What's In A Name?

 If you live in the English-speaking world, you almost certainly call someone you know "Mike."  Chances are, he's a boy or man named Michael.

So, if "Mike" is short for "Michael:"

Hey, Joe!

 Sometimes a seemingly-inconsequential decision can lead to encounter that is, if not life-changing, then at least interesting.

My rides to Point Lookout usually take me through a part of the Gateway National Recreation Area.  Straddling an isthmus on Jamaica Bay, that stretch of GNRA is smack-dab in the path of many migratory bird species. There is at least one species, however, that doesn't spend its winters in warmer climes--or stray very far from its urban habitats.

Most people have, at its closest, an arm's-length relationship with pigeons.  I have always assumed that the avoidance was mutual:  The birds no more want contact with us than we want with them.  That, for the most part, is true.  

However, as Maria--who rescued Joe--pointed out, the birds' reputation as "rats with feathers" is unfair.  Although they frequently land in dirty places, they frequently clean and groom themselves in much the same way as cats and dogs.  And what is commonly forgotten is the role pigeons have  played in relaying messages--and saving lives--during wars and natural disasters.

Joe did something I never imagined:  He craned his neck and touched the tip of his beak to my nose! 

If I didn't already feel good about being on my bike, Joe--and Maria--made a ride I've done, probably, hundreds of times all the more rewarding.

Making Their Bicycle Commutes Pay

How does a city struggling to meet its climate goals--and with some of the worst air quality in the US--get people to commute by bicycle rather than by car?

Pay them.  At least, two organizations in Denver are trying it out.

The Denver Streets Partnership and Denver's Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency are teaming up to offer a "Bicycle Rewards Program."

Applications for the program are open until the end of this month, and it will run from March through June.  Included in BPR are three options: 

Mileage Reimbursement--Up to 85 participants will receive $1 per mile traveled by bicycle for transportation (not recreation).  Participants can earn up to $200 per month.

Wrap-Around Support--Up to 15 participants will receive commuter training, four hours of personalized coaching and up to $500 for bike-related costs.  In addition, participants can receive up to $200 upon completion of the program.  Participants must use a bicycle for transportation at least once a week during during the pilot period.

Mileage Reimbursement+Wrap Around Support--Both options will be offered to 15 participants.

Participants must be 18 years or older and currently commuting mainly by car.  The program will especially target "historically disinvested communities at risk of gentrification."