Mammel Power!

July 10, 2012

Hey Bikeheads! What is shaking? Since I am a big fan of Omaha Bikes, I actually went to one of their monthly meetings today! It was pretty cool. When I neared the gathering place, I knew that I was in the midst of a nexus of power, much like an urban, midwestern Sedona, Arizona. I knew this based on some utility markings and a large transformer I observed outside the meeting place - Mammel Hall at UNO's Peter Kiewit Institute. Mammel Hall is an impressive hall, with lots of sponsored areas.

This one,

however, is was still up for grabs. Hmmmm. I think Bike Snot OMA Restroom has a nice ring to it! Perhaps someday, young one, someday (sigh).

I got to the designated nexus of pedal power within the nexus of regular power before everyone but the club president- Patrick. Shook hands with several people. Settled in and listened to many of the bike valet, website plan, and bicycle advocacy-oriented items the club is involved in. I was impressed by the smart conciseness of club member comments. Good pacing on discussions. Interesting activities. I think they are in the process of becoming even more powerful, based not only on the meeting location,

but also some good ideas and a continued interest in building a more bicycle-oriented city. Plans to increase membership with some fun events, too. Delightful!

One item that caught my attention was the extension of the JFK Expressway to south of the Platte River along the current course of US Highway 75. This will make it impossible to efficiently bicycle along this thoroughfare by legal means unless bicycle or multi-use trails are added to the north and south of the river. The club agreed that this was an important issue to address and inform people about as early as possible. The expressway is slated for completion in 2015, but, as you may have noticed or forgotten about completely by now, these trail projects tend to take awhile. Speaking of which, I hear the first half of the South Omaha Trail, to eventually connect the Field Club Trail to the Keystone Trail will officially open soon. Possibly a ceremony and/or ride of some sort will occur.  This is a short section of trail (approximately 45th and Dayton to the Keystone Trail near 60th and Grover), but I am happy to see an east-west trail finally being constructed! Yay!

Another exciting bicycle-oriented event that occurs soon is the illuminating OWL ride which is scheduled for its 3rd annual night flight on July 14.

Happy night flying, owls of destiny. Happy nights.