Friday, August 5 – August 16, 2016

August 5, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Illustration by Graeme MacKay – Friday August 5, 2016

2016 Summer Olympic Games, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Summer Games Gallery

Rio – June 30, 2016

Rio – July 5, 2016

London – August 3, 2012

London – July 27, 2012

Beijing – August 14, 2008

Beijing – August 7, 2008

Beijing – March 24, 2008

Athens – September 1, 2004

Athens – August 19, 2004

Athens – August 12, 2004

Athens – August 5, 2004

Athens – February 23, 2002

Athens – August 16, 2004

Sydney – September 9, 2000

Friday, August 15, 2014

August 15, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday, August 15, 2014

Hamilton bike share program stuck in neutral

Hamilton’s proposed bike share program has had a flat tire as it attempts to roll out its program this summer.

City bike share staff confirmed the $1.6-million project, approved in December 2013 and expected to start this summer, won’t be fully operational until September.

“Installations (of the bike hubs) have started over the next seven weeks,” said Christine Lee-Morrison, manager of mobility programs and special projects.

She said up to 18 stations will be installed weekly throughout the lower city. In total there are about 100 locations confirmed, with another 10 set to be established. Most of the locations are on public property.

When the locations were approved earlier this year, it was decided that the Mountain wouldn’t have any hubs. Mountain councillors were upset, arguing their residents were looking forward to accessing the program.

Instead, Chelsea Cox, community manager for SoBi Hamilton, the non-profit company partnering with the city for the project, stated in an email that hubs will be installed at the bottom of each Mountain staircase and near major transit stops.

“I know that this does not constitute full service to mountain residents right now, but our long-term goal is to cover the entire city,” Cox stated.

This is Social Bicycles first foray into Canada with its bike share program. Cox says the program is complicated to coordinate because it involves ordering the bikes from overseas and getting the necessary approvals. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Saturday September 8, 2013

September 8, 2013 by Graeme MacKay

September 8, 2013

By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday September 8, 2013

Bike lanes backed for Cannon Street

The city’s longest stretch of protected two-way bike lanes is coming to the so-called Cannon Expressway.

More than 2,300 residents signed a Yes We Cannon petition calling for segregated, bidirectional bike lanes on the fast-moving, four-lane artery.

The grassroots push helped convince councillors Thursday to approve bike lanes on Cannon between Sherman Avenue and Bay Street — even as they braced for blowback from commuters losing a car lane to the $600,000 pilot project.

“This is a tough call,” said Councillor Bernie Morelli, who added he’s heard from bike-lane supporters as well as residents enraged by the plan. “But I want (councillors) to know you’re doing the right thing.”

The new bike lanes won’t be a traffic stopper, said Justin Jones of the Yes We Cannon campaign.

“Look at the city’s own numbers, there is plenty of capacity on that street,” he said, pointing to vastly higher daily car counts on arteries such as Garth, Golf Links and Upper James compared to Cannon. “We’re not in any danger of traffic grinding to a halt.”

Slowing traffic, on the other hand, won’t bother area residents, said Dave Stevens of North End Neighbours, who noted 10 schools are located within a block of Cannon.

“We all want a safer street,” he said.

Jones urged the city to measure the number of cyclists using the new bikes lanes, but also the number of collisions, which he believes will drop. “This is a safety measure for cyclists and for (car) drivers.” (Source: The Hamilton Spectator)

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

January 16, 2013 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Why Oprah needs Lance Armstrong

When disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong sits down with talk show queen Oprah Winfrey, the world will see a sinner seeking absolution from the only woman who, in media terms, has the power to save him. But in truth, Oprah needs Lance as much as Lance needs Oprah.
His reputation is in tatters and he has a lifetime doping ban which prevents him from making a living from cycling. He’s hoping to walk away from this with a small reprieve: permission to compete in elite triathlons.

Oprah has a TV network which, since its launch, has struggled to make its mark in the multichannel space. She needs world-stopping interviews such as this to deliver the sort of ratings spikes that will keep the channel on air.

And Oprah knows when she’s onto a good thing. Her network OWN has now confirmed that the interview with Armstrong will be extended to a two-night engagement.

The interview was taped on Monday, and we are little more than a day from the broadcast of the first half. Newspapers and online media are saturated with stories, leaks and tips – glimpses of a conversation we have not yet actually seen.

Armstrong will confess, we are assured. To what, exactly, is not clear. Winfrey, speaking on the US network CBS, said Armstrong “did not come clean in the manner that [she] expected”, but she did not elaborate.

At this point, though, one thing is abundantly clear: Armstrong’s confession, when it happens, will be one of the most carefully stage-managed media “moments” in recent memory. (Source: stuff.co.nz.com)

July 28, 2007

July 28, 2007 by Graeme MacKay

Dear Editor,

Excuse me, that’s Tour de France, not “Tour de Farce”. The slanted, critical articles and cartoon are not fair to the sport or the majority of athletes that participate in this great event.

Granted, I am angry and disappointed when I see that a great performance that excited me has been falsely obtained due to the use of illegal blood transfusions or stimulants. It really burns me that a very few idiots have selfishly and desparately enhanced their performance, at the cost of their own integrity, the welfare of their team mates and the reputation of the sport.

The point that the authors of these articles and cartoons is missing is that cycling has been trying hard to clean up the sport, particularly since Floyd Landis was caught after winning the Tour last year. Teams and sponsors have been pulling-out or demanding a clean sport, and it has been working. Apparently a few have not gotten the message.

The real issue here is that cycling is doing something about the drug problem. The increased and improved testing is actually getting results. Offenders are being caught and punished, and that is why it is in the news so much. That is more than you can say about professional football, baseball, basketball and hockey. If they started doing the same intensive testing as cycling, these other Pro sports would be lucky to have enough guys to field a team!

These so-called “sports” in North America are morally bankrupt in this regard and the people in charge do not want to know about the illegal use of drugs, nor do the “fans”.They hang one scapegoat out to dry now and then, to make it look like they’re trying, then it is back to business as usual. It’s all about money and they won’t risk that to catch cheaters. At least Pro Cycling has the guts to do it and risk some bad press to clean-up their sport.

Ken Wilson
Ancaster