If you happen to be a geographer, a map junkie, a traveler, cyclist and a Google fan, get ready to celebrate.  Google has finally unveiled a long awaited bike route finder on Google maps.  Type in two addresses and ask Google to draw you a route for you and your bike and, voila’ – there you have it.  This was worth waiting for!

Google will announce the innovation at the National Bike Summit today in Washington, D.C.  Read the press release about the announcement and follow news and updates about Google Maps’ bike features on the League of American Bicyclists’ blog by clicking here.

This is great, not just for the directionally challenged, but for bicycling in general.  Give it a test ride yourself right now by clicking here to go to Google maps.

Or, check out the YouTube video that introduces the new mapping feature here.

Or, give the map a try right now with the gadget at Fort Collins’ Platinum Bike Plan (left side).

Poet. Rapper. Quaker. Cyclist.

These are words that are rarely used in the same sentence, never mind being used to define the same person. Yet they are specifically the words that one would use to describe John Watts, an off-beat singer/songwriter that explores themes of faith and faithfulness, growing up Quaker, the environmental crisis, war, personal accountability, and inward peace, through performances of the spoken word.

The eclectic artist recently announced that he will embark on his 2010 Two Wheel Tour Tour, and instead of a tour bus or even a friend’s conversion van, he’ll make the trip- from Richmond to Boston- completely by bike.

I’ve known for a long time that the centeredness required to be faithful to the music I’ve written is contradicted by the superficiality and hurriedness in the typical career of a professional musician. – John Watts

The bike Watts chose for this significant tour? An Xtracycle Radish.

Stay in touch with Watts and hear clips from the tour on Facebook and Twitter!

The date has been set for the 2nd Annual Ram Bicycle Classic, which supports Colorado State’s Global Social & Sustainable Enterprise Program ( GSSE ).  This year’s event will be held on Sunday, May 2 and include 3 great bike rides around Fort Collins. There will be a metric-century, 1/2 metric century, and family cruiser ride to fit all ability levels and ages! (more…)

Riding in the bike lane in Lisboa, Portugal is more than a simple means of transportation. This bike path, situated near a river, is adorned with a poem by Fernando Pessoa, a famous Portuguese writer. The poem is in homage to the river, and provides riders with a visually stunning path to ride along. Let’s just hope they still pay attention to where they’re going.

[Via: Huffington Post]