Sports

Lanesplitting

Cuts, plans, master plans—what does it all mean?  Instead of attending another meeting on the Bicycle Master Plan, Oakland North decided to hop on a bike and see what the city’s routes had to offer. After checking out the city bicycling website, this bicycling novice found a map of bikeway networks and routes and chose Route 35 down Telegraph Ave. Granted, this was the street with the second highest collision rate for bicyclists between 2000 and 2004, with most collisions…

Not your average bike shop

The Wheels of Justice cyclery, nestled in the foothills of Montclair, is a community-oriented bike shop whose aim is to create a welcoming atmosphere for families and give back to the children of the bay area. Daniel Watson and Justice Baxter (from whom the store draws its name) opened the store in 2003 because they wanted kids in the area to have opportunities that they lacked when they were young.

A bike, a kid, and a welding gun

Ismael Plasencia is one of those lucky people who considers his job, “a dream come true.”  Among his other responsibilities at West Oakland’s The Crucible, Plasencia manages the incredibly popular bike program.  The bike program offers eight bike fix-a-thons a year, where anyone can bring their bike to get fixed, as well as youth classes in bike mechanics, Earn-a-Bike, and frame alteration, Hyphy Bikes. The Crucible, an industrial arts school and community outreach program in West Oakland, was looking for…

The way it was

Last Sunday afternoon, Matt Siee dressed in knee high socks with a wool white top picked up a 42-ounce ash bat to play baseball circa 1886.

Take me out to the $2 ball game

There’s a disparity between the sport Americans love to play but can’t afford to watch. The Oakland Athletics are changing that one Wednesday at a time. By STEVE SALDIVAR

Alameda County readies pools for a safe summer

As the California heat begins to usher in the summer, as well as usher water enthusiasts into the swimming pools, counties, including Alameda County, are integrating a new federal law that will further protect people from accidental drownings in public pools and spas.

For Native Hawaiians, it’s a paradise lost

Hawaiians struggle in their native islands against the forces of tourism and militarism, according to Ikaika Hussey, publisher of the Hawaii Independent, a Honolulu-based newspaper devoted to in-depth coverage of local issues. On Sunday, March 15, at the Eastside Cultural Center in downtown Oakland, Hussey, joined by Malia Connor, founder of the Malia Movement Company, presented “Hawaiian Native Lands: Seized, Not Ceded,” a combination dance performance and discussion focused on Native Hawaiian struggles.

Manifesto: Not your everyday bike shop

The bike store Manifesto has a Flickr photo account, “Our customers rock,” which is full of photos of people posing with their bicycles. People smiling standing next to their bikes, slowly riding by, triumphantly raising the bike over their heads — all photos of Manifesto’s customers with their new bikes. Each photo is captioned with lines like, “Austin sealed the deal on a red Schwinn that many were coveting on opening day,” “This beautiful Mercier, nicknamed Pierre, is now Casey’s…

Live Wire: Zydeco at Just Dance Ballroom

  Last Friday, I went to an awesome Zydeco show at The Just Dance Ballroom. They welcomed Cedryl Ballou and Corey Ledet for a really great show that got everyone’s feet movin’. This was one show in a weekly series of live Zydeco shows at The Just Dance studio. It is just one of the many styles of dance they offer lessons in to cater to anyone’s style and speed. (http://www.justdanceballroom.com/) Special thanks to Louisiana Sue who has the best…