By Liz Farmer – Daily Record Business Writer
Cycling legend Lance Armstrong won the Tour Du Pont in both 1995 and 1996.
Fourteen years after the annual mid-Atlantic cycling race Tour Du Pont abruptly ended, state officials and cycling enthusiasts are trying to bring a race to Maryland in 2012 that could generate as much as $40 million in annual spending.
Tour de Maryland would be a seven-day cycling event covering roads in all five regions of the state — Southern, central and Western Maryland; the Eastern Shore and the capital region, according to Terry Hasseltine, the state’s director of sports marketing who is trying to position the race as a mid-spring precursor to the Tour de France.
“It’s a great way to showcase the state’s tourism assets, and it draws a major international following,” Hasseltine said. “We’re talking the likes of Lance Armstrong and others participating.”
Hasseltine is working with sports promoter Medalist Sports LLC to get statewide support for the event and sell it to a title sponsor. The Georgia-based company also ran the Tour Du Pont, which began as the Tour de Trump in 1989 and 1990, then was sponsored by the Du Pont company from 1991 to 1996. Medalist also runs the Amgen Tour of California, considered one of the pre-eminent races in the U.S. and a build-up race to the Tour de France.
The California race generates more than $40 million in spending each year, and a similar race, the Tour of Missouri, generates $38.1 in spending, Hasseltine said.
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Continue reading “Maryland wants to recycle cross-state bike race”

by Bruce Ebert
On January 12 of this year, in a courtroom in Hagerstown, Maryland, 21-year-old Meghann Weaver stood before a Washington County circuit judge to face sentencing for hitting a bicyclist, eight-year-old David Greeley, in August of 2009.
The outcome: a fine of $140 for the collision, which fractured the cyclist’s skull and damaged his left leg to the point that it necessitated amputation at mid-shin.
Looking at that case in relation to some similar cases, her penalty was harsh-but nothing when viewed in the context of how her operation of a two-ton box of steel with horsepower to spare altered the life of the boy and his family.
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While that was taking place, the news in Los Angeles included the case of a Hummer driver who maneuvered into a stream of about 12 cyclists, injured one and destroyed several bikes. The investigating officer let the driver go without pressing charges.
These cases and others are infuriating cyclists all over the U.S., causing many to question the integrity of a system that appears to dismiss the value of lives extinguished or crippled on roads that traffic signs and PR campaigns remind us are meant to be shared.
The reality is that, unlike in Europe, such leniency has been part of the American way of justice for decades, as state after state changed its respective laws to process car-bicycle collision injuries as compensation matters handled in civil courts-and the result was less punishment for the offender and greater emphasis on compensation for the injured cyclist.
"I can understand the reaction," says Steve Kessell, the Maryland State’s Attorney who prosecuted Weaver. "But it’s based on a perception of the law that is not really accurate."
In the ’70s, with cycling’s surge in popularity, America’s criminal courts began to be so overwhelmed with cases that, as part of a state-by-state court reform, car-bike collisions were downgraded as criminal matters and turned over to civil courts for the purpose of meting out compensation to victims. Thus, in most states, anything less than cases of wanton disregard for human life, malicious intent or gross misconduct with a motor vehicle will merit little more than a ticket-and sometimes not even a ticket.
"Until then, motor vehicle offenses were criminal," explains David Hiller, advocacy director for the Cascade Bicycle Club in Washington State. "Then, in exchange for waiving the right to due process, and to unclog the courts, the trade-off was those cases would be handled in civil court."
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Continue reading “Incivility: How Lawyers and Legislators De-Valued Your Life”

By Carrie Madren
We’ve all been that driver, cruising along and then suddenly bearing down on a cyclist who is slowing us down to an unbearable speed. Many of us have been that bicyclist, hugging the white line for dear life, all the while trying to maintain a decent speed and keenly aware of the two tons of metal machinery tailing us.
Cars are king of the road, but motorized vehicles — though usually the fastest and easiest way to get from Point A to Point B — contribute to traffic, pollution and a sedentary lifestyle. Bicycles, on the other hand, emit nothing, use nothing but human energy, can replace a car for many needs and increase exercise. Unfortunately, many roads are dangerous for bicyclists, and riders who want to stick to bike paths must go out of their way to safely make it to their destination.
In a watershed with more than 16.6 million people — and growing by about 157,000 people per year, according to the Chesapeake Bay Program — how we get around deserves serious thought and planning. Transportation affects our quality of life, environment, finances and resources. With our numbers set to increase to nearly 20 million neighbors by 2030, getting more people on bicycles could be one answer to transportation problems. And if people are willing to take to the bicycle, let’s make that easier.
Currently, dare to bike to work and you’ll likely encounter cement curbs keeping you in busy traffic lanes, sense impatient drivers riding your back wheel or have to weave through traffic to make a left turn. If you’re lucky enough to find a dedicated bike lane, you may find it coming to an abrupt end well before your destination. Though brave bicyclists do take to the roads in city and country — and regularly defend their right to be there — more would use bicycling as a transportation option if our road network were more bicycle-friendly, laws were more widely known and if bike racks abounded.
Each year, the League of American Bicyclists ranks every state in terms of bike friendliness. In 2010, Delaware dropped one rank to 10th with Maryland ranking 11th; Virginia dropped to 18th, New York dropped to 36th and Pennsylvania fell way behind at 42nd in the country. In each of the Mid-Atlantic States, however, bicyclists are banding together to advocate safer roads, bike paths and better laws.
As more cyclists take to the roads, safety is key; teaching drivers, as well as law enforcement officers, the nuances of law would help keep roads safer. Motorists misjudging the space required to pass a bicyclist and motorists turning into the path of an approaching bicyclist are two of the most common causes of bicycle crashes. Sadly, it only takes a slight swerve to end in a fatality. Municipalities, developers and cities should work together and invest in bike paths (bonus points for permeable surfaces) that run alongside major roads or create shortcuts to major areas, and are connected in a way that makes cyclists feel less like they’re playing Frogger and more like they’re commuting in a legitimate way.
Continue reading “Maryland Ranks 11th in Bike Friendliness”