May 3, 2013: Get Your Tweed On!

This Week On The Chainlink - the update from thechainlink.org.

Hey Chainlinkers and Friends of Chainlink!

We've been moving forward with the upcoming redesign of our website. So I wanted to share our progress with all of you. We've had very productive meetings with IT professionals as well as User Experience consultants and more are in the pipeline.

We've also been in close communications with the folks at Ning, our platform host.

They are also adding their own significant improvements over the next few months. While the changes will support the more flexible design we've been working on, it makes sense to me that we wait until they are fully implemented before implementing our own. This will help us take full advantage of the new platform and not duplicate efforts.

I really appreciate your cooperation in and enthusiasm for the redesign and we'll continue updating as more progress is made.

Looking forward to a great summer of cycling!

Julie Hochstadter

Director of The Chainlink

Featured Events This Week (full list of events here)

Saturday - Berwyn Bikes and Bungalows details

Saturday - 46th Ward Voting Assembly for Infrastructure Improvements details

Saturday - Garden Party Tweed Ride details

Sunday - Fifth Step Ride details

Sunday - Radical Chicago Bike Tour details

Sunday - 2nd Annual Women's Cycling Clinic details

Thursday - Ride of Silence-Spiteful Brewing Pre-Ride Tribute details

Save The Date

Wednesday, 15 May 2013 - Ride of Silence: Chicago details

On the Forum

If You Have a Bicycle and Didn't Ride Today, What's Your Excuse? - Serge asks the question. That's all there is. Let the excuses fly!

Bike The Drive - Tell Me About It...Plz? - Newbie with kids, Manny FU, has more questions than Serge about trailers, bikes, and kids.

Have the Streets Gotten Worse? - Maybe its just the streets that David rides on, but he's noticed even lightly used streets that were in pretty good shape now look like they've been bombed.

I Biked Like an $@&# Today and I'm Sorry - A statement of contrition from Alan, a normally courteous biker. Now he invites others who may want to share the mistakes they made on their rides.

Joe's 80s Univega

Events This Week (Detailed)

Saturday - Berwyn Bikes and Bungalows - Join The City of Homes Organization and the Berwyn ATA Committee on 1 of 2 rides to celebrate the Chicago-style bungalow and Berwyn's new bike lanes. A portion of the registration fees with go to support injured biker, Justin Carver.

Saturday - 46th Ward Voting Assembly for Infrastructure Improvements - Chainlinkers who live in the ward can help decide on traffic infrastructure improvements. This includes everything from bike lane projects to an intersection redesign to vote on.

Saturday - Garden Party Tweed Ride - Dress to impress. Ride in style with the BBC, exploring fine gardens and sumptuous pubs. Tweed and garden party linens are encouraged. Ladies, bring your finest hats.

Sunday - Fifth Step Ride - Same ride (and destination!) as last month; but a different beer. Take the lakefront trail south from the Clock Tower south to Three Floyds to sample Tiberian Inquisitor, a Belgian-style ale aged for 1 year in French oak.

Sunday - Radical Chicago Bike Tour - Celebrate International Workers Day by learning about Radical/Workers' Chicago with stops at Benito Jaurez Park Plaza, the Chicago Defender building, the Haymarket Monument, and many more.

Sunday - 2nd Annual Women's Cycling Clinic - Want to feel confident on your bike with your family, in a group, or in a race? Join Higher Gear in Wilmette for a half day clinic to fine tune your bicycle handling skills and review the basics.

Thursday - Ride of Silence-Spiteful Brewing Pre-Ride Tribute - Come out to support local bike advocacy (See Save the Date below) with Spiteful Brewing and Heritage Bicycles for an evening of Ghost Bike Pale Ale, fine coffee, and hand-crafted bikes.

Save the Date savethedate

Wednesday, 15 May - Ride of Silence: Chicago - Join the silent procession of bikers to honor those who have been killed or injured while biking on our public roadways. Ride in silence on this one night each year in unity with cyclists from 200 cities around the world to respectfully assert our right to use the roads.