Ride 42 miles for a safer New York!

Join the Five Boro Bike Tour Team in its inaugural year as we ride the boroughs to help Bike New York and DOT’s Safe Streets Fund build a new generation of responsible cyclists who ride with skill, confidence, and care—for fitness, fun, and a healthy future. From providing bikes and helmets at community bike hubs to training sessions for New York's public school gym teachers and after school program staff, your support will help instill active habits in the next generation of bicyclists.
Team member will be invited to a social evening with DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and Bike New York CEO Ken Podziba, treated to breakfast and will start the Tour out front with Anthony Edwards (of ER fame) and other notable VIPs. Members will also receive a selection of official Five Boro Bike Tour merchandise and more!

Email Emilia Crotty at Bike New York to join the team or for more details.

Spring is in the air! Is your bike ready?

Whether you have been riding through the muck all winter or storing your bicycle inside for the last few months, it's time for a good spring cleaning and tune-up. Before you head off to the bike shop, here are four simple maintenance tasks you can do at home!

Clean your bike
Get a bucket of warm water and add a little dish-soap to the water. Use a rag to wipe down your frame and remove all the grit that has collected. Taking the time to clean your frame will not just make your bike look nice, it is also a good opportunity to get down and inspect your brake cables and shifter cables to see if they look frayed, rusted or need replacing.

Check your tires
If you haven’t been on your bicycle in a while, chances are that your tires may feel flat or at least soft and squishy. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to replace the tubes. It's normal for air to slowly seep out of most bicycle tubes. Often, just pumping the tires back up to full pressure will solve the problem. If your tires are flat again in five minutes though, you will need to replace the inner tubes. Unless your tires are deeply nicked and torn, you probably don't need to replace them, just the inner tube that is inside of the tire.

Adjust and clean your brakes
Your brakes are your more important safety equipment. Watch this video for easy tips on spotting and fixing problems.

Clean your chain and gears
If your drive train is gunked up, you could be doing permanent damage to the part of your bike that keeps you moving forward. Watch this video for easy tips on keeping things clean and easy.

Creative Commons photos by Luke Redmond and swanksalot on Flickr