Pizza! In the name of Bicycle Safety

Have you ordered your pizza today? 

TODAY, we're having our Bertucci's Dining for Dollars event. Anytime from 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM, order from Bertucci's at Kendall (take-out, delivery, dine-in), and mention you would like to help out the PN2K fundraiser with your order. 15% of your bill will go to our 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation PN2K as part of our community fundraiser with Bertucci's, Dining for Dollars! For every $10 you spend, receive a raffle ticket and be entered into a prize drawing at the end. A simple and effective way to help the community while treating yourself, co-workers, or family members and friends to delicious food. Visit our Bertucci's Kendall page to learn more. Thank you Bertucci's @ Kendall and Manager Cheryl Collins and staff for supporting us!

bertuccis

Print out and present the coupon/flyer above with your order, or simply mention "PN2K" when placing your order, so they don't forget to bring you the raffle tickets for every $10 you spend!

 

 

MIT convoy to Boston Bike Party “PRESENTS”

IMG_8045

Photo above: Snapped this shot while passing through the entrance of China Town. Thought the stunned reaction of the crowds around us was amusing.

IMG_8026

From Boston Bike Party's event: PRESENTS! (bike ride Friday, Dec 11, meeting at Copley 7 PM)
Our MIT convoy met at the MIT Student Center (84 Mass Ave) at around 6:45 PM to head over as a group together. 

Don the ribbons! Tie the bows! 
Where we're going, no one knows
Haul the trailer, prepare caboose!
We'll be biking, bells and toots

Second Friday, every month
With some exceptions, almost bar none
Two hundred, three hundred cyclists galore
When you see us, you'll be floored!

We take over the lanes, we take over the place
We take over that aisle you don't admit is a bike space
We reclaim the land, we reclaim our honour 
We reclaim on wheels, with masses as armor

We don't shout, we don't fight
We don't use guns, violence, or start plights
We simply hoot, we simply holler
We simply shout "Boston Bike Party is baller!!"

 ~ PN2K fans of BBP

 

Wild Winter Bike Fest ’15

12339145_1035715693146634_1781999232183745116_o

[All photo credits: Yaoming Duan, Dingfang Zhou] 

Once a month, MIT PN2K hosts a bike repair event/social. Numbers range from 40-150 attendees (annual launch events). Wild Winter Bike Fest happened this past Sunday, with free minor bike repairs & bike safety checks  (thanks Cambridge Bicycles), power-washing bike self-service, clean your U-lock station, bicycle trivia, bicycle registration forms, helmets for $20, bike lights for $15, batteries both CR2032 and 2 x AA for $2, high-neon visibility shirts, PN2K memberships, free food, music, and this time, even a bike wheel with snowflakes! (goal: write down something you would like to see to improve bike safety) Among the responses were: 

  • Make sure cars can see you!
  • Safer intersections
  • Left & Right indicators
  • More street lights along bike lanes on campus
  • Encourage cyclists to ride in main lanes (editor's note: one of my favorites)
  • Everyone should have lights & helmets

We had Cambridge Bicycles come in to conduct free minor bike repairs for the community (thanks to UA funding from Finboard) and welcomed back Rudy, bike-savvy cyclist, who helped some of you with bike issues. It was also his first time witnessing his own brainchild idea of the pressure-washer unit at work, which we had set up outside the MIT Z-Center. I had to make a few runs to the Student Center and noticed the whirring/humming noise of the spray nozzle running in the background, so take note, fellow cyclists! On days/times of our bike events, follow the sound of the drill and you shall find our pressure-washer! Here's the step-by-step:

  1. Stop by the pressure-washer station first; rid your bike of salt, grime, and other residue that shortens the lifespan of bike parts 
  2. Come register with us at our event (most usually Dingfang) and speak with our bike safety officer (Will), while having your photo taken (Yaoming) 
  3. Leave your bike in line and stop by the bike trivia table (led by Jay); answer five questions correctly and receive a free wristband reminding you to purchase Bertucci's at Kendall on Wednesday, Dec 16* plus a raffle ticket for our donations.
  4. Grab some food and drinks & mingle with the community
  5. Get your bikes registered (fill out the registration form) Ask one of the officers/organizers/volunteers wearing a PN2K shirt if you have questions. Please note, the serial number of your bicycles can be found underneath the area where the pedal connects to the main frame. 
  6. Accessorize! Find a helmet that fits and purchase for $20 (or order online at PN2K.org/helmet to pick up at the MIT COOP in the Student Center during regular business hours); grab Planet Bike bike lights for $15; get some batteries; buy PN2K membership to connect with the cycling community and get discounts; get a high visibility shirt (half off with PN2K membership). 
  7. Leave us feedback! We value everyone's opinion to (1) ensure future events run successfully (2) focus on important areas of bike safety that are not being addressed by others 

*Don't forget to mention PN2K! 15% of what you already will be spending will go towards PN2K (you spend nothing more!). For every $10 you spend, Bertucci's will give you a raffle ticket where you will be entered into a drawing for PN2K membership & goodies.

Anyway, we hope you had a blast, as we certainly did. Please join us this coming Friday, Dec 11 at the MIT Student Center Steps (84 Massachusetts Avenue), convoy leaving at 6:45 PM to Copley Square, Boston for the next Boston Bike Party (MIT convoy fb page here and BBP event page here), and keep your eyes peeled for the date of our next bike event. Keep Calm & Pedal On ~ PN2K crew 

12322415_1035715826479954_7825228575588964173_o

Full photo album for Wild Winter Bike Fest - Photo credits: Yaoming Duan, Dingfang Zhou

THANK YOU to all our partners, volunteers, and community sponsors for all your support and work. A special shout-out to the amazing folks in the community who supported the bike trivia & bike safety education station during the overall Winter Bike Fest event with the following raffle/door prizes: 

Landry's 
Starbucks @ Kendall
Broadway Bicycle School
Working Green, MIT Office of Sustainability 

** CONGRATS to the following Raffle Prize Winners **

Landry's $25 gift certificate: Cathy Zhou 
Starbucks $60 value gift basket: Brenda Zanze
Thermos from Working Green, MIT Office of Sustainability: Anna Kazlavskas 
Broadway Bicycle School $25 gift certificate #1: Ari Goldberger
Broadway Bicycle School $25 gift certificate #2: Milena Sisoviks
Broadway Bicycle School $25 gift certificate #3: Tina Wang
Broadway Bicycle School $25 gift certificate #4: Iris Fung

Please pick up your raffle prizes from Building 5-119 from Mr. Alpha Sanneh during regular business hours, M-F, 9 AM-5 PM. You must bring a valid photo ID.

 

Polar Bears, Huskies, Wild Moose

MIT PN2K - Wild Winter Bike Fest 12:6

We haven’t gone crazy. Our next event will be on Sunday, Dec 6, 2015 at the MIT Johnson Lobby in the Z-Center (building W35) from 2-5 PM. The event has a wild animal wintry theme. What you can expect with us:

Free minor bike repairs and safety checks (courtesy of Cambridge Bicycle)
Pressure-washing
Bike registration assistance (we will have forms from MIT Parking Office)
Free food
Music
Community!
Clean your U-lock station
Bike safety trivia (and door prizes)
Bike safety snowflakes (where you give input on what you think could be done to improve bike safety)

Free admission. More information to follow – keep a look out and join us on our social media pages: Facebook.com/PN2KMemorialFoundation and be sure to join our “PN2K – Community” page.

*Dec 1st update: Our event flyer has now been art-ified! (see above) Here are links to follow to make sure you stay in the loop:

Wild Winter Bike Fest on Facebook event page RSVP
MIT Events Calendar Wild Winter Bike Fest

You can also subscribe to our PN2K Bike Safety mailing list.

* Dec 6th update:

TODAY’S THE DAY! We have donations coming in from local bike stores, including:

$25 gift certificate to Landry’s Bicycles
$45 Starbucks gift basket
$100 total worth of gift certificates to Broadway Bicycle School

(and other raffle prizes from PN2K)

Hope to see you there!

Keep Calm & Pedal On

A bike ride down Memory Lane

One of the most touching stories is the one shared by Dingfang and Yaoming during our last MIT PN2K meeting. I think what's so attractive about it is that it's one that tells of passing time, and how serendipity can bring about chance encounters, intertwining fates, and lives that inextricably grow together. Yaoming, Dingfang, Will, Carmel, Tian, and Alpha have been some of our organization's most involved members, and I know few people who have more open hearts, open minds, and share their time as freely as they do. Dingfang and Yaoming are our foundation's historians - you might have seen their photos posted everywhere, from our website to our social media. First friendly acquaintances, Dingfang and Yaoming then became team members, friends, and now, they are part of our New England family. So when they shared this story from way back when, it was like a skip down memory lane to a time when I would've never been able to even imagine how big of a role they would play in my life (and in PN2K) now. 

Anyway, I'm delaying the fun - here's Dingfang and Yaoming's story. 

"The blizzard this January was so crazy that for the first time in my life, I saw 4 inches of snow at the front door of my apartment. After the first snowstorm--Juno--Dingfang and I went to Cambridge to film a reaction story for our class assignment.

Blizzard Juno 2015 -1

Blizzard Juno 2015 -7

We saw a few people working or walking around the MIT campus. A surveyor was typing some numbers into the topography machine in front of him. He was working on a new map of MIT. “It seems to be miserable working outside in such bad weather; however, when spring comes, people feel jealous of my job,” the man said, and then kept working.

PN2k-2

The weather didn’t seem too bad for some cyclists. We saw an MIT student who cycled to the student center and we talked to him when he was locking his bike. We were curious how people were managing to cycle on the roads full of snow. He told us that for him biking was the best way of commuting between MIT and his apartment. He rode his bike every day (the surface of the road was very slippery, so he had to be very careful). Then he told us there was a group of people who were fixing bikes indoors and sharing tips about riding bikes in the winter. ("Why not take a look?") 

PN2k-3

And that was how we met PN2K for the first time: at PN2K’s January bike event.

PN2k-5

 It was a party of cyclists. People had their bikes tuned up and also enjoyed music and free food. From Will Reyes, the bike safety officer, we learned more about PN2K.

PN2k-4

Then we talked to Ye, exchanged contact information, took some photos, and left. A week later, we came back to PN2K’s general body meeting and have became part of the organization since."

PN2k-6

 

From our PN2K Co-Directors to our team, partners, and all our amazingly generous volunteers, we are all very glad you are on this journey with us! And we hope that you will continue to stay actively involved.