A survey last spring by OU's parking people emerged with an amazing statistic. At any moment of the academic day there were 2,000 bicycles parked in bike racks around the campus. That, the parking people said, was much more than they expected and indicates that a lot of students are actually riding to class.
Presumably some days there is more riding than others. On one of those dreary fall days I could not help but notice that the only bikes in a rack I usually use were my bike and two others, though normally at the hour I'm there it is full. And I must admit that when it is pelting down rain, I also am only a fair-weather biker, though I must say that that rarely pushes me into the ultimate refuge of the internal combustion engine. Sometimes my wife gives me a lift.
Still, if we calculate that there are perhaps 21,000 students in classes on the Norman campus, and if each academic day has about ten possible hours of meeting (though really there are a few more than that), there might be 2,100 students in class at any one moment. But of course not all hours are equally popular, and students take different numbers of hours. Doing the math you can see that there are not only 100 students each hour who do not bike to class. In fact the percentages who do bike are small. But the parking people's findings do indicate that there is a significant number of students and faculty who do bike.
OU's bicycle committee was amazed by the statistic, and the administration has been responding. There are some new bike racks, especially south of Catlett and north of the new Wagner Center. And they are new style contraptions to which one might actually attach a bike lock and not like the old things that are still around where you can sort of push your bike into it, but it may or may not hold it up, and where you lock the thing up is not clear. It is gratifying to note in the student paper that the student congress is kicking in $1000 for more and better bike racks (Wed., Nov. 4, 2009, page 3).
So maybe there will be more bikes better parked. But is this necessarily a good thing? There are continuing complaints about uncaring bikers who zip into walkers, and some horrible stories about quite unnecessary bike-pedestrian accidents. There is no question that as bike density increases, as it seems likely to do, bike rider density should be addressed with education and with punishment where appropriate. And we need dedicated bike paths that separate walkers from riders, not everywhere, but on some key streets. OU has made strides on better racks, but with so many bikes in use, there is more to be done.
Another statistic: The OU Police registered 105 bikes in their 2009BikeBuzz, held on a dreary and drizzly day on the South Oval. If you missed the registration, which is absolutely free of charge, it's a good idea to do since they do recover stolen bikes and can sometimes match them up with owners. And you don't have to be connected to OU to register a bike with them.
Dan Snell has commuted to OU by bike for 26 years, and now his bike is registered.
Outdoors
November 12, 2009
2,000 bikes on campus an impressive statistic
- Outdoors
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- Safety is vital when working with chain saws STILLWATER -- As Oklahomans clean up after the recent ice storm that left tree limbs shattered or lying around, care should be taken to ensure protection against unintentionally risking an arm or leg being added to the toll.
- Dolese Youth Park Pond teeming with trout for young anglers Oklahoma City resident Gaston Gallant goes fishing nearly every day of the two-month trout season at Dolese Youth Park Pond, a northwest Oklahoma City fishing destination currently teeming with nearly 2,600 rainbow trout.
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De-icing salt can harm landscape plants
Each winter, millions of tons of deicing salt are applied to state and municipal roads to keep the roads safe for vehicles to travel. Salt is spread near houses to avoid pedestrian injuries. This is necessary for safety, but did you know excessive salt can cause widespread damage to trees ? possibly leading to permanent decline and even death?
According to the Tree Care Industry Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to the tree care industry, even severe salt damage might not be visible on a tree until the end of summer, leaving homeowners wondering what might have caused the problem. - Making it through That was a cold spell of what we used to call "Biblical proportions." It was made perhaps more interesting locally by the old heat-pump in the house, which died on New Year's Eve. For a week, the household was maintained by an old Franklin stove in the living room, and by the old owner, who had to carry in firewood so it could be fed every hour or so.
- University of Oklahoma team wins college fishing event ZAPATA, Texas -- The University of Oklahoma team of Mark Johnson and Chip Porche won the National Guard FLW College Fishing Texas Division event on Falcon Lake Saturday with six bass weighing 34 pounds, 8 ounces.
- Great Western Feedout entry deadline Friday It is time to start entering for the Great Western Feedout of 2010. For those of you not familiar with it, the Great Western Feedout is a producer information feedback program that allows cattle producers the opportunity to evaluate the genetic merit of the calves they produce for feedlot performance and carcass value following weaning and a winter stocker program.
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Part-time lakes are of full-time importance
For the unlearned, old age is winter, for the learned, it is the season of harvest.
--Hasidic saying
Today's topic is the most important wetlands you've never heard of: Playa lakes and oxbow lakes. Playa lakes are usually saucer shaped natural low places with clay bottoms located in dry landscapes. - Christmas Bird Count yields unexpected rewards What am I doing here? It is incredibly cold morning and I am crouched here in the dark in the willows on the banks of the South Canadian River with a few stalwarts indulging in an activity called "owling.
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Increasing deer population leads to ornamental and garden plant damage
STILLWATER -- With more than a half million white-tailed deer in Oklahoma, many landowners experience nature in its purest sense as the deer can be viewed at close range.
However, this has become a problem over the years as the deer population has increased, forcing thousands of these animals into peripheral suburban areas, leaving homeowners to deal with damage to ornamental and garden plants. -
Wildlife Department to host town hall meeting
Sportsmen will have an opportunity to voice their thoughts on wildlife, hunting and fishing related issues at a town hall meeting hosted by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
The meeting, one of a series, is set for 7 p. - More Outdoors Headlines
