Colorado Bike To Work Day is today (Wednesday, June 23). A photo of a
Bicycle Longmont member was on the front page above the fold of this
morning's paper. You can see her and read the article at
http://www.longmontfyi.com/ if you visit this website before 10 a.m.
Thursday (U.S. Mountain Time, GMT -0700). Andy Clarke of LAB was in
Longmont this morning to present the Bicycle Friendly Award to the
city.
I met the police officer in charge of the local Bike Patrol. This dude
looks intimidating: He's about 6'6", muscular, with shaved bald head,
a goatee, and a scar over one eye. He's straight out of Central
Casting for a steroetype Bad Dude. He rode his bike into town from
about 15 miles away wearing his Bike Patrol t-shirt. He's personable
and friendly, although when he talks about his arrests and traffic
stops he gets a wicked gleam in his eyes as he describes the stealthy
nature of bikes and he chuckles maniacally when he talks about the
shocked looked on the faces of the perps he catches.
I also met the woman in charge of Animal Control. She rode in from
Mead, about 10 miles away. She's about mid-40s with graying hair and
does not have what many people might think of as the ultra-thin
"cyclist physique." In Longmont, Animal Control is under the police
department. They wear police uniforms complete with a badge and a
utility belt with pepper spray and a collapsible baton. Two of the
five animal control officers patrol on their bikes. When this bike
program started two years ago there was a lot of skepticism (how do
you transport a loose dog to the animal shelter on your bike?), but it
turns out to be really effective. They mostly patrol the trails around
town telling people to put their pets on a leash. It's community
policing at its best.