I recently sent an email to some non-cyclist friends to give them an idea of my exciting life here in the Center of the Universe.  I decided to share it as sent, and omit the names of the guilty

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My bike club, the No Crazy Left Behind Bicycle Club, advertised an end-of-summer overnight camping ride to Floyd Bennett Field last weekend.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_Bennett_Field  Cycling, camping, stay in Brooklyn:  what's not to like?  On Friday night, we ride out to the National Park campground from Grand Army Plaza, eat food brought by the ride leaders and sleep in tents also provided.  We just bring our bikes and sleepingbags.  On Saturday we ride to the Rockaways to The Famous Fish Taco Joint, then ride back to GAP.  I signed up.
I was very excited because I hadn't engaged in bicycle touring for over a year.  I filled my panniers and also brought my little tent just in case I didn't want to sleep in a canvas dormitory. 
All went well; we met at 6pm and negotiated the 10.4-mile trek down Bedford Ave.  It got dark just as we paralleled the rush-hour Belt Parkway.  One of the most satisfying things about riding a bike is being able to ride next to an expressway faster than the nearby motor vehicles.
Floyd Bennett Field is quite the multimedia extravaganza on a Friday night.  We rode through the Secret Gate and right by a High-School football game.  Then we cut over to one of the landing strips, only to confront a battalion of strange vehicles making strange maneuvers on the runway.  They were ... streetsweepers!   Right!  Floyd Bennett is also home to the NYC Sanitation Dept Training Academy, and they were in full synchronized-sweeper mode.  Hey, most streetsweepers work at night; night?  Makes perfect sense!  They were riding in circles and doing that diagonal-alignment thing they do when clearing snow.  The only problem was they were putting water down in strips on the tarmac, which turned it a dark color, and which we assumed was the roadway.  We should've been going around them on the pale surface.  But we really couldn't see much, what with their headlights and whatnot. 

We survived that and took off down the other runway to the campground, only to pass a convoy of tractors in line coming in the other direction.  The ones with the huge front scoops you see out there picking up snow, salt, crud, and those metal plates they put down on the roads to kill unwary cyclists.

It was quite dark by the time we got there.  One of our enterprising leaders had ventured out earlier in the day and set up the tents.  Whew!  Watching people learn how to pitch big tents in the dark can be amusing, but this just wasn't the time.  We built a fire, cooked and ate our food, and relaxed.  Those of us with foresight nursed the beers we brought.  The high point was making s'mores using the 1-square-inch Teddy Grahams our leaders provided.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teddy_Grahams

Being an early-to-bed type and a Native Californian who only uses tents when Absolutely Necessary, I decided to neither sleep in a provided tent nor pitch my own, but rather to roll out my sleepingbag right there on the ground and ... sack out.  Before doing so, however, I made a casual remark to one leader: "how are the raccoons out here?"  "Well, she said, funny you should mention it..."   While I relaxed in my bag, the rest of the gang amused themselves shining their flashlights into the reflecting eyes of our four-footed friends lurking in the bushes.  Before they went to bed, my fellow campers warned me about the raccoons hovering about. 

When all was quiet, I shone my lamp around and made a few quick movements.  The coupla big raccoons and the ton of little ones ran off and I only saw them once more before morning.  I snoozed for a bit but various sounds grew and grew.  Oh!  Airplanes!  Right!  Of course, we're in the JFK flightpath!  Well, they were landing so they weren't as loud as they could be, and didn't fly precisely overhead.  But there were other sounds as well.  Helicopters!  Just what every National Park campground needs!  When there was a gap in the jets landing, it would be filled by a helicoper flying Directly Overhead.  Then there were the campers in a nearby site making the usual late-nite drunk camping sounds.  A bit further off was a large group of campers really partying down with their PA system playing our favorite autotune hits.  Number one:  "B**ch Better Have My Money!" 

At what I guessed to be about midnight, the JFK flight path changed.  Now we were in the path of jets taking off.  They usually swerved one way or the other before getting to us, but once in awhile one went right overhead.  JFK is a 24-hour airport.  What's louder, a jet takeoff 200 feet above you or a helicopter 20 feet above? 

By morning I must've gotten at least ten minutes of refreshing sleep.  Fortunately I had brought my own breakfast, and ate before the rest of the gang arose.  No coffee, but none was promised.  On a trip to the facilities, I ran into a NatParks staffer, who said he'd never seen helicopter traffic like that before.  I figured it must've been Homeland Security for the Pope, who was scheduled to fly out of JFK at 8:00.  Gotta make sure His Eminence doesn't suffer an attack by aquatic terrorists on a sabotage mission across Jamaica Bay.  Only later did I learn the NYPD has a heliport out there. 

The plan had been to go kayaking in the morning, but there was too much chop and the gang decided to visit nearby Deadhorse Bay.  I had long since decided I was going to bail out and ride back home, but I did have to visit my friend Barbara's plot in the Floyd Bennett Community Garden.  We stopped by but she wasn't there and I couldn't identify her garden.  The last time I'd been there it was next to a hut with a Turkish flag on it and it had fifty overgrown bok choy trees in the corner, but that was a few months ago. 

I bade farewell to my more adventurous companions and headed back home, where I went to bed and slept for the rest of the weekend.

Are you aware that we have a list of affiliated Bike Shops?

You can click on the above link to find it - or look under Community from the main menu of 5BBC.org

An affiliated bike shop is one that offers our members some kind of discount on accessories and perhaps other things (it's up to them) but typically this is at least 10% on accessories.

Adding new bike shops to the web site is as easy as 1-2-3: a simple 3 step process YOU can follow with your favorite bike store (or any bike store for that matter). 

Step 1: You as a member solicit/recruit your bike shop to join. Ideally, you ask the owner or someone authorized to offer the discount at the shop, if they would like to be featured on our web site in exchange. You get the basic information required: Name of the shop (the only required field, but hopefully you can also get:), a description of what they want to offer as the benefit (eg. 10% off on accessories), a LINK to their web site if they have one, their address and contact information - eg. e-mail or phone number.

Step 2:  Create the entry on the web for the shop. (Here is the link to the entry form). There's a button right there on the top of the affiliated bike shop page as well. Enter the data you were able to gather, click the "save" button at the bottom of the form. And you are done! 

Step 3: The communciations team will received and validate the entry and VOILA / PRESTO , the bike shop will be listed as an affiliate on the web site.

Any questions? Pop an e-mail off to communications@5bbc.org and we'll try to get them answered for you.

If the store is willing to help promote the club on their web site (if they have one, please encourage them to link to 5bbc.org), or by having some of our business cards, stickers or mini-posters on display, send a note indicating that to communications@5bbc.org and we'll send some along.

We have a few shops up there - let's recognize the stores that support us by getting them up there!

 A while back there was a TV show called Hill Street Blues.  The show always started with an in precinct roll call.  At the conclusion of the session, Sergeant Esterhaus always remarked, “Let's be careful out there.”  Esterhaus knew that you could never tell what eventualities would arise – and that you always had to be ready for them.  The same is true on a bike.
  We will never be able to completely safe on the road – no matter how careful we may be.  Taxis will continue to swerve for a fare.  Tourists will continue to dart backwards into the bike lane on the Brooklyn Bridge.  Road conditions will continue to be far from pristine.  But, there are things that we can do to avoid calamity.  Here are a few suggestions.

1.  The Two Minute Bike Check.   This is not only for club rides, but is a valuable tool for ALL rides.  Sometimes the cause of an accident is the bike itself.  Is your bike in proper mechanical order?  Is there anything dangerous and dangling from it?  Does your helmet fit properly?  The 2 Minute Bike Check can help ensure that your ride is easier as well as keep you and those around you safer.  Do it whenever you're about to ride alone and follow along at the start of 5BBC rides.

2.  Choose Your Route.   There are often many ways to get to the same place.  Ask any cyclist “Would you rather ride on the Manhattan Bridge or the Brooklyn Bridge?”  Sometimes, the NYC Bike Map also leads you astray.  The suggested street is congested with numerous double parked cars, but has “sharrows.”  Meanwhile, a block away there is a calmer one way street.  

3.  Obey the Traffic Rules.  Yes, we have all done “Idaho Stops.”  We have all blown through a light at a “T” intersection.  On the other hand, we have also seen the idiot cyclists crossing a busy intersection against the light almost daring the cars to him him.  Crossing against the light not only risks contact with cars, it also risks contact with pedestrians who are legally crossing the street.  Plus, don't you have better ways to spend your money than on tickets.  On 5BBC rides please obey the traffic rules.  One of the reasons we use point-drop-sweep is so that you don't have to rush to keep up with the point.  Don't be in such a hurry – stop at red lights and ride safely.

4.   Watch Your Spacing.    On group rides, accidents commonly occur between two cyclists on the same ride.  Riders get too close to each other, tires come into contact, and one or both cyclists go south.  Or, one rider stops short to avoid a vehicle, pothole, or pedestrian, and the cyclists traveling close behind cannot stop in time.  Make sure that you are a safe distance from the cyclists in front.

5.   Be Aware of Your Surroundings.    Riding in NYC takes concentration.  Alert riders are safe riders.  This is not the time to be talking on your cell phone.  This is not the time to be listening to your favorite tunes.  Proper cycling safety requires the use of your senses and your attention.

    Our leaders talk you through the 2 Minute Bike Check, do their best to find a safe route, and remind you to obey the traffic rules.  But, they can't ride your bike for you.  By riding predictably, pointing out hazards on the road, and signaling (or calling out your intentions) you help both yourself and others on the ride to be safer. Additionally you can make your ride safer by leaving enough space between you and other riders, paying attention to the road conditions and traffic, and watching the actions of the other riders in front of you.

    We hope that you follow these safe riding tips – on a 5BBC ride, on your commute, or just doing errands around your neighborhood.  Accidents can happen anywhere and at any time.  While we may never be able to completely eradicate them, we can reduce the odds of getting involved in one.  As Sgt. Esterhaus said, “Let's be careful out there.”

  Thanks to Mel for adding some pop culture references and getting me started.