Step aside, boys, there's a new biking group in town, and they want you to know they "don't need no fucking balls." LA Streetsblog has a profile of the fierce women who make up this new Eastside-based biking brigade called the Ovarian-Psycos. more ›

A woman suspected of driving under the influence and causing an accident that left over a dozen cyclists injured in June is facing criminal charges. Chrstine Dahab will be arraigned later this month on two felonies. more ›

The Baldwin Hills Conservancy has awarded Culver City $570,000 to make improvements to the intersection of Jefferson Boulevard and Hetzler Road, the site where a motorist plowed through a group of Midnight Ridazz in the wee hours of June 16, according to LA Streets Blog. more ›

A woman suspected of drunk driving was arrested after plowing a group of Midnight Ridazz early Thursday morning in Baldwin Villiage injuring nearly a dozen of the 100 on a ride that began in Koreatown, according to ABC Local more ›

On Monday night, the well-known cyclist and activist, who goes by Roadblock, was thrown from his bike after a driver rear-ended him going 45 miles per hour. The accident occurred on N. Glendale just before Park and the driver was said be in a dark gray sedan, plate number 6GYC11. more ›

For a city where the uninformed would quickly say "...but no one bikes in LA", a lot has happened over the past year. Cyclists took over the 10 and the 405. Crank Mob got a little crazier than usual. And on the less upbeat side, lives were lost, inevitably sparking rallies demanding safer streets for cyclists. more ›

In just 8 weeks, 3000 cyclists will pedal up San Vicente Blvd. in Santa Monica after a 7-day and 545-mile ride that begins in San Francisco. This year marks the 8th Annual AIDS Life Cycle Ride, a benefit for and co-produced by the LA Gay and Lesbian Center and the SF AIDS Foundation. more ›

WORDS: The New Short Fiction Series™, is described as a “live literary magazine" sponsored by the Beverly Hills Public Library and Community Services Department. Tonight the series presents “Claudia” by Scott Doyle at 8 pm. The performance stars spoken word artist Sally Shore, with guest cast Deborah Geffner (All That Jazz, Grey's Anatomy), David St. James (Monk) and Robert Standley (Invasion's Major Jim Brook, The Gatherers). Admission is $10 and group rates available, For more information, please call (310) 288-2220. more ›

It’s Spoken Word night at the Echo Park Film Center, where artists and writers gather to read a range of work. “Past readings have included critical theory, fiction, drama, poetry, performance, erotica, excerpts from plays, poorly written ad copy promoting consumables, letters to your math teacher and more.” On the schedule tonight are writers/performers: Kim Calder, Darick Chamberlin, Michael Chick, Doug Cordell, Peter Darchuk, Sean Dungan. Chip Godwin, Kara Hamer, Josh Lough, Ron Osborn, Dahlia Schweitzer, Alice Wood and Will Wright. more ›

Randy Cruz was riding home from work when she was hit from behind by a motorist who then left her in the street as he drove off and hid in a parking lot. more ›

• Want a Wii this holiday season? Well toooooo fuckin bad. The best you can hope for is a rain check certificate that will entitle you to a console at some point in January. Even the Wii people themselves are now admitting what a mess they've made of manufacturing this thing.
• Two members of a terrorist cell have pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to wage war: the splinter group was "was poised to attack military sites, synagogues and other targets" in Southern California. The two men face 20-25 years in prison.
• Oh noes! The hipsters will be so dry now! The DWP will be draining Elysian Park and Silver Lake reservoirs because of high levels of toxic chemicals in the water.
• Gas prices soar, consumer inflation also goes up: "Consumer Price Index rose 0.8 percent last month, the biggest one-month increase since a 1.2 percent surge in September 2005, when the country was hit by rising energy costs in the wake of Hurricane Katrina."
• It's the PLAGUE!!! Actually, no, it's just the flu, and a child in the Valley is the first to be diagnosed this season. Get your flu shots! Unless you're like me and treat every illness with a few stiff shots of whiskey.
• Rhino Records is open again! Not at their storied Westwood location (sniff sniff), but they're operating a "pop-up" store during the month of December only over at Third and Fairfax.
• A "guns-for-gifts" exchange will be held tomorrow in Compton: "People turning in a gun to sheriff's personnel will receive a $50 gift card to Best Buy, Home Depot, Ralphs or Target. $100 gift cards will be given for each of the first 50 guns turned in. About 400 guns were turned in at a similar exchange in 2005".
• Conan O'Brien and NBC are getting sued...by a bodybuilder...over a Clay Aiken gay joke. Do we live on the moon or something? Oh no, that's right -- Hollywood.
• Midnight Ridazz are doing an all-city Bring-A-Toy-For-Charity bike ride tonight. Check their website for details.

TOYS FOR TOTS Everyone has that one special moment when it really starts to feel like Christmas. It might be shopping Thanksgiving weekend, baking cookies or buying the tree. For me, it is that magical moment while stuck in traffic when I am taken unawares by a phalanx of motorcycles zooming by carrying giant stuffed bears on the back. That is truly the spirit of Christmas. The bikers are part of an annual Toys for... more ›

The white smoke flowed from the chimney, doves were released, and virgins scattered to deliver the Good News that the newest Editor of LAist is Zach Behrens. Valley boy Zach has been a contributer to this fine blog since 2005, he's an outdoorsman, he sits on the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council, he's a vegetarian, he volunteers selflessly, and yes ladies, he's single. Softspoken, strong-willed, and determined to get you to ride public transportation, Zach... more ›

On two different days, in two different articles the LA Times profiles two mass bicycle rides. On one side, the large and boisterous Midnight Ridazz who mostly stick to Los Angeles city streets. On the other is the Santa Monica Critical Mass. more ›

Because he's too shy (and way too busy) to announce it here himself, I am proud to do the honors: Zach Behrens has officially accepted the Editor position here at LAist and he'll be starting on December 17th. BloggingLA has the announcement, as well as a nice picture of the new editor's "Sexy Face." That's how you get your Canadian fanbase, Behrens!!! Rain. Please. Rain. Effects of the strike are starting to ripple out... more ›

We listed tomorrow's Choppercabra costumed Halloween ride in our Weekend Halloween Guide, but this one takes some courage to post about because of where it's located. We'll let Midnight Ridazz explain: This ride will take you to two haunted houses. Don’t worry about the haunted houses, worry about where the haunted houses are located. Yes your worse nightmares are about to come true. Oh it looks all pristine, with nice houses and manicured lawns,... more ›

Can we please do the OPPOSITE of adding fuel to these fires? A Sun Valley day laborer has been charged with arson after he was caught attempting to start a blaze in the Woodland Hills area earlier this week. Do you use your cell phone? Of course you do. The future of this important device lies in the hands of visionaries, such as the ones who are attending MobileCampLA on Sunday. And you too... more ›

Fueled in part by the injustice described in this post, the Midnight Ridazz will get their protest on this morning at the crack of 7 in the morning. We meet at Vermont/Santa Monica Red Line Station at 7 am and ride at 7:30 am Two weeks ago a cyclist was assaulted by a motorist and then ticketed by a Beverly Hills cop. We think cyclists deserve better! Join us as we encourage Beverly Hills... more ›

It was just a year ago that a small group of Valley kids started a Valley Midnight Ridazz contingent. Ten bicyclists met up and rode through the night. Now a year later, the Valley has its fair share... in one way at least. Last night proved the Valley is hardcore, or maybe just a little more crazy. More cops, more helicopters, more scents of weed, more beer, more angry drivers, more near fist fights and... more ›

If you saw a group of nearly 1,000 bicyclists, many in clown attire, riding around town on Friday night, then you saw the Midnight Ridazz on their monthly ride enjoying the streets of our dear city. The 17.5 mile ride dipped south from Vermont/Hollywood to USC and weaved it's way back. But what could be one of the most enjoyable rides can also be dangerous as at least 5 accidents occurred. "I just left... more ›

They called it the SORCERERS, WITCHES & GOBLINS Ride but we only saw one dude with a skull n ' bones flag. The best part of the video is seeing the dog enjoying the ride (or is it about to have a heart attack?). Next Midnight Ridazz: August 10, dubbed as The Clown Ride... more ›

As reported earlier, last night's Midnight Ridazz rode the streets of downtown non-stop. The police car in the video is not an escort nor was it chasing other radio calls. It was just trying to get all the bike riders into one lane -- didn't work. Awesome junk music (styrofoam never dies) by Junkman (Donald Knaack)... more ›

Last night's Midnight Ridazz was a blast, but those not on bikes probably did not think so, including the LAPD. One thing you have to know about the Midnight Ridazz is that the route is almost never announced until you arrive. In last night's case, the only map we received was of Zürich, Switzerland. It didn't make sense until you realized that the ride was dubbed Dada. Others tried to figure out acronyms like... more ›

"It's insulting to take the bus" Wad at MetroRiderLA bemoans dumb people who write to the Daily News (MetroRiderLA) USC study explains the obvious, but for good measure According to a recent USC study, children who grow up near freeways will have double the risk of stunted lung development. So basically, it's saying that if you take the bus, you are not to blame for dead and deformed lung children (CBS2) Hope they add... more ›

Oh man are the homeless going to be surprised when a gazillion adrenalined bike-enthusiasts descend upon the Santa Monica pier tonight to claim victory over their atmosphere-destroying counterparts. The Midnight Ridazz have organized an east to west, after dark, insect themed, seventeen mile, group ride that will start at LACC at 9pm sharp, and end at the pier at 12am, give or take. For those seeking a lesser journey in their ride, there is... more ›

Sean Bonner is the co-founder of Metroblogging, which is the largest network of city-based blogs on the entire Interwebs -- with 50 cities under their masthead. When he's not launching new web ventures or contributing to blogging.la, he's running the Culver City art gallery sixspace with his wife Caryn, being Vegan, or riding his mountain bike while humming Ice Cube tunes. 1. name: Sean Bonner 2. birthplace: Washington DC 3. LA neighborhood you live... more ›

Being the huge Midnight Ridazz fans that Blogging.la's Sean Bonner and Will Campbell are, we got a little curious and joined in on the action last Friday. Too many people to actually find the fellow bloggers (some say there were 1700, Sean says around 1300), we just chilled and enjoyed the ride. The Midnight Ridazz began in 2004 with an 18 mile Friday night ride of six cyclists and 2 skateborders. Founders say they... more ›

Tonight is National Night Out. Do you know where your neighborhood night out is taking place? Bugs! Mosquitoes with West Nile at the Sepulveda Basin. A Japanese man is arrested at LAX for trying to sneak in rare butterflies. Black Widows are charged with killing homeless men. But these are no typical widows and LA's Homeless Blog is not happy. It's all about ordinances over at blogging.la: New Spay/Neuter Ordinance for Dogs & Fixed-Gear... more ›

As of right now, we are en route to the Aqua Line (usually referred to as Expo Line) running between Downtown and Culver City. But city councilman Bernard Parks doesn't like it. And there are so many more choices: amber, copper, olive, plum, rose, sienna, gray, lemon, lime, pink, purple, salmon, sky, tan, teal and violet. What would you name it? more ›