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Showing posts from April 6, 2014

Parijs-Roubaix van dichtbij

Havana Bikes

Havana Bikes from Kauri Multimedia on Vimeo . Cuba underwent a bicycle revolution in the 1990s during its five year ‘Special Period’. Oil was scarce as a result of tough economic constraints, and throughout those years of austerity, bicycles where introduced as an alternative mode of transport. Thousands of Cubans used bicycles on a regular basis, as pedalling became the norm on the island. Years later, the transportation crisis subsided and motorised vehicles returned, and the country’s bicycle culture took a hit. Now, new bikes are difficult to come by and parts are not readily available, yet many Cubans still use bicycles daily and, despite the limited resources, a handful of mechanics provide a service to those who rely on their bikes in their everyday lives. Plenty of cyclists roam the streets of Havana and the rest of Cuba. Ángel, a typical bike riding Habanero, provides a brief insight into Cuban bicycle culture and the importance of bike mechanics in the capital as we

Brainy Bike Lights: Making Urban Cycling Safer

Brainy Bike Lights: Making Urban Cycling Safer from Tim Willrich on Vimeo .

America's Rebel Band of Custom-Bike Builders | The Atlantic

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Nearly all of the bikes sold in the U.S. are manufactured abroad, but these guys are welding and tinkering in shops and garages across the country. Low Bicycles  in San Francisco Like many people who take up bicycle building, Tony Pereira and Ira Ryan are avid cyclists who began experimenting in their home garages, welding together bike frames. Several years after founding separate bike-building operations in Portland, Oregon, in 2005, both came to a similar realization—that building bikes needed to be about more than passion if it was going to sustain them: It had to be about business too. “I was only able to build, on my best year, 30 bikes, and that was never going to change,” Pereira said. “I’d been so excited about the actual making of the bikes that I didn’t realize what I was getting myself into, which was owning a business.” Last year, after years of playing catch-up, the two long-time frame builders teamed up to launch a new venture called  Breadwinner Cycl

Fat bikes make Colorado winter riding fun and safer, too | Daily Camera

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Cycling year-round Matt Nunn, of Samsara Cycles, rides a fat bike in the snow earlier this year, on the middle of St. Vrain Buchanan pass trail. (Courtesy photo / Tony Tang) In Boulder, fat is cool. Fatter tires. Fatter handlebars. Fat, in the bicycle scene, is just part of Boulder's ultra-fit lifestyle. The wheels around here never stop turning, come ice or snow. Local bike shops say increasingly more cyclists are riding "fat bikes," so they can bike in the snow, recreationally and as a weather-defying commute option. And around the Colorado mountains, many people say it's not just a trend; they say fat is here to stay. Fat bikes — named for their ultra-wide tires — are the monster trucks of bikes, says Lafayette resident, Tony Tang. They're not necessarily built for speed, but they can forge just about anywhere. As these almost comical-looking cycles grow in popularity, you can now find them in most bike shops and all over Colorado's ski t

Reinventing the wheel | The Japan Times

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As the annual Spring Road Safety Campaign gets underway this weekend, we examine what the government is doing to improve conditions for cyclists in Tokyo On Jan. 24, a full-page advert appeared in the Tokyo edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun for a petition on behalf of the capital’s cyclists. “Join the new governor in making Tokyo a bicycle city,” read the headline for the ad, which reeled off a series of suggested improvements: more extensive cycling lanes, better parking facilities and the creation of a public bike-sharing scheme akin to the ones used in London and Paris. Shigeki Kobayashi, president of the Bicycle Usage Promotion Study Group and one of the petition’s organizers, admits that they pinched the idea from London, where a similar campaign took place during the 2012 mayoral election. Tokyo’s own gubernatorial election campaign had kicked off the day before the advert was published, and the effect was instantaneous. “I listened to a lot of the hustings lat

Bike the C-Bus 2014 early bird registration is OPEN! @bikethecbus @yaybikes

Are you a Yay Bikes! member? Get your code for the $25 registration by emailing kathleen@yaybikes.com Sell Tickets through Eventbrite [Can't see the form? Click here to register]

Never Bike In The Dark Again With These Fender-Mounted Lights | FastCompany

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The newest version of Revolights popular Tron-like bike lights lowers the price point so everyone can glow as they ride. Revolights was a big hit when it launched in 2011. The unique-looking wheel-mounted bike light system raised more than $215,000  on Kickstarter , and more success followed last year with a  second version . What makes the Revolights different is, first, that the wheel-mounts create a single beam when you spin them fast enough (which is a nice effect). And second, that the beam is close to the road, which offers better visibility than some handlebar-mounted lights. The trouble is, the product is quite expensive. A clip-on version  costs $229 , while a permanently installed iteration  comes in at $499. That's more than a lot of bikers want to pay. That's why the Palo Alto company is launching a third, cheaper, product. It's called  the Arc , and instead of fixing it to the wheel, you mount it to the back fender. It doesn't have quite the wow-fa

How to Start Riding Your Bike | Bicycling Magazine

Whether your goal is commuting, fitness, transportation, or all of the above, here’s how to get rolling By Elly Blue “How do I get started bicycling?” This isn’t the question I’m asked most often, but it’s the one I’m asked most timidly, earnestly, and in the quietest tones. And it’s been one of the most difficult to answer. Even though I began riding as an adult, the habits of bicycle transportation are so ingrained in my psyche and daily life that it’s hard to remember what it was like not to ride. I’ve dug deep for this one—and would love to hear from anyone who has started riding more recently about what helped you get started, what details you got hung up on, and what strategies worked. Here’s a pretty simple formula to start with. We’ll use  commuting to work  as an example, but you can use the same formula to try biking anywhere you want to go. I’m also assuming that you own a bike and are able to ride it. If not, then those are your first steps—come back to this post

TRAVALANCHE! :: Travis Freeman Benefit Show! is April 12th

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Monday Night Ride  and  Street Sharks Sprint Series of Columbus  would like you to show your support for T-Ravis Mitchell Freeman by coming out Saturday April 12 to ride bikes, drink beers and dance hard at the TRAVALANCHE! :: Travis Freeman Benefit Show! Garage rock hedonists Dirty Girls will be performing along with s mooth flows delivered by Envelope. Some of the city's most popular DJs will be on hand including Dan Monnig, dance rocker George Brazil and Adam Scoppa from Heatwave! Bring your ride because we're meeting up before the show to race and the fastest bikes will win prizes! But if you're not a power-pedaller, don't worry - we've got an amazing night planned at  Strongwater Food and Spirits  with some awesome door prizes and a silent auction too! Tickets are on sale NOW at  http:// travalanche.brownpaperticke ts.com/  for just $5 (plus a very small service fee) or you can purchase the day of the event for $7. All proceeds will benefit the Travis Freeman

Opinion: The single biggest issue facing the bike industry | Bicycle Retailer

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A blog by Jay Townley As we finish the first quarter of 2014 the U.S. bicycle business is preparing for its April gathering of industry leaders at the  Bicycle Leadership Conference  and the IBD Summit. We have noticed that the U.S. bicycle business continues to separate the meetings of the specialty bicycle retail, or bike shop channel of trade, suppliers from the retailers, and the separate agendas for these two important annual gatherings still do not mention or pay attention to the most important single issue facing the U.S. bicycle business today! The following chart is a graphic presentation of the 18-year history of U.S. bicycle riding participation from 1995 through 2012. The data is from the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA). The overall trend is a slow decline, from a peak of 56 million in 1995 to flat overall bicycle riding participation at 39 million for the last three years. 2013 bicycle riding participation will be available in early April, but we don

3-Feet Passing Law - Keep the pressure on, it's working!

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Thank you to everyone who  signed our petition  and contacted your state house representative in support of a state-wide 3-Feet Passing Law! It is having an impact. We learned yesterday that the bill sponsor, Rep. Michael Henne, is moving forward with the bill  WITH THE MINIMUM 3FT PASSING REQUIREMENT.  We need your help in keeping the pressure on to ensure the bill gets passed. HERE IS WHAT WE NEED YOU TO DO : Call and email the offices of the following representatives telling them you want HB145 passed with the 3-feet passing law- Anthony DeVitis – 1-614-466-1790,  email here Margaret Ann Ruhl – 1-614-466-1431,  email here Doug Green – 1-614-644-6034,  email here Ross McGregor – 1-614-466-2038,  email here John Becker – 1-614-466-8134,  email here Here is a sample talking point:   A person on a bike is a legal vehicle on the road, we need policies that ensure bicyclists are safe. People on bikes are people with families who love them, friends who celebrate them, have

Why “Share The Road” Is Gone in [the state of] Delaware

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“Share The Road” : It’s practically the national motto of cycling advocacy in the United States. It’s the cycling “message” on license plates in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin. But not in Delaware. In fact, as of last November, just the opposite. In November, the  Delaware Department of Transportation   announced  that, effective immediately, Delaware would stop using the MUTCD-approved “Share The Road” plaque (W16-1P). More, the department would also start removing all “Share The Road” signs currently installed in Delaware. How did the state’s cycling advocacy group  Bike Delaware  react to the announcement that Delaware’s department of transportation was abandoning “Share The Road?” Were there howls of outrage and a letter writing campaign to protest? Actually, Bike Delaware just said “ Goodbye ‘Share The Road’ “. Despite

Boston Doctors Can Now Prescribe Bike-Share Membership To Patients | Fast Company

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One of the biggest hurdles new  public bike-share  programs face is the problem of social inclusion. For a large part, the programs, which have popped up in cities from New York to Austin in recent years,  aren't gaining major traction  with low-income communities. Boston, however, has taken an aggressive approach to making sure that everyone, regardless of income status, has an opportunity to ride--and is aware that they can. While annual Hubway memberships cost $85, the city offers an $80 discount for anyone on public assistance. That means if you live in low-income housing, your membership just costs $5. And, as of late March, doctors  can prescribe memberships  for those who qualify. What we've found is everyone seems to be interested in the bike-share program. And that was a relief. "What we've found is everyone seems to be interested [in the bike-share program]. And that was a relief," says  Boston Bikes  director Nicole Freedman. "It's j

Bikes

Thoughts Every Cyclist In A City Has | BuzzFeed

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So, we’re all just pretending the bike lane doesn’t exist then? Cool, just checking. Why are all these cyclists trying to kill themselves today? Is there a tube strike on? I do not trust any other cyclists near me.  Especially that guy on a Boris bike. I also do not trust that guy in a suit.  If you need to tie up your trousers to cycle, don’t cycle. Why are there so many people without helmets? YOU ARE ALL GOING TO DIE. There is a strange sound on this bike. Something is loose. Something is definitely loose. I should stop and figure out what it is. Be late vs. bike fall apart? Well, I don’t want to be late… I’ll fix it before the next ride. It’ll be fine. Probably. Actually, did that sound happen last ride? Was I supposed to fix it before this ride? Or maybe it wasn’t actually a problem? I’ll carry on. his probably won’t work out well. Not sure if this is terrible head wind, or I’m that very unfit. I’m blaming head wind.  I hope you die too, taxi driver. Than

Bicycle Joust

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Two wheels bad. Please take train | FT Magazine

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‘Cycle-safety training is a good idea although nothing can prepare an 11-year-old for the wanton carelessness of motorists’ ©Lucas Varela T he girl has just spent a week learning cycling proficiency at school. She now knows, for example, how to guide her bike through a line of cones. I don’t know why – there’s no call for slalom on the main arterial roads these days, although the close control can come in handy if you want to buzz a pedestrian. Cycle-safety training is obviously a good idea although, frankly, nothing can prepare an 11-year-old for the wanton carelessness of motorists. But the lessons do strike me as somewhat outdated, teaching only such basic skills as how not to get yourself killed. That’s all well and good but so much more is demanded of the modern cyclist. Two emotions power city cyclists: fear and anger. Cowardice cannot be taught, though many of us are blessed with it in large quantities. But a new cyclist needs the right kind of rage, and the girl seem