Ford recognizes the growth of bike commuting and invests in GoBike progra

You would never expect a major automobile manufacturer to invest in bicycles, but that's exactly what Ford announced last month as they jump on the bandwagon for cities to offer more bicycles, more bike lanes and more bike parking racks as an alternative means of transportation.

Their investment in buying Chariot, a crowd-sourced shuttle service, and establishing Motivate, an urban bike sharing program, confused some investors and customers. But the investments are a timely decision that actually go hand-in-hand.

Part of Ford's future growth plan includes the subsidiary Ford Smart Mobility LLC, which is focused on investing in personal mobility beyond the traditional vehicle. The company can see the writing on the wall when it comes to bicycling as an alternative means of transportation and the increase in how cities are upgrading their bike lanes and bicycle parking racks.,

That's why they invested in Chariot, a

https://youtu.be/11wXVQ1rwOw

Bicycle parking in apartment and office buildings is now one of the hottest new trends in the construction industry.

However, finding enough space to park a large number of bikes is a challenge, especially when that space is at a premium.

The Park and Facilities Catalog has the solution - high-density DoubleUp vertical bike racks designed by Sustainable Sites that take up less space and at the same time prevent bicycles from scratching each other or getting stolen.

"Just about every multi-family community or apartment complex now must address the increasing demand from bike commuters for long-term bicycle parking," said Chris Luyet, VP of Sales and Marketing. "To keep all those bicycles organized in a tight space requires a bicycle parking rack that is the most efficient in terms of square footage and security."

The DoubleUp meets that demand. Experts with years of experience in bicycle parking at Sustainable Sites worked for months to come up with a vertical

Friday nights is when hometown fans hit the aluminum bleachers

By Gerald Dlubala

The conversation generally picks up in earnest about midweek before anybody is seated on aluminum bleachers in the stadium. But the more excitable fans will be talking all week.

You'll hear it at work, in the line at the grocery store, while pumping gas at the nearby convenience store, and anywhere else there happens to be a couple of people within close proximity to each other.

Heck, some people are more than happy having this sort of conversation with themselves, getting themselves worked up for weekend matchup.

"Big game this weekend, Joe. Everybody is goin'. You goin'? We gotta get 'em back for last year. Remember that game? They beat us pretty good if I remember right. We didn't play our best game though, and they had that kid who was a star recruit. I remember that. How are they doing this year? Any good? We gotta get a little revenge on those old crosstown bullies, hehe."

Fans in bleachers with

By Alysa Kleinman

Park benches - think of your memories. It's a spot we take for granted—many of us expect there to be park benches keeping us comfortable at our local parks.

But when you really think back on the times you've spent on a park bench, there are probably a few cherished moments that come back to you. Maybe you laughed with an old friend, shared an important conversation with a family member, opened up your heart to someone you cared about, or met a new acquaintance that impacted your life. Park benches offer a relaxing spot to get to know others while enjoying the beauty of the outdoors.

In movies, there are too many examples of this to even count. The iconic poster for Forrest Gump simply has Tom Hanks sitting on a park bench, the spot where he re-tells his life story to complete strangers. The filmmakers help viewers feel like they are sitting next to Tom Hanks throughout the entire movie, hearing his story first hand. It's no

Woman in aluminum bleachers cheerin

By Gerald Dlubala

We know that aluminum bleachers are cost effective, low maintenance, and just plain common sense when it comes to securely and safely providing seating for large crowds.

But bleachers are also extremely versatile when it comes to your particular layout needs, with the ability transform your venue seating from a standard, generic layout into a more customized, specific configuration.

An excellent example of this is the Oakland Coliseum, shared home of the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League and the Oakland Athletics Major League Baseball team.

In the fall, when these two sports overlap and the teams must share the same venue, the use of additional, portable bleachers makes them a "game changer" in the literal sense of the word.

The Oakland Coliseum is the last venue to provide shared use for two unique pro sports teams, and is truly a present day example of the versatility, dependability, and usability that portable bleachers

Tibetan terrier jumping over a hurdl

More Americans own pets than ever before. But pets, especially dogs, are not built to sit home all day. They need to run. Chase things. And they love to jump.

Here's an array of pictures showing dogs in flight. If you want to make your park more popular with the growing number of dog owners, The Park and Facilities Catalog has a full line of high-quality dog park equipment that will keep dogs busy and happy.

In fact, we will have these items on display at the National Recreation and Park Association annual conference in St. Louis. Visit us at booth 2414. We'll also have a handy free dog park guide with tips on how to build your own doggie playground. The booklet includes a catalog of essential dog park equipment.

Jack Russel terrier jumping a hurdl

That equipment includes doggie water fountains, waste stations and trash receptacles. To make a dog park even more popular, we also offer a complete package of dog park agility equipment. These pieces include

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UpLift Bike Docks, a Sustainable Sites project available from The Park Catalog, now offers a solution to a major problem faced by many cities and universities today.

Bicycle commuting is on the rise. According to the League of American Bicyclists, since 2000 the number of people commuting by bicycle in the US has grown by a whopping 62%.

In some cities like Portland, nearly 6% of residents commute by bicycle. That amount skyrocketed by 234% from 2000 to 2013. The same trend is taking place in just about every major city in the US.

UpLift Bike Docks will revolutionize bicycle parking on campuses and in citie

The question is, where are all those commuters going to park their bicycles? Especially in cities and universities where space is extremely limited and at a premium price.

The Park and Facilities Catalog has an answer. It is a newly designed bicycle parking rack manufactured by Sustainable Sites called the UpLift Bike Dock.

The unique, space-saving design

Government representatives can easily order park furnishings and commercial site furnishings with The Park Catalog quick quote and quick ship programs

It's September and generally the last budgetary month for federal and other government agencies when it comes to the purchase of park furnishings and commercial site furnishings.

Still need to finish up your purchasing plans?

Here are some useful things to know:

Quick Quotes - The Park Catalog has a large, knowledgeable sales staff standing by to answer your questions about park furnishings or other commercial site furnishings such as park benches, bicycle parking racks, trash receptacles, picnic tables or hundreds of other items.

We can get you quotes on those products quickly and accurately.

Live Chat - while you visit our website, we also have Live Chat available if you have some brief questions that need to be answered fast while you do other tasks. Just type in your question and someone is standing by ready to provide the answer.

Quick

Family at a picnic tabl

When was the last time you sat at a picnic table and enjoyed a picnic? Not one of those lazy picnics where you eat out of a lunch sack standing outdoors—I mean a true picnic.

For planning a picnic in the classic style, fill a wicker picnic basket with delicacies and head to a remote spot or local park. Watch the sun rise or set, catch a fireworks show, listen to the waves of the ocean, or just enjoy the beauty of nature around you.

If it's been years since your last true picnic, what are you waiting for? Picnics are rejuvenating outdoor dining experiences that provide similar feelings as a hike or camping trip, while just minutes from your home. For some helpful picnic tips, turn to the experts at Picnic Time.

Picnic basket and blanke

Picnic Time first started manufacturing traditional European-style picnic baskets back in 1982, with the goal of creating products that bring family and friends together. Since then, the company has evolved into plenty

Fans about to return to the bleachers for fall sport

By Gerald Dlubala

It's fall and if you are a spectator, time to head for the bleachers. You've been tracking that big mark on your calendar - the start of football season (or soccer), and it's finally here.  You know that everybody is going to be there. And you also remember in the past how much fun it was in those bleachers with your friends, family and fellow fans.

It is tradition, after all, isn't it? Working your way up to the perfect spot, your regular spot, in the bleachers, talking and laughing while seeing familiar faces along the way. It's the perfect place to sit, visit, and watch while cheering, clapping, yelling, screaming, and doing whatever you can to help your team to victory whether you are a student, parent or just a regular fan.

A smile comes to your face just thinking about all of this, because it's that time of year. The season for the local, weekly, college and high school football games to start, and the anticipation

Picnic basket office building in Ohio

When is a picnic basket too big for a standard picnic table? When it's the size of an office building.

On a 25-acre piece of land in Newark, Ohio, there's one particular picnic basket that actually functions as an office building. Or rather, it used to.

The 180,000 square foot picnic basket-shaped building was once home to The Longaberger Co., a manufacturer of you guessed it, picnic baskets. It is literally the world largest basket.

At one time, business was booming and every year the company sold nearly a billion dollars of these traditional baskets made with maple wood and other related products.

The company's founder, Dave Longaberger, was so proud of his baskets that he wanted an office built to to resemble his product.

After going back and forth numerous times with his architects, in 1997 he got his wish. It cost $32 million to build but the result was one gigantic picnic basket structure complete with windows in between the slats. The building

Today, Aug. 25, is the 100th Anniversary of the US National Park Service. We can appreciate how our country boasts some of the most beautiful parks in the world.

On this date in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed into existence our tremendous national park system which today encompasses more than 84 million acres in every state.

Americans obviously appreciate their national parks - last year they were visited by 307 million people.

Here is a selection of photographs that give you a sampling of the incredible beauty of these natural resources. Enjoy and protect these parks. They are truly a gift to us all.

To learn more about this great Centennial Celebration, visit the National Park Service here. 

Geyser at Yellowstone National Par

Spring storm at Yosemite National Par

Observation tower at Everglades National Par

Grand Canyon National Park at sunrise with Colorado River running through i

Backcountry skiers travel across the frozen surface of Bowman Lake in Glacier National Park, Montan

More than 50 million students are heading back to school - do you have adequate school picnic tables, benches, bleachers and other outdoor school site furnishings for them

School picnic tables, benches, bleachers and trash receptacles - everything a school facility manager needs, can still be shipped from The Park and Facilities Catalog in time for when most school doors fling open in September. Popular products that can be fast-tracked for shipping are available in our ParkExpress program.

ParkExpress has school site furnishings that can be shipped quickl

It's crunch time. Classrooms are about to come back to life, buses are being prepped for pickups and final preparations for the next wave of students are underway. For every facility manager with last-minute needs, don't worry. There's still time to complete your  school site furnishing checklist.

After all - according to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are now 50 million students in elementary and secondary schools

Picnic table worn out by time, mold and weathe

By Gerald Dlubala

Picnic table coatings have come a long way. Here's why. Enjoying a meal outside at a local park, stadium or outdoor venue makes for a great outing.

Time spent in nature turns your boring, stay-at-home, what-to-do day into a day of anticipation, relaxation, and good times.

Who doesn't want, or need more of that? A quality, easy-to-clean, metal picnic table or park bench can enhance these activities by creating the center point or hub for your day's events, from games, meals, and prep areas to being the catchall place for coolers and bags.

But a great picnic table will easily become the best place to sit, talk, and catch up with friends and family in a casual, relaxing way, restoring the lost art of conversation and personal interaction.

Quality, useful, and aesthetically appealing tables simply encourage the use of the space for gatherings and events.

However, a picnic table that is in disrepair, splintering, broken, carved

The Chimani park app is like having a guide in your phone for National Parks (Photo by Robert Caston

Will an iPad or an Oculus Rift headset replace a geyser at Yellowstone National Park? Some people are concerned it will. But one application has found a way to merge technology with visiting a park that could actually increase interest in the outdoors.

That company is called Chimani, and they offer this incredible park exploration technology for FREE.

The concept behind the app is simple - provide a huge database of resources and information for park visitors combined with GPS tracking technology. This way each user can customize those resources to where they are actually standing, whether at Yellowstone or Mammoth Cave or Mount Rushmore.

When they download the apps, they are treated to a digital backpack of amenities for each of the 59 National Parks in the US or a general app that covers the parks and 400-plus other locations in the National Park Service.

These apps include features such