Memphis experiences its third death of a cyclist in 2015

Memphis experiences its third death of a cyclist in 2015
By:  Michael Lander

Ghost bikes have become a way to remember the life of
someone who has died while cycling and they can serve
as a powerful statement and a vivid reminder that more
can and should be done to make cycling safer for every-
one.  (Photo By:  Michael Browne for UrbanVelo.org)

Another cyclist has died in Memphis.  The latest death was that of 26-year-old Justin D. Townsend.

Townsend was riding his bicycle when he was run over and killed early Friday morning, Oct. 9, in a hit-and-run crash not far from his North Memphis home.

This fatal crash happened at 12:33 a.m. at Thomas and Tenn. 300, which is a four-lane divided highway between Interstate 40 and Thomas.

Townsend’s body was reportedly found under the overpass located near mile marker 16. 

The vehicle that hit him was apparently heading north on Thomas, at the 101 connector, when the driver hit Townsend who was riding northbound on the east side of the roadway in the emergency lane.

The driver, Antrone D. Williams, 30, of Memphis fled the accident without stopping and Townsend was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Williams was arrested on Monday, October 12, following a Crime Stoppers tip that led Memphis Police investigators to the damaged vehicle that was involved in this hit-and-run incident.

When talking with Memphis Police investigators, Williams claimed that Townsend swerved into his lane of traffic and that he then struck the back tire of his bicycle, which caused Townsend to fly up and hit the windshield of his vehicle. 

He admitted to investigators that he did not stop to check on Townsend following the incident because he was scared.

Williams in now facing charges of vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of an accident, and driving without either a license or insurance.

Townsend is the third cyclist who has been struck and killed on Memphis area streets so far this year.  The other two were Zachary Walls and Eric Dyrell Taylor.  

Walls was struck and killed in the Binghamton neighborhood at the intersection of Sam Cooper and Tillman on Monday, March 9, 2015.  Like Townsend, Taylor was also killed by a hit-and-run driver, who was riding on the 3300 block of New Getwell Road near Winchester on Feb. 25.  Click here for more information on their deaths.

Townsend's death is the sixth that the Memphis area has seen since 2010.  The one prior to that of Walls and Taylor occurred in July 2014 at U.S. Hwy 61 and Star Landing Rd in Desoto County in Mississippi.

While the circumstances and details surrounding these cycling-related fatalities may have been different, they did all share at least one thing in common with one another.  All of these cyclists were riding at night when poor visibility may have been a contributing factor, especially for Walls who was also riding while it was raining.

All of these deadly accidents are a sad and tragic reminder of some of the dangers that cyclists can face any time that they ride, and it further emphasizes the need for cyclists to remain vigilant, especially when riding at night or in less than ideal conditions.

Even though accidents cannot always be avoided, cyclists can take precautions to help minimize some of the risks that are involved, most notably, having bikes that are equipped with lights on the front and back, with reflectors, by wearing bright and reflective clothing, and by choosing alternative roadways that do not have high volumes of traffic with vehicles traveling at excessively high rates of speed.

Here is a link with some safety tips that cyclists might find especially helpful:  http://memphiscyclist.com/html/safetytips.html.

Townsend was originally from San Jose, Calif. and he moved to Memphis in 1998.  He was a graduate of Millington Central High School and attended Southwest Tennessee Community College from 2013 to 2014.  His funeral service will be held at R.S. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home at 374 Vance Ave. in Memphis.

Reasons why the National Guard can and should support cycling among its members

Reasons why the National Guard can and should support cycling among its members
By:  Michael Lander

The Tennessee Air National Guard (TNANG) in Memphis formed
its cycling team in 2009 for the purpose of raising money for
charitable causes.  (Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

It would probably not seem like there would be any connection, what-so-ever, between cycling and the active duty military and the Army and Air National Guard, but there are some good reasons why there should be.

The National Guard has long prided itself in living up to its motto of “Always ready, always there,” and the men and women of the National Guard have always been ready, willing, and able to answer the call whenever they have been needed during emergencies and disasters and to defend and protect the U.S.

Cycling teams, like the one that members of the Air National
Guard in Memphis formed, provided them with an
opportunity to train and ride together for a common
cause while promoting the unit at the same time.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

There are many factors that come into play that enable the men and women of the National Guard to be able to accomplish their wide-ranging mission.  Cycling could possibly be one of the better ways to physically and mentally prepare them to be able to do this.

Over the last decade, cycling has become one of the many ways that some of our wounded warriors coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan have been able to find the rehabilitative and the therapeutic benefits of it for both their minds and bodies.

Cycling can be a rehabilitative and therapeutic activity for
those who have experienced injuries and it can be good
for the mind and body for all who do it.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

Given that, it really is not a stretch to think that cycling could also be something that all of our National Guard soldiers and airmen could also benefit from and it should be something that the National Guard itself should begin promoting and encouraging their members to do.

In the post 9/11 world that we live in today, members of the National Guard have had to assume an even greater and more prominent role where they have had to step up, fill in, and augment the mission that was once only expected of their active duty counterparts.

With increased emphasis on physical fitness, cycling can
help members of the National Guard to reach the
standards that they are required to meet.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

  
With that change, the pressing need for National Guard troops to be physically fit and fully qualified for worldwide duty has become even greater, and cycling can be one of the best ways to promote physical fitness and good health. 

Cycling can also provide a less tangible, but no less important, service in fostering and promoting team-building and camaraderie among those who do ride. 

Being able to work in unison with one another is essential to having successful military organizations with servicemen and women who are able to efficiently and effectively carry out their mission.  Cycling can help to further reinforce these relationships and instill the value of working more closely together for a common goal.

Cycling teams in the National Guard could help to foster and
promote team-building and camaraderie.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

In addition to helping inspire a sense of camaraderie, cycling can also be a way of bringing unit members together, along with their families, and even those who once served, but are now retired.

Having cycling teams within the various Army and Air National Guard units can also be a great recruiting tool that could potentially bring interest and attention to a unit if members of their unit’s team can compete at the local, state, or national level.  

Cycling teams can also help to establish a greater presence and involvement in the community, especially if the rides are in support of fundraising efforts for charitable causes.

Having cycling teams can be a great recruiting tool for the
National Guard, especially when members participate at
competitive events at the local, state, or national level.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

 
To make this happen, the National Guard Bureau must begin to see the value of cycling and they should find ways to endorse it. 

Cycling can be a very expensive activity, from the bicycles, to cycling gear and team jerseys.  If the National Guard is not able to help with some of the out-of-pocket expenses associated with cycling, the least that they could do is to give some form of support or by creating a policy that is favorable to those personnel who are interested in doing it. 

It is not unreasonable that the National Guard could offer some form of support (possibly even through some appropriated or non-appropriated funding) since, under its former director Lt. Gen. William Ingram, Jr., they did, after all, sponsor NASCAR and Indy racers from 2008 to 2015 with $48 million in 2014 alone.

Athletic teams, like those for cycling, can provide an opportunity
for an enormous amount of pride for the individual National
Guard units who have members who can represent
them during competitive and even non-competitive events.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

All of this, of course, was done under the auspices of recruiting, which, from all accounts, may not have yielded any appreciable results for the amount of money that was spent.

Unlike this type of expenditure, though, cycling teams have the potential of yielding a lot more, and it would be an actual investment in the lives, health, and fitness of its members.

Currently, there is a U.S. Armed Forces Cycling Team that is the official team representing the United States Armed Forces in national and international competitions. It is the approved cycling team of the Department of Defense.

There is a U.S. Armed Forces and an Air Force Cycling Team,
which National Guard members can join, but they and
their units may benefit more if their units established
cycling teams of their own.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

The Air Force also has a cycling team that is comprised of active-duty Air Force, Reserve, National Guard, and Air Force civilian riders whose main goal and purpose, according to their mission statement, is to "promote the Air Force in the most positive way possible using cycling as a way to display 'wingmanship' and fitness."

Outside military circles, many businesses have established cycling teams themselves and there is no reason that National Guard units cannot do the same.  By having these teams, it would give the National Guard an opportunity to have some of their finest men and women out representing their units to the rest of the world.

Cycling requires a tremendous amount of training and
preparation, which National Guard personnel are
accustomed to since training, preparedness, and
readiness is an integral part of their military
service.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

The National Guard has its origins in the first militia regiments in North America that were organized in Massachusetts in 1636 to defend the colony.  From this, the National Guard was born.

From its inception, members of the National Guard have voluntarily served and protected their communities.  Today, they are there to help with local emergencies and disasters and, when called upon, have joined their active duty counterparts to defend the nation from the time of the Revolutionary War to the threat of terrorism that we now face.

Cycling teams afford National Guard units, and their members,
with an opportunity to be out in their communities and to
have a positive impact by participating in charitable events.
(Photo:  Lt Col (Ret) Jim Hall)

When most of us think about the Air and Army National Guard, we might think of our men and women who render aid during local emergencies and disasters and who serve and defend our country. 

Perhaps one day we will also see them out in their communities on bicycles, reaching out, raising money for good causes, and proudly representing the oldest military organization in the U.S. in a new and distinctively unique way.

Shelby Farms Park will have a completely new look and feel for visitors within a year

Shelby Farms Park will have a completely new look and feel for visitors within a year
By:  Michael Lander

The Shelby Farms Greenline currently ends at the intersection
of Farm and Mullins Station Rd, but 4.1 miles will be added
within the next year taking it to a former railroad depot in
Cordova, Tenn.

Shelby Farms Park is undergoing a major facelift, but what is being done there is more than just cosmetic.

The $52 million facelift, or remodeling project, that’s currently underway on this extremely popular Memphis area park, will provide visitors with brand new facilities, amenities, attractions, more scenic vistas, ecological restoration and enhancements, and extended paved trails.

For pedestrians and cyclists, the biggest improvement will include a 4.1 mile expansion to the east on the Shelby Farms Greenline, which will connect a former railroad depot in Cordova to where the greenline currently ends at the intersection of Farms and Mullins Station Rd.

Much of the earthwork currently underway at Shelby Farms
Park involves a complete redevelopment and re-sizing of
Patriot Lake, which will be the centerpiece of what is
being billed as the "Heart of the Park."

This extension will directly connect Shelby Farms to even more communities to the east of it.  And, after the Wolf River Greenway is extended 18.4 miles to downtown Memphis by mid-2018, people will eventually be able to walk, run, or ride their bikes from nearby Memphis municipalities, over the Harahan Bridge, to West Memphis, Ark. and beyond on a seemingly endless network of trails.

The park will also have two new 2.34 mile paved trails around Patriot Lake, one of which will be a faster track for bicycles.  The lake, itself, is undergoing extensive changes and will nearly double in size and it will experience an ecological restoration effort in the process.

After the work is completed at Patriot Lake, two 2.34 mile
trails will loop around and will run alongside it with one
for cyclists and another for pedestrians.

Patriot Lake will be the crown jewel in what Shelby Farms Park has labeled as its Heart of the Park initiative.  The Heart of the Park will be an active and playful centerpiece unlike anything that the park has ever had in its long and storied history.

The Heart of the Park will feature a First Tennessee Foundation Visitor Center, a FedEx Event Center with a kitchen restaurant, an event pavilion, a boat kiosk, an additional bike rental facility, and new lakeside pavilions or crickets with covered spaces for picnics, family reunions, parties, and gatherings at the edge of Patriot Lake.

Overlooking a newly redesigned Patriot Lake will be a brand
new visitor and event center, pavilions, and areas for people
to gather and to have picnics.

The park is in the second (blue phase) of a four part renovation project that is expected to be fully completed by the fall of 2016.  The first (or green phase) is already finished and it included a new hiking and cycling trail.  The blue phase will see, among other things, a western expansion of Patriot Lake and a bike and pedestrian connection restored around James Pond.

Under the third (orange phase), construction will be completed on the visitor center, the event center, the kitchen restaurant, the phase 3 lake trails, and the second bike rental facility.

The Shelby Farms Greenline project is currently underway
with the railroad tracks removed and the surface leveled
out, but not yet paved.  This is a view near the Mullins
Station and Whitten Rd intersection, looking west.

The fourth (purple phase) will put the finishing touches to the multi-year project and will include replenishing Patriot Lake.

After all is said and done, by the fall of 2016, Shelby Farms Park will be more user and visitor-friendly than ever before.  Cyclists, and others, will have a place to stop and eat, a better place to ride, an ever-expanding access to the park via a bicycle, more bicycles to rent, and new and improved trails for pedestrians and cyclists alike.

Even with all the construction work going on at the park these days, it is still a great place to ride through with only a minimal amount of areas that are blocked off because of the work that is being done there.

Shelby Farms Park is experiencing a complete remodeling
with new facilities, attractions, and more scenic vistas
overlooking a completely redesigned Patriot Lake.

Click here for on-going construction and possible detour information.

None of this should be enough to deter bike riders from riding to and through the park.  While there, they can see the park as it takes shape and see it being transformed into what will ultimately be a premier recreational and entertainment oasis in the heart of our magnificent and thriving city.

To see a video of what Shelby Farms Park and the Heart of the Park will look like after all of the work is done, click here.

Reflections of my life of cycling after eight years of riding

Reflections of my life of cycling after eight years of riding
By:  Michael Lander

The FedEx Rock-n-Roll MS-150 bike ride was what got me
to start riding in 2007.  I have done eleven of these since
then and have found many more reasons to love riding
a bike from that time on.

After a 27-year hiatus, I returned to riding a bicycle once again a little over eight years ago.

I rode a lot as a child and, to a lesser degree, I continued to ride as a teenager, but after enlisting in the Air Force, I stopped and I did not return to it until I was within three years of retiring from an active duty military career that spanned a little over 28 years.

Eight years may not be a long time of riding, when compared to those who have spent a lifetime on a bicycle, but I have learned and experienced much in this very short period of time, and I have enjoyed reaching many of the goals that I have set for myself and sharing my journey and thoughts about cycling with others, and promoting something that I have really come to love.

I started back riding when I heard about a two-day, 150-mile bike ride for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in 2007.  My brother-in-law had done it the year before and the idea of doing such a ride seemed both exciting and challenging and I wanted to see if I could do it, too.

My brother-in-law, Steve Dodd (who is also known as Santa
Steve) is the one who got me interested in riding and doing
the MS-150 bike rides in 2007.  We have done many of
these rides together, both in Memphis and in Ohio.

Of course, the ride took on more significance for me when I actually met people who had MS and, after that, it was no longer just a bike ride, but it became a cause that I felt even more compelled to support by making others aware of it by riding.

Fast-forward to today, and on 12 and 13 September 2015, I completed my eleventh 150-mile bike ride for the MS Society.  I have done seven of these rides in Memphis and four in Ohio and, thus far, I’ve raised a total of $6,887.75.

From that first MS-150 bike ride until today, my motivation to ride has been to support charitable organizations that have included not only the MS Society, but also the American Cancer Society, the Wounded Warriors, the Shriners Hospitals for Children, and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
 
Along the way, I have also found many other reasons to ride, like just for the pure enjoyment of it, to remain physically fit, to get around, and to do something that can allow me some quiet time alone.  It can also be something that I can have fun doing with others.

Ascending "The Wall" may be one of the biggest challenges
for cyclists during the FedEx Rock-n-Roll MS-150.  The
volunteers who work the rest stops and who greet you at
the top of "The Wall" and at the finish lines are what
makes this ride as great as it is.

Throughout all this, I have learned more about myself and my body than almost anything else that I have ever done before.  I have also found out what my limitations are, I discovered just how much pain and discomfort that I can actually tolerate, and what works and what doesn’t work for me.

The biggest reward of all for me has been sharing with others what I’ve experienced and learned about cycling and helping to get others out and riding, themselves.

To stay at it, I have continually set new goals for myself.  My first one was to do my first 150-mile bike ride and to climb “The Wall” for the MS Society, and I did that on 8-9 September 2007.
 
My second goal was to do a century (100 mile) ride, which I did during a MS-150 ride in Ohio on 14 August 2011.  I wanted to do even more than just a century and I did just that when I rode 140 miles in a 24-hour period during the 2014 St. Jude Bike Ride on 26-27 September 2014.

Charitable bike rides, like the MS-150's, are just one of many
reasons why I ride, but they are one of the most rewarding
since they raise awareness and much-need money for
causes that I care about most.

After that, I aimed for my biggest goal yet and on 23 August 2015 I officially reached it by riding 24,901.55 miles, which happens to be the same distance as the circumference of the earth (at the equator).  It only took me eight years and five months to accomplish that feat.

As happy as I have been with what I have been able to do, my cycling hasn’t necessarily always been an easy thing for me to do.  I have battled neck and back problems (bulging discs and all) and arthritis in my right knee, but I have never let this stop me and I never will.  The feeling that I get after a good, hard ride greatly exceeds any pain and discomfort that I might have throughout it.

On 15 September 2013, I did suffer a serious injury when I fell from my bike, dislocating and shattering my left elbow.  I ended up having to have surgery and having my elbow replaced and tendons reattached, along with over three months of physical therapy.  But as bad as that was, it was the goal of returning to riding that got me through all this and, on 11 January 2014, I was back to riding again.  Since then (and as of 15 September 2015), I have ridden 6,406.34 miles.

Setting new goals, like finishing a long-distance bike ride, have
been a big part of my experience in cycling over the last
eight years.  Sharing everything that I learn from
bicycling, and promoting the benefits of it, is as
important to me as what I personally get out of it, myself.

Since I took up cycling eight years ago, I have created a cycling website as a way to give back to the Memphis community, and I created a cycling blog to provide more in-depth stories and articles that I hope will both help and inspire others to ride.
 
In reflecting over the past eight years, I absolutely have no regrets about the road that I have traveled, and I can’t think of a better way to move forward toward the future than on my bicycle.