Category Archives: Bicycling & Fitness

Sweet Potato and Apple Scallop

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Sweet Potato and Apple Scallop

Here is a sweet potato recipe Honey uses a lot during the holidays.
It is great for taking to dinner parties and potlucks and always brings compliments and recipe requests.

Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes
3 cups peeled, thinly sliced tart apples
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon chopped thyme
1/2 cup brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter
Salt to taste

To Begin:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter a 1 1/2-quart baking dish.

Preparation:
Scrub the potatoes
Boil gently in a covered saucepan for 20-30 minutes, until easily pierced.
Drain, cool slightly, peel, and set aside.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.
Add onions and saute until tender and translucent, about 6-7 minutes.

Thinly slice the sweet potatoes 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.
Arrange half of the sliced potatos in the 1 1/2-quart baking dish.
Sprinkle with half the thyme and half of the onions.
Cover with half the sliced apples, then sprinkle with half the brown sugar, and dot with half the remaining butter.
Sprinkle lightly with salt.
Repeat layering with remaining ingredients.

Cooking:
Cover dish with foil, and cook for 30 minutes.
Uncover and back for about an hour more, or until apples are soft, casserole is bubbly and center is hot.

It is best served hot, and can be rewarmed in microwave.

Source:
Adapted Fannie Farmer’s – The 1896 Boston Cooking-School Cook Book that is now updated by Marion Cunningham

Portlands BTA and Bicycle Advocacy

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The Portland Bicycle Transportation Alliance is a great advocate for bicyclists. They continue to provide wonderful support to all bike riders. We should continue to support their work in return. Here is a recent update of their progress:

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We want to update you on the work we’ve been doing this fall with the Portland Police. In the wake of several tragic, high profile bike crashes many people in the region were frustrated with the police response, concerned about their rights on the road, and feeling helpless to ensure their own safety in such an uncertain enforcement environment.
We’ve begun a dialogue with Portland Police Chief Rosie Sizer and Traffic Division Commander Vince Jarmer and they have expressed a willingness to work with us and to work on their enforcement and communication practices around bike crashes.
Here’s what we’ve asked for:

  • A Community Policing Agreement that will outline agreed enforcement practices. This agreement will be developed with participation from the cycling community, PDOT, the Police Bureau, the District Attorney’s office, and the City Council.
  • Enforcement actions at high-crash locations.
  • Monthly reports on citations and investigations from the police bureau.
  • Change to the policy on when an investigation is conducted and a citation issued. We want the city to allocate more resources to the Traffic Division to allow them to investigate all crashes involving vulnerable roadway users.
  • Reduction in delays to investigations caused by the State Police Crime Lab. Further, the police will notify us when investigations are complete and reports are available for review.
  • Education of officers on the unique vulnerability and safety issues regularly faced by cyclists.
  • Establishment of a bicycle liaison in the traffic division.
  • Sting operations with undercover officers or volunteers on bikes to catch motorists engaged in road rage behavior.
  • Better training for officers on how to communicate to the media after a bike crash.

We are pleased that the Portland Police Bureau is willing to examine and evolve their own internal processes as Portland becomes a more bicycle-friendly city, and we will be working with them on these issues intensively over the next few months.

In addition to the above, we are working with folks from around the State to strengthen sentencing laws and facilitate citizen initiated citations.

If you have thoughts or concerns, please let us know. Thanks to all BTA members – this kind of long-term advocacy can make big positive change, but it takes time and planning and cooperation. Your support is what makes it possible.

Scott

Worst Day of the Year Ride Scheduled

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This year the ride is set for February 10th, 2008, starting at the Lucky Lab at 915 SE Hawthorne. This is one of the first organized rides of the year, and has grown steadily in popularity. And, while there has been some nasty weather on or around this date in the past, the weather for this ride has not been so bad. The ride is a little crowded, capping it 2,000, and the 18 mile inner city route is short when you are trying to fit in 4 stops. But its a fun time and on those times it was rainy or chilly, the food at the finish is a treat. We will extend the bike miles by riding there and back from home.

You can register or find information at: Worst Day of the Year Ride

2008 Ride Calendar will be updated on our GoLiNiel cycling pages.

Christiania Bikes

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A friend sent me this picture of a nice cargo bike.
You can see more of these bikes at ChristianiaBikes.com.

These are a very popular and useful style of bike in Europe. While biking in Denmark, we saw a lot of these bikes on the streets. Many times the bikes would be full of items that we Americans would never consider carrying on a bike.

Some of these cargo bikes are beginning to appear on our local streets.

That seems like a good thing.

A Dutch version of these bikes are sold in Portland, at Clever Cycles.

10-02-07 New Sellwood Bridge Alternatives Selected

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Last week the Sellwood Project Advisory Group met to select the final group of alternatives for further study and review.

Sellwood Bridge Alternatives under Study, in a .pdf file

1.) The 57 foot wide rehabilitation project does nothing for improving automobile/transit traffic, but seems to help bike/pedestrians. Thanks, but, no thanks.

2.) The two decked system is intriguing, while providing a little cover for walkers, the design would create a dreary, dirty and dangerous section, that would loose its appeal to many, and, the “possibility for striping 3 lanes” means while its possible to have 3 lanes, it will be tight, and will not adequately handle the future growth pressure that this new bridge will experience.

3.) The 64 foot wide bridge provides great bike/pedestrian access with its 6.5 foot bike lanes and 12 foot shared use lanes, it is still only providing 2 lanes of traffic. My money is on this selection if only because it isn’t the most expensive one, but it is the most expensive one we can afford. And for some reason so many people are under the mistaken impression that if we limit the bridge to 2 lanes, less people will want to cross it than if there are 3-4 lanes. The demand will be there, and the need to cross the river will not change dependent on the number of lanes. We must consider accommodating growth, not diverting it.

4.) In this case, bigger is better. Two auto lanes, two transit lanes, a 16 foot shared use, and 8 foot pedestrian walkway. This one seems to have it all.

We will have the opportunity to create this just once in our lifetime. Let’s hope we make the choice that will last our lifetime.

Burnside Bridge to reopen late next week

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The Burnside Bridge is expected to reopen to motor vehicles late next week. The bridge will not be ready to reopen on Monday, October 8 as originally planned. The target date for reopening is four or five days after October 8.
Replacing the counterweight hinge assembly is the most technically challenging repair in the two-year project. The repairs have taken longer than expected because the old parts were more difficult to remove than anticipated. Despite using different methods, the contractor was unable to remove parts of the hinge by pushing or pulling. Instead, the 13-inch diameter steel pins had to be slowly drilled out. After that initial delay, the 3.8 million pound counterweight was successfully lowered with a jacking system so that other parts could be removed and replaced.
Several night-time bridge closures will be needed to remove the jacking system after the bridge reopens to traffic. The current schedule calls for the bridge to be closed at night on October 12 and 13, but those dates are subject to change. The bridge is closed to motor vehicles. Pedestrians and bicyclists are able to cross the bridge during most of the repair, but occasionally the bridge will be closed to ALL traffic for delicate operations and safety issues; and river traffic is not affected.

So, Sunday you can bike on both the Sellwood and the Burnside, without cars!

Nice day to be a dog on a bike.

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I followed this couple in their tandem for a mile through Willamette park, before I spotted the dog in their pannier. Not sure what he was thinking, but it was probably something like, I kinda wish I had a bigger bag to ride in, and I am getting just a little sleepy.



Our dog Jack is way to big to fit into a pannier fortunately, and is it highly unlikely you could get him to stay in any thing on a bike that he could fit into, even if you tried strapping him in, like apparently this dog is.

Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail AND a bike bridge!

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Beginning spring of 2007 and ending in the summer of 2008, Metro will be working with TriMet, ODOT, Milwaukie, Portland, as well as Clackamas and Multnomah Counties on updating the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement, to update the plan completed in 2003 to plan the development of the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Project.
The Portland – Milwaukie Light Rail Project is a regional partnership to construct a MAX line that serves the transportation needs of communities in north Clackamas county, southeast Portland, and south waterfront.
The six and one-half mile alignment between Milwaukie and Portland would provide additional transportation options for north Clackamas county and southeast Portland. The line would connect to the existing MAX system, creating access to central eastside, south waterfront, downtown Portland, Hillsboro, Gresham, and the Portland airport. Ten to 12 stations and a new transit bridge across the Willamette River would be part of the line.
The project is the second phase of the Locally Preferred Alternative of the South Corridor Project, adopted in April 2003 and amended to include an light rail extension along downtown Portland’s transit mall in December of the same year .
The plan also calls for a new bridge over the Willamette! And, a new bridge in the city would be really cool.
Originally sited for an area between OMSI and the Riverplace, now also being considered is the area between the Marquam and the Ross Island bridges, with the bridgehead being near SE Sherman Street, or SE Caruthers Street.
Plus, according the the original plan, the bridge would accommodate bikes, pedestrians, light rail, street cars and possibly buses. A new bridge, that also would carry bikes. That is what this city needs!
I know, this is an Impact Statement and not a bid or actual plan for construction, but is a serious step that just may be a reality. We can only hope. Well, I guess we can be involved.
See the Metro Site, for details of small group briefings, newsletters and open houses.
And, links to Plans and Maps in .pdf format

Our “What can we carry in a Burley?” game.

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This summer, while visiting the folks at City Bikes Cooperative of Portland, in search of some utility type bikes we can use for shorter runs to the store and such, we found a cargo trailer made by Burley of Eugene. We have been looking at trailers for some time and the Burley Nomad one seemed just perfect. It is easy to hook up, it tracks reliably, it seems really strong and well built. It is not a trailer for hauling kids, and while Jack the dog would fit, he would certainly not sit still long enough to get out the driveway. But it will haul stuff. Burley recommends you limit the cargo to 100 pounds, which is certainly a limitation that I, as the pedaler most heartily endorse. They do not however have limits on what you can carry, hence our game of “What can we carry in our Burley?”
Our first cargo was hauling a watermelon to a 4th of July barbecue. We did not get a photo of that, and the ever helpful Honey is encouraging me to carry another so that we can get photographic proof.
Thanks Honey.
Since then the game has progressed. First pizza….

then, on another hot day, beer…….

And today, a trip to the home improvement store for 4 gallons of paint plus supplies. Lets see, one gallon of paint weighs 11 pounds, then four gallons times 11………