World Record Naked Bike Ride, Sun, 2pm

pppssst... Pass it on!

World Record Naked Bike Ride
Sunday, July 29

From: worldnakedbikeride.org/vancouver

Let the naked cyclists ride!!!

Vancouver will experience the exposed joy and claim the title of the world's largest naked protest against oil dependency and car culture. It's time to stop indecent exposure to automobile emissions! Hundreds of cyclists will ride in various stages of undress -- reclaiming the streets as sexy, self-propelled citizens. Naked Bicycle People Power!

The Vancouver record attempt starts Sunday, July 29, 2:00pm at Sunset Beach (corner of Beach and Bute).

Body painting and performances will take place before the ride. Arrive between 12 Noon and 2:00pm to catch some of the action and some of the paint! A picnic following the ride will be hosted by NIFTY (niftynude.org). The ride, pre and post-ride activities are all free.

wiki.worldnakedbikeride.org/.../WorldRecordPosterLaurasLeg.jpg

**Rules of the Naked Bike Ride!**

• Many riders will be naked, rain or shine.
• If it's sunny, wear sunscreen.
• You don't have to be naked to ride, but the spirit of the ride is some state of undress.
• If you are uncomfortable with being naked at the start of the ride, there will be opportunity during the ride.
• Keep your cloths with you -- you never know when you may need them.
• Ride safely and stay together as a group.
• Tell Everyone!

pride ride

While the Vancouver Pride Parade is Sunday, August 5th. There is a slightly faster version on the last friday of the month. July Pride Ride Critical Mass!

Be proud to ride a bicycle or skate in the city, come out of the gutter. 530pm at the VAG as usual. Maybe a little more colour and costumes this month? Dress up or down as much as you like! The more fun you put in, the more of a gay ol' time we will all have. All are invited, young and old. Especially families of all sorts. Let's celebrate our strength in one another: our diversity. In the streets, social and human and without fear of cars or bigots.

Post ride festivities will be at the beach or at the Anza Club Velofusion Pride Themed Party.

It will be hot!

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• Saturday night is the annual illuminaries lantern festival. Besides chopper bikes there will be carfree victoria drive this year! Fun.

• world record naked bike ride, sunday the 29th, at sunset beach. At noon, bodypaint, at 2pm the ride. I haven't heard a lot about this ride and it was hard to even find the start location posted on the internet. So, I have my suspicions about the record numbers part. But, it will be surely be better weather than the JuneWNBR, and frankly if there is less media and publicity I find the rides to be more fun anyway. You get a feeling of freedom that is unmatched by cycling naked. And the media presense always makes it seem like it is not normal, though it really should be.

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Tell the mayor to stop holding our city hostage to his dumb idea of firing the cityworkers right after the Olympics. They will settle for 36 or 48 months, not 39. Duh. Stupid Olympics. I wish they WERE striking to get it cancelled. Or maybe you should go over the mayors head to the corporations what own the Olympics!

In any case, it is a good time to think about how we think of the garbage as this magic box that takes away all our waste problems to where we can't see them. [kind of the the greenwashed automobile magic that takes away the tailpipe pollution to put it where it is less visable]. People are already talking about BURNING garbage and it hasn't even been a week! Seriously people, the 3 R's are not Recycle, Refill, Repackage but... REDUCE, and RE-USE... then recycle. Let's grow veggies in the boulevards! And also tear up some asphalt to do this.

May I borrow your time and superpowers for 3 or so hours? (For Saturday, July 28)

To all of my favorite Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is indeed high summertime in this fine city. I note this because, let us marvel for a moment, summertime has come to mean something entirely new and exciting 'round these parts of town. What say?! I say: you ain't hearing "festival" anymore without great expectations that we will have again taken to the streets, reclaiming them from car traffic! Ahhahaha ha! ha!

Now I plug the Illuminares Lantern Procession at Trout Lake Park, Saturday, July 28: We're opening Victoria Drive from 12th Ave to 19th Ave. [by closing to cars] Ah! The beauty! Lanterns, bikes, kids, dogs, and good folks of all sorts. 7pm until 11pm.

And even more to the point. We know what this takes, this street closing. Barricade superheros. We'll be rockin the pavement for 6 hours -- two shifts of 3 hours each. AND food, love, and a stellar Public-Dreams style after-party on August 1st. This and many other a fine opportunity abound to keep the tradition rollin... and rolling into the streeeeeeeets! (Contact me for more info and see below for a few of the other opportunities.)

Bike Valet on site, of course. Props to BEST. Yessir!

Y'all are the most fab, crazy cats around. And I really.. really.. need your help. Tell your friends and lovers! Forward far and wide!

Viva! Viva!
Your network devoted, email spammer, lover of a good throw down, and forever indebted,
Andrea

Email me at volunteer@@@publicdreams.org

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This is how it gets done:
* Pre-Event Lantern building & repairing Team
* Event Production Crew
* Trout Lake Site Decor Crew
* Hospitality -- dispensers of food and drink
* People Liason -- info stations, performer/vol check-in
* Perimeters of the Party Barricader Team
* Public Dreams Jesters -- we've got costumes for the vibe keepers and donation collectors
Shifts during the event are 3 hours, Pre and Post Fest shifts are 5 hours. All folks are fed and watered. Full hot meals provided for anyone doing double shifts.
_____________________________________________________

xo!

Car Free Commercial Drive Festival!

the Car-Free Commercial Drive Fest goes on, this Sunday...

BUT we will need all the extra hands we can get to bring this off with ease and grace.

Soooo....if you feel the urge, please drop by the Volunteer table (near Info Tent) and offer us a hand!

Our biggest challenge may be garbage and cleanup, esp. if Park staff are absent... so if you can help for even a few minutes, that would be awesome.

Gonna be another fun day on the Drive...see you Sunday....

It will probably be wet. So, bring umbrellas to share and maybe even tarps and rope, tents?

Details at commercialdrivefestival.org

happy ride

some writing about cars, art and fixed gear bicyles.
...and a survey about liking cars and perception of car safety.

Rouge et Noir: A Bicycle Cabaret

Imagine a dark, hidden, back room glowing with the light of candles, filled with beautiful people talking philosophy and flirting shamelessly... imagine a show that combines comedy, song, dance, poetry, theatre, sexy ladies and handsome gentlemen... imagine hundreds of bikes parked outside.

The B:C:Clettes present an elaborate Cabaret for meet your posh appetites:
ROUGE ET NOIR, a Bicycle Cabaret
A fundraiser for their August 2007 west coast tour, bringing Vancouver's bike love all the way to L.A. and back!

July 12, 13 and 14th
@ The Western Front (303 East 8th Avenue @ Scotia)
Gather at 7pm, dress to impress in your most respledant attire.
The Show will start promptly at 8pm.

The Cabaret will feature local acts, divas, opera singers, bicycles and those lovely ladies in black and red: The B:C:Clettes.

• Sidria: sultry torch singer who will leave you breathless
• Bring Your Own Cabaret: pushing your buttons and then unbuttoning them
  
• the Creaking Planks: the iPod of 1906 plays demented nautical circus
  orchestration
  
• Fossilosopher: elder bikepunk spinning wheel words of wisdom
  
• the fabulous B:C:Clettes: bicycle showgirls, old favorites plus three new numbers.
  
• YOU!

Tickets: Thursday $8, Friday and Saturday $15
Advance Tickets Available at:
Spartacus (319 West Hastings @ Cambie)
Our Community Bikes (3283 Main Street @ 17th Avenue)
People's Co-op Books (1391 Commercial Drive, between Charles and Kitchener)

*If you would like to volunteer, please contact the clettes at bcclettes@gmail.com. Please put volunteer in the subject line.*

Bike Month Over?

Nice Ride everybody. Decent turnout considering the rain. I would say it was a slight bit bigger than last years ride. Then there was a count of 1850 coming off Granville [fairly early on the ride] and this time I helped with a count of 1800 downtown after crossing the viaduct - so much longer into the ride, which usually gets smaller as time goes on.

I could recollect more about it but I'll do that tommorrow. Did anyone see the Global TV news where this brief clip showed a car ramming a corker? That was very disturbing and if there is footage we should try to get charges pressed for that assault. That kind of violence is intolerable. I hope no one was hurt. But the TV clip was too brief for me to be sure.

Please post links to your pictures of the ride here. I saw tons of people taking shots. I took some photo's myself, but I'll post those tommorrow too.

hugs to all massers!

PS, here is one from the flickr Critical Mass Vancouver photo pool:

Post a link to your photos page in the comments and I'll put the link here!

• youtube of CTV new coverage, features helicopter footage

the funny thing about this is I recognise where the interview with the blue taxi driver took place. Right at the start of the mass next to the art gallery. I was there and I saw the TV interviewing a driver in a yellow taxi who was waiting. That taxi driver loved the mass! I guess they chose the interview that reflected the slant they wanted to take: sympathy with ignorant drivers who blame bikes for the problems that cars are. Oh well, we're use to it. Of course it is our fault that your car is too big and clumsy to scoot through the city efficiently... I did like the segue from about cyclists being injured - Somewhat. Statistics are that riding a bike is safer than being in a car! So don't be fooled into fear. With cycling you can really improve your odds with education - more so than driving (statistically).

• Really neet-o sped up footage of the ride - well done!