Some cool upcoming events...

Some of these have been posted elsewhere, so you may have already seen them. But I figure it never hurts to post often, it helps spread the word:


Padraig, of Red Kite Prayer, and a cycling magazine (or two?) you may be familiar with, will be signing copies of his new book, entitled "The No Drop Zone", at our local REI in Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, October 19, at 7:00pm. The Arcadia REI is not very far either, and he will be at that location on the 20th, same time. If you click on the title, you will jump to Padraig's description of the book. It sounds informative, even if you are like me, and think you know all there is to know.


There is going to be a Keirin bike show and follow-up races at the Encino Velodrome on Sunday, October 23. Festivities will start at 3:00 at the velodrome. You may also want to partake of a pre-event ride from the North Hollywood Metro station to Encino which will take off at 1:30. Officially known as the 3rd Annual NJS Bike Show, bikes will be judged in several categories, including most NJS stamps (NJS: Nihon Jitensha Shinkokai-the Japanese Bicycling Association), rarest bike, and best overall. Check it here for more info. I imagine it will be a typical fun day out at the velodrome, and you will be supporting that institution too. Alas, the yellow Basso, though made of steel, is neither of Japanese manufacture, nor a track bike and would be out of place. Doesn't mean I can't stop by to look at all the "sparkly bikes".

I also received an email about a cycling and art event across town, in Santa Monica and the Westside. This concerns the Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A., 1945-1980, a whole series of events and exhibitions. In particular though, on October 22 there will be a bike tour which is to include free admission and private tours at participating museums. The Tour begins at 1:00 at the Santa Monica Museum of Art, moves on to the Sam Francis Gallery, the Eames Office and the 18th Street Arts Center, where at 4:30 there will be a panel discussion. I don't have a single link for this event, but click here for the Pacific Standard Time web page, here for the registration page, and here for information on the Santa Monica/Westside Focus weekend, of which the bike tour is a part (there is an option to jump to the registration page from this last link, but it did not work for me, which is why I provided its own link).

Finally, I hope to have some exciting news about a series of cycling events to be held in Claremont by late next week.