Greensboro Finalist for US Bicycling Hall of Fame

[beyonce245]

Read it here.

The only other city that I know of that is competing for it is Greenville, SC.

[sean]

Crossing my fingers. Greenville, SC will be an obvious front runner as they have hosted the professional Road and TT national championships for the past several years. Greenville has a bunch of pros in residence and is known in cycling circles as a hotspot.

[suburban george3]

While I honestly wish Greensboro the best in getting this, I find it hard to believe as bicycling 'unfriendly' the Triad is in road layout and design that we are being considered for this...

[sean]

There is a strong cycling community here in the Triad; just look at the number of bike shops. You are correct in that it is a rather unfriendly place to ride in respect to coexisting with motorists. I've seen firsthand how local motorists have a violent and callous disregard to life, regardless of what their bumper stickers proclaim.

[greensbohemian]

Yeah, getting ANY bike lanes in Greensboro was a step forward but I'd still be too nervous to ride around town on most of the main roads. I know we used to have a Critical Mass organization in GSO. Do we still? If so, do a lot of people participate?

[krazeeboi]

I think Greensboro being a front runner here has more to do with its desire to be something of an all-around sports town than with its bike-friendliness.

[cityboi]

very amazing and I hope this happens. Its great to see that they are focusing on a downtown location which would attract tourists downtown. Greensboro is a very bicycle friendly community with bike lanes and greenways. The 4 mile greenway loop around downtown will have a bicycle path so if you live downtown it will be a great place to ride your bike. But is there a reason Greensboro stands out over all the cities across the country? Anyways this would be GREAT! and now if they can just get the ACC Hall of Champions off the ground. I think have the US Bicycling Hall of Fame, The ACC Hall of Champions and the International Civil Rights Museum downtown will go a long way in turn downtown Greensboro into a tourist destination and not just a spot for locals having a good time.

[sean]

Greensboro is a very bicycle friendly community with bike lanes and greenways.

[crowe1856]

I think the proposed downtown greenway is the sole reason Greensboro is in contention. While I don't hear of motorist/bike fatalities on a daily basis, I agree with Sean that the region in general isn't all that bike friendly. Upon moving to Greensboro I was disappointed by the lack of commuter trails and thought it a bit silly that I had to drive my car to someplace I could safely ride my bike (since trails are concentrated around the lakes on the north side of town).

I've noticed that any disdain held against cyclists is just as strong towards pedestrians. Don't know if it stems from the lack of sidewalks, or fact that things are too spread out to foster anything but a "cars first" mentality; but the number of cars that blow through crosswalks, and pedestrians that don't confidently assume the right of way is a bit disconcerting. It's like there's a "mine's bigger than yours, so get outta my way" mantra, which means pedestrians and cyclists should watch the heck out.

We'd be kidding ourselves to think that Greensboro has anything on Portland or Boulder, but the addition of bike lanes is a start (though aside from Spring Garden, they don't go anywhere), and there are some more commuter oriented trails in the works. Still, I just don't see a time when bankers & soccer moms ride their bike for anything other than recreation. Commuting via bike around here will always be a niche for the young, adventurous, and those with short commutes.

Remember, even if Greensboro gets this, it won't exactly be like people will start planning cross-country pilgrimages just to come see the bicycle museum. My hometown was home to the National Roller Skating Museum, and I don't know a single person that ever went. Granted, cycling is much more of a lifestyle activity with considerably broader appeal, but I don't know anyone could have told you the current Cycling Museum was in Somerville NJ unless they read it on a Trivial Pursuit card.

That all said, I hope we get it (with limited incentives) and think it'd be a nice compliment to the downtown greenway.

[sean]

a personal friend and dedicated advocate for cycling, bruce herman, was plowed by a car recently and is in critical care at baptist hospital. so get this: motorist plows down bruce from behind on a clear day and isn't charged with anything. ooops, my bad. this is a human life! if i plow down a road sign or mailbox, i'd likely be charged with something.

cyclist hit in lewisville

[cityboi]

my prayers go out to him and his family people have little regard for pedestrians or bicyclists. its stunning that this person was not charged and bruce is fighting for his life and could potentially be paralized for life if he survives this.

[beyonce245]

Greensboro is indeed a finalist, one of two cities remaining that are competing to be the new home for this Hall of Fame! Go Greensboro!

Read about it here.

[cityboi]

ha ha you beat me to it LOL. It looks like Greenville, SC is no longer in the running. Its between Greensboro and Davis, California. The article states sites for the hall of fame will be downtown near the greenway loop where there will be a path for bicycles.

"During the Greensboro visit, Brunner said, his group will tour possible sites, all of which are in close proximity to the proposed Downtown Greenway, a recreational loop for walking, running and biking around the center city."

Davis, California is pretty stiff competition. Even though its a small town in the middle of nowhere in California, the town is well known for its cycling facilities and has an extensive network of biking paths and biking lanes. In 2005 the Bicycle-Friendly Community program of the League of American Bicyclists recognized Davis as the first Platinum Level city in the U.S. In March 2006, Bicycling magazine named Davis the best small town for cycling in its compilation of "America's Best Biking Cities. There are also a number of cycling competitions held there so this is definately not a done deal for Greensboro.

[sax184]

ha ha you beat me to it LOL. It looks like Greenville, SC is no longer in the running. Its between Greensboro and Davis, California. The article states sites for the hall of fame will be downtown near the greenway loop where there will be a path for bicycles.

"During the Greensboro visit, Brunner said, his group will tour possible sites, all of which are in close proximity to the proposed Downtown Greenway, a recreational loop for walking, running and biking around the center city."

Davis, California is pretty stiff competition. Even though its a small town in the middle of nowhere in California, the town is well known for its cycling facilities and has an extensive network of biking paths and biking lanes. In 2005 the Bicycle-Friendly Community program of the League of American Bicyclists recognized Davis as the first Platinum Level city in the U.S. In March 2006, Bicycling magazine named Davis the best small town for cycling in its compilation of "America's Best Biking Cities. There are also a number of cycling competitions held there so this is definately not a done deal for Greensboro.

[DigitalSky]

Yeah Davis does seem like the frontrunner in this, and perhaps rightfully so as much as i'd like to see it in gso.

[cityboi]

We should know the results today in where the hall of fame will be located. I have my fingers crossed but Davis is very stiff competition. The city of Davis bills itself as "the bicycle capital of the United States" and rightfully so. But there must be something special about Greensboro because we beat out 9 other cities, cities such as Dayton, OH and Greenville, SC.

[gso27]

We should know the results today in where the hall of fame will be located. I have my fingers crossed but Davis is very stiff competition. The city of Davis bills itself as "the bicycle capital of the United States" and rightfully so. But there must be something special about Greensboro because we beat out 9 other cities, cities such as Dayton, OH and Greenville, SC.

[cityboi]

Well it looks like the frontrunner location in Greensboro is a large space in the downtown depot because its move in ready and there would be no construction required. But being located in a multi-modal transportation hub is actually a pretty good idea. But if the goal is to attract more tourist to the Hall of Fame, Greensboro will win it. If its all about which city has more of a biking history, Davis will win it. But i do think Greensboro's association with the ACC and all the sports tournaments (PGA, NCAA, ect) the city hosts helps. Im sure directors of the hall of fame are aware of plans for an ACC Hall of Fame as well. The downtown Greenway loop is definately a factor though. From my understanding this will be the first greenway in the country that completely circles a downtown and the Bicycling hall of fame directors like that kind of forward thinking.

[cityboi]

well thats it folks. The hall of fame is headed to Davis, CA. As much as I wanted it to come to Greensboro, Davis, California deserves the prize. After all Davis is all about bicycling and has worked hard in getting the designation of being "the bicycling capital of the world" Greensboro shouldn't worry though. We have our prized ACC Hall of Champions on the way and we would feel cheated if another city that had very little to do with the ACC won the hall of fame. Davis would have felted cheated if Greensboro won the bicycling hall of fame. So congrats to Davis.

http://www.news-record.com/content/2009/04...headed_to_calif

[beyonce245]

I regret that Greensboro didn't get it. But our city performed well, especially amongst other more "cyclist friendly" cities. That said, I would have been somewhat disappointed if Greensboro had gotten it, but it was put in the Depot.

At this time, I think the Depot is too far removed from the rest of downtown. I thought other downtown locations offered better prospects, even if they would have required some upfit.

[cityboi]

before I knew Davis was in the running, I knew Greensboro had this in the bag. In fact if Davis had not been in the running Greensboro would have won it. But I understand why Davis was selected. Greensboro doesnt really have a biking history even though we had some local bicycle races on the city streets through Greensboro.

[sax184]

Davis receives Bike Hall of Fame.

This is as it should be. Greensboro for the most part is a complete transportation disaster for anyone not in an automobile, and to locate this facility in Greensboro instead of Davis, a city with a decades-long commitment to cycling, would have been a travesty.

Congrats to Davis, and may Greensboro realize by this loss that they have much farther to go on bike transportation.

[sax184]

Today the American League of Bicyclists published its list of Bicycle Friendly Communities.

The only NC cities that qualified were Charlotte, Carrboro, and Cary. All three received the "Bronze" level of recognition.

Davis,CA was one of only three cities to receive the "Platinum" status rating along with Portland, OR and Boulder, CO.