Oak Cliff Bicycle Company‘s Bike MS team is trying to raise $10,000 to field a sizable group of riders in this year’s Sam’s Club Bike MS ride. The grueling two-day ride that starts in Frisco and ends in Fort Worth is a badge of honor among cyclists. Many find the ride to be addicting.

If you want to help the team meet it’s goal and perhaps win a sweet bike in the process, head over to Eno’s Pizza Tavern at 4 p.m. Sunday for some microbrews and happy hour specials at the Pints to Pedal fundraiser.

If you thrown down a $20 donation at the door you can flex your two-wheeled mettle with Lonestar Goldsprints. A raffle ticket to win a 2011 Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Sora road bike ($924 value) will set you back $10.

Of course, you can help the fine folks on the OC Bike MS team any time by donating here.

M. Kate Helmes photographed Norma's Café for the "davis/bishop2011.doc" exhibit.

Under the direction of Stevens Park Estates resident Kenda North, a bunch of UT-Arlington photography students have documented the current state of Davis Street and Bishop Avenue. An exhibit of their work, “davis/bishop2011.doc,” was scheduled to be hung at the Kessler Theater yesterday. Read more about the project in this week’s edition of Oak Cliff People. And mark your calendars for 6 p.m. April 6. That’s when the Kessler and the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce will host a reception for these shutterbugs.

Just in case you haven’t heard the fab news yet, Bishop Arts’ fave chocolatier Dude, Sweet Chocolate is in with Nieman Marcus. The yummy sweets are now for sale in the Dallas, Plano, and Fort Worth stores, and may soon be available in all 22 Neimans around the country.

Rest assured, you don’t have to panic when your “Chocolate, Dude” cravings catch you off guard away from OC. Just find a Neimans (not terribly difficulty in Dallas), and sometimes the chocolates can even be found at Central Market

Master-of-all-things-chocolate and gourmet chef Katherine Clapner builds her mini-masterpieces from scratch, including funky truffles, rich bars (made with 91-percent South American Chocolate), sinful chocolate potions, fudge, toffees, white-chocolate popcorn, and quite a few other heavenly creations.

You can sample and buy Katherine’s delish goodies at the Oak Cliff store at 408 W. Eighth St.; however, stock up over the weekend, as the store is closed on Mondays.

So if you have to venture outside of  Oak Cliff, you can drop by Northpark and still grab a nibble of your favorite handmade creations and feel right at home.

Have you always yearned to watch your Texas Rangers open the regular season in the same place Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested following the assassination of John F. Kennedy?

Well, now you can.

The historic Texas Theatre will be showing Friday’s game between the defending American League champion Rangers (Man, that feels good to type) and the Boston Red Sox. First pitch is at 3:05 p.m.

And it’s free. There will also be hot dogs, Brooklyn Pennant beer, and baseball cards at the shindig.

The Kings Highway Conservation District’s annual fundraising party and silent auction is going down this Saturday, April 2, at 6 p.m. The bash will take place at Sweet 200, the hip hair salon located at 738 Davis Street, owned by Annette Jensen.

Guests will enjoy yummy snacks and sangria, and participate in a silent auction. You don’t have to be present to win, so if you’re short on time, you can pop in, mingle for a bit, bid, and be on your way.

For more information on the event, send an e-mail to welcome@kingshwy.org. You can also volunteer to assist with lawn service, cooking, or childcare—or donate an item for auction.

Cliff Temple Baptist Church’s annual auction is just around the corner on Sunday.

The rundown:

What: Auction and catered barbecue to benefit Cliff Temple Baptist’s youth ministry program

When and where: 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 3; Cliff Temple Baptist Church (125 Sunset Ave.); Silent-auction bidding is from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., and and goes until 1:30 p.m. with a break during church service.  The barbecue luncheon starts at noon.

Cost:$7 for a hot plate from Rudy’s

Says Kenny Chesier, minister to students:

The majority of our students are from low-income homes around our church; therefore, we appreciate any assistance you can give us to make this trip a reality.  All proceeds from our sale will help defray travel expenses as we journey to Horn Creek, Colorado, located above the quaint western town of Westcliffe, just 90 miles southwest of Colorado Springs (for more information, go to www.horncreek.org). It will be an exciting time of spiritual renewal during the week of June 18-24, 2011 as we travel to Horn Creek. While there our group will become more aware of God’s presence in their lives through his creation and goodness. However, this will be impossible without your assistance.

The cost per student to go is $390 per person. We estimate that 40 students will be going this June. As you can imagine, this is quite expensive for most young people. Without help, most of our youth will not be able to attend. We are counting on the proceeds of this silent auction and we need your help to get there.

Info: www.clifftemple.org

What’s better than a great cup of coffee?

A free one.

Cafe Brazil wants you to wake up the way nature intended: Main-lining caffeine via their delicious coffee bar. But today only, you can get all the coffee your nerves (or bladder) can handle by printing off this blog post or showing it to your server via iPhone, iPad, or other device.

See you there?

Oak Cliff [Bizarre] Crime Report: On Saturday, March 19, two pickup truck tailgates were stolen in the middle of the night — and both were from gray/silver trucks, although not the same model. One tailgate was valued at $800; the other at $3,000.

Can anyone explain why tailgates are such a hot commodity on thieves’ lists? Do they have a high resale value? Are they melted down and used for other parts? I’m a little perplexed.

In any event, if you happen to have a gray or silver pickup, I strongly recommend keeping it a garage if at all possible, or fashion some type of alarm system to your tailgate!

While not quite as odd as the missing tailgates, this steal was equally entertaining. A $1,000 Gucci diaper bag was lifted from a vehicle in the Kessler Lake Estates area.

Come on! Does anyone really need a $1,000 diaper bag? I’m thinking the baby hasn’t yet accumulated a deep respect for mega-labels, nor would care if his diapers were stored in a Gucci bag or a plastic grocery bag. But it is all about that status superiority. But, then again, we can’t entirely blame the owner. Only Gucci would have the audacity to sell $1,000 diaper bags. We know Burberry makes dog apparel for mega bucks, so why not a diaper bag? What’s next? How about a Chanel BBQ pit?

The cover of the new D Magazine spotlights a list of 52 things every Dallasite must do. I’ve done 19 of them, including enjoying the view from the Belmont Hotel and visiting the grave of Stevie Ray Vaughan. How about you?