BioBus Bike Blog

Truly and for sure, it’s not always that easy bein’ green. Separating the recycling, turning off lights, reusing bags, paying extra for food that’s organic or paper that’s recycled. All these things take effort, my friends, it takes work to be green. And bein’ green is hard for cities too. You ever try to get a bike lane installed? Sometimes just painting a line on the street can take months and months.

And it’s not easy being green for businesses either. As you’ve probably noticed, most companies are only concerned with one kind of green. So when a business goes out of the way to be eco-friendly, a little recognition is always appreciated. You better believe we were appreciative over here at UA when the city of Boston named us a 2009 Green Business and Bike Friendly Business. Check out Chief Wheel Officer Andrew Prescott and Mayor Menino in this pic from the awards ceremony: two peas in an environmentally-conscious pod!

Quite an honor, I must say. Nothing like a little pat on the back to strengthen your resolve to the mighty cause of bein’ green. And good thing too, because there are all sorts of opportunities this very weekend to get out on two wheels and say ‘No’ to fossil fuels.

I believe I’ve mentioned my love of a good breakfast recently. Well, Friday the 29th is the first installment of this year’s Bike Friday series. Get up bright and early, ride to City Hall Plaza, and say hello to yours truly. Simple enough.

Continuing on with the fellas from City Hall, we’ll be riding with Mayor Deval Patrick for the Governor’s Mass in Motion wellness campaign on Saturday the 30th. We’ll be cruising from the State House to Bikes Not Bombs, helping kids and teens get green. Teaching kids to use pedal power and leave the fossil fuels to this guy.

Keep an eye our for this lil’ dino, he’ll be cruising around a bunch this summer.

Rolling right through Saturday, check out Earthfest down at the famous Esplanade Hatch Shell. Listen to some tunes, learn about some environmentally friendly products, and maybe go for a bike ride along the banks of the River Charles.

Cap off your weekend of bein’ green with the Brookline Bikes Beacon Street Bike Parade. Not quite Hub On Wheels, but a cruise down Beacon Street with no automotive traffic sounds fun to me – though I guess I won’t be allowed to join.

Suddenly bein’ green doesn’t seem so tough, eh? I say, take the advice of a frog, and recognize it’s beautiful to be green.

We had a pretty cool event at Downtown Crossing last week. Kind of a mini-green fest of with ZipCar and the guys at MassBike. You’re probably thinking, the BioBus? In Downtown Crossing? Yep got VIP access for the event, rolled right in to an area that is usually restricted to pedestrian traffic.

Usually being on a bike gives us all kinds of access. While technically considered vehicles, we’ve got our own bike paths, and can hop off and walk our wheels on the sidewalk when needed. Our tours certainly take advantage of this, using streets, bike lanes, and bike paths. Riding bikes lets us explore parts of the city where cars are usually restricted, like the Esplanade, South West Corridor path and even cruising through the Boston Common.

There’s all kinds of urban planning to create green space and getting around by bike lets us explore all the little nooks and crannies of the city. You’ve probably got a secret spot of your own that we’d love to hear about. The Harbor Walk that winds under the Charlestown Bridge is our favorite new discovery. Leave us a comment with yours!

I’m a bus of simple tastes. Morning, noon, night; breakfast, lunch, dinner, it’s nothin’ but used vegetable oil for me. There’s nothing I like better than starting the day with a full tank, and Friday morning I discovered bikers are the same. I pulled up at City Hall plaza bright and early to help the UA crew set up for Mayor Menino’s Bike Week Festival. Soon convoys started rolling in from all across the city. Riders from JP to Brighton, Brookline to Somerville cruised to the heart of Boston with police escorts to celebrate a week of Bike Love.

And then they immediately rushed to the free breakfast.

No surprise, really. When you’re not burning fossil fuels you end up burning a lot of calories. Of course, the burritos, bananas, and muffins weren’t the only items going like hot cakes. Many a biker rode away happily with a brand new I ‘Bike’ Boston hat. I mean, have you seen these things? This summer’s must have fashion accessory, without a doubt. And as I’m sure you’re aware, I know a thing or two about looking good.

For Boston bikers, a good sense of direction is almost as important as good fashion sense. So along with their new lids, plenty of riders left with the new Boston Bike Map. The dedicated folks over at Boston Bikes put this handy map together with help from real urban cyclists. UA proudly holds the place of honor on the new map’s back cover.

Full bellies, cool caps, and a solid plan for getting from Point A to Point B. Not a bad way to start the day.

Believe it or not, we’ve breezed into Bay State Bike Week. Rolling into Boston City Hall Plaza this morning, what a feeling! So many cyclists, Nicole Freeman, our many friends in the Boston bike community, and Mayor Menino all met on the plaza and then rode down to Christopher Columbus Park, my main hangout. Even the Boston Globe was there to give us a nod. Couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick off Bay State Bike Week.

The UA crew was out in solid numbers and doing their best to pull Mayor Menino into the fold. They even got him in a special-ordered “I ‘Bike’ Boston” t-shirt. Did you know his ride of choice is a Specialized Globe, the same bike we use for all our tours? Yep, Urban AdvenTours will keep you riding in style.

Peep the pictures here to see what a stylish bunch they are.

Well I’m all tuned up and ready to roll through another great spring and summer. Oiled up and ready to go, much like all the bikes hanging in the back ready for delivery. I’ve been cruising around the North End a bunch now, checking out all the hot spots near our new home at 103 Atlantic Avenue. There’s so much to see with the Aquarium, Faneuil Hall, and Government Center right down the street and all the great culture of the North End and Waterfront around us.

What comes with the new neighborhood is the challenge of finding places to hang out during the day. I’m a big guy and need a good amount of space, so parking around here has been a race to get meters filled and avoid parking tickets. So how surprised was I to have a Boston Transportation Department employee come in, not to give us a ticket, but to buy a bike bag! Talk about turning the tables, she paid us instead of the other way around. Check out the pic of Chief Wheel Officer Andrew Prescott extending the olive branch.

So with being the new kids on the block, I am happy to announce Urban AdvenTours’ Bike Week Open House. We’ll be opening the doors, which unfortunately I don’t fit through, to show people around the new space. It will be a great time and our mechanics will be giving out FREE basic tune-ups, which include checking tire pressure, tightening parts and lubricating components. You’ll be running as smooth as me in no time, so from there you should hop on the free guided city tour. The tour will be an hour and fifteen minute loop that will begin and end at the shop. This is a great introduction for learning how to ride in the city!

The Open House will be on Monday 5/11 through Wednesday 5/13, each evening from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. You can check it out on our Facebook page and invite all your friends too. There are tons of great Bay State Bike Week events going on including rides, parties and even breakfast with the Mayor.