Life in Elgin Photos of the Week, August 3 - 9

Here are the Life in Elgin flickr pool photos of the week, taken August 3 - 9 by members of the flickr group. Click each photo to go to its flickr page.

Photo by James Jordan

Photo by talekinker

Photo by James Jordan

Photo by GtrGeorge

Photo by XPHALCON

Tags: alley, bicycles, bicycling, bikes, blueberries, Elgin, flickr, IL, Illinois, Judson University, photography, photos, stairs, storm, tower
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I hope I don’t get a ticket!

I’ve heard roadies (nickname for serious road bicyclists) brag about times they’ve ridden so fast they’ve actually been breaking the law by going over the speed limit. I could never relate until now! And I present to you, Symphony Way:

Tags: bicycles, bicycling, bikes, Elgin, IL, Illinois, photo, photography, speed limit
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How to lock your bike

I’ve been meaning to write about this since I saw the following Police Report in the Courier News: Bikes stolen: Three people told police that bicycles they had locked up at the Pace bus station, 100 W. Chicago St., had been stolen Saturday. The chains securing the bikes to the rack had been cut, they told police.

NEVER EVER EVER LOCK YOUR BIKE UP WITH A CHAIN.
Aside from that I have two other tips:

1) Use a u-lock and put it through your frame and front tire. (Make sure the key is flat and not circular. The circular ones can be picked with a Bic pen.) Here’s what a u-lock looks like:

If you cannot fit the u-lock through both the bike frame while the wheel is in place, remove the wheel from the bike and lock through the frame and wheel that way. If you cannot be bothered to do that, lock through the frame and use a cable ($10 at bike shops) to wind through the u-lock and the wheels.

If for some reason you are against using a u-lock, then get a fat and strong cable lock. Never ever ever use a chain lock. This weekend I saw two bikes locked up with handcuffs. This is another horrible idea that will lead to stolen bikes.

2) Lock your bike to something secure.
There’s no point in having a decent lock if you’re just going to attach your bike to a chain link fence, which can be cut through in seconds. It is also a bad idea to lock a bike to a deck, or anything wooden. Good bike racks are ideal, but railings and street signs (as long as they cannot be lifted out of the ground) also work.

It might sound obvious, but locking your bike to something secure requires locking it, period. I walk around Elgin quite a bit and have seen unlocked bikes sitting on front porches, in driveways, in open garages, in backyards. Unless your bike is in a closed garage, it should still be locked, even on your own property.

Tags: bicycles, bikes, Elgin, IL, Illinois
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Elgin Bike-to-Work Week, August 2-8

Here is the Bike-to-Work Week description cut and pasted from the City of Elgin’s website:

The Elgin Community Network (ECN) with co-sponsors, The Bicycle Garage (Carpentersville) and The City of Elgin are planning a series of events to help make Elgin’s first annual Bike to Work Week, August 2-8, a success. During the week of August 4 through 8, showers will be available at the Centre of Elgin for those who commute to work in the downtown area on their bikes. The ECN will provide free, secure bike parking for those who ride to the Fox Fire Fest on Saturday and Sunday. On August 7, The Bicycle Garage will host a free bike clinic at the Harvest Market for those who would like to maintain their own bikes. The City of Elgin will provide a free lunch on Friday August 8 for the bike commuters who track the miles and days they commuted to work.

Free, reusable water bottles will be given at the bike corral, the bike clinic, and the Friday lunch. For more information, contact Carl Missele at 847-741-0825 or e-mail cmissele35@wowway.com.

Tags: bicycles, bicycling, bike, bike to work week, bikes, Elgin, fun, IL, Illinois
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Elgin Community Network

Remember when I told you I went to DNA’s Out to Lunch and might’ve happened upon a cool opportunity? Well that opportunity was the Elgin Community Network, and now I am on their board! I’ve been meaning to mention this for a couple months, but was too lazy to write up a description of the organization.

They have a website now, so I don’t have to write a description! Click here to visit the brand spanking new Elgin Community Network website and check out who we are, and what we do.

My main role right now is to find ways to promote safe bicycling in Elgin, and the first thing we’re doing is an Elgin Bike-to-Work Week August 2-8th. Click here for more details!

Tags: bicycles, bicycling, bike, bike to work week, bikes, DNA, Downtown Neighborhood Association, ECN, Elgin, Elgin Community Network, IL, Illinois, Out to Lunch, website
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My Life in Elgin Update

The entire point of this blog is for me to write about my life in Elgin, but I haven’t been doing that lately! Partly because of some bad news I’ve been in denial about: MY CAMERA IS BROKEN. Still, without photos I can give you a quick rundown of what my summer in Elgin has been like so far:

*A fair amount of eating at Al’s Cafe with a couple of trips to In the Neighborhood mixed in for good measure.

*Bike rides up and down the Fox River Trail.

*Quality strolls around Festival Park. How fun it is to see all the kids running through the water! Also, my new favorite past time is to call out to ducks in the Fox River. Some of them talk back!

*To be honest, probably a few too many nights imbibing while listening to bands or playing video bowling at the Gasthaus, mixed in with a few nights of talking over drinks at Elgin Public House and Prairie Rock Brewery.

*Thrift shopping for fun summer clothes at Elgin’s Village Discount and South Elgin’s Goodwill.

*Going to my first Bandits softball game. If you go, do it on a Friday! The fireworks are unbelievable and rival those from the 4th!

I also participated in Elgin’s Amazin’ Race and attended Brewfest and went out of town a couple of times. The summer is just speeding by!

Tags: Al's Cafe, Bandits, bicycles, bike, bikes, Brewfest, camera, Downtown Neighborhood Association, Elgin, Elgin Amazin' Race, Elgin Public House, Festival Park, fireworks, Fox River, Fox River Trail, Gasthaus, goodwill, IL, Illinois, In the Neighborhood, Judson, Prairie Rock Brewery, Shopping, softball, village discount
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