Calling all concerned Cyclists! Want to learn about the effectiveness of newsblogs. Come here from Ben Fried. Ben is the editor of : STREETSBLOG NYC a daily online non profit news source covering the movement (Sustainability) to make the city better for pedestrians, cyclists and transit with sister organizations in Los Angles, San Franciso and Capitol Hill.

About Ben Fried:
Ben Rediscovered cycling for transportation thanks to the Oberlin College bike co-op in Oberlin Ohio,during his senior year and has been an advocate of cycling ever since

Date: Monday Evening January 24, 2011
Time-6:30 PM For Winter Refreshments
Meeting Starts: 7:00 PM
Location: American Youth Hostel Building-891 Amsterdam Avenue,New York,NY 10025 at103rd Street-

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To Provide every cyclist the experience of building his or her dream bike from scratch, while advancing sustainable entrepreneurship and development by financing bamboo bike factories in Africa and South America. Bicycling is the best solution to simple, self-propelled (and enjoyable) transportation we’ve found, meeting the needs of a world burdened with dwindling resources and an ongoing climate and energy crisis. The Studio adds to that benefit in two ways: first, by teaching each of our builders to build their own bicycle from scratch in a weekend, establishing a positive, self-invested relationship between person and consumer product. Second, by employing bamboo— a renewable, fast-growing resource and a performance-positive alternative to steel, aluminum and carbon fiber— as our frame material. Ecofriendly and technically premium, bamboo enables our students to do the previously impossible: fabricate a bike frame in just one weekend. Bamboo is a natural shock absorber, which leads to an incredibly smooth ride.

Based in Red Hook, Brooklyn NY with a second studio in San Francisco California, each bike-building workshop extends beyond the walls of the Studio, generating the engineering, instruction, and funding capital needed to establish scalable, bamboo bike factories in developing countries worldwide. For fun, for learning, for building a better ride and providing a lower cost transportation alternative: we hope you’ll see how the Bamboo Bike Studio offers the unique and intimate chance to create your own ride. The principal owners of the studio have taught over two hundred people how to make bikes a. The owners' also have done tens of thousands of miles of test riding. Riding through winter through potholes and all over the world believing in the joy of riding and the joy of building. The goal of the studio is to share both of these joys with as many people as possible.

About The Owners of The Studio

Marty Odlin is a cofounder of the Bamboo Bike studio. He also works on the Bamboo Bike Project and at the Center for Sustainable Engineering at Columbia University. He is our chief engineer and product designer. Marty can often be spotted riding his bamboo bike from Red Hook to Columbia.Justin Aguinaldo is a cofounder of the Bamboo Bike Studio. He is a former North American Cycle Courier champion and former bike messenger. Justin never seizes to amaze us with his bike riding skill. Justin is our principle bike tester and designs our geometries. He also fits all in charge of bike fitting and is the head mechanic at the studio.The trek to Red Hook will be well be well worth it for this most fascinating program. Refreshments' to be served and we hope to see you their!

Special offer-A $50 Discount will be offered that Evening,if you sign up for a work shop!

Here is the transportation info: Getting to Bamboo Bike Studio
The workshop is at 201 Richards Street, Suite 212 . Buzzer #12. (You can get there by subway, B61 or B77 bus, IKEA ferry, or bicycle.) If you need a lift afterwards,
there are several reliable car services in the area.

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General Meeting: Monday Evening April 11, 2011
at 7:00 PM

Our Friends at Bicycle Habitat will be hosting this meeting this time at their expanded venue located at 250 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10012 ( between Spring and Houston Streets, Manhattan). Charlie McCorkell and staff once again promises' us a great after hours store sale on stock inventory that evening exclusive for 5BBC Members and invited guests.

The highlight of the Evening will be a showcasing of our 2011 Weekend Trips by our Weekend Trips Coordinator Tod Moore accompanied by a contingent a very experienced week end trip leaders.Tod is a veteran 5BBC Leader and in a "past life experience" helped run professional bicycle tours both on a local and international level. Our favorite Van/Car pooling trips will back,in addition to a few new surprises,as well as some self contained adventures! We will be having talks on how to prepare for a weekends trip as well as a demo on self contained rides made EASY as well as being FUN & EDUCATIONAL!

This is a great opportunity-to learn how to prepare for and handle a multi-day trip as to purchase any needed gear at great prices!

Refreshments!-Pizza Party!

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General Meeting: Monday Evening June 13, 2011
at 6:30 PM

Bamboo Bike Studio- As promised ! We have rebooked this program(by Popular Demand!-that was canceled for March...Great time of year to have a program near the water-You can even ride your Bike to this program(lights suggested for your departure from the studio)..

Bamboo is a composite material, similar to rebar-reinforced concrete or fiberglass-epoxy boat hulls. These are fiber-matrix composites, in which forces are transmitted between fibers by the matrix (glue or concrete). Bamboo consists of ultra strong vascular bundles known as power fibers, set in a woody, foamy matrix called lignin, encased in a hard skin. In the cross section above, the power fibers are the dark dots, and the lignin is the lighter part. Bamboo fibers are extremely strong in tension. According to some engineering studies they are as strong as steel. These power fibers are set in a stiff tubular shape by the woody matrix. The tubular composite structure allows bamboo to be both light and strong, efficiently using the minimum of dense power fibers creates a strong structure. Bamboo is very similar in structure to a carbon tube, but grows straight out of ground.Its' a member the grass family and is very unique product that is used through out the world as building materials and as a food source.

We are pleased that our March meeting will be hosted by Marty Oldin and Justin Aguinaldo of Bamboo Bike Studio Located at 201 Richards Street Suite 212. Brooklyn, NY 11231 (That's' Red Hook).

Here is the transportation info: Getting to Bamboo Bike Studio The workshop is at 201 Richards Street, Suite 212 . Buzzer #12. (You can get there by subway, B61 or B77 bus, IKEA ferry, or bicycle.) If you need a lift afterwards, there are several reliable car services in the area.

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Barry Lee Hartglass, 5BBC Program Coordinator
Five Borough Bicycle Club
891 Amsterdam Avenue
New York, NY 10025
Web:     www.5bbc.org
e-mail:  programs@5bbc.org

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