Around the bay in August 2008

The national public art exhibit "Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet" is coming to the Crissy Field Promenade from August 5 through October 12. Cool Globes is public art with a purpose, featuring 40 larger-than-life custom-designed globes that depict simple solutions to global warming. Cool Globes was inspired by a Chicago-area environmental activist and mother of four, Wendy Abrams, who wanted to do something to showcase what people can do to help combat global warming.

Cool Globes premiered last summer in Chicago, where the exhibit became a must see destination for millions of visitors to the city’s Museum Campus along the lakefront. Cool Globes is currently on display in Washington, D.C. at the U.S. Botanic Garden. The San Francisco exhibit will feature new globes created by Bay Area artists. The exhibit will also travel to San Diego this fall and to London in the spring of 2009. A public grand opening celebration with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope, and Cool Globes founder Wendy Abrams will be held at Crissy Field on Tuesday, August 5 at 10:30 a.m. The public is invited to attend. For more information, visit www.coolglobes.com.

Indy Cars Roar into Sonoma

The fourth annual IRL (Indy Racing League) race will be held at Infineon Raceway on August 22-24. These open-wheeled racecars are best known for racing at the Indianapolis 500. The engines rev up to over 10,000 RPM, producing approximately 650 horsepower, and are capable of reaching speeds of over 200 mph. This year the IRL merged with the former CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams) league bringing a slew of new drivers into the mix with extensive road course experience. This means more cars than in previous years and new competition between IRL drivers, who primarily have been running on oval tracks against the former CART drivers, who are used to road courses like Infineon. For ticket prices and schedule information, visit www.infineonraceway.com.

The World-Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra, the most popular and sought-after big band in the world for both concert and swing dance engagements, will play onboard the aircraft carrier USS Hornet on two different nights: Friday, August 1 and Saturday, August 2. Doors open at 7 p.m. with free dance lessons. The Glenn Miller Orchestra will play from 8 p.m. to midnight with dancing on three large dance floors on the enclosed hangar deck. The Singing Blue Stars will perform a tribute to the Andrews Sisters during intermission. Period attire is encouraged. Voted as the best place to hear and dance to swing music by Diablo Magazine, the USS Hornet Museum is the hottest dance place in the Bay Area and attracts swing-era crowds in excess of 1,200 people. Ticket prices for each night start at $45 and benefit the USS Hornet Museum. If the event is not sold out, general admission tickets will be available at the door for $50 per person. All food and drink is sold separately from admission price. Ample free parking is available across the street from the pier. Tickets can be ordered online at www.hornetevents.com, or call (510) 521-8448 x 282 during the week. The USS Hornet Museum is located at 707 W Hornet Ave, Pier 3 in Alameda.

SFJAZZ Summerfest 2008 is an annual series of outdoor concerts in Union Square, featuring over 30 events in the Bay Area. Summerfest showcases local musicians displaying a wide array of styles, from straight-ahead jazz, to Latin rhythms, swing, blues, and vocals. The free concerts are on Thursdays from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. For more information visit www.sfjazz.org.

San Francisco’s Environment Department is extremely excited to be a part of San Francisco’s new truly car-free event. Sunday Streets is a pilot program that will bring physical activity space to San Francisco neighborhoods on Sunday mornings this summer and fall utilizing a stretch of roadway connecting the Bayview to Chinatown and running along the city’s waterfront. The program will offer safe and free activities that will attract people from throughout the city and the entire Bay Area. Modeled after a 25-year old program in Bogotá, Columbia, the car-free community space concept has spread to four continents and has proven wildly popular from Tokyo, Mexico City to Kiev and more recently in our northwesterly neighbor Portland. The goal is to bring physical activity space to our neighborhoods on Sunday mornings, creating a route for thousands of local kids and adults to walk, jog, and bike, as well as participate in group exercise. Sunday Streets will offer safe, free, and fun activities and will attract people from throughout the entire San Francisco Bay Area. There will be two Sunday Streets events this summer: August 31 and September 14. The scheduling of these pilot events on Sunday mornings maximizes the number of local residents who can participate and minimizes interruptions to auto traffic. The City is actively recruiting volunteers for both dates. Volunteers will receive a Sunday Streets T-shirt, meal and snacks as well as a goody bag.  For more information on the event route and volunteering, visit www.sundaystreetssf.com.