In Voice News today, Crime Prevention Coordinator Joseph Smith revealed the launch date for the long-awaited RAD program, next September. He also mentioned a bike registration program, which launched this past Monday. Below are more details on each.

The optional bike registry program is designed to combat what Smith says is chronic bike theft on campus. Students can tote their bicycles into the DPS office on the ground floor of VWC to register their wheels, but if that’s just too awkward for you, look for DPS at “upcoming campus events” and beginning-of-the-year events in the fall, such as orientation.

And as we reported in February, DPS lacked the $900 necessary for the training suits they would need for the RAD program, which initially held up the program. The money will be enough to buy four $225 training suits. Four instructors will initially support 30 program participants.

The Ed Board recently gave props to DPS for subsidizing the cost of bike locks, which is awesome. But what’s better than a cheap way to keep your bike safe? A free way to keep yourself safe while you’re on your bike. The Washington Area Bicyclist Association is giving away free bike lights this afternoon at 4:30 at the corner of 18th Street and Columbia Road and the corner of 16th Street and Park Road (you have to bring your bike with you to get one.)

Since the majority of your waking hours are going to be spent in the dark when daylight savings ends in a couple weeks, a light is key if you’re going to be biking around Georgetown this fall and winter. Why pay for one?

Via City Desk.

In the Voice this past week, the Editorial Board recommended that cyclists buy a u-lock to keep their bikes safe from theft. Simple enough, right? An item in the GW crime log reminds us of one piece of advice that we neglected to include in the ed: when using a bike lock, be sure to use it to, you know, lock up your bike (ellipsis mine, for comedic timing).

Theft 10/9/08 – Public property on campus – case closed
An individual secured the front tire of a bicycle to a lamppost and left. When the individual returned, the complainant told UPD the bike was missing except for [...] the front tire. No suspects or witnesses.

In another bit of GW crime log hilarity, we find out what happens when you gotta go.

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The riverfront pathway in Georgetown is a great place for bikers – unless you are a pedestrian. The other day I had planned on taking a leisurely walk along the Potomac from Georgetown University to the Kennedy Center. Bikers changed my walk from a leisurely stroll to a live-action Frogger.I did not always notice the bikers headed my way, but luckily my reflexes were fast enough to allow me to make a mad dash out of the way when I was told to “watch out!” An elderly woman watching the boats go by or a child-toting parent may not be so fortunate if they were to get caught in this situation.

Some cities have separate paths for bikers and pedestrians in their parks. Now that the SmartBike program is adding to biker traffic in DC (and text messaging and emailing are taking our eyes off the road), separate paths may be an idea to consider. Or at least tell the bikers to bling up their bike with a bell.

Photo from Flickr user wallyg used under a Creative Commons license

No matter how you feel about Smartbike DC, the bike sharing program that launched today, it’s hard to argue that the bikes look good. The big rear wheel cover, the mundane star logo, and the red metal make its rider look more like a tourist on an bike tour of the city than a frugal, environmentally-aware commuter.

But do bikes in these sort of programs always have to look ugly? After the jump, one bike affirms the resolution and five negate.

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At last, DC’s SmartBike bikesharing program is launching today, and our tired legs and lungs couldn’t be happier. Still, it’s already running into problems–the availability map reveals six of the ten locations already have all their bikes checked out.

Wayan at We Love DC doesn’t think much of the program, dubbing it “Dorkbike”. Hardly! Those rear wheel covers aren’t good-looking, and helmets should be provided, but this program will be a good thing for DC that gets even better as more stations (Georgetown!) are added.

Photo from Flickr user Joe in DC used under a Creative Commons license

The District’s Department of Transportation has partnered with Clear Channel Outdoor to bring Smart Bike, North America’s first bike sharing program, to DC. Starting next month, program members will be able to borrow bicycles from ten locations around the city for a maximum of three hours at a time. Membership costs $40 for the year, a comparatively small sum for unlimited transportation use during a time of oil price increases.

But the limited number of rental stations may not make this the most convenient mode of transportation for many in DC, especially Georgetown students. The closest Smart Bike docking points to Georgetown are in Dupont Circle and at George Washington University—yes, they get their very own station at Foggy Bottom.

If Georgetown can’t manage to secure a Metro station, you’d think we could at least get some free bikes. To learn more, check out Smart Bike DC online.

- Lynn Kirshbaum, Photo Editor. Photo of Paris bike share from Flickr user rekha6.

So you just got a sweet bike. One of those hip road bikes, you know? The ones with the downward-curving handlebars and the skinny wheels, to go with your skinny jeans. You’ve got that messenger bag that sits high on your lower back when you cross it over your chest: maybe it’s recycled plastic, or maybe it has a revolutionary patch on it. You ride it to school now, even though you live five blocks away and walking never bothered you before. Now that you’ve got a bicycle, though, you can’t imagine how you ever did it. And sometimes you ride it around the city, maybe even in the street, and you chain it to a variety of sign posts and structures, to make sure no one rides off with it or, god forbid, carry it away.

And now the question arises … helmet? No helmet?

PROS of the helmet:

-If you get hit by a moving vehicle, if you tend to run into parked cars or if you are a dare-devil and like to cross highways on your road bike, that helmet strapped tightly under your chin will absorb the impact that would have splattered your brains across the road, a la “Red Asphalt” educational videos.

-You can decorate your helmet with a different theme every month. You might try glitter, a layer of fine feathers or small action figures tucked into the grooves (remember, it is best to leave some of the surface slick to enable sliding across pavement in the event of a crash landing).

-You can pretend that you are a NASA spaceship operator and your helmet is a rocket launcher that makes you go even faster down the streets of Georgetown.

CONS of the helmet:

-Even if people say, “hey, sweet helmet” they are probably saying to themselves within, “god, does she think she’s like, gonna get hit on the Georgetown campus?”

-Exceptional hairstyles, such as mullets, pompadours, ducktails and fauxhawks are prone to flattening under the tight grip of bicycle helmets, even the ones that look like rocket launchers.

-Wearing helmets may have the adverse effect of making bicycle riders brazen in the face of other vehicles on the road. This encourages running red lights and stop signs, and cutting off pedestrians with a swerve and optional apologetic cry over the shoulder, while already half-way down the next block.

So, avid Vox Populi readers, the answer of whether or not to wear your helmet lies within your agency. And remember, there are no rules to the game. You can choose to wear your helmet if only riding the streets of downtown DC, if you venture out of Georgetown, never, or even always. Enjoy and ride safe.

Posted by Lauren Gaskill, Associate Editor