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Easy-going, flat alternative cycling routes in Vancouver?	ron
	Nov 07, 2009 10:31 PST

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This is an article about flattish cycling in San Francisco. While we don't
have the hills that SF does, some of the existing bike routes incorporate
significant grades. So why not plot out some alternatives here in Vancouver
(and elsewhere)? These could be added to routes and maps for those who
prefer, or can only manage, a more relaxed, easy going approach to cycling.
I sometimes refer to such alternative routes as 'bike canals'. This could
be an important element in making cycling viable for EVERYONE.

Ron Richings

SFGate

Bike about town: Flat routes in San Francisco

Michael Tanner, San Francisco Chronicle

Thursday, April 9, 2009

While there's no shortage of lung-burning climbs or dramatic hilltop views
in San Francisco, if you just need to get to work without breaking a sweat
or enjoy a weekend meander without performance-enhancing drugs, leave the
mountains to the goats and cruise the flats.

"People are way more intimidated (by San Francisco's hills) than they need
to be," says Jessica Meek, who logs many miles a week doing mosquito
abatement by bicycle and will be leading a San Francisco Bike
Coalition-sponsored ride along her topographically neutral commuting route
through the Marina district this spring. "There are plenty of ways around
the hills."

It's a lesson Alexis Weiss, a new bike commuter, took quickly to heart. She
was initially daunted by the prospect of a daily round trip from Cole Valley
to the Civic Center, but says, "once I got the courage to do it once (and
figured out the correct route), I realized that it's much easier than you
would think." The proper vector is crucial, though. Of her first trip home,
she says, "I went up the hill at Page Street. I thought I might have a heart
attack - I actually stopped on a corner to sit down and rest."

Do the wiggle

The secret to a flat ride often involves circuitous paths through the city
known as wiggles. Savvy riders follow bike trails and side streets apart
from the obvious direct boulevards, so that "it looks like you're wiggling
or snaking through that part of town," explains Meek. Some of the routes
have the added benefit of car-free sections, and because they are popular
with bikers, drivers won't be surprised by your presence.

The best known of these serpentines is the one Weiss now correctly uses to
connect central Market, via the path behind Safeway and through the Lower
Haight, to the Panhandle and the western neighborhoods beyond.

Traversing the alpine divide from the Marina south necessitates a similar
set of logistics, limning Greenwich, Octavia and Green streets before
approaching Polk Street, which crests the saddle between Pacific Heights and
Nob Hill. Things straighten out a bit in the Mission, with Valencia Street
providing a direct shot into southern parts of the city. Sixteenth Street
gets you to the Third Street corridor without major challenges.

Jennifer Utter, who often rides to Scroungers' Center for Reusable Art Parts
in Bayshore from Mission Dolores, puts a premium on avoiding heavy traffic
as well. She uses 26th Street, rather than Cesar Chavez, to cut across the
southern Mission and follows a "squiggle along the bike route" on Bayshore
Boulevard. "I ride a three-speed with foot brakes," she says, "so hills are
really not an option."

All social, no climb

It's not all about the practicalities here, either. With the proper mapping,
your ride can actually be fun, too, whether you're rolling your heavy beach
cruiser or hauling a picnic. Cruising altitude barely exceeds sea level, for
instance, all the way from AT&T Park to the base of the Golden Gate Bridge,
following the Embarcadero, through Fisherman's Wharf (with a short, walkable
hump between Aquatic Park and Fort Mason), along Marina Boulevard, to Crissy
Field.

A round trip from Ocean Beach at the west end of Golden Gate Park, along the
Great Highway, to Sloat Boulevard, clockwise around Lake Merced and back can
be completed with some headwind but no appreciable elevation gain. The
ascent through the park itself is also gentle and often assisted by the
wind.

Resources and events

A great way to get started is with the San Francisco Bike Map and Walking
Guide, showing street grades throughout the city and featuring a network of
recommended routes. It's available at bike shops or free with an SFBC
membership. This month's SFBC Bike Buddy Routes Ride meets at the Duboce
Bikeway at Market Street, 2 p.m. Saturday to explore the wiggle connecting
central Market to points west. Or, if you want a little culture, catch up
with the SFBC's Secret History of the Mission bike tour, an amusingly
educational jaunt through one of the city's least lumpy quadrants, meeting
at 18th and Dolores streets at 11 a.m. Saturday. Go to www.
sfbike.org/?chain for details.

Bike About Town is presented by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, a
10,000-member nonprofit dedicated to creating safer streets and more livable
communities by promoting the bicycle for everyday transportation. For more
biking resources, go to http://www.sfbike.org/.

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This is an article about flattish cycling in <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Francisco</st1:place></st1:City>.
While we don’t have the hills that SF does, some of the existing bike
routes incorporate significant grades. So why not plot out some
alternatives here in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Vancouver</st1:City></st1:place>
(and elsewhere)? These could be added to routes and maps for those
who prefer, or can only manage, a more relaxed, easy going approach to cycling.
I sometimes refer to such alternative routes as ‘bike canals’.
This could be an important element in making cycling viable for EVERYONE.<o:p></o:p>

<o:p> </o:p>

<st1:PersonName w:st="on">Ron Richings</st1:PersonName><o:p></o:p>

<o:p> </o:p>

<o:p> </o:p>

<o:p> </o:p>

<img
width=100 height=14 id="_x0000_i1034" src="cid:image0-@01CA5F94.2F298850"
alt=SFGate class=brandlogo><o:p></o:p>

<h1>Bike about town: Flat routes in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">San Francisco</st1:place></st1:City><o:p></o:p></h1>

<h1><o:p> </o:p></h1>

Michael Tanner, San Francisco Chronicle<o:p></o:p>

Thursday, April 9, 2009<o:p></o:p>

<o:p> </o:p>

While there's no shortage of lung-burning climbs or dramatic
hilltop views in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">San Francisco</st1:City></st1:place>,
if you just need to get to work without breaking a sweat or enjoy a weekend
meander without performance-enhancing drugs, leave the mountains to the goats
and cruise the flats.<o:p></o:p>

"People
are way more intimidated (by San Francisco's hills) than they need to be,"
says Jessica Meek, who logs many miles a week doing mosquito abatement by
bicycle and will be leading a San Francisco Bike Coalition-sponsored ride along
her topographically neutral commuting route through the Marina district this
spring. "There are plenty of ways around the hills." <o:p></o:p>

It's a lesson
Alexis Weiss, a new bike commuter, took quickly to heart. She was initially
daunted by the prospect of a daily round trip from <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Cole</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceName> to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Civic</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>,
but says, "once I got the courage to do it once (and figured out the
correct route), I rea<st1:PersonName w:st="on">liz</st1:PersonName>ed that it's
much easier than you would think." The proper vector is crucial, though.
Of her first trip home, she says, "I went up the hill at <st1:Street
w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Page Street</st1:address></st1:Street>. I
thought I might have a heart attack - I actually stopped on a corner to sit
down and rest."<o:p></o:p>

Do the
wiggle<o:p></o:p>

The secret to
a flat ride often involves circuitous paths through the city known as wiggles.
Savvy riders follow bike trails and side streets apart from the obvious direct
boulevards, so that "it looks like you're wiggling or snaking through that
part of town," explains Meek. Some of the routes have the added benefit of
car-free sections, and because they are popular with bikers, drivers won't be
surprised by your presence.<o:p></o:p>

The best known
of these serpentines is the one Weiss now correctly uses to connect central
Market, via the path behind Safeway and through the <st1:place w:st="on">Lower
Haight</st1:place>, to the Panhandle and the western neighborhoods beyond. <o:p></o:p>

Traversing the
alpine divide from the Marina south necessitates a similar set of logistics,
limning Greenwich, Octavia and Green streets before approaching Polk Street,
which crests the saddle between Pacific Heights and Nob Hill. Things straighten
out a bit in the <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Mission</st1:place></st1:City>,
with <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Valencia Street</st1:address></st1:Street>
providing a direct shot into southern parts of the city. <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address
w:st="on">Sixteenth Street</st1:address></st1:Street> gets you to the <st1:Street
w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Third Street</st1:address></st1:Street>
corridor without major challenges.<o:p></o:p>

Jennifer
Utter, who often rides to Scroungers' Center for Reusable Art Parts in Bayshore
from Mission Dolores, puts a premium on avoiding heavy traffic as well. She
uses <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">26th Street</st1:address></st1:Street>,
rather than Cesar Chavez, to cut across the southern <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Mission</st1:place></st1:City> and follows a "squiggle along
the bike route" on <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Bayshore
Boulevard</st1:address></st1:Street>. "I ride a three-speed with foot
brakes," she says, "so hills are really not an option."<o:p></o:p>

All
social, no climb<o:p></o:p>

It's not all
about the practicalities here, either. With the proper mapping, your ride can
actually be fun, too, whether you're rolling your heavy beach cruiser or
hauling a picnic. Cruising altitude barely exceeds sea level, for instance, all
the way from AT&T Park to the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, following the
Embarcadero, through Fisherman's Wharf (with a short, walkable hump between
Aquatic Park and Fort Mason), along Marina Boulevard, to Crissy Field. <o:p></o:p>

A round trip
from <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Ocean</st1:PlaceType> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Beach</st1:PlaceType>
at the west end of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Golden Gate</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Park</st1:PlaceType>, along the <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address
w:st="on">Great Highway</st1:address></st1:Street>, to <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address
w:st="on">Sloat Boulevard</st1:address></st1:Street>, clockwise around <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Lake</st1:PlaceType> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Merced</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>
and back can be completed with some headwind but no appreciable elevation gain.
The ascent through the park itself is also gentle and often assisted by the
wind. <o:p></o:p>

Resources
and events<o:p></o:p>

A great way to
get started is with the San Francisco Bike Map and Walking Guide, showing
street grades throughout the city and featuring a network of recommended
routes. It's available at bike shops or free with an SFBC membership. This
month's SFBC Bike Buddy Routes Ride meets at the Duboce Bikeway at <st1:Street
w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Market Street</st1:address></st1:Street>, 2
p.m. Saturday to explore the wiggle connecting central Market to points west.
Or, if you want a little culture, catch up with the SFBC's Secret History of
the <st1:place w:st="on">Mission</st1:place> bike tour, an amusingly
educational jaunt through one of the city's least lumpy quadrants, meeting at
18th and Dolores streets at 11 a.m. Saturday. Go to www. sfbike.org/?chain for
details.<o:p></o:p>

Bike About
Town is presented by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, a 10,000-member
nonprofit dedicated to creating safer streets and more livable communities by
promoting the bicycle for everyday transportation. For more biking resources,
go to <a href="http://www.sfbike.org/">http://www.sfbike.org/</a>.<o:p></o:p>

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