Pedalers can peddle apps at hackfest

Got an idea for a bicycle-related app?

A “hackfest” May 14 will challenge developers to come up with bike-themed mobile or web applications in three hours or less. Some of the apps might aid commuters while others could address real-world problems two-wheelers face.

The event, sponsored by PeopleForBikes and Quick Left Inc., will be held at Quick Left’s headquarters at 902 Pearl St. in Boulder.

Rachel Scott, Quick Left’s marketing manager, said the company is filled with bike enthusiasts.

“Through this fun event, our goal is to bring the tech and bike communities together to grow bike awareness, appreciation and encourage the creation of practical applications to enhance the sport where we all find common ground,” Scott said in a press statement.

Quick Left hosts hackfests every other month. The last one featured teams that were faced with the same task but challenged to come up with complicated “Rube Goldberg” methods of achieving it.

The May event fits in with National Bike Month observances as well as Quick Left’s corporate culture, Scott said. “A lot of us are avid cyclers,” she said — including chief executive Ingrid Alongi, who has won some national racing titles.

Final projects will be judged by a panel of Bikes & Bytes sponsors including: PeopleForBikes.org, Stages Cycling, Training Peaks and Bike Valet. The first-place team will win a power meter valued at $800 made by Boulder-based Stages Cycling LLC.

The event also will include roller races, contests and an awards ceremony to entertain the noncoders in attendance.

Quick Left, a software development consultancy that specializes in web development, design, training and mobile applications, faces a busy spring schedule. It’s taking part in TechStars Boulder’s sixth annual Startup Weekend events April 26-28 and an office-chair race and scavenger hunt May 17. It’s teaming with partners including Rally Software Inc. to organize the Boulder Civic Hackfest June 1-2 at Hub Boulder, 1877 Broadway.

A single-family home in Boulder designed by architecture firm Arch11 was featured in the April 12 edition of The Wall Street Journal. Arch11 built the 4,700-square-foot contemporary residence for the Dunbars, co-owners of outdoor gear company Sea to Summit Inc., on a trapezoidal-shaped lot, using glass walls to provide views of adjacent open space park and the Flatirons.

According to Candace Jackson, who wrote the article, the Dunbars, both climbing enthusiasts — Shelley Dunbar was once a professional rock climber — wanted “to feel merged with the outdoors where they are happiest.” The back of the house opens up to the outdoors with sliding glass panels.

Working with the small irregular lot with numerous physical and regulatory limitations, plus designing for the 140 mile-per-hour winds that bear down on the home due to its location at the base of the Rocky Mountain foothills provided challenges, said architect E.J. Meade, but he was pleased with the end result that incorporates the couple’s love of the outdoors with contemporary architecture.

Green features include geothermal heating and cooling, high performance glass walls, a 10 KV photovoltaic system, and a green roof above the garage – planted with native grasses and wildflowers – which visually connects the home to the adjacent mountain meadow.

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