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Thursday, June 3, 2010
Defensive Cycling Class lets bikers erase tickets
Coming soon — a defensive cycling class that gives bicyclists who have received traffic tickets a chance to have them erased.
The Austin Cycling Association has partnered with the Austin Municipal Court to offer the class, one of the nation’s first defensive cycling courses.
Cyclists who successfully complete the three-hour class, which costs $25, will receive a certificate that the court may honor to dismiss a traffic ticket.
“It’s one of the first in the country and, aside from the equal treatment aspect, I like that our court recognizes the benefit of allowing cyclists an opportunity to become educated about riding safely in cooperation with traffic instead of just paying a fine and continuing to do whatever it was that they were cited for doing,” says Wes Robinson, director of education for the Austin Cycling Association.
In Austin, cyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as motorists. That means they have the right to ride on any roadway unless prohibited by a specific local ordinance. They also must follow all the same traffic laws as motorists.
Instructors certified by the League of American Bicyclists will teach the classes, which will include safe cycling tips. They’ll take place at the BikeTexas offices, 1902 E. Sixth St.
Classes are scheduled for the following dates:
- 6 p.m. July 7
- 9 a.m. Aug. 7
- 6 p.m. Sept. 1
- 9 a.m. Oct. 2
- 6 p.m. Nov. 3
- 9 a.m. Dec. 4
To register, go to http://bit.ly/a3tTOp. The course can be taken once every 12 months.
Ticketed cyclists can also sign up to take the class at the clerk’s window at the Municipal Court starting June 1.
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Cancer survivor faces challenges - and Danskin Triathlon
Over the years I’ve heard hundreds of inspiring stories from women who participated in the Danskin Triathlon.
For many, the race marks their first athletic competition. Many finishers never thought of themselves as athletes until they crossed the Danskin finish line. The sense of accomplishment is huge.
This year’s race — a half-mile swim, 12-mile bike and 3.1-mile run — gets under way at 7 a.m. at Walter E. Long Park at Decker Lake, 6614 Blue Bluff Road.
Former Austin American-Statesman copy editor Kristin Harrison will be lining up for the third time this Sunday. (Go Kristin! You’re an inspiration to me!)
Here’s what the race means to her:
By Kristin Harrison
Me in a triathlon? Before cancer maybe. After cancer, it didn’t seem possible.
But thanks to training with Capital of Texas Team Survivor, I’ll be swimming, biking and running with a few thousand other women Sunday at the Danskin Triathlon in Walter E. Long Park on Decker Lake.
This sprint-distance triathlon will be my third in the six years I’ve been with exercising with Team Survivor. The first was in 2005, a year after I was diagnosed with breast cancer. My goal that year was to get moving again and work toward better health.
After 12 weeks of workouts, I felt good enough to join many of the other Team Survivor participants doing the Danskin Triathlon.
Team Survivor’s mission is to help women in every stage of cancer treatment and recovery get moving and regain normal lives. Their programs are free and open to female cancer survivors.
I’ll never forget standing at the swim start that first year with the other survivors and looking out over Decker Lake. In the pre-race excitement, I realized that just a year before, following one of many surgeries, I had hardly been able to walk a block.
I’m no athlete, and certainly not a triathlete. But standing at that swim start with the other survivors and our coaches, hearing the constant “you go girl” cheers throughout the event, and finishing the race were all very empowering. I had gotten my health back.
Each spring over the past few years, I’ve had other reasons for joining Team Survivor. Participants aren’t required to do a triathlon and many years I didn’t. The group’s workouts are fun and go by quickly. Some days I can’t believe I exercised for an hour.
And the inspiration goes beyond beating physical challenges. As we work out, many of the women tell their cancer stories. Their strength and perseverance as well as the time of the volunteer coaches have motivated me to keep pursing good health. Swimming, walking and spinning with the group have been an important part of my healing, from cancer, from life’s challenges and from loss.
Over the last two years, the workouts helped me through grief following the death of my husband. When I participated in the 2009 Trek triathlon, I needed to face and get over that finish line without him there, cheering me on.
This year, I signed up for Team Survivor and the Danskin to celebrate being six years cancer free. But I’m also attempting a career transition. And getting stronger and developing more endurance from exercise have helped me battle the fear and self-doubt that can come from such a change.
There’s a big hill on the bike portion of this race course. For me, that silly hill has been a metaphor for whatever is challenging me at the time. But I plan to get up that hill again, either on the bike or by walking. I’ll be thanking God the whole way for another year of good health.
As of this writing, I’m still a little scared of the bike, and if I do occasionally run, it’s more of a shuffle. I much prefer laps in a pool than in open water where you can’t see the bottom of the lake. It may take me hours to finish this race. But I plan to have a good time and enjoy cheering on the other women.
I’m so grateful to Team Survivor for getting me moving again. And who knows, I may get brave enough to join the group as they train for the Mamma Jamma Ride Against Breast Cancer on Sept. 25.
For more information on the triathlon go here. For more information on Capital of Texas Team Survivor, go here. For more information on the Mamma Jamma Ride Against Breast Cancer go here.
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