CiclaValley a Finalist for Streetsblog LA’s Journalist of the Year

I write CiclaValley because of you.

Not you specifically, but more in the way how we form this great community.

The sum of the whole is greater than its parts if that makes you feel better.

For me to have motivation to write, it doesn’t come just from the rush of riding a bike, but from the wide cross-section of people I’ve met who feel like extended family no matter what level of friendship we have.

Thank you for this gift.

Four summers ago, I was just a computer guy about year deep into cycling seriously with a brief stint writing for some corporate conglomerate’s startup magazine (kinda rhymes with the word “thespian”).

When my workplace shutdown, instead of logically getting work in the same field, I had this harebrained idea to get back into writing hoping that I could somehow cover cycling in some manner.

The funny thing is if at the time I hadn’t been constantly refreshing my browser wishing for new articles from Streetsblog LA and Uncle Ted’s Biking in LA, I never would have gotten this crazy idea.

So, thank you?

lankershimride

 You can find CiclaValley and Streetsblog LA’s Joe Linton in this photo. Somewhere.

 

Over time, I worked my way up gaining a number of side jobs writing about all sorts of things.

In 2015, the website went live doing my best to put cycling in a positive light, but putting my foot down when I deemed it.

Six months later, I began working at LACBC, but somehow I still maintained the time to fill this blog with relevant information.

That meant balancing typing on my phone while balancing my bike with the other hand riding the subway home.

It also requires me to wake up an hour earlier than I normally would to finish my material before I ride to work.

While this is virtually a part-time job, the little ads you see strewn about here don’t even pay for the site itself, so I’m paying money to do this.

 

 

Being a husband, father, full-time employee and a person who likes to find time biking makes fitting in CiclaValley no easy task, but it’s been that important to me to find the time without compromising my higher priorities.

So being named as a finalist for Streetsblog LA’s Journalist / Writer of the Year is quite an amazing accomplishment considering where I’m coming from.

There are so many people I consider as peers and I cheer for everyone’s success, so even being named in the same breath is humbling.

This honor also includes my work with LACBC which I wholeheartedly owe to our staff.

Everyone’s contributions extends past the workplace and our team is very dedicated to making Los Angeles a better place to bike.

I have to especially thank our Communications Director Carol Feucht who does an amazing job balancing all our content and guiding me to make my work more relevant and efficient.

This past year, I put a lot of work into Measure M (including video), LACBC Everywhere and LACBC Family campaigns which all had a positive impact.
Another thing I’m very proud of was that I didn’t find out about this honor until a couple days later.

 

 

I was on vacation and I can’t remember the last time I was this far removed (but not completely) from the internet.

When I come home, I hide my phone so that when I’m spending time with my family the internet is out of sight and out of mind, so doing this for a few days was a welcome relief.

Addictions aside, CiclaValley should continue its upwards trajectory for 2017 because I can only get betterer and smarterer.

So thanks for this amazing honor.

You earned this.