The news that a cold front was coming into Miami spread like wildfire all throughout Saturday. Indeed, once it rained in the afternoon, everyone readied their sweaters and jackets, waiting for the tiniest bit of semi-cold air to hit. Saturday night it was very nice, but Sunday morning it was just brilliant; the temperature was in the upper 60s, the sky covered in white puffy clouds, and the wind definitely nippy: Autumn had finally arrived in South Florida. I had to get up early anyway to attend a Bar Mitzvah, so I decided to head out about an hour before to ride around a bit. Miami Beach just recently inaugurated the new North Beach Recreational Corridor (NBRC), so there I headed.

Heading down Biarritz Dr. I suddenly spotted something I’d never seen in this area of the Beach, a Bike Route sign! It’s visibly old, but still standing, marking this road as a parallel bikeway to uber-busy Normandy Dr one block north. It makes sense, when you stop to think about it; I just wish it all was better marked (but that’s gonna be another post). A few minutes later I made it to the beach itself and joined the NBRC.

Even though it was barely 8 AM, there were quite a few walkers, joggers and bicyclists going up and down the 15-block paved walkway. It wasn’t crowded, though, so it was a great time to just ride slowly, enjoying the crisp breeze and the soft morning light. Elam even went all the way to the soft sand by the water to check it out, but it quickly discovered that, unlike its predecessor, Red Beast, it very much prefers to enjoy the sand from far away.

After a leisurely ride I headed to morning prayers, then home for breakfast (with a pit stop to pick up some pastelitos de guayaba). Tummies full and with my wife joining in, we headed out again to enjoy the most gorgeous day we’ve had in Miami in months.

The plan was to head down to South Beach to visit The Abbey Brewing Company, Miami Beach’s only brew pub (the recipes are done in-house, but the beers are brewed in Melbourne, FL) and maybe check out the new South Pointe Park. We headed out shortly after noon and went down to the NBRC, both so that Yvette could ride it for the first time, and also because it’s an easy way to avoid Indian Creek Dr from Normandy Dr/71 St to 63 St, a really busy and rather unsafe street.

The ride down the NBRC was great. Even midday, it wasn’t crowded so it was easy riding with the sun above us and cool wind on our backs. We made it to Allison Park on 64 St, then realized that while this park made a nice bookend to the corridor, it wasn’t a practical one as it drops you off on Collins Ave without any way to connect west; you must either ride against traffic down to 63 St, or go up to 65 St and ride down Indian Creek, which is what we were trying to avoid, yet ended up doing (I’ll do a longer post on the NBRC later as well). We crossed the drawbridge at 63 St using the sidewalk, except they are doing some roadwork right at the foot of the bridge, on Allison Rd, so we had to dismount and take the street.

Understand, I don’t mind riding on the road, not so much by now, but I also know which roads are fine for this and which are just insane. This stretch of 63 St is an insane one; cars just fly too fast down this bridge coming off Indian Creek and heading into Alton Rd. Nevertheless, we made it to the corner of LaGorce and 63 St, then crossed into LaGorce (this is the same one I already suggested be turned into a Bicycle Boulevard). Not even a hundred feet into the ride down LaGorce, we rode over a ditch and the one of the skirtguards in Yvette’s bike came off (a chronic problem for Willow). We pulled into a driveway to get it fixed, no big deal. Once Yvette rode the bike a bit to make sure all was in place again, she dismounted to turn the bike around (the driveway was way narrow), picking up the back to point it in the right direction. The bike slipped a bit onto her, and the pedal slammed right into the tender right side of her right knee. All I heard was a yelp of pain and I turned around to see her slightly bent going ow-ow-ow.

In her own words, when the pedal hit her knee it went krick-krack, never a good sound. I told her to walk it off to see if the pain would subside, but it did only a little bit. She tried riding to see in what shape she would be, and it was decided we needed to head back home. Between riding and walking we made it back to Allison Park where Yvette rested a little bit. We then rode up the NBRC, and back home with a quick stop for a bottle of Advil. Once home, Yvette iced her knee, popped some Advil, had a beer and spent a while pondering why exactly Willow seems to hate her (she actually wrote what could be a blog post about it; I gotta convince her to post it now).

The time that we actually rode, it was fantastic. The weather was just perfect to be out on the bikes all day long and it was just divine. People all over took out their bikes yesterday and enjoyed the cool weather; in South Florida, you never know how long it will last or when the next cold front is coming through, so we tend to use these rare days to the maximum. We didn’t make it to The Abbey Brewing Company (actually, we drove later but South Beach was just too packed, so we just got some beer at Publix and watched a movie), so hopefully once Yvette’s knee recovers, we can try that trip once again.

View the route on MapMyRide.com.

Bike Miami Ride Group – by Debbie Attias

On Sunday, September 27, the City of Miami held another of its monthly Bike Miami Rides, this one around the Miami Upper East Side, and we made our way there to join in. It helped that the starting point was actually not that far from our house, which allowed us to ride to and from the event.

Riding from the Beach, through North Bay Village, then down Biscayne was a good warm up for the event. For the most part we rode on the street and thankfully found that drivers did what they were supposed to do, passing us on the next lane when available, with enough space when there was only one lane (it’s hard to judge the 3 feet distance while riding, but at least no one came really close). On Biscayne we did ride on the sidewalk; at least on the way down to the event I was still a bit apprehensive of that main thoroughfare. On the way down we passed a bunch of Lycra speedsters (from the Everglades Bicycle Club, I think). I waved but no one waved back.

We met at Legion Park, on Biscayne Blvd and NE 65 St, at around 9 AM. There were about 35 riders present, including Lycra-clad roadsters, three parents riding with their kids on the bikes, and leisure riders, not to mention the five bike cops that joined us for the ride. It was a good mix of people, ranging from the really experienced roadsters to leisure-only riders looking to do more on their bikes.

The ride began with Bike Miami coordinator Kathryn Moore introducing the concept of the Bike Miami Rides and going through the Florida bicycle laws that all riders need to know. After a group photo, we took off into the Miami Upper East Side!

We started by exploring a bit of the east side of Biscayne Blvd, finding a small bayside park by NE 69 St that pretty much none of us knew was there! We joined Biscayne again then went into Bayshore area just off NE 79 St, an area I pass by on a daily basis yet have never explored at all. Big and old Miami houses back there, it almost felt like another world, another city. We then headed down NE 2 Ave into Little Haiti and Lemon City, one of the oldest parts of Miami (stretching back to the founding of the city and of the original Biscayne neighborhood). We twisted around Little Haiti, even running alongside I-95 for a while till we made it into the Midtown area.

It was around here that we found a tiny kitten on the street. Wanna talk about what can stop 35 bicyclists on a dime? After some fussing and fawning, one of the guys from Federal Bike Depot said he would take her (it was a calico kitten), and I carried her in my bike basket for the reminder of the ride. It was like having my own bike alarm!

From Midtown we went into the Design District and eventually back into Biscayne Blvd, ending at our starting point around 2 hours later.

I had a lot of fun on this ride, even if I was the only one riding a singlespeed bike and thus ended up at the back of the group every so often. The cops riding with us were very helpful, herding us across some intersections and red lights in order to keep the group together (this isn’t proper road bicycling practice, but it was welcomed). A couple of times cars honked at us or tried to get funny with the cyclists until they noticed the cops riding along; it was amusing, but in general it shows the ignorance of many Miami drivers. Heck, we even had a Metrobus try to cut us off, even with the bike cops in clear view! It actually ended up splitting the group in two for a short while.

The riders were fantastic and behaved great all throughout the ride. There were a couple of times when I saw a few people riding for short distances without any hands on the handlebar, which is illegal in Florida, though at least no one (that I noticed) rode with earphones on. There was one rider clad in blue Lycra that I noticed more than a few times doing things that were completely against the whole educational point of this ride, like passing on the right, blowing through intersections without slowing down, and riding away from the group. Still, one out of almost 40 isn’t bad at all. Likewise, there were no accidents. There was one guy whose folding bike just locked up (he was picked up by the Federal Bike Depot guys in their pickup) and at one red light, a lady with her son in a bike seat lost her balance when taking off and fell down; the boy was fine and only got a minor scratch on his elbow, which he completely forgot about 10 minutes later.

We hung out at the entrance of Legion Park for a bit afterward. Debbie Attias filmed a few people for a post she wrote for Youth Noise, I passed out copies of Issue #5 of The Practical Pedal, and Bike Miami Days was promoted to all. We then invaded Le Cafe (on Biscayne Blvd and NE 73 St) for an after-ride brunch. We had something to drink and chatted for a while before heading out back home to prep for Yom Kippur.

It was a fantastic day out and I loved every moment of the ride. I would love to go on more of these kinds of rides to explore other areas of the city (frankly, there were areas that I would have never gone through had it not been for this ride). The company was great and it was just awesome seeing so many people slow bicycling around the city. Thanks to all involved in putting this together for a very enjoyable time.

Check out photos from this ride in the slideshow below or at Flickr: Bike Miami Ride – 09/28/09 – Miami’s Upper East Side set.

The Labor Day holiday weekend is here, and that means that what would normally have been a busy Sunday of running errands need not be so hectic. Considering how the weather has been for the past week, we were surprised to see that by the early afternoon the sun was still shinning strong and the sky was bright blue, so we hopped on the bikes to go out for a ride. There’s a new farmer’s market that opened near us, and we wanted to go check it out.

G&P Farmer’s Market, located on the corner of Abbot Ave and 72 St, is owned by a young Israeli family, much to our surprise. They are used to buying produce in a market setting in Israel, and they wanted to bring that same concept to this area of the Beach (which has no such market, and no, I am not counting the Saturday “farmer’s” market on Normandy Isles as that is, for the most part, a display of Costco merchandise). Their prices are phenomenal, and they have a great selection of vegetables and fruits, all wonderfully looking. I asked about the source of the produce, and was told they purchase in Downtown Miami from farms down in Homestead and up in West Palm Beach. They also have plans to offer fresh fish (also sourced from local fishermen) and to have a small bakery. We bought a few kitchen essentials and spent under $5. As we told the owner, you’ll see us around a lot more.

Errands done, we brought the produce back to the house, and since the sun was still shinning (in fact, yesterday was a gorgeous day in Miami Beach) we went out to ride some more. Not having a destination in mind, we decided to run in the Normandy Shores Golf Club course. The course underwent a massive renovation over the past year or so and, at least earlier this year, before its reinauguration, it was a great place to ride: a network of smooth, paved paths winding in and out for the length of the course, providing a very serene place for a leisurely ride. That’s all gone. The golf club has officially reopened and given it’s the holiday weekend, the place was packed with people in polo shirts and shorts hitting tiny white balls with sticks.

I don’t care for golf, and frankly, I liked the park better when it was closed and enjoyed by leisure cyclists, roller skaters, walkers and joggers, and by the people of the area in general. Though it is a public park, I guess the technicality is that it is a public golf course where anyone can play without membership. Meh, I’d much rather have the public park space with facilities for riding, something North Beach lacks.

We took a ride down the length of Normandy Shores isle, marveling at the horrible driving skills of the residents and then, after a beer pit-stop (Blue Moon Belgian White wheat ale, for those who were wondering) at the new Triton Supermarket on Normandy Dr, we went back home, happy to have had a chance to ride our bikes (especially Yvette, who hadn’t been able to ride Willow for a while!). The ride also had something of a catharsis to it, seeing how it’s (just a day short of) the anniversary of a really bad biking accident last year.

A great ride on a great afternoon.

Last week was the Miami Book Fair International, a world-class literary event that brings together hundreds of authors (of all stripes, nationalities and levels of accomplishment) and thousands of fans of the written word on the streets of Downtown Miami. The activities are divided between talks and conferences during the week and the street fair during the weekend. As much as we always want to make it to one of the weeknight events, we always go to the street fair and revel in our love of books. After Bike Miami the week before, we resolved to bike down to the book fair, and given Sunday’s amazing weather, we hopped on our bikes and made the trek.

Riding from Miami Beach to Downtown was actually incredibly easy (and no, it did not involve Biscayne Blvd., a road I prefer to avoid on two wheels). We left Normandy Isles and took Indian Creek Dr. up to 63rd St. From there we took La Gorce Dr. to 47th St. where we were finally able to use the various bike lanes in that area of the Beach, namely the ones on Royal Palm Ave. and Prairie Ave. We rode on Prairie up to Dade Blvd. which we then took all the way to the Venetian Causeway, the cyclists’ highway between Miami Beach and mainland Miami. Once we emerged in Downtown Miami from the Causeway, we simply rode down Biscayne Blvd. to the Wolfson Campus of the Miami Dade College, on NE 5th St. That’s 10.5 miles from our door to the MDC Wolfson Campus and it took us about an hour and forty minutes to make the journey.

Of the entire trek, the points where the bike lanes were obstructed, and the segments at Indian Creek (from 71st St to 63rd St) and Dade Blvd. (from Prairie Ave to the Venetian Causeway) were our least favorite, being by far some of the worst spots to ride your bike in Miami Beach. This is a topic I will write more on at a later time.

A cold front passed through Miami during the weekend, and where Saturday was insanely hot (as described to me by a friend who went to the street fair that day), Sunday was in the mid- to high-60’s and breezy, which made the ride Downtown a joy. In true Slow Bike fashion, we took our time riding and enjoying the scenery (especially at the Venetian Causeway, even if I forgot to take any pics there), never breaking a sweat (okay, maybe a little, but literally just a little). We crossed paths with lots of fellow cyclists all over the route, but especially once we hit the Venetian Causeway; with bike lanes stretching for the entire 2.5 miles between Miami Beach and Miami, the Causeway was hands down the best part of the entire ride.

Once Downtown, we had to use a makeshift bike rack to tie our bikes, since there are practically no actual bike racks in the area. On the plus side, there were quite a number of bikes tied to makeshift racks all around the perimeter of the street fair, which was great to see. The more people ride their bikes as a means of actual transportation instead of just for recreation, the faster we move towards creating a bike culture in Miami. Bikes secured and helmets strapped to our backpacks, we went in for an entire afternoon of books.

My wife and I are certified blibliovores (and I have the shirt to prove it) so we were in heaven for the next five hours, browsing pretty much every single booth on our path (and we did a full circuit of the street fair) and buying lots of books at great prices. Of note this year was the inclusion for the first time of a comics and graphic novels area, which simply made my heart dance with elation. I spent almost 45 minutes in there and emerged with 6 graphic novels to my name, plus two other comic-related books (one of them signed by the author), and that was just less than 15 minutes after arriving! My wife got a couple of cooking-related memoirs dealing with Julia Child, plus we got a pair of gorgeous handmade leather journals, one for each of us. It was simply a wonderful afternoon in the company of thousands other book lovers. That’s one of the reasons why I love the Miami Book Fair, it is such a slap to the face to the notion that Miami is only defined by its superficiality.

By 6 pm we headed out back towards the Beach. The light was going away fast, though thankfully the roads we took were very well lit (note to self: need to get a new headlight); except for a few idiots driving way too fast on the Venetian Causeway, the ride was a safe one. We made it from Downtown to 41st St in about an hour, and we stopped there to have dinner at Lofty Latte with my mother-in-law, who had spent the afternoon with us at the fair and driven ahead.

With happy tummies and sweaters on, we rode the rest of the way back to our home. We rode down Pine Tree Dr. using the sidewalk, though on that particular road, I think the actual street is a far better choice, since there are way too many hedges that force you to make really sharp turns at times, not to mention the amount of cars blocking the way. On 63rd St we had a forced drawbridge break, and then we had to ride the Indian Creek Dr. segment again, which was no fun at all. Once on 71st St though it was all smooth sailing and soon enough we were back home, a full 10 hours after we had left in the morning. Even better was that, though we were as tired as you’d imagine us being after 10 hours out and about and having cycled for 21 miles, we weren’t in pain or overly sore, which just goes to show what Slow Biking can accomplish.

It was a great day of bike riding and books, two of our favorite things. This Sunday we proved to ourselves that we can indeed make it Downtown on our bikes for the next Bike Miami. At least while the weather remains as nice and we take it slow, it should be a fine ride. I can’t wait.

You can see the photos in the slideshow below or at Flickr: Miami Book Fair 11/16/08 set.

Today was Bike Miami, an event that made part of Downtown Miami car-free for 5 hours, from 10 am to 3 pm, opening it up for cyclists, skaters and pedestrians, taking a page from such events as Ciclovía in Bogota, Colombia. By all accounts the event was a success, with attendance estimated at around 2000 people, give or take, given how everyone was zipping around.

Overall, I am elated at how well Bike Miami turned out, and at how many people came out to enjoy an area of the city that most of us, in general, rarely ever visit with any kind of regularity. It was just amazing seeing all the different kinds of cyclists–Lycra lizards and slow bikers, mountain bikers and BMXers, singles and couples and families, old and young, men and women–everyone just sharing the wonderful experience that was Bike Miami. I cannot think of anything that went wrong during the time I was there, and if you force me to, the only thing I can recall is one dude who tried to take the intersection of Flagler and Biscayne, in front of Bayfront Park, at a moment when the cops were letting cars through. The cop asked him, “What do you think we’re here for?” So yeah, save for that one guy who thought the laws applied to everyone except him, the day was without a hitch. Which reminds me to send out special thanks to the City of Miami Police, all of whom were super nice to us riders and even shared the ride at times.

We arrived shortly after 11 am and parked at Bayside Marketplace. The lady at the entrance asked us for a Bike Miami flyer in order to give us the special discounted fee, something I had not seen was a requirement for the reduced rates at either Bayside or Mary Brickell Village. “I need a proof of what you’re here for,” she said; we simply pointed to the bikes strapped to the back rack. A few minutes later, we were riding down to Bayfront Park, heading towards the trong of bikes, huge grins on our faces.

One of the big bookends of the Bike Miami route, Bayfront Park was packed with people riding and walking about, enjoying the simply wonderful weather we had: low 70’s, breezy and sunny. There were a number of kiosks from various sponsoring groups, including the Florida Bicycle Association, which had a tune-up station for quick-fix issues. Though I wasn’t able to use their services on-site, I was very glad to have been able to talk to the tech at hand, who told me precisely what is the problem with my rear tire and what I need to ask for when I take it to the shop. The Green Mobility Network was also operating a bike valet service at both Bayfront Park and Mary Brickell Village, perfect for those who wanted to explore on foot once at these destinations.

While we waited for some friends to arrive, we took a look at The Moving Wall, the touring copy of the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial. Though my wife has seen the (much larger) original in Washington, DC, I have not, so I welcomed this chance to take in the sobering sight of so many names, each one an individual who perished in this horrible war, each one a life with all the potential in the world cut short abruptly, violently. Most sobering of all was thinking of each of the names being added practically daily to a wall-to-be recording the toll of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, many of them, much as it was in Vietnam, barely into adulthood. I found myself wishing silently for that future wall’s expansion to be stopped as soon as possible, with the help of G-d.

Still waiting, we decided to ride around Bayfront Park, mingling with the hundreds of fellow riders, stopping here and there to look more closely at something or other, reveling in one of the most important points of this event (and excellently put in the logo, above), being able to “explore the city in a new way.” We were having a lot of fun just checking out all the cool bikes around, and even meeting special attendees like Mr. Clucky, the rooster who likes to ride perched on the handlebar. Once our friends finally showed up, we took off up Flagler St. to check out the rest of the route (after a quick Starbucks pit-stop).

When I first moved here from Puerto Rico 13 years ago (wow!), I used to take a bus and the Metrorail from Kendall and go walking around Downtown just for fun; it was a way for me to get to know my new home city. I did that for maybe a year and then stopped. At the time Downtown was a somewhat decaying place with a few interesting spots but devoid of non-9-to-5 life. My, how have things changed. Bike Miami attendees aside, there was a lot of people walking around, going about their daily business, shopping at stores that now gave life to former empty or abandoned storefronts. Downtown was quite lively, especially given how many shops were closed (note to Downtown merchants: open your stores for the next Bike Miami and enjoy the benefits of the increased traffic).

After riding to the end of Flagler St., we decided to follow 1st Avenue all the way down and over the bridge. I will say that all these mornings of riding to synagogue across the Miami Beach-North Bay Village bridge have certainly paid off; I was able to put some initial speed into it and climb the slope without any overt effort (remember, my bike has a single gear).

On the way down the slope, a pair of riders shouted at us, “Long live the Slow Bike movement!” To which I shouted back, “YEAH!” It took me a moment to wonder why exactly had they said that, figuring that it was because of the style of our bikes (i.e. not mountain or speed bikes). A few seconds later another rider shouted, “Hey, I know you guys from the Slow Bike Miami Beach blog!” What?! That’s just wild! To those of you who recognized us, thanks for saying hi and for following this blog. If you read this, say something in the comments!

When we reached the Mary Brickell Village (aka. Lil’ Cocowalk) we parted company with our friends, who decided to ride down to Key Biscayne. For our part, we parked and walked around the village, just checking it out, enjoying the de-factor mini-street fair at the other bookend of the Bike Miami route.

The rest of the evening we spent simply riding around, exploring as much of the city as we could, especially the waterfront promenade and Bayfront/Bayside. We walked the entire length of the marketplace, something we hadn’t done in more than 5 years, and bought a few things and had some (very expensive) drinks at a waterfront bar.

As we were leaving Bayside to take one last ride around Bayfront Park, we got recognized for the blog again, which doesn’t stop being weird and cool. We then rode around the waterfront promenade, across the bridge onto Brickell (checking out the Miami Circle along the way) and quickly into and out of Brickell Island. And because the day wasn’t awesome enough, right before we left we spotted a pod of dolphins swimming very close to the shore.

After spending almost half an hour strapping the bikes to the rack again (personal note: need to get a new bike rack with longer posts, as well as a new camera that doesn’t take blurry photos), we went back home extremely pleased with the wonderful day we had and figuring out that for the next Bike Miami we’ll just ride our bikes into Downtown Miami.

I eagerly look forward to a next Bike Miami, and then the next one after that. I want this to be more than a one-time event, I want this to be something that becomes a part of our culture. Miami has the perfect set of circumstances–flat terrain, year-round nice-ish weather (especially during the autumn and winter) and a desperate need to have its people connect across all its many cities and neighborhoods in order to breathe new life into it–that could make it another Amsterdam.

So thanks to Mayor Manny Diaz, the City of Miami and all the volunteers that made this such a fantastic day. Now, let’s get ready for the next Bike Miami!

You can see the photos in the slideshow below or at Flickr: Bike Miami 11/09/08 set.

While driving back home on Sunday from visiting my father-in-law, I decided to take the “scenic route” through South Beach. Being stuck in traffic we had a chance to take a look at the Beach and see how far it has fallen, how much a mere shadow of its former trendy-in-a-boutique-kinda-way glory days in the mid- to late 90’s. The litmus test was when we were driving down Washington Ave. and spotted some of our old favorite stores, especially Pop and Uncle Sam’s. I mean, Uncle Sam’s, dude! There was a time when Uncle Scam’s (as it is also fondly known) was THE place to get the really good music, not to mention the latest awesome dance anthems, European trance, indie rock and of course, our favorite, the Goth/Industrial/Darkwave/Synthpop tunes we were all swaying to at The Kitchen and The Church. Right there our plan for the Monday bike ride was made: we’d bike our way down to South Beach and come check out Uncle Sam’s and the rest of the area, then head back up.

See the highlighted route we took on this Labor Day Bike Ride.
It’s not entirely accurate because we took a few shortcuts and routes that Google Maps just does not support, but it’s essentially correct. When all was said and done, we ended up riding about 11 miles.

Monday morning we woke up pretty early and by 11:30 am we were already on our way, riding our bikes down to South Beach.

Whereas last time we rode north, this time we were heading south along the pink sidewalks of the city of Miami Beach. Of all the cities in Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach is purportedly the best one for bicycling; we live in this city and we wanted to put that to the test. Most of the Beach’s sidewalks (yes, they are all pink) are fairly wide, though they sometimes taper to just a couple of feet in width and are littered with lamposts, benches, newspaper vending machines, signs and the ever-present stretches of canvas covering fences around construction projects, of which there are a thousand and one in the Beach.

All was well with the sidewalks up until we reached about a quarter of the way, where a large new apartment complex is being finished. This is what we came across:

And not once, but twice along that small stretch of road before it joins Collins Ave. Yes, the sidewalk on the other side of the road is fine, but that is no excuse for this complete disregard for pedestrians, bikers and the city.

The rest of Collins Ave. was actually pretty good, especially along the Middle Beach area as we were riding alongside the canal. We had to switch roads along the way a couple of times because of the sidewalk situation, especially in areas where it simply ends. Once we reached the northernmost area that can still be called South Beach, we stayed on Collins Ave. and rode it all the way to SoBe proper, making another small detour along the way to join with Washington Ave. near the Miami Beach Convention Center.

If there’s one thing that was inescapable was the amount of old Art Deco hotels that were closed pending renovation, then left to rot when the real estate bubble popped. We must have seen at least 10 different hotels, including one that is very close to our home, the Tropicair.

While parts of the Beach have enjoyed a resurgence (mostly South Beach), there’s still a lot of decay hiding in the backstreets, unfortunately. Especially when you see these beautiful buildings that with some love and money (ok, a lot of money) could be new jewels for the city, showing us the glamour of yesteryear.

Arriving at Lincoln Road Mall, we decided to stop at Fritz’s Skates & Bikes to check out the bike seats; I really needed to do something about my seat if I want to keep riding a lot. We took a look around and I ended up buying a gel seat cover. It was a bit more expensive than it would have been at Target, but my butt needed it and it thanked me for it afterward. Some cold water and an iced coffee later, we were on our way to Uncle Sam’s, just a few more blocks south. We did get to use, if only for a little bit, some of South Beach’s actual designated bike lanes, at least while we were riding east-west (on the streets), given we have yet to see a bike lane along one of the avenues. Finally we got to Uncle Sam’s.

What a disappointment. We first went into Pop. Pop used to be a place where you could get tons of little pop-culture knick-knacks that were useless yet cool, plus some cool retro t-shirts and costume accessories suitable for the gothically-inclined crowd. The current store is still named Pop, but it is nothing like before, having only a selection of cheap, trendy clothing dominated by a selection of somewhat-funny-yet-bordering-on-the-vulgar t-shirts, none of them having anything to do with pop culture, past or present.

Uncle Sam’s wasn’t much better. Their selection of music is still pretty good, but these days it’s so easy to find obscure titles, whether online or even via iTunes, that the store has lost the one main draw it had in the past. Aside from some vinyl club singles and mixes and an assorted number of limited editions and promotional items from special sales (much like indie book stores, Uncle Sam’s still features a lot of special sales and limited edition promotions for new music), there was little there I couldn’t find with just a few clicks of the mouse. Even the once awesome and mighty Goth section now paled in comparison to what it used to be. And let’s not even talk about the ancillary goodness they used to carry: stickers (multiple albums full of options, literally hundreds and hundreds to choose from), patches, t-shirts, lunchboxes, etc. Now they had a few patches, some lunchboxes and perhaps a total selection of less than 100 different stickers. Oh, South Beach, how the mighty have fallen.

We left Uncle Sam’s, popped into Starbucks for some water and were off biking again down Washington. The crowded sidewalks there prompted me to turn down 10th St. and we headed down to Ocean Dr. to ride up the paved path on Lummus Park, or the Beachwalk.

The Beachwalk is awesome, simply put. It is a wide and paved promenade stretching from 5th St to 25th St, or 2 miles. Pedestrians share the path with cyclists and skaters as it parallels the coastline between the hotels and the sand. The Beachwalk is great for riding for its smooth surface and unrivaled views; frankly, they should make all the sidewalks in Miami Beach like the Beachwalk.

That was probaly the most enjoyble part of our entire trip: the surface was great for riding, the people mindful of the bikes, the breeze refreshing and the beach views magnificent; about two miles of pure cycling bliss.

At 25th St the Beachwalk ends and it then connects with the Boardwalk, a raised wooden pathway that continues all the way to 47th St (remember that street). Now, technically only pedestrians are allowed on the Boardwalk (handicapped and official vehicles the exception, of course) and we were going to continue along Collins Ave. instead, but after seeing a bunch of other bikers go on it without a moment’s thought, we said screw it, and decided to continue on the Boardwalk. If someone said anything, we’d just get off and that was that.

The ride on the Boardwalk was almost as nice as on the Beachwalk. The only difference was that we needed to be more aware of pedestrians since the Boardwalk is a bit narrower than the Beachwalk, has siderails on each side that put a hard limit on where you can go (not to mention the three feet elevation over the sand below) and the one-inch slits between each floorboard, not wide enough for our tires to fall in, but enough to make you loose control if you weren’t careful. We did manage to ride from 25th all the way up to 42nd St before my wife decided that we better actually heed the rules and get off the Boardwalk onto the street.

We joined Collins Ave. again and rode up to the Fontainebleau Hotel, following the countour of the road. The problem here was that part of the Fontainebleau and the Eden Roc next to it are under heavy construction, and on this day they had the entire sidewalk in front of the two hotels, about two blocks worth, completely closed to traffic, pedestrian or bicycles.

We rode on Collins Ave. warily when left with no other choice. Whatever you may have heard about Miami drivers is probably true, and you can double the complaints when it comes to drivers dealing with cyclists. There is gross misinformation and plain old ignorace about the rights of cyclists on the road (and I say this from personal experience because I have been learning a lot of things in the last couple of months as we both started getting into cycling), so riding on the street in one of the quiet backroads is ok as long as you pay attention, but riding on Miami Beach’s main north-south thoroughfare is an entirely different matter.

Nevertheless, we braved it and managed not to get killed by a car. As soon as we could, we got on the sidewalk again, right in front of the parking lot to Indian Beach Park, at 4600 Collins Ave. My wife was riding ahead of my, some 30 to 40 feet, and as I got on the sidewalk and looked forward I saw it as it happened.

That’s when my wife fell from her bike, at the corner of 4700 block and Collins Ave.

It took a second, maybe two, but that was more than enough. I saw her bike wobble, her fall from it, then on to the floor, her left arm outstretched to stop herself. Up to that moment what was going through my mind was, “Oh shit, she fell. But it doesn’t seem so bad.” Except she didn’t stop. Next thing I see is her hitting the sidewalk and rolling forward, her head hitting the rounded corner between the sidewalk and the gutter. At that moment a million horrible endings coursed through my mind, images that even two days later keep replaying every so often when I look at her, making me thank G-d profusely.

I flew, almost literally. I jumped off my bike in a motion that a man my size can only accomplish in a moment like this, tossing it aside on to the grass and running to her side. First thing I see is her sitting up, so thank G-d for that at least. I then see the blood coming from the cut above her right eyelid, my eyes scanning her face for further wounds. That’s when I see the lump forming on the left side of her forehead, above her eyebrow, where she hit the sidewalk. It is growing fast, filling up with blood, and turning a horrible shade of purple right before my eyes.

I yell at her not to move as I run back to my bike for my cellphone, dialing 911 immediately, twice even as the blood pumping in my ears doesn’t let me hear if the call connected or not. She looks at me with a curious look, “Why are you calling 911?” I get through and report the accident as best I can, which isn’t that good as I’m incredibly nervous. It’s when I mention the cut that she sees the blood on her hand, and when I mention the still-growing lump on her forehead that she goes white. As I hang up, she looked to her left, at her reflection on the black car parked right next to where she fell. I move to get in between her and her reflection, but she had already seen it and began to panic.

A young man from the nearby construction passed by us and asked, surprised, “What happened? Did someone beat you up?” Which made us both laugh, actually. That’s when my wife explains that she lost her balance when her front tire hit the uneven sidewalk at that spot (see pic below), a tiny canyon running vertically where two slabs of concrete had succumbed to both erosion and the nearby construction.

We could hear the rescue vehicle arriving (thankfully, there is a Fire Station at 53rd St and they responded within 2-3 minutes of me making the call), and the young man helped flag it down to our location. The EMTs checked my wife and in a few minutes they had her in the ambulance, heading to Mt. Sinai Hospital (thankfully only 5 minutes away) while I stayed behind with the bikes and a heart that was racing a thousand beats a second.

In my nervous state I called my wife’s mom and dad, trying to break the news as quickly and as non-alarmingly as possible, then calling my mom in Puerto Rico, who succeeded in calming me down. I called my Rabbi to please come pick me up (since he has an SUV where I figured we could put both bikes), and then had to wait about 15 minutes for him to show up. During that time I texted and spoke with my wife at the hospital, so at least I knew she was still conscious and “well.” Once I knew her mother had arrived I felt a bit better.

Eventually my Rabbi showed up and we worked time-space shifting miracles to fit the two cruiser bikes inside a Bronco that was already packed to the gills with boxes for a massive mailing we are doing for the upcoming High Holy Days. Once back home, I dropped the bikes, grabbed a couple of things my wife had asked for, and zoomed out, making the trip from my house to the hospital (a 5 mile/15 minutes trip) in about 8 minutes.

By the time I saw her again, about an hour after it had all happened, the lump on her forehead had shrunk significantly, thank G-d.

She was very much awake and good spirits, had never lost consciousness or shown any symptom of serious head injury, all of which were very good signs that, ugly as it was, it was all superficial. Still, the doctor ordered a CAT Scan to be 100% sure; it came back negative for any fracture or anything else that could be a problem down the line. After a tetanus shot, a lot of ice, and some Tylenol, she was finally discharged at around 7 pm.

We got back home and I picked up take-out sushi along the way. It was a very nice meal, the entire family together; too bad it came out of this freak event.

By the next day the swelling had gone down more, but as we were warned, all the bruises started to come out. The left side of her face has progressively gotten worse and now she has a full black (actually, more like purple) eye. Today she had an appointment with her doctor (scheduled way before this all happened, but go figure) and he confirmed that there is no damage beyond the superficial one, so it’s just a matter of letting the swelling and bruising go away on its own.

I am just immensely grateful that it was only what it was and not the tragedy it could have been.

Oh, and Miami Beach, I’ll have more to say later about your supposed status as the best city for cyclists…

About a month ago I got a new Schwinn Legacy cruiser bike as part of a goal to do more incidental excercise and lower the use of the car.

My wife also got a new bike, an Electra Amsterdam Ladies Classic 3 with a Tulip motif. We picked it up from the store last Thursday, but between work and the rains (aftereffects of Tropical Storm Fay) she hadn’t had a chance to take it out for a ride.

Today we needed to go to Target (about 7 miles away) to buy some more bike-related stuff, so we decided to take the trek on our bikes. It was a very nice experience. The sun was hot and there was some humidity in the air (normal for Florida summers) but we took it easy and leisurely, enjoying the ride itself, getting to see parts of Miami Beach we had never seen in the 5 years we’ve lived here. We also had to get used to our bikes, and that will take a bit longer, though we were both pleasantly surprised to find we are not in such bad shape as we feared we were.

See the highlighted route we took on this Sunday Afternoon Bike Ride.
We actually followed the very same route to the store and back, netting us a total of just about 14.5 miles on this trip.

The entire excursion took some four hours, between getting there, spending some time at the store and returning. At the store we picked up a new bike lock for my wife’s bike, a back rack for my bike, as well as some clothes for excercising and a new pair of Converse hi-tops for me (yes!).

As enjoyable as it was, we discovered (or confirmed, as these were not unknown to us) a few things about Miami’s general unfriendliness towards bikers. Miami Beach has got to be one the best places for biking, given how small the island is and how many backstreets there are in order to avoid the very trafficked main arteries. Even so, to say that sidewalks are friendly to walkers, let alone to bikers, would be a gross lie; and that’s when there are sidewalks, which is not everywhere. Most of the time you have to share the road with cars (because of course there are no bike lanes) and Miami drivers seem to regard a rider in a bikecycle as someone under the effects of an invisibility spell: they just don’t see you; at most, they notice you when they are about one foot away from you. And that goes for most pedestrians as well. We even have bells on our bikes to signal we’re coming through. Most people just stared at us dumbly, very much with a deer-caught-in-headlights look.

These are just things we’ll have to get used to as we bike more and more around here. The act of going out riding, however, is worth the hassle, and save for a few steep bridges here and there, the fact that Miami is as flat as a pancake makes biking a very easy activity. I’ll keep posting as we do more and more with our bikes, hopefully turning them from recreational vehicles to part-time modes of transportation.