By Green Options Buffalo:
Bike week is very proudly brought to you by no one; at least, no one. It seems Buffalo's best and brightest DIY culture magicians have created a rocking adventure weekend through alchemy. As I was working at the Community Bicycle Workshop (yep, "Blue Bikes") this week, I heard the rumblings of scavenger hunts and Bicycle Olympics from dozens of members and volunteers. Fliers were being passed around and tall bikes were being readied for "jousting". And if you're wondering, yes jousting on a tall bike is exactly what you think it is. Two bicycle frames are welded on top of one another creating a bicycle that requires a definite skill to mount. A knightly rider of one of these backyard creations will face off against a foe with a PVC joust tipped with a pillow. There are lots of events; including some where broken bones are less likely.
A mysterious Scavenger Hunt is scheduled for Friday July 15th at 4pm outside of Sugar City. No one is sure what items will be included but my guess is that they will be strange, hilarious and uniquely Buffalo. All you need is your bike, a digital camera and an adventurous spirit. I also recommend a helmet and a water bottle, but to each their own.
Saturday July 16th at 4pm again outside of Sugar City is the meet up for the Bicycle Olympics including the jousting mentioned above and a "Ring Toss" which I've come to understand is an event where a number of cyclists ride around in circles while avoiding old bike tires (rings) being thrown from the surrounding crowd. The whole feel of the Bicycle Olympics seems to be half Gladiator and half Sandlot... and it's going to be a great time.
Finally, on Sunday July 17th at 6pm the Echo Park Film-Mobile will be at Squeaky Wheel, 712 Main St. This was posted on the facebook event announcement, "The EPFC Filmmobile is a full service green-energy cinema & film school bus on a national tour to engage communities in filmmaking with a DIY approach. They will stop by Squeaky Wheel for a free Direct Animation Workshop (6-9pm) and an Outdoor Cinema Screening (9pm). This event is open to the public, held outside in conjunction with Buffalo's Bike Festival - all materials provided. Bike down for a free evening of fun and tacos, then stick around until the end hours for a mass exodus to the Midnight Bike Ride." The Echo Park Film Center brings the powerful medium of film production to marginalized populations in Los Angeles. Their traveling, eco-friendly cinema project is a perfect partnership for Squeaky Wheel because of the equally important work Squeaky is doing within this region. Here's a student film from L.A...
and one from Squeaky Wheel's Buffalo Youth Media Institute...
The DIY culture in Buffalo is all about celebrating people power. As Bill Strickland notes in The Quotable Cyclist, "... the bicycle is the most efficient machine ever created: Converting calories into gas, a bicycle gets the equivalent of three thousand miles per gallon." People power is a serious force, especially when bicycles are involved. So come out and celebrate with us this weekend.
If you'd like to help promote bicycle culture in Buffalo, consider joining Green Options Buffalo. Green Options offers education in bicycle mechanics and safe road riding, has given away hundreds of refurbished bicycles with new helmets, and promotes bicycle culture and infrastructure all over Buffalo. By working together with schools, institutions and organizations GO Buffalo promotes its mission of furthering, "Healthy, Environmentally Sustainable and Community Friendly Transportation."
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Bike week is very proudly brought to you by no one; at least, no one. It seems Buffalo's best and brightest DIY culture magicians have created a rocking adventure weekend through alchemy. As I was working at the Community Bicycle Workshop (yep, "Blue Bikes") this week, I heard the rumblings of scavenger hunts and Bicycle Olympics from dozens of members and volunteers. Fliers were being passed around and tall bikes were being readied for "jousting". And if you're wondering, yes jousting on a tall bike is exactly what you think it is. Two bicycle frames are welded on top of one another creating a bicycle that requires a definite skill to mount. A knightly rider of one of these backyard creations will face off against a foe with a PVC joust tipped with a pillow. There are lots of events; including some where broken bones are less likely.
A mysterious Scavenger Hunt is scheduled for Friday July 15th at 4pm outside of Sugar City. No one is sure what items will be included but my guess is that they will be strange, hilarious and uniquely Buffalo. All you need is your bike, a digital camera and an adventurous spirit. I also recommend a helmet and a water bottle, but to each their own.
Saturday July 16th at 4pm again outside of Sugar City is the meet up for the Bicycle Olympics including the jousting mentioned above and a "Ring Toss" which I've come to understand is an event where a number of cyclists ride around in circles while avoiding old bike tires (rings) being thrown from the surrounding crowd. The whole feel of the Bicycle Olympics seems to be half Gladiator and half Sandlot... and it's going to be a great time.
Finally, on Sunday July 17th at 6pm the Echo Park Film-Mobile will be at Squeaky Wheel, 712 Main St. This was posted on the facebook event announcement, "The EPFC Filmmobile is a full service green-energy cinema & film school bus on a national tour to engage communities in filmmaking with a DIY approach. They will stop by Squeaky Wheel for a free Direct Animation Workshop (6-9pm) and an Outdoor Cinema Screening (9pm). This event is open to the public, held outside in conjunction with Buffalo's Bike Festival - all materials provided. Bike down for a free evening of fun and tacos, then stick around until the end hours for a mass exodus to the Midnight Bike Ride." The Echo Park Film Center brings the powerful medium of film production to marginalized populations in Los Angeles. Their traveling, eco-friendly cinema project is a perfect partnership for Squeaky Wheel because of the equally important work Squeaky is doing within this region. Here's a student film from L.A...
and one from Squeaky Wheel's Buffalo Youth Media Institute...
The DIY culture in Buffalo is all about celebrating people power. As Bill Strickland notes in The Quotable Cyclist, "... the bicycle is the most efficient machine ever created: Converting calories into gas, a bicycle gets the equivalent of three thousand miles per gallon." People power is a serious force, especially when bicycles are involved. So come out and celebrate with us this weekend.
If you'd like to help promote bicycle culture in Buffalo, consider joining Green Options Buffalo. Green Options offers education in bicycle mechanics and safe road riding, has given away hundreds of refurbished bicycles with new helmets, and promotes bicycle culture and infrastructure all over Buffalo. By working together with schools, institutions and organizations GO Buffalo promotes its mission of furthering, "Healthy, Environmentally Sustainable and Community Friendly Transportation."
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For those interested in becoming members of Green Options Buffalo, here's a direct link to the membership page of their website: http://greenoptionsbuffalo.org/join.php