Pictures And Video From Noble Street Festival 2017

Posted on 04/13/2017 by Nathan Young

Here are a lot of pictures and an video from the 2017 version of the Noble Street Festival and the Sunny King Criterium. Photos include action from Big Sam The Balloon Man and Heflin Taekwondo. After talking to several people at the event, I was in agreement that the Noble Street Festival side of things was somewhat disappointing this year. There were less kids activities, no music, and few food vendors. The crowd was kind of okay and I hope next year the event is bigger like in years past that I remember!

The Sunny King Criterium was great as always with a couple of crashes in the women’s and men’s pro races. So below, enjoy an over 30 minute video and a lot of great photos!

You can also find photos on the Geek Alabama Facebook page, Google Photos, and on Flickr too!

Videos can be found on the Nathan Young (Geek Alabama) YouTube channel and most videos can be found on the Geek Alabama Facebook page too!

Pictures And Video From Noble Street Festival 2016

Posted on 04/08/2017 by Nathan Young

Yes, I know it’s been a year, but the last year has been a wild ride, and I finally had time to edit the photos and video from the 2016 Noble Street Festival. Below, enjoy pictures and video from the event! And the 2017 version of the event won’t take a year to edit and upload, enjoy!

You can also find photos on the Geek Alabama Facebook page, Google Photos, and on Flickr too!

Videos can be found on the Nathan Young (Geek Alabama) YouTube channel and most videos can be found on the Geek Alabama Facebook page too!

You Need To Try The Zyp Public Bikeshare Program In Birmingham

Posted on 07/21/2015 by Nathan Young

UPDATE: This article is written by Michael Sznajderman from Alabama NewsCenter. Learn more at: http://alabamanewscenter.com/

Representatives with Birmingham’s soon-to-begin bikeshare program rolled out its name today, which they hope will “Zyp” quickly into broad public awareness in advance of the system’s official launch in September.

REV Birmingham, a nonprofit organization focused on business growth in the city center and in-town neighborhoods, will operate Zyp. In addition to unveiling the brand name, the group today launched Zyp’s Facebook page, and Twitter presence. Zyp also will be on Instagram and has a website.

“Picturing these new bikes as they ‘zyp’ around town, we wanted to establish a brand that embodied not only the bicycle, but the full bikesharing experience,” said the program’s director, Lindsey West, in a news release. “The Zyp design is fun, modern, simple, action-oriented and unique. It really breaks the mold and captures the spirit of Birmingham at the same time.”

The brand design and related platforms were created by Birmingham-based Big Communications.

The bikeshare program is scheduled to debut in mid-September. Individuals will be able to purchase memberships, giving them access to bicycles through a network of 40 stations installed around central Birmingham. All the stations are being fabricated in the Birmingham area. Visitors and others will also be able to check out bicycles by swiping a credit card.

Of the 400 bicycles in the system, 100 will be “pedelecs,” or electric-assist bikes. Birmingham’s is the first public bikeshare system in the United States to incorporate the electric bicycles, which will be charged via solar panels on the stations.

The Alabama Power Foundation is among the key supporters of the bikeshare system, which officials hope will drive additional economic growth downtown, spur tourism and provide health benefits for participants.

REV and city officials are finalizing locations for the stations. Decals on street corners around town identify potential locations, and the public can also weigh in through Zyp’s social media and digital platforms.

The system is being created in partnership with the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham and the City of Birmingham. Other major funders include Regions and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama.

Crowdsourcing Mornings: Lumos Bicycle Helmet

Posted on 07/15/2015 by Nathan Young

This is Crowdsourcing Mornings! This post takes place every weekday morning and highlights one crowdsourcing project I liked from Kickstarter, Indiegogo, or other crowdsourcing websites.

It shouldn’t be difficult or inconvenient to take care of your basic safety as a cyclist. Yet we frequently forget or misplace our lights, and drivers are often frustrated at the difficulty in both seeing and predicting where some cyclists want to go on the road. Lumos is a next generation bicycle helmet that addresses these issues. Featuring integrated brake and turn signal lights, Lumos helps you more effectively communicate your intentions to drivers and people around you. On the outside, Lumos looks just like a regular bicycle helmet. Until you turn it on!

Have you ever left the house or office without your lights? Or maybe you’ve had your lights stolen? Thanks to Lumos, as long as you have your helmet, you will always have your lights with you. Red lights at the back of the helmet are arranged to form a triangle, a commonly used warning symbol on the road. White lights in front are arranged in a distinctive pattern in order to make you stand out better, whether it is from a driver’s rear or side view mirror, or from a car coming in the opposite direction. By being an integral part of your helmet, these lights are naturally higher, larger, more distinctive, and easier to see than traditional bicycle mounted lights.

As of July 15th, this project has raised around $150,000 of their $125,000 goal. This project only has 29 days left to raise as much as it can! For a pledge of $99, you will get one Lumos helmet. For a pledge of $190, you will get two Lumos helmets. To learn more and to pledge money, go to: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/819484536/lumos-a-next-generation-bicycle-helmet

Smarter Every Day Shows Us How We Can Learn Riding A Backwards Bike

Posted on 04/27/2015 by Nathan Young

One of the things most kids learn to do is to ride a bike. I mean, I learned how to ride a bike when I was younger, and I am sure you did too. But, what if you were presented with a different type of bike, where the handlebars turn the opposite way the wheel turns. You think you can learn to ride it, but nope, it’s not as easy as you think! On this episode of Smarter Every Day, Destin Sandlin shows us how you can learn to ride a backwards bicycle. Yes, it took him weeks, but he learned to ride the backwards bike, enjoy!