ousted other indigenous birds.

“They’re very aggressive, not with people, but with other birds,” Doeker said. “And they will prevent real Western Hemisphere birds from nesting in an area. Therefore, we get all these little House Sparrows instead of having the diverse collection of birds that we should have.”

The large number of Chicago birds living off human trash and hand-outs might seem innocuous. However, some birds pose a serious risk in the form of E. coli. Additionally, allowing non-native species such as pigeons and House Sparrows to flourish evicts native birds essential to our ecosystem’s natural balance.

One Taste attendee had a much simpler view of the birds.

“I just pray they don’t shit on me,” Quimbay said.

Two Taste of Chicago diners are joined by a clutch of seagulls along Lake Michigan. Photo by Christopher Brinckerhoff.

Copyright 2008

Buckingham Fountain spouts scouts and sprouts

by Albert Corvera and Christopher Brinckerhoff

Buckingham Fountain is Grant Park’s watery centerfold. The famous structure streams water in the middle of many annual festivals including Bluesfest and Taste of Chicago. This is the spout.

Tourists are drawn not only to the festivals themselves, but also to Grant Park. Rainbows of flowers, lush green bushes, and perky trees quarter the spaces. These are the sprouts. Maintaining lakefront sprouts is a full time job.

Foreman for a private contractor for the city, Willie Riley, said his crew began working on the lakefront’s foliage at 5 a.m. on June 24, and was putting in a 12 plus hour day to prepare for the 2008 Taste of Chicago.

“We are here to help beautify the city by putting in flowers and shrubs and fertilizing the plants,” Riley said.

Their job was part of the Mayor Daley program, according to Riley. They plant and prune flowers, put mulch down, and pull up weeds. Working outside during the summer with a good group of guys has its moments.

“The guys I work with are a pretty nice group of guys,” Riley said. ”We all pitch in together as a team and try to do things together to make sure everything’s done. We take pride in what we do.”

Riley and his men are hired scouts, but there is another type of scout to consider. As summer quickly rolls along, tourists become part of Chicago’s cityscape. Teenagers Toni and Sergio Pinon from Tallahassee Florida made their first trip to the windy city this year. Popping ears in a skyscraper elevator topped Toni’ list of Chicago experiences.

“We went to Buckingham, the Sears Tower, and the Hancock,” Toni said. “The most fun was the elevator ride on the Hancock.”

Chicago’s fast paced lifestyle put the kids’ approximately 200,000 hometown population in perspective with Chicago’s 3 million people.

“Chicago is very, very busy,” Sergio said. “It’s really a lot crazier [than Tallahassee]. It’s fun. I’m starting to get used to it.”

Copyright 2008

Five easy steps to ride a motorcycle

by Antonette Brotman

Let’s face it, motorcycles can be intimidating. They are big, heavy, complex pieces of machinery with all sorts of controls and wiring. Their loud, gassy roars as they chug and thud down streets can seem off-putting. But with a little know-how, you might be surprised to find motorcycle riding is easy and fun.

Motorcycle knowledge can benefit all drivers by making them more alert, considerate and responsible. Below is a quick five step guide to begin your journey. Even if you’re not planning on trading your car in for a hog, this short list shows you how to improve your driving awareness.

1^st Step: The Permit

Read over the motorcycle operation manual before you test for your permit at your local Department of Motor Vehicles office (DMV). When you pass, you’ll receive a permit Class L or M. An easy way to remember what the different classes stand for is that L is for Little bikes, and M is for the general Motorcycle division.

These permits are good for one year. During that time, you can practice and test for your license. Keep in mind you are not authorized to take a motorcycle on the road until you receive your license.

2^nd Step: The Class

You have two options to learn how to ride.

Option 1: Private classes

Independent companies offer motorcycle classes more regularly than government funded programs. They typically cost between $250 and $500.

One source of information for private classes is motorcycle dealerships. For example, Woodfield Motor Sports in Hoffman Estates endorses Ride Chicago, a motorcycle school for training and licensing.

Option 2: State classes

While Illinois state classes are free, they require a refundable $20 to register.

Illinois colleges that hold state classes include:

1. William Rainey Harper College

2. University of Illinois

3. College of Lake County

3^rd Step: The Gear

Here’s a checklist for what you need to enroll and participate in a state class:

1. Permit

2. Long pants

3. Ankle supporting boots

The ankle is a vulnerable bone, covered only by a layer of skin. Ankle supporting boots lessen the risk of a shattered ankle should you take a spill. These are a size 7. Photo by Gene Kieca.

4. Long-sleeved shirt or jacket

5. Riding gloves

6. Eyewear (sunglasses or spectacles work)

Watch out! Rock flecks, dirt, hard-shelled bugs and other types of debris can sting your eyes when riding your motorcycle unless you protect yourself with some eyewear. Spectacles are fine, but a full face helmet offers more protection. Photo by Gene Kieca.

Your motorcycle gear will help protect you in bad weather and accidents. Eyewear is needed because bugs and rubble are common projectile hazards.

State classes provide helmets for the courses. Currently there is no helmet law in Illinois. Riders have the freedom to choose.

Be sure to check your class for the specific needs before attending.

4th Step: The License

Successful completion of a motorcycle safety class in Illinois qualifies graduates to obtain riding licenses without having to test at the DMV.

Intermediate classes are offered by the same companies to expand your riding abilities. Advanced classes are also available to further sharpen skills. For these higher level classes, you need to bring your own motorcycle.

5th Step: The Bike

New motorcycles can cost between $3,000 and $20,000. However, there are plenty of used bikes available online.

Woodfield Motor Sports general manager Frank Mininni said he advises new riders to begin with a starter bike because it has a smaller motor. An engine around 250cc is a good choice if you’re not used to riding. Beginning with a bike that’s small, light and lower to the ground is a safer option for beginning riders.

That’s All It Takes

Dive into motorcycles; take the plunge. It’s easy and fun.

It’s also advantageous for drivers to gain motorcycle knowledge because it can increase road awareness. This can keep you out of accidents and minimize your insurance payment.

Read the manual. Get the permit. Take a class.

Copyright 2008

High gas prices fuel motorcycle riders

by Antonette Brotman

 

A painted neon sign in Arlington Motor Sports storefront window reads in thick black letters, “SAVE MONEY SAVE GAS.” Photo by Antonette Brotman.

Quickly approaching five dollars a gallon, gas prices are pumping wallets and discouraging drivers from traveling. Motorcycle shops stand to benefit from the recent fuel cost increase. The spike might be a significant impetus to turn more car and truck drivers into motorcycle riders.

If you ride on two wheels instead of driving on four, you’re likely to spend less money on your vehicle and on fuel. You could also be reducing your ecological footprint. Motorcycles, scooters, and mopeds are a good choice for two reasons: your money and our planet.

1. Financially, motorcycles are cheaper for the individual. A 250cc (cubic centimeters) engine gets 50 to 70m/g (miles per gallon). That means you can ride around for about a fifth of the fuel cost of driving a Sport Utility Vehicle. Midsize bikes get 40 to 60m/g, and larger bikes are in the 30m/g range, according to Woodfield Motor Sports’ general manager Frank Mininni.

Scooters and mopeds are also cost saving alternatives. Starting at 50cc, a scooter can get 130m/g. A 125cc scooter reaches almost 100m/g. Scooters larger than 125cc get 50 to 70m/g.

 

Scooters are an automatic transmission alternative to motorcycles and can get up to 100 miles per gallon. Photo by Antonette Brotman.

A significant difference between motorcycles and scooters is that motorcycles have manual transmissions, while scooters have automatic transmissions. Mopeds are low-powered motorized pedacycles. While scooters and mopeds are fun and fuel efficient, motorcycles offer the most power on two wheels.

New motorcycles can be a pricy buy. At some dealerships, you don’t know how much a bike costs before inquiring with a sales person. However, at City Limits Harley-Davidson, there is a price tag on every motorcycle, ranging from about $10,000 to $20,000.

Used motorcycles are a less expensive option, and postings for previously owned bikes are updated daily on bidding sites including craigslist and ebay. Some of these cycles are priced around $600, but they usually require an extra few hundred dollars for repair.

2. Environmentally, motorcycles pollute less CO2 than cars and trucks. But there is evidence motorcycles emit higher levels of other toxins than cars.

With new societal awareness on going green, people have reason to consider motorcycles as a commuting alternative. Since motorcycles burn less gas per mile, they also burn less fossil fuel than cars, and ultimately produce less carbon dioxide (CO2).

CO2 is not the only factor to consider when assessing pollutants. There is an ongoing debate about whether motorcycles pollute more or less than cars.

While motorcycles give off less CO2 than cars, they produce more carbon monoxide (CO), nitrous oxides (NOx) and hydrocarbons (HC’s) per mile than cars.

“On average, motorcycles and scooters produce more greenhouse gases per mile driven than cars. A European study found that while two wheelers emit less CO2 per mile, they emit more of other more potent greenhouse gases that also have harmful health effects,” said research student at University of California, Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group Josiah Johnston.

A motorcycle mechanic and Woodfield Motor Sports sales representative Jr. Dinero said that the type of bike you ride determines whether it is less of a detriment to earth compared to cars.

“It’s different with racing bikes, but your standard motorcycles, everyday commuter bikes, are a lot better on the environment,” Dinero said.

One significant factor in emissions is a catalytic converter. Catalytic converters are pipes that contain chemicals to neutralize pollutants; thereby minimizing harm to the ozone layer of our atmosphere.

Most cars have catalytic converters and many motorcycles do not. Catalytic converters are primarily available for cycles designed for longer trips called touring bikes, as opposed to the standard or sport motorcycles. The converters are not required by the EPA for motorcycles.

Still, people have plenty of reasons to pick up a bike.

“[Motorcycles] are fun, inexpensive, economical, and [they] give you a sense of freedom,” said Mininni.

You can feel that sense of freedom on the road and in your pocket. If you’re sick of paying $50 to $100 at the pump – save gas, ride a motorcycle.

Motorcycles for sale at stores like Arlington Motor Sports in Arlington Heights are receiving more attention as a result of gas prices approximately 30 percent higher than last year. Photo by Antonette Brotman.

Copyright 2008

Chicago Bluesfest not so blue

by Albert Corvera and Christopher Brinckerhoff

As the summer heat replaces the wet spring, and the smell of burgers and beer wafts from the concessions, it means one thing to Chicagoans in early June – Bluesfest.

Since 1984, the first year of Bluesfest, Chicago’s lakefront has seen well over a million blues fans around the world each year. The famous music celebration kicks off the season of many free outdoor festivities this summer.

Electric music vibrated from a Gibson guitar, and the harmonious voice of Gabe “Mississippi” Carter blasted from his practice amp atop the Monroe Street Bridge. Carter’s laid-back blueseque appearance of worn overalls, a large brimmed hat, and scruffy beard embody the grittiness that is not only blues music, but Chicago too.

Carter said he was born with the blues. His life began in Michigan, then he moved to Mississippi, and he now lives in Chicago.  Fittingly, when Carter isn’t playing the blues, he works as a mover. Carter was a street performer at Bluesfest, playing for pocket change and smiles.

“I’m just here tryin to make some money, have fun, and there are some people I want to see, mostly on the juke joint stage,” Carter said on the Bluesfest’s first day, June 5.

The same blues spirit can be found in legendary blues performer Frank Scott, Jr., a.k.a., Little Sonny. At Bluesfest Scott performed on the Maxwell Street Stage with his friend Piano C. Red.

Scott collaborated with Red on “The Lost American Bluesmen” CD, recorded in 1996, and released in 1998. The album is a collection of blues from artists including Jimmie Lee Robinson, Willie Hudson, Bill Warren and Sleepy Otis Hunt. Of the 15 songs on the album, four feature Scott; Living In The Ghetto, American Bluesmen, Reap What You Sow, and Double Trouble.

Scott plays the guitar and drums, but he has also created a new instrument, the percussive house keys. The house keys were attached to a kind of branch like pole, and wrapped in green tape. Dozens of clusters of keys are attached to the flexible pole, and Scott shakes them in rhythm with the drums onstage.

Along with the percussive house keys Scott plays, there are also hundreds of keys attached to his bicycle he uses to get around town. The bicycle was strapped to his small red car, which was laden with Christmas lights and world flags.

Scott’s modes of transportation are artfully adorned with what he said is “the attraction.” The large quantities of house keys are emblematic of the number of years the former Maxwell Street business owner and performer has been on the Chicago blues scene.

Scott is a Texan native, but, since arriving in 1950, has lived most of his life in Chicago. He’s been playing the blues since 1948, and like many of Chicago’s blues musicians, used to perform at the original Maxwell Street Market.

Scott also owned a blues bar called Juketown Community Blues Bandstand on Maxwell and Halsted until September 2001 when the University of Illinois at Chicago fenced off the north side of Maxwell Street, and demolished the historic blues bar. Since the late 40s, Maxwell Street had been a mainstay on the Chicago blues music scene.  

Click here for a video with more on the impact of the Maxwell Street construction.

Scott said he got the idea of using keys as an instrument when he owned the blues bar, and when the band didn’t show up, he would shake the keys along with music from a boom box.

“The keys add rhythm and foundation to blues,” Scott said.

Scott calls his car a museum on wheels. Inside he carries a briefcase with dozens of colorful music posters he has designed over the years.

Another Chicago blues musician who played on the Maxwell Street Stage opening day at Bluesfest was Ramblin’ Rose. In addition to singing, Rose plays harmonica. She has performed at Maxwell Street Market, and, recently at Juniors Sports Lounge. At Bluesfest Rose sang on the Maxwell Street Stage.

“I sang “Dirty Old Woman” because that’s what I am,” Rose said.

Rose was awed with the quantity of keys Scott uses on his instrument and bicycle.

“They’re just unbelievable. You should be in the Guinness Book of World Records,” Rose said.

Rose said the spirit of the blues for her is not a down and out, someone done me wrong kind of blues. Rose said her life is great and loves the blues.

“The blues is not a bad thing to me,” Rose said.  “I’m doing great, life is great.”

Chicagoan and Bluesfest attendee Diane Kuchay said “nothing much” gives her the blues. “I’m a pretty positive person.”

Kuchay, a part-time consultant and regular Bluesfest attendee, didn’t realize that the festival was happening until she walked outside her building.

 “I knew it was going to happen sometime in June, but I didn’t really know when, she said.”

Though blues music is said to typically carry a down or sad feeling, the tone of Chicago Bluesfest 2008 was the opposite.

“I love the atmosphere, the music, the food and the camaraderie,” Kuchay said.

Click here to find out about upcoming blues music performances in Chicago.

Please enjoy our video with this story and post a comment to tell us what you think.

Copyright 2008