• WOBO is run entirely on volunteer power.
• We're efficient and effective and 100% of donations go into public outreach materials and programs to make Oakland more walkable and bikeable.
• Help us do more by making a donation or purchasing a WOBO annual membership (Individual - $35, Household - $50, Individual w/WOBO t-shirt - $50). To contribute or discover member benefits, visit our Donation Page.

Right now, your donation to WOBO means more than ever. For every dollar you give, WOBO will receive two, thanks to challenge match grants (totaling $25,000) from the Alliance for Biking & Walking and Trek. The grant money and matching donations will allow us to hire our first-ever Executive Director! That is, if we can raise the matching funds by the grant deadlines (December 31st, 2009 and June 30th, 2010, respectively). If you've been thinking about giving to WOBO, doing so before year's end would make your contribution twice as powerful.

There's another way you can help. You might know someone who'd be a great fit for Executive Director of WOBO. Maybe it's you! If you're interested in applying for the position, or know someone who would be, you'll find the job description here. Any help you can give us in spreading the word would be awesome.

You may not have thought about it this way, but walking and biking are climate action! Attend WOBO's October Volunteer Meeting this Tuesday night to discuss opportunities for advancing walking and biking within Oakland's Energy and Climate Action Plan. The discussion will be led by WOBO Board President and all-around superstar Carli Paine.

November's Volunteer Meeting marks a day-of-the-week change, as we begin holding meetings on the fourth Thursday of the month. On Thursday, November 19th, Naomi Schiff from the Oakland Heritage Alliance will speak about how to advocate to City of Oakland Council members and staff.

TIME/LOCATION FOR BOTH MEETINGS: Bay Area Wilderness Training: 2301 Broadway (enter on 23rd Street) from 6:30-8pm.

WOBO is a member of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights' cross-sector coalition: the Oakland Climate Action Coalition (OCAC). OCAC is calling on the City of Oakland to support four basic principles in its Oakland Energy & Climate Action Plan:

• Clean Up Air Pollution
• Create Local Green-Collar Jobs
• Save Money for Residents
• Improve Public Health

Last month, WOBO was proud to be the local coordinating host organization to a delegation of European bicycle planners, advocates, and an elected official from Brussels' Parliament known as Madame Bicyclette. Over the course of two days, the delegates met with over 100 Oaklanders - residents, City staff, and elected officials - to highlight the benefits of cycling for citizens, the City and the economy.

The turnout both days was tremendous, from the group bike ride (photos) to the packed house for the closing talk on how Copenhagen became a world-class cycling city. Our thanks go out to the German Marshall Fund, the City of Oakland and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District for their sponsorship of these events! Want to check out the presentations? Scroll to the bottom of the German Marshall Fund's page and click on the links under Delegate Presentations to view them yourself!

And although summer seems far away now, we thought we'd give you an update on how much you helped us raise as Whole Foods Oakland's Nickels for Non-Profits beneficiary in August. Not only did you save 15,000 bags in the name of WOBO, but your shopping preparedness resulted in a solid $750 donation. That's about 500 nickels a day! We wanted to thank Whole Foods Oakland for the hook-up and also thank everyone who toted their own bags to the store and thought of us when asked if they wanted to donate.

Halloween is almost upon us, so if you'll be out on Halloween night - especially if you'll be chaperone to some trick-or-treaters - we've got some walking safety tips, courtesy of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center:

1. Parents and Adults Should be Involved
   • Young children need a parent or other adult to go trick-or-treating with them.
   • Review crossing safety rules with children.
2. Cross Safely
   • Choose the safest routes to walk.
   • Limit the number of street crossings. Avoid crossing busy or high-speed roads.
3. Be Visible
   • Think visibility. Wear bright colors, use retroreflective materials. Carry flashlights. In bad weather, visibility is even more important.
   • Choose homes that welcome Halloween visitors. Look for well-lit driveways, walkways or paths to the front door.
   • Do a costume check. Can the children walk easily in the outfit? Make sure the masks or head gear allow the children to see clearly what is around them. Be sure they can safely negotiate steps on dimly lit walkways.

In last month's newsletter we mentioned the San Jose Bike Party (SJBP). Earlier this week Dom and Mike (from WOBO) made a trip down to SJ to check it out. Here's Dom's report:

Took the train to check out San Jose Bike Party's 2nd Anniversary Ride. The theme: Dia De Los Muertos. The ride began as three smaller rides, each one departing from a different corner of the city. These mini-rides would later converge into one HUGE mass of cyclists. SJ Bike Party rode for nearly 30 miles and attracted 4,200 riders. Bike culture is very much alive and well in the sprawling city of San Jo.

We've always been big fans of Xtracycle at WOBO. Any bike setup that allows you to safely carry groceries, passengers or gear (and sometimes a combination of all three) is a win as far as we're concerned. Heck, we know more than one family that has traded in the family car for the family bike due to this local company.

Since WOBO and Xtracycle have some important things in common (a love of bikes, the desire to improve the livability of neighborhoods, names with high point-value Scrabble® letters) we'll be teaming up to see what kind of mega-potent bike love we can unleash on Oakland. I'm sworn to secrecy about the rest, so all I can say is, "Stay tuned for details."

A special shout-out goes to team leaders who worked tirelessly to help design, plan and implement the survey:

Volunteer of the Month honors go to Paul Rosenbloom of Oakland Urban Paths who fostered the stair and pathway inventory project out of an interest in the history of Oakland's Key Route system. His efforts included starting a group called Oakland Urban Paths (OUP) and helping to convene a partnership between OUP, WOBO and the City of Oakland to complete a physical inventory of the city's hundreds of stairways. Way to go, Paul!

Yeah, we know Telegraph isn't exactly the smoothest street in Oakland, but there's a real dodgy stretch of pavement around Telegraph & 36th that riders have to traverse to get from MacArthur BART to Downtown. Keep your eyes peeled for bike-gobblers like this, especially during the rainy months! Click here to report potholes and road hazards to the Oakland DPW.

ArtCrank Poster Party

A poster party for Bike People! ARTCRANK San Francisco 2009 is set for Saturday, October 24 at the Chrome Messenger Bags retail store. Admission is free, and all posters are $30. Best of all, Chrome and ARTCRANK will donate $4.00 for every poster purchased to Bikes To Rwanda.

Bike Fix-A-Thon Sunday

The Crucible offers Bike Fix-A-Thon events the last Sunday of every month. These bike repair and maintenance workshops are free to any West Oakland resident under 18. This is an opportunity to learn more about how to fix and maintain your bicycle and to meet others interested in cycling. Join them for repairs on flats, brakes, chains and shifters, as well as free studio tours!

3rd Annual Scraper Bike Day - Halloween Bike Ride

Wrap your spokes and join the Scraper Bike Boiz for an evening of comedy, peace, positivity and bikes at their 3rd Annual Halloween ride & fundraiser. Costumes & scraper bikes are encouraged. Click here for details.

Free Repair Class at Manifesto

Flat Fixes: Learn to patch & replace tubes. Email badcop@wearemanifesto.com to sign up!

Oakland Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) Meeting

The Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) committee was chartered in 1995 to advise the City of Oakland on the design of bicycle and pedestrian facilities and related issues. Members of the public are welcome to attend all or part of any BPAC meeting. To receive meeting agendas by email, please contact bikeped@oaklandnet.com.

Broadway/Valdez Specific Plan Public Meeting - Access Plan and Streetscape Design Concepts

Come advocate for good bicycle and pedestrian planning along Broadway! The Broadway/Valdez District Specific Plan represents an effort to guide City officials in developing strategies to provide destination retail and mixed use development along Broadway between 23rd Street and Interstate 580.

If you want to be in a cool bike video, on October 29th (as part of the 2-mile Challenge) Clif Bar is shooting a video in SF to inspire people to drive less and bike more. They're looking for volunteers to ride a custom-rigged camera bike, which also means you'll be starring in the video. All you need to supply is the helmet and a positive attitude. If you're interested, email jointheride2MC@gmail.com.

Do you make bike-related art? If so, there are two opportunities to get your work out there. On December 4th, Uptown Body & Fender will host the EBBC's Holiday Party: Velo Wonderland - Bike & Art Party, and the call is out for submissions of bicycle-related art. Only ten artists will be selected to show their work, so visit the EBBC site for details. Rock Paper Scissors Collective has also put out the call for work - human-powered machines, bicycle-based inventions, and interactive kinetic sculpture - for their May 2010 Beyond Bicycles exhibition. For submission details, click here.

In days of tweed, when bikes lacked speed, the mustache was the must-have cycling fashion accessory. If the rise of SF Tweed.com and the appearance of the American Mustache Institute are any indication, the time of the mustache is now! Long to be part of the mustache renaissance (or just want to wear, but not grow, a mustache)? You're in luck - there are plenty of "temporary" mustaches on the market. And recognizing the bicycle-mustache link, local bike purveyor Xtracycle is giving away a free mustache with every order placed between now and October 31st. Why? Because nothing goes with handlebars like... well, handlebars! Doesn't matter if you grow 'em, as long as you show 'em. Viva la mustache!