Wikipedia Ridazz
Thread started by
trickmilla at 10.14.07 - 9:09 pm
MR Wikipedia Page
"The subject of this article may not satisfy the notability guideline for organizations and companies..."
Anybody interested in souping up the Wikipedia Page?
The types of things that get an entry recognized as being notable are mentions in second party sources. NY Times carries more weight than the Bike Oven blog but everything helps.
For those who are familliar with the lore and history of Ridazz the description could use some beefing up.
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Can we get a roll call of the bike rides, clubs, and institutions that have been birthed or majorly infulenced by Ridazz? I think a big part of estabilshing the signifiance of Ridazz is the influnece it has had on the mushrooming bike scene in the last few years.
My list would include:
Wolfpack
Cub Camp
Bager Song
Cruzz With Us
Mountaineerz
Bicycle Bell Ensemble
Sins and Sprokets(?)
Armed Librarians (?)
Who am I leaving out?
trickmilla10.14.07 - 9:12 pm
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I'll add a few of the links from Metroblogging coverage..
seanbonner10.14.07 - 9:12 pm
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And yeah the IAAL/MAF is definitely born out of MR.
seanbonner10.14.07 - 9:13 pm
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That article needs some major tweaking. BRB!
PC10.14.07 - 9:39 pm
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I'm planning to work on the external links
i actually complied a bunch last night then closed the window and lost everything.
trickmilla10.14.07 - 9:53 pm
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Give me a minute to clean the article up, plz. I'm adding a history section, taking out some redundancies, and reworking it a bit to make it more NPOV ("Neutral Point Of View") so that it won't be deleted.
I honestly don't think that including a laundry list of LA bike culture phenonema that are loosely (or even tightly) associated with MR will make the subject more likely to be seen as notable by the Wikipedians, as most of these things are even less well known to J.Q. Public than Ridazz is--especially the farther away from Los Angeles you go. The 'Pedians are a lot more impressed by mainstream media mention, such as on KCET and in the local papers and the more popular blogs. But I think you'll find that my little revision subtly emphasizes the massiveness of the phenomenon without straying from the NPOV.
I'm not trying to discourage anybody from adding links, I'm just...you know, sayin'.
PC10.14.07 - 10:46 pm
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Good point PC, of course edits shouldn't be made only so wikipedians think it's relevant, but rather also to add useful info to the article and a list of related bike groups (or more importantly bike groups that exist because of MR) is certainly interesting even if it doesn't make MR more notable.
seanbonner10.14.07 - 11:09 pm
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I did that, too. Check it out; it's up now. Have your way with it!
PC10.14.07 - 11:19 pm
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@ RB - I though bicycle kitchen came before ridazz - was it the other way around?
and also for wiki - maybe how ridazz was possibly inspired by critical mass to a certain extent?
redridinghood10.14.07 - 11:50 pm
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Me thinks Bicycle Kitchen then MR.
Nice job on the update, I would run the second paragraph by RB and see if it's accurate. Second paragraph starts, Originally, rides.......
I would add that the original rides started 10pm, maybe add html links to San Francisco, Portland, Santa Barbara and Davis, definitely add a html link to "spoke cards."
Like you were saying above, what needs to happen is for another established and credible news group or something similar to legitimize MR independently. LA Times never did an article on MR? There's your ticket, if someone has a connection.
User110.15.07 - 12:51 am
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Wow ... amazing work folks.
Feel free to make your own changes as you see fit
that is how it works. There is still alot of claims and information that could use citation.
I added a list of video documentaries about MR most are linked for you vewing pleasure.
trickmilla10.15.07 - 1:41 am
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There is still alot of claims and information that could use citation.
True that. I just tried to bang out as much useful and factual information as I could retrieve from my big hard head, because the article was kind of a mess when I found it. None of my stuff has citation links. Do my job for me, someone!
Thanks to whoever it is who has been adding documentary links and whatnot.
PC10.15.07 - 2:00 am
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Apparently the LA Times did an article specifically about Midnight Ridazz on June 12 of 2005 (Night Riders Pedal L.A. With Mettle; About 500 bicyclists make an environmental statement with tongue in cheek). It's completely un-linkable, but if anyone has a subscription to their site, you can find it in the archives.
Also, the now defunct (I think) Los Angeles Alternative published "Vicious Cycling" as a cover story (http://www.laalternative.com/index.php/2006/02/17/vicious-cycling/), and also a short piece about the Ilia Pankin vigil (http://www.laalternative.com/index.php/2006/09/22/green-dot-gets-greener-wal-mart-gets-bigger-two-wheel-procession-rough-times/).
I also found that the San Diego CityBeat mentions MR as a primary influence for a local ride there in "Party On Wheels" (http://www.sdcitybeat.com/article.php?id=5251&atype=).
Best of all, the New York Times prominently features MR in its article on nighttime rides, "After-dark Bicycle Rallies" (http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/04/14/travel/escapes/14ahead.html).
These articles were all printed on actual dead trees at one point, so maybe they'll help bolster our case.
Unfortunately, I don't know how to edit Wikipedia at the moment, and I have to go to sleep now. If anyone wants to go ahead and incorporate some of these links into the entry, it would be very much appreciated.
I know, sleep is for sissies.
angle10.15.07 - 4:31 am
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I just removed the notability tag. I think Notability has been firmly estabilished.
Thanks to everybody who hooked it up with research and revisions and sugestions. That thing is looking WAAAAAAAAY better.
Anybody is free to see the history of who made what changes by clicking the
HISTORY TAB
It still needs a little work ... but at thist point anybody with the time and desire, and wikiskills can do it because the whole story can be found there via the links, stories, and videos.
Awesome work people.
trickmilla10.15.07 - 10:19 am
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For second party sources:
There was an article in the LA Times, June 12, 2005, titled "Night Riders Pedal L.A. With Mettle." pp B1.
City Hobgoblin10.15.07 - 1:45 pm
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I was looking today at
Spoke Card
It doesn't acknowledge the use of spoke cards by social cycling groups which seems quite prominent.
>>>
Spoke cards are used to identify competitors in Alleycat races held between bicycle messengers. Originally Tarot cards were used, with the race number written on them, but nowadays card are often printed specially.
The spoke card is wedged between the spokes of the rear wheel at the point where they cross each other. Although the spoke card is hard to read while the bicycle is in motion, it provides a cheap way to label them in the absence of a proper race number plaque under the top tube, and is less likely to attract the attention of the authorities than a number on the rider's back.
Many messengers retain spoke cards after the event, accumulating several on the wheel. Other fixed-gear riders sometimes fix spoke cards to their wheels as an affectation of messenger culture. (emphasis added)
trickmilla01.12.08 - 10:14 pm
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Hey Trickmilla,
Why couldn't we put Sins and Sprockets (spell?) and T.W.B.G. -
Tren (space) Way Bicycle Gang up there as well? We are not exclusive at all! Anyone can ride with us, it just takes time to earn your "Colors"... but that's the fun part. I'ts all tounge-in-cheek baby!
And what about the Choppercabra Horror Cycle Gang in the Valley?
The Fluffers?
The Hooligans?
C.R.A.N.K. MOB?
Fuck the Armadillos though, they don't deserve any street cred. :P
Tren Way now owns half of their territory and Sexy's dad's car!
Ride On!
Joe Borfo01.13.08 - 12:55 pm
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Each person that has contributed to the Wikipedia page has done so based on information they have researched or know first hand.
If you know for a fact that certain bike groups/ rides were inspired by Midnight Ridazz go ahead and add it
to the page.
For that matter, any of the information on the page the can be edited clarified or updated.
Don't be scared they tell you how to do it right
HERE
trickmilla01.14.08 - 10:01 am
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Great article. Wish I could've seen what it originally looked like. I found a typo as well, in the CULTURE AND ETHIC section, it should read INCLUSIVE right towards the very end of that section.
July07.4.09 - 10:46 pm
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Badger Song is a good thing to remember,
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by trickmilla
07.5.09 - 12:44 am
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Daaamn... I haven't read that in a long time. It's how I originally found you guys, though. Funny that the thread gets bumped so close to when I first found that article.
It's been a great year <3<3<3<3
danya07.5.09 - 10:34 am
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I edited the section on "Influence on bike culture outside of Los Angeles" to include the Midnight Ridazz chapter in Ferrara, Italy. (Hi Marco and Fabio!)
ephemerae07.5.09 - 1:54 pm
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Ridazz Roulette!