In: Cherry blossom pink

With the National Cherry Blossom Festival underway now, D.C. is blooming in everything pink. We've caught blossom fever and want to afflict you with this desirable condition.

If we "ah-choo," might you ...

Accessorize your ride with a pink helmet or gloves from our special seasonal collection.

Go matchy-matchy with the glorious Bike in Bloom, a single pink bike in the Capital Bikeshare fleet. Ride it wearing a pink helmet and gloves to show your pink side with pride.

Freshen your home or office with "Bicycle Bloom" by local artist Annie Riker. 

Take the pink plunge to buy the folding bicycle you've always wanted. The exceptional craftsmanship of a Brompton Bicycle in pink is the perfect match for the season.

Happy Cherry Blossom Festival, friends. May the pink be with you.

Welcome to bicycling

Yes, you can.

You can bicycle to work, play, errands and otherwise meet life's demands.

Here are just a few of our favorite resources to get started.

• Our commuter guide
• Sweet video about urban commuting for the "bike-curious"
• How to speak bike, written by our dear friend and Chasing Mailboxes blogger, Mary
• Information for new riders from the Washington Area Bicyclist Association 

Please join our Nice & Easy beginner rides every Saturday and Sunday at 10 am. If you don't have your own bike, you can test ride one of ours or use a Capital Bikeshare trial membership. 

We encourage you to bicycle because it's an addictively joyful way to get around. Just ask the experts. Science has proven a link between bicycling and happiness, as reported here and here.

We're at your service to answer your questions and help you give bicycling a whirl.

Speak up for trails

March 20 update: We'll lead a ride along the Metropolitan Branch Trail on Saturday, March 21. After taking a look at the trail, we'll attend the 1 pm meeting on completing the northern end. The ride departs from our shop at 700 5th St NW at 11:30 am.   

There are several upcoming opportunities to take action to help improve regional trails. You don't have to be a trailblazer to attend a meeting, write a letter, drink a beer or go to a festival in support of better trails.

Thursday, 3/19

To prepare for a public meeting Saturday, the Washington Area Bicyclist Association is having a working happy hour at 6 pm at Simple Bar in Brightwood. Get up to speed on issues related to the northern parts of the Metropolitan Branch Trail, the subject of a meeting D.C. officials are holding on March 21. Click here for more information and to RSVP.

Saturday, 3/21

The District Department of Transportation and Advisory Neighborhood Commission 4B will hold a public meeting on the preliminary design of the Metropolitan Branch Trail from Brookland to Takoma Park. The meeting takes place from 1 pm to 4 pm at the 4th District Police Headquarters, 6001 Georgia Ave NW. Click here for more information.

Saturday, 3/28

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is throwing a national party to celebrate "Opening Day for Trails." Motivated by the simple reason that "it's time to get out and play," the local festivities are taking place from 10 am to 2 pm along the Custis Trail in Rosslyn, directly across Lee Highway from Gateway Park. Click here for more information.  

ASAP!
The D.C. mayor's office is seeking to appoint new members to the Recreational Trails Advisory Committee. The committee makes advisory recommendations as to how the District should spend federal funds for trails. Click here for more information.

Time to be artsy and literary

Bikes, art and literature intersect at several upcoming events. 

Tuesday, March 17
Bikes vs. Cars film. It's the opening night of the Environmental Film Festival and the D.C. premiere of the Swedish film "Bikes vs. Cars." The event takes place at 7 pm at the Carnegie Institution, 1530 P St NW. The $25 ticket includes a post-film discussion and reception. Two Wheel Valet will park your bike and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association will have a literature table. Click here for more information and tickets.

Sunday, March 22
Join BicycleSPACE on a tour of D.C. murals, departing from our shop at 700 5th St NW at 11:30 am. Learn more on our Facebook event page.

Thursday, March 26
Former Stanford climate change researcher David Kroodsma will give a presentation on his world travels by bicycle. Hear his experiences interviewing laypeople and experts about climate change across three continents, as reported in his new book, "The Bicycle Diaries." The slideshow and presentation takes place at 7:30 pm at our shop at 700 5th St NW.

Through Tuesday, March 31
A public art exhibit called Las Bicicletas is on display at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center through March 31. The exhibit is composed of 83 bicycle sculptures by Mexican abstract expressionist Gilberto Aceves Navarro. To achieve its objective that "bicycles are universally recognized as vehicles of happiness and health," Las Bicicletas seeks to "promote through art the use of bicycles as an alternative mode of transportation [and] to develop better living conditions for all people in friendlier cities." The largest public art exhibit by a single artist, Las Bicicletas is outdoors on the plaza at 1300 Pennsylvania Ave NW.

Pie ride on Pi Day

Saturday is March 14, a day math nerds cherish as Pi Day (3.14). Not everyone is a math wizard, but everyone eats pie. If you're skilled at math, eating, socializing and/or bicycling, we invite you to our Pi(e) Day celebration.

BicycleSPACE Celebrates Pi(e) Day
Saturday, March 14, 2015
11:30 am
Departing from our shop at 700 5th St NW
Ending with pie at Curbside Cafe, 257 15th St SE

Our regularly scheduled Cupcake Ramble is becoming a pie ride for the day. After a 15-mile ride along this route, we'll end sweetly over pies from our good friend Acme Pie Co.

We'll enjoy them at Curbside Cafe, which has graciously allowed us to bring in the pies. We're deeply grateful that this family-owned small business has opened its doors to us. Curbside Cafe is the same as the pink Curbside Cupcakes food truck you've surely seen around town. This company is a leader in the DMV Food Truck Association and a strong voice in civic affairs. We respect their leadership in the community and appreciate their hospitality to invite us (and our pies) into their neighborhood cafe.

Please plan to buy coffee or lunch to show our appreciation for their kind gesture. (Here's the menu.)

As you ride to the shop, be mindful of possible street closures due to the Rock'n'Roll Marathon. Outwit the closures, plan your route and RSVP below to celebrate pi(e) with BicycleSPACE.

Brompton Black Edition

One of our sleekest bikes just got sleeker. Brompton Bicycle, maker of the folding multi-modal commuter companion, has just released a special Black Edition. 

A handful of these limited-edition Bromptons will be available at BicycleSPACE in April. Options include two- or six-speed bikes with flat, upright or more upright handlebars. 

Several key components are black on these special bikes, which come in five frame colors: Black, White, Berry Crush, Lime Green and Tempest Blue.

According to Brompton, the black design is a "tribute to urban city night rides and all-weather commutes.”

Winter accessories sale and gloves report

On our cold, snowy Thursday and Friday this week, we urged our community to think warm thoughts. You must be powerful because it worked. The collective good vibes have warmed the temperature and reassured us spring is coming. 

This means we need to make room on the sales floor for new merchandise and clear out the winter goods. Please take winter hats, caps, gloves and helmet liners off our shelves and into your home. Please take 25% off these items to hasten their departure from our stock.

In summary:

BicycleSPACE Winter Accessories Sale

Take 25% off hats, caps, gloves and helmet liners

You can stop reading here and hop to the shop like the Easter Bunny. Or you can take a moment to review our gloves report that follows. 

GLOVES

Your hands are the farthest forward part of your body on a bike. This means they are first to hit the wind and feel the chill.

Besides just looking cool and keeping your fingers warm, gloves also protect your hands from road vibrations or the road itself. A little bit of padding on the glove can make long rides more comfortable. While we all do our best not to fall, sometimes it happens and you’d rather tear up a glove than the palm of your hand. 

Knit gloves

Perfect for brisk weather, these knit gloves are thin enough to let you dig a phone out of your pocket, but thick enough to take the bite out of the wind. Depending on how good your circulation is, these will keep your fingers toasty down to about 40 degrees. 

Wind stopper

Between 30 and 40 degrees is where a little insulation and wind-proofing makes a huge difference. The Castelli Chiro gloves have some of both. The thin insulation gives you the dexterity to operate shifters and press buttons on your lights.

Lobsters

Lobster-claw gloves are like mittens, except that your pinky and ring fingers go in one space, and pointer and middle in another. These gloves have warmed their way into the hearts of many a cold-weather cyclist since they give you the best of both mittens and gloves. You get the warmth of a mitten and dexterity of a glove.

The Giro 100 Proof gloves have warm insulation and windproof and waterproof treatments. They even feature a little tiny pocket in which you can insert a chemical hand warmer.

Celebrating Women's History Month

Wishing the bikewomen of D.C. a happy Women's History Month. We hope to see you at many of the events below.

Wed., 3/4
Weekly morning coffee: Attend the regular weekly coffee with Women & Bicycles, a program of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA). This informal coffee club is held every Wednesday from 8 to 9 am at Compass Coffee, 1535 7th St NW. No RSVP required. Just go!

Thurs., 3/5
Monthly morning coffee: Once a month, Women & Bicycles also holds a coffee club at Bullfrog Bagels, 1341 H St NE. It takes place from 7:15 to 9 am on the first Thursday monthly, which is this week.  

Sun., 3/8
International Women's Day alleycat 

Here's an inspired way to mark International Women's Day. Bike around D.C., decode clues, find places, earn points and have fun at your speed. It's called an alleycat race and BicycleSPACE is proud to sponsor this fun, educational, empowering event.

International Women's Day alleycat
Who: Open to women participants only. Men are encouraged to volunteer at checkpoints. Post on the Facebook event page to serve the cause.
Start time: 1 pm 
Start location: Meridian Hill Park
Cost: $5 cash donation benefiting Collective Action for Safe Spaces, a non-profit that combats street harassment 
Race: 1:30-3:30 pm. Participants should bring a bag, lock and pen.
Finish line, party and raffle: 3:30 pm at Bardo Brewpub, 1200 Bladensburg Rd NE 
RSVP: Facebook event page

Read background information about alleycats here and here. View pictures of the first D.C. all-women's alleycat in 2013 here. 

Mon., 3/9
Happy hour and tea society: Women bicyclists nationwide are coming to D.C. for the National Forum on Women and Bicycling, sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists. The conference takes place on March 10. The night before, Wheelwomen Switchboard is hosting a happy hour which a number of Washingtonians are attending. Come socialize with other women bicyclists from around the country and D.C. region. The happy hour is 7 to 9 pm at Teaism, 400 8th St NW. RSVP: Facebook event page. (Perk alert: did you know Capital Bikeshare members get 10% off at Teaism?!) 

Wed., 3/11, 3/18 and 3/25
Weekly morning coffee: Attend the regular weekly coffee with Women & Bicycles, a program of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA). This informal coffee club is held every Wednesday from 8 to 9 am at Compass Coffee, 1535 7th St NW. No RSVP required. Just go!

Sat., 3/21
Fix-a-flat boot camp, hosted by Women & Bicycles, Black Women Bike D.C. and the D.C. Public Library. Takes place from 2 to 4 pm at Anacostia Library, 1800 Good Hope Rd SE. Free but limited space. RSVP required. Info: Facebook event page.

Sat., 3/28
Women's history ride, hosted by Women & Bicycles and the D.C. Public Library. A beginner-friendly ride open to women, men and children, taking place from 12 to 3 pm starting at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Library, 901 G St NW. Free but limited space. RSVP required. Info: Facebook event page.

12 reasons to vote BicycleSPACE

BicycleSPACE would be honored to receive your votes for Best Bike Shop and Best Place to Get Your Bike Fixed in the City Paper Best of 2015 Readers' Poll. It's coming down to the final 12, by which we mean the virtual polling place is open for 12+ more hours. In this spirit, we present a 12-word campaign platform below. Please cast your ballot by 11:59 pm Sunday, March 1. Thanks, 12+ times over.  

The art of the ask

Gear Pedaler of Prudence: We understand the Washington City Paper is conducting a Best of 2015 Readers' Poll. We are mindful voting ends this Sunday, March 1. We've had an exceptionally profound week. Last Friday, we were overwhelmed with gratitude to be voted Best Bike Shop in the very first Washington Area Bicyclists Choice awards. Yesterday, we announced 2015 is the Year of Three BicycleSPACE Shops, revealing our third and biggest location in Adams Morgan. As the deadline nears, we're asking our beloved community to vote BicycleSPACE for Best Bike Shop and Best Place to Get Your Bike Fixed in the Goods & Services category of the City Paper awards. Sincerely, Big Ideas Come (to) Your City Led (by an) Empowering Social Personable Active Community Enterprise (BicycleSPACE)