Pedalpalooza, week one: Rounding up the bike fun

Laughing Planet Cafe is the official sponsor of our 2009 Pedalpalooza Coverage

Streets filled with bikes: a common
sight during Pedalpalooza!
(Photo © J. Maus)

What an amazing week! Portland bike funnists have been outdoing themselves this year, with the biggest Pedalpaloozaever (over 200 events total!)

Team BikePortland has been scrambling trying to cover all the events we can (is this really our job or is it a dream?) — and reports and photos have been rolling in from the community, true to the DIY spirit of the event. Keep an eye on theShift list and the Pedalpalooza twitter account for live updates and discussion.

Below is a selection of reports, photos, rumors, and shout outs that we’ve come across in the past week, in rough chronological order. Share your own links and experiences in the comments.

Oh yeah, and be sure to check out our full Pedalpalooza 2009 coverage for more updates and stories, including a daily ride guide and all the ride reports we can get our hands on.

---

Kickoff Parade!
(Photo © J. Maus)

- Before it all began, for the creative and impatient, there was the Pedalpalooza Preview Ride.

- The Kickoff Parade was a good-natured, high-spirited blast — I counted 200 riders, and more were reported later on. Check out our report (including a slideshow and a video), the Bike Temple’s video, andphotos by Carye Bye.

The weekend kicked off with a bang on Friday.

- Jonathan took a tour of the city.

- I tried out unicycling in the rain with a couple dozen other folks.

- Our intern Dan Liu took photos and wrote a report of the Jesus Ride and the Midnight Mystery Ride (over 300 people were rumored to attend the latter).

Saturday was off the handle!

On Parade at the Cirque du Cycling
(Photo © J. Maus)

- Cirque du Cycling was a huge success, with record numbers attending (including about 70 naked riders from the Daytime World Naked Bike Ride).Here’s our full report. There are tons of photos out there — check out some by Dan Liu. Event organizers have set up a Flickr group as well.

- Speaking of the Daytime Nekkid Ride, leader Allan Folz reports that 78 jubilant riders were counted at the halfway point — and several more spontaneously disrobed and joined the ride on the way to the Cirque. Here’s another, more detailed report (misleadingly titled — it’s about the daytime ride).

- The World Naked Bike Ride. So much has been said and written about this that it’s hard to know where to link to. Here’s our report. Someone made three neat time-lapse slideshows. Jim Parsons took some photosand also posted his GPS trace from the ride. Here are some shots from one of our commenters. Every single spectator seemed to have a phone, camera, or camcorder. Google is your oyster here folks.

Story continues below

Sunday was a completely packed day.

- Organizers were thrilled by the turnout of 50 outer-eastside bike afficionados for the Lents Bike Boulevard Ride.

We learned about meditation
at the Dharma Rain Zen Center
on the Joy of Sects Ride.

- Around church-time, the Bike Temple’s Joy of Sects Ride toured various places of worship. Here’s their report, and here’s our slideshow.

- A small but hardy group met up in Beaverton for the Pirate Ride — a success, though “no one brought any rum, and in spite of all the left turns there wasn’t even any port.” Here’s the full report.

- 20 – 30 happy riders splashed around in public fountains while dancing to music from a mobile sound system. Carye Bye tells the story with photos.

- The CRC Protest Ride attracted 80 riders. Here’s our report, and here’s Chris Smith’s write-up on PortlandTransport.

- We’ve heard rumors that the I Heart Photobooths ride was well-attended and tons of fun, but awaiting confirmation and photo scans.

- The Grant Petersen ride seems best summed up thusly.

- The Hands-Free Derby was reportedly a blast.

Monday morning:

The Romance Redux Ride
with special guest Batman
(Photo © Elly Blue)

- The day was kicked off by the 9 intrepid sugar-loving hill-climbers who showed up for the Ridiculously Early Donut Ride.

- Romantics united in the rose gardens of Ladd’s for dramatic readings from paperback romance novels, accompanied by a roving trash trailer and a Batman mask.

- Anarchists and the anarcho-curious assembled briefly for a discussion of situationism before loosely scattering in various spontaneous directions to follow our emergent experiences on the Psychogeographical “Tour” of Portland.These photos tell the story of one of the several splinter groups. Rumor has it that another group turned up at a local bookstore to browse and buy Situationist texts. The rest may still be out there creating a new emotional map of the city.

- The Big Girls Ride was reported to be in trouble — the organizer had the flu. Any word on how/if that went?

- Apparently members of the Dandy Warhols joined in the Dandy Warhol ride on Monday night — who went on that?

We’ll unscientifically bring you the reports that roll in during the next few days. For now, here’s a quick one from this morning’s Slackers Ride.

How’s your Pedalpalooza going?

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Email This Post

Posted on June 16th, 2009 at 4:05 pm. Filed under Front Page,Pedalpalooza 2009, Rides/Events. Feel free to respond.

Possibly related posts

• Pedalpalooza blog launched!
• Pedalpalooza (brought to you by Shift)
• Report: Pornography of the Bicycle
• Volunteer: Distribute Pedalpalooza calendars
• Pedalpalooza Kick Off Parade

http://bikeportland.org/2009/06/16/pedalpalooza-week-one-rounding-up-the-bike-fun/

AANR Convention FL Flyer, Schedule of Events.

 

 

AANR-Florida

2008 CONVENTION

JUNE 19 – 22, 2008

 

Hosted by

Gulf Coast Resort
Hudson, Florida 

 

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

 

Thursday, June 19th

 

  1:00 p.m. –   7:00 p.m.  

Registration  ($10.00 per person)

 

Your registration fee will grant you access to all Convention activities, including meetings, and includes 2 continental breakfasts, a goodie bag filled with gifts, and a door prize ticket.

 

  5:00 p.m. –   6:30 p.m. Women In Nude Recreation Workshop 

  7:00 p.m. –   8:30 p.m. President’s Reception

This will be a “meet-n-greet” event.  We will be serving appetizers, wine, beer, and soda.

 

Friday, June 20th

 

  7:30 a.m. –   9:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast 

  8:00 a.m. –   7:00 p.m.  Registration  ($10.00 per person)  

  9:00 a.m. –   1:00 p.m. AANR – Florida Out-Board Meeting 

  1:00 p.m. –   2:00 p.m. Lunch 

  2:00 p.m. –   6:00 p.m. Sports Competitions and Games

We will have sign-up sheets at the Convention Registration Table.  The activities are:

 

Horseshoes

Shuffleboard

Bean Bag Toss

Cruise Ship Horse Races

Bowling

Limbo Contest

Twist Contest

Scavenger Hunt

 

8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. BAR-B-QUE at the Tiki Bar 

8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. Special Entertainment in the Clubhouse

 

Saturday, June 21st

 

  7:30 a.m. –   9:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast 

8:00 a.m. –   5:00 p.m.  Registration  ($10.00 per person)

Your registration fee will grant you access to all Convention activities, including meetings, and includes 2 continental breakfasts, a goodie bag filled with gifts, and a door prize ticket.

 

  8:00 a.m. –   9:00 a.m. AANR – Florida Associates’ Caucus 

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon AANR – Florida Regional Convention Meeting

This is the “main event” of the convention.  We will be voting on new Officers and Directors. 

 

12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m. Lunch 

  1:00 p.m. –   5:00 p.m. AANR – Florida Regional Convention Meeting Reconvenes

Guest Speaker – Bob Levy – Bob Levy is AANR – Florida Region’s lobbyist in the Florida Legislature.  He will be reporting on legislation being proposed or pending that might affect nude recreation in our region.

 

  7:00 p.m. –   8:00 p.m. Activities Awards and Honorary Awards

This is the “BIG EVENT” that no one will want to miss!  We will be handing out the various Activities Awards and Honorary Awards.  At the end, we will announce the recipients of the AANR – Florida Man-of-the-Year Award, the AANR – Florida Woman-of-the-Year Award, the AANR – Florida Family-of-the-Year Award, and the AANR – Florida Hall of Fame.

 

  8:30 p.m. – 12:00 p.m. Karaoke

 

Sunday, June 22nd

 

  7:30 a.m. –   9:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast

  9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon AANR – Florida In-Board Meeting 

 

 <http://www.aanr-florida.org/flyer.htm>

Pasco Nudist Resorts Attract Local, International Naturalists

Suncoast Pasco > News 

Tribune photo by CHRIS URSO

George and Judi Emrich talk as they sit in one of the many pools at Paradise Lakes Resort, a clothing optional club in Lutz.

By GEOFF FOX | The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 6, 2008

LAND O’ LAKES They frolic naked in the sun, defend an often misunderstood lifestyle and boost the local economy in ways few people realize.

As many industries struggle, Pasco County’s nudist resorts are enjoying the kind of success that would make even Donald Trump smile.

Despite recent controversy, Caliente Resorts, one of three major nudist or clothing-optional destinations in Land O’ Lakes, says its revenue is up 120 percent. That’s thanks, in part, to an influx of European travelers taking advantage of the Euro-to-dollar exchange rate.

The resort’s 350-plus home sites also are popular. County property appraiser’s records show more than $7.8 million in real-estate sales at the resort since January 2007.

A few miles to the south, Paradise Lakes Resort, which markets almost exclusively to locals, has reported more than $12.4 million in real-estate sales in the last 15 months.

Those figures might surprise people who know little about nudists, but it’s no shock to Sen. Victor Crist, the Tampa Republican who represents Land O’ Lakes.

“People are flying in from all over the world,” said Crist. “[Nudists] are funding our school districts, law enforcement and firefighters, and they’re not users of these services.

“A big portion of the revenues in Pasco are generated from that industry – much greater than people realize.”

Although it’s hard to say how much nudists help the local economy, county officials know they have “a pretty big impact, tourism-wise,” said county spokesman Eric Keaton.

Along with the Gulf Coast Resort in coastal Hudson, the major resorts – including Caliente, Paradise Lakes and Lake Como Family Nudist Resort – are in Land O’ Lakes, the heart of what used to be an isolated expanse of ranches and farmland in the middle of the county.

Not all of Pasco’s nudists are from out of town, either.

“I heard there were 12,000 nude votes out there,” Crist said.

The Nudist Capital

With about a dozen nudist destinations, Pasco is unofficially known to naturalists as the “nudist capital of the United States.”

Commonly recognized as the state’s first nudist mobile home park, Lake Como opened in the 1940s. Locals say Florida’s warm year-round climate has lured naturalists here ever since. Gulf Coast Resort opened in the late-1960s, followed by Paradise Lakes in 1981 and Caliente in 2002.

The industry has flourished globally in the last two decades, according to the American Association for Nude Recreation, which markets the industry.

“We were a $200-million industry in the early-1990s, and now we’re a $450-million-a-year industry, worldwide,” said Carolyn Hawkins, the association’s public relations coordinator.

Over Memorial Day weekend, hundreds of people found their way to Caliente, where middle-aged naturalists and younger people mingled in the resort’s pools, relaxed in its bars or escaped the sun beneath a man-made waterfall.

Recently, Caliente, whose membership hit 1,800 in December, has been aggressively pursuing a younger crowd through advertisements in Creative Loafing, a local alternative newspaper, and on a local sports talk radio station, where public relations director Angye Fox and events and entertainment director Deb Bowen are occasional on-air guests.

Theme Parties Popular, Controversial

What lures many younger people to Caliente is its theme parties, such as this month’s “Arabian Nights” event, where guests will dress as genies, kings or queens, or next month’s “Eyes Wide Shut” event, an homage to the 1999 Stanley Kubrick film with Tom Cruise. Attendees are encouraged to wear masks.

Caliente e-mails a weekly newsletter and connects with the younger crowd on MySpace, the popular social networking site. The resort also is creating national and international media kits with photos, videos and podcasts, which people can download and listen to on their computers or iPods.

“We’ve also revamped our Web site, trying to reach the millennials, and they’re pretty savvy,” Fox said. “They communicate via the Internet and text-messaging, and once they communicate it becomes viral. It spreads.”

Those efforts may have gotten Caliente into trouble. Recently, AANR, which expects its clubs to adhere to family-friendly principles, temporarily suspended the resort’s charter after hearing complaints it was hosting swingers parties.

Losing its charter permanently – something AANR says has happened to only two resorts in the last decade – would cost Caliente considerable marketing and lobbying muscle.

While the association investigates the complaints, Caliente still enjoys its member benefits, and it’s hard to say how much losing its affiliation with AANR would hurt the resort, which is pushing ahead with plans to attract overseas customers.

Bob Shepherd, a recently hired publicist, is translating Caliente’s Web site into Spanish, Russian, Italian, French, Portuguese and German.

While Caliente markets globally, Paradise Lakes, which distributes a weekly newsletter to about 6,000 members and regular guests, is content to market to locals, said manager Christian Schrangl.

“Gas is up, and people don’t travel as far,” he said. “The economy is challenging for everyone, and we want more locals who were always curious about that type of lifestyle but never had the guts to step across those eight-foot walls.

“A lot of people have misconceptions about the nudist culture and clothing-optional places, but it’s just a very natural thing.”

A Volunteer Spirit

At nearby Lake Como, which has about 200 residential units, the philosophy is much different.

“Our visitors like nature, sports and the world-famous Butt Hutt,” said general manager Van Bradley, referring to the resort’s beach bar. He said the resort’s five clay tennis courts also regularly draw visitors from the area’s other clubs.

Considered more rustic than Caliente and Paradise Lakes, Lake Como is a nonprofit company looking only to break even.

“As a co-op, we put our money back into maintaining the facility,” Bradley said. “That spirit is also in our customers. They have donated money to put in hedges, streetlights, a dog walk, a gazebo and landscaping. Others help out with labor. There’s a real volunteer spirit.”

Eve Ferber, 88, has been a Lake Como resident for about 30 years and has been a nudist for seven decades. Open-minded and possessed of an X-rated sense of humor, she understands that younger people must be exposed to the lifestyle for it to continue to thrive.

She also understands most people will never understand nudism.

Although she could afford a fancier home, Ferber, echoing the mindset of many local naturists, said she feels lucky to have found her way here.

“This is all I need or want,” she said with a smile.

Related Links:  Nudist Colonies Enjoy Success

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at               (813) 779-4613        or gfox@tampatrib.com.

Nudist resort stirs up residents

 

Nudist resort stirs up residents

 

By Jodie Tillman, Times Staff Writer

In print: Thursday, June 5, 2008

 

Caliente officials say most of the attention stems from its attempt to increase revenue by marketing toward a younger demographic through Web sites, mainstream media ads and monthly theme parties.

 

 

 

 

 

LAND O’LAKES — In this gated community, the theme parties start late, and the invitations alone are enough to upset the neighbors.

“Ladies break out those naughty school girl outfits,” one invitation said. “It’s time to tease your way into those good grades.”

“Party like a rock star,” said another. “Dress like a porn star.”

The neighbors are all nudists who live at Caliente Resort & Spa, Pasco’s upscale, clothing-optional community that attracts thousands of tourists each year and is a full-time home to hundreds of people.

And the parties in question are monthly, sexually charged events put on by an outside “lifestyle,” or swingers, group with Caliente’s blessing — sparking a debate over the nature of nudism, which devotees defend as natural and nonsexualized.

“We don’t want to be thrown in with the whole hedonism thing,” said Doug Butler, president of the association that represents more than 350 single-family homes and condominiums.

Complaints about Caliente’s connection with swingers groups reached the American Association for Nude Recreation, which late last month temporarily suspended the resort from its organization.

Association spokeswoman Carolyn Hawkins confirmed an investigation was under way but would not elaborate on it.

The association, a national organization that requires its club and resorts to be family friendly, could decide as soon as August whether to reinstate Caliente. At risk if Caliente were to lose its membership: marketing assistance, lobbying on nudist issues and discounted membership fees that attract tourists.

Caliente officials chalked the suspension up to a “misunderstanding” about information that was on some third-party Web sites run by swingers groups.

A group called the Swingers Club List, for instance, has Caliente on its Web site as a suggested destination, though swingers gave mixed reactions.

One person who posted on the group’s Web site said Caliente “is all you want it to be … it swings at night and is friendly in the daytime.” Another posting said: “You must be kidding. … We went there and there are children and grandparents. Not what I would call a fun place.”

Caliente management said the resort “has very specific rules to provide a safe naturalist environment for our members and guests. We do not allow public displays of affection in our common areas and this policy is enforced by Caliente security.”

Caliente has no reference to swingers on its Web site, though its marketing director, Angye Fox, is a featured speaker at Swingfest ‘08, the “world’s largest swingers party and adult expo” next month in Hollywood, Fla. Her topic: “Swingers and Nudists Can Coexist!”

Caliente officials say most of the attention stems from its attempt to increase revenue by marketing toward a younger demographic through Web sites, mainstream media ads and monthly theme parties.

Aahz Party Lifestyle Group puts on the “lifestyle” parties. Peter Smith, who runs Aahz’s Web site and has attended the events, said nothing untoward happens there.

“I think they’re trying to make it more of something than it is,” he said of critics. “It’s not that kind of party. You go there and the people are just real sexy.”

He said Caliente benefits because the party guests are more likely to spend money at the club than the residents.

“They want Caliente to be strictly their kind of people,” he said. “The problem is, they don’t want to spend a dime.”

Butler, the homeowner, said he understood why Caliente is trying to reach a younger crowd. But he worries those efforts are cultivating a bad perception — especially on the swingers Web sites that Caliente can’t control.

Perception can be everything, said Arlene Reed, the marketing and activities director for Lake Como, another Pasco nudist resort. She said Lake Como has adults-only parties, but only because there is alcohol. She said she wouldn’t want the parties to take on a sexual nature, and she wouldn’t want to be associated with swingers clubs.

“What goes on behind closed doors is their business,” she said. “But in the public eye, we don’t associate with it or promote it.”

Pasco officials recently got an anonymous complaint about swingers parties at private homes at Caliente, said County Commissioner Pat Mulieri. She questioned what the county could do if the parties aren’t in a public place. Still, she said she hoped that Caliente tamped down the sexually themed parties, given that the county promotes its nudist resorts to tourists.

“I don’t blame the people who live there,” she said. “There are million-dollar homes out there. Why would they want to jeopardize that? I just think it puts kind of a black eye on the place. I’ve always said, ‘Nude isn’t lewd.’ “

Smith, with the Aahz party group, said the parties aren’t lewd, either.”Ninety percent of the lifestyle people that go there are dressed,” he said. “The nudists are the ones who go there naked.”

 

 

Jodie Tillman can be reached at jtillman@sptimes.com or (727) 869-6247.

 

[Last modified: Jun 05, 2008 12:50 AM]

 

 <http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article607872.ece>

Pasco nudist resort suspended by national association

 June 04, 2008

 

Pasco nudist resort suspended by national association

 

 

LAND O’LAKES — Caliente Resorts, often billed as the “Ritz-Carlton” of Pasco County nudist resorts, has been temporarily suspended from the American Association for Nude Recreation.

The suspension is over allegations that Caliente had been associating itself with swingers groups through third-party Web sites, said Doug Butler, president of the Caliente masters association, which represents the hundreds of homeowners and condo owners who live near the resort.

Carolyn Hawkins, spokeswoman for the American Association for Nude Recreation, declined to discuss the nature of the allegations. But she confirmed an investigation is under way and the association’s board could vote to reinstate Caliente as soon as August.

The association is a prominent marketing organization that offers discounts to members. Its members agree, as part of the AANR charter, to be family-friendly.

Angye Fox, a spokeswoman for Caliente, said she would release a statement later this afternoon.

Caliente hosts monthly parties put on by a group called Aahz, which on its Web site describes its parties as “lifestyle oriented,” a phrase often associated with swingers. A Web site featuring the swingers’ lifestyle also highlights Caliente. And Fox will be a featured speaker at the upcoming Swingfest, the “world’s largest swingers party and adult expo,” held in Hollywood, Fla.

Butler, the homeowners president, said the parties or Web sites haven’t resulted in any run-ins between the attendees and Caliente residents. “Behavior hasn’t been a problem,” he said. “It’s more of the Web site stuff that appears Caliente has an association with these kinds of groups.”

Visitors to Caliente, along with other central Pasco nudist resorts, contribute a good chunk of tourist dollars to the Pasco economy each year.

Jodie Tillman, Times staff writer

Posted by tampabaycom at 2:10:24 PM on June 4, 2008

in Pasco | Permalink

 

 <http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/06/nudists.html>