Silly Girl

There is a lot of interesting commenting going on out there in the cyber world of late. The "I Hate Cycle Chic" crowd is starting to stir in places. CYLRAB is not a "chic" blog, but it is not not a "chic" blog, either. Meli, Caryl and I try very hard to find pictures and stories from all over the world about what the people who ride bikes as a means of achieving their personal ends look like and how they live.

So what is it that makes cycle chic so compelling? Aside from the fact that we have not seen any in North America since the late 70's, that is. It isn't the clothing, it isn't the sex appeal (those are a small part to be sure). From my experience, it is because "cycle chic" is about people. For the first time in decades, we are seeing the people who ride bikes before we see a bike that happens to have a person on it.



This woman is lovely, to be sure, but is that what makes the picture? Is this attractive because she is young and thin? For myself, I am drawn to this image because this woman is so obviously comfortable, happy and confident. She is gliding down the street and loving the light and the feeling of movement.


I took this picture a couple of weeks ago. This woman is stunning. She looks like she could be my friend, and if she were, this is how she would dress to meet up for coffee. Her bike could just as easily be her back pack. It is simply part of her day. Instead of it being the center of her public persona, it is just her transportation and who she is shows on her face instead of in her gear.



This is one of my favorite shots of Meli. She has the whole "cycle chic" thing going here. Not because she is rocking those fabulous shoes or flashing those red tights. It is because she is happy to be in that moment. There is no way that looking at this picture could be damaging to cycling culture unless you look at it through the lens of self-loathing. When viewed as it is intended, as a window into a positive person's life, the fashion becomes so very unimportant.



Lastly, this is a picture of myself. It is a bit over the top, and admittedly, a little reminiscent of an old pin-up calender, but there was a point to it. After years of feeling completely out of place in my body and creeping closer and closer to 40, I finally feel like I have reclaimed my physical self. I wore a bathing suit for the first time in 3 years this summer, all because riding my bike around town instead of using my car has made me feel thousands of times better about how I look and how I feel inside my own skin. Despite what others may say out there, I do not feel exploited, I am not objectifying myself and I am fully aware that I am the equal of any person out there.



So if you feel this image damages the cycling world,

photo by bicyclesonly

or this one,

photo by Amsterdamize

or perhaps this one, then maybe it is time to deepen the conversation. If 20+ years of only seeing bicycle racers and urban bike messengers didn't get people out riding for transportation, then how exactly do pictures of people doing just that not count? If people are out on bikes, and their only reason for starting it is because they saw a photo of some beautiful moviestar on a cruiser why does that matter? If the goal is to get butts in saddles, then we need every sales pitch we can find, and for many Lance Armstrong and the X-Games just don't register.

Feel free to discuss. May I suggest putting on some high heels first so that you can get in the mood? : )

Small Packages

Aiko here is making the blog rounds this week, and one look at her will tell you why- she is damn cute!



Cute, though, is just the door to this wonderful story. Aiko is 84 and rides the 150 miles of the 2 day City to Shore MS ride in New Jersey. She has done this every year for over 20 years. She rides a single speed bike, she wears the clothes she always wears (including her heels) and she rides the race with her family (including great-grandchildren!!) as a team.


Aiko is a remarkable woman, to be sure. More than that, though, she is the benchmark of what we should all strive for. She is a woman without boundaries. With complete style, being only herself, she completes tasks that most of us think of as monumental but really only require a different point of view to be manageable. Through a simple, determined act, Aiko proves that the only things that hold us back are our own, self imposed mental limitations.



Reading her story makes me want to ride. It makes me want to be better as a person. It also makes me want to start a purse and heels group to do some charity riding! Who wants to join me?

(huge thanks to "the skepticaloptimist" for the pictures!!!)

The Devil Bikes

Over at Copenhagen Cycle Chic there is a discussion going on about an ad for Dior Perfume. It depicts a young woman on a bicycle holding a very large bottle of perfume. One of the commentors to the post asked "Is it just me or is anyone else sick of cycling being the latest fashion trend?"

My answer? Everything is fashion, it just takes some people longer to catch on. We look to others for guidance all the time, even if we don't realize it. Even those who choose to buck the trend still need a trend to oppose. In this case, I hope it gets trendy as hell because every once in awhile, trends stick and become culture (Shakespeare, democracy, educating woman....)

Meril Streep's answer-

Missing The Mark

Bicyclists are becoming a force to reckon with. Car companies are making fun of us! When you discover you can not beat them, and before you join them, you tease them.





Of course, they fail to understand that anyone who is contemplating bicycles for transportation is no longer interested in overpowered machines that can pass illegally while speeding on blind curves. They also seem to think that those of us who do ride for transportation are not capable of riding to work in the rain in proper rain attire or in a straight line.

Aahhh, advertising- hoping you are too stupid to know when your intelligence is being insulted.

Give me more. Fog, cement and readings.

Today when I got home from work I fed my cat and headed back downstairs to grab my frenchie. Out Out is all I could think.
Riding around the city is all I can think about when I'm at work. Like the city skyline is calling my name and pulls me by a rope to join the masochist society and ride those hills up, down, back around.
The structure of the streets, tunnels, bridges and hills spin my personal perspective widening it every year . As I become a wiser cyclist (you can never be so used to hills, you know..) and an even bigger wanderluster, my focus this month is cement.
Cement on bridges, cement and pavement smoothly re-done on bike lanes - or lack thereof, oil spills, smooth sidewalks for pedestrians and the inevitable steep hills with all the fall leaves colorfully soothing the eyes with that brownish red taste that looks so rad in contrast with the fog.
Ding-ding.
I look over the north-east end of the city and the fog is wait, that isn't fog, that is a steam-like cloud sitting atop the bay water. Ladies and gentleman, we are now floating in space.

I have been reading about cement structures with the recent 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake. Here is a nice piece I found about Moses, david vs.goliath case, and the oppositions to freeways in the teh NYC:
•Removing Freeways - Restoring Cities.

The bicycle, and cities, and we, as residents of the world. It is something that we are all already contributing to, step by step, towards a better end. That is a good step forward.
It will happen.
In the meantime I will take the longer route to hit an extra coffee shop and maybe meet some cute guy along the way. Or a new bikey friend. Cheers /xo♥m

09/25 yehudamoon.com

Have you read any essay, article book, that has taken you out of the pages and not only because of the bicycle, but as a citizen, human and vehicle for well-being pushed you to think more about certain aspects of your daily life? or perhaps triggered further reading in a specific topic (cement?!?? -what)

Blogging For Climate Change

Climate change. It blows. I should be able to write something more intelligent about it, but the fact is I can't. What we are experiencing right now is the result of a 100 years of expanding population, expanding economies, expanding technology.... and after all expansion comes retraction. This is what I see as "climate change". Nature is pulling us back because we have not pulled ourselves.

Photo by Rocketdog

What does this have to do with bicycles? It is easy to see that riding a bicycle is good, and others have done a great job pointing that out. I am afraid that I am a bit more... pessimistic about it. To me, I think that we better get used to it now, 'cause in another 20 years, there will be many, many fewer options for us when it comes to how to get around.

I write this because it is Blog Action Day and bloggers across the globe are being asked to blog about climate change today (and because I am a hopeless joiner from the looks of it). The hope is for a larger, global conversation to come out of it. A laudable goal, to be sure.

For myself, I am not sure that the challenge of tackling global climate change is how I want to look at bicycling. It is too large an issue for an individual to tackle. I prefer to look at cycling as a means of changing my own, personal climate- how I feel in my own body, how I improve my own life. The only thing we can change is ourselves, and one of the tools I use in that pursuit is my bicycle (and blogging). While my riding may or may not make a difference to the globe, it makes a difference to me. Hopefully, along the way, it makes a difference to someone else.

photo by Klemmin

Sorry I can't contribute a more rah-rah POV, but there it is.

Addendum- I find it interesting that when looking at registering the blog at the Blog Action Day website, I was asked to choose from a list of possible blog topics- Iraq, celebrity, cars, blogging, social media, Mommy & Me, "green"..... there was nothing for bikes or transportation or New Urbanism. Seems a bit strange to me considering the topic.

Bike Culture. Yay Or Ney?

I have a family blog that does not get updated enough these days. With three kids, James and I are usually pretty busy, so writing can get shoved to the side. Today I was looking for a picture I knew was on the family blog when I ran across this post from my Hubby the Bike Man. I didn't realize he had posted it (I haven't even looked at the family blog for months!).

James & His Xtracycle

While discussing the topic of American bike culture with our new found friend Geoff, he explained how no such thing existed while he lived in Amsterdam.

Huh?

How can that be? How can the city where bikes have the privilege of having roads made specifically for them, where every one rides a bicycle, have no bike culture. Further discussion on the matter lead to some enlightening conclusions that come at you like a bus full of Vegas bound retirees. And it seemed so obvious in hind sight, in a way not so unlike the cartoon light bulb going off.

The discussion started with a simple question not unfamiliar to American cyclists: "What kind of cyclist are you?". Most American cyclist will have a natural answer at the ready. The terms "weekend warrior", "roadie", "mountain biker", "downhiller", "BMXer" come to mind. Yet that very same question would perplex someone from Amsterdam. The bicycle is so ingrained into the every life of the Amsterdamer, that they no longer think of it as a facet of their lives.

Suppose I posed to you this multiple choice question: "What kind of driver are you?", with the available answers as "off roader", "race weenie", "mileage counter", etc. It would seem rather absurd wouldn't it? The bicycle is such a large part of the average Amsterdamer's life, just like the automobile is a part of the average American life, that the very idea of "bike culture" just doesn't make sense to them. It's just part of their culture, much the same as American culture is car-centric.

So to have Americans integrate bicycles into their lives, all we need to do is rid ourselves of bike culture, right? Until then... Down with bike culture. Long live the bike.

photo by Iam Sterdam

So, what do you think? Do we need to eliminate "bike culture" or do we need to make it so ubiquitous as to make it unnoticeable?

Movies And Laws And Days In Court

I love people who stick up for what they believe in. It isn't always easy to stand up for what you think is right, especially when everything is stacked against you.

You may have seen these films on other sites, but if not, give them a look see. Both films, by Mike Rubbo of "And So To Bike", feature Sue Abbott. Sue is a woman who has never worn a bicycle helmet in her life and does not want to start now. This is problematic for her as she lives in Australia where helmets are required for all riders.

For myself, this is not a story about helmets. There is so much more to it than that. This is a story about a woman who does not want to be told how to live her life. She wants to make her own choices, and really, don't we all?





So now that you have seen these films, how do you feel about helmet laws? Note, I am not asking about helmets themselves. That is an endless discussion in frustration. Are people smart enough to make these decisions for themselves? Do you want helmet laws where you live? If you have a helmet law, do you want to keep it?

Thoughts Of The Day

Mikael has a really great essay in five parts on the "Fear Of Cycling" going on over at Copenhagenize. The subject of fear is one of my favorites (maybe I should go back to school and study sociology?) so this has been a good read for me. One of the subjects the writer, Dave Horton, tackles is the practice of marginalizing and scapegoating cyclists for being cyclists (within the context of bicycle riding in the UK)-

"Against the context of socially and ecologically destructive automobility, the reproduction of concerns about cyclists’ behaviour is a classic example of scapegoating (Cohen 2002). Scapegoating deflects attention away from greater crimes, by in this case sacrificing the cyclist in the ideological pursuit of ‘motoring-as-usual’. Through representing the marginal practice of cycling as ‘deviant’, the dominant practice of car driving is reproduced and reaffirmed as ‘normal’. Representations of cycling as deviant and cyclists as outsiders both contribute to, and are facilitated by, low levels of cycling which mean that few people are able to take, and defend, the cyclist's point of view."

This brings up two thoughts I have had lurking around my head, lately (I need to get them out before they collide like a couple of drunk fixie riders : D).

Thought #1- The rider as a "deviant". I understand that choosing to ride a bike for transportation is a radical choice in this day and age, especially in places like the sprawling suburbs that were built just for the motorist to get away from the city. When everything is against you riding, you have to be pretty strong willed to do it anyway.



How is this above scene threatening? What makes this man riding on a beautiful day with his absolutely gorgeous little boy in any way damaging to anyone else's sense of self? What makes this scene make so many drivers so nervous and aggressive?



What makes these riders so different as people that others feel they are undeserving of safe passage and respect?



How does getting from point A to point B become political, or economic, or threatening... anything other than just getting where we are going?

Thought #2- When people yell at us, call us names, throw things at us... it means we are making progress. I know it does not seem like it, but you have to be noticed in the first place to be insulted.

The other day, I was riding to pick up Declan from school. A guy, about to get into a car with his friends deliberately dropped a soda can on the ground. He looked around to see if anyone had noticed, so I called to him "Hey, you dropped something!" and kept riding. I knew I would hear from him once he and his friends drove by, but I wasn't too worried. Sure enough, as they passed me, he and his friend hung out the window and yelled "Wear a fucking helmet you fucking hippie!". I looked them right in the face and laughed! They had to find a way to insult me and they used the bicycle world equivalent of calling me a "poopoo head" to do it. "Wear a helmet" has become an insult, and as it is a pretty weak one, I can't help but think it is the last gasp of society seeing the cyclist as the "outsider".

I could write a bunch more, but I'd rather get out and ride! Ride on people!

Commerce

Just the other day, this blog was approached (along with several others, I suspect) by Chrome, maker of very nice bike related gear, to possibly try and then review their new line of shoes. I was flattered by the offer, as it means that we are enough of a presence as a blog to garner some attention out in the bike world (meaning, people read our blog!!!! Hurraaayyyyy!!!!). My initial response to the offer was "Sure! Why not?"

Before I could hit the respond button, I started to think about it. Chrome is a great company, and I would recommend their products without reservation. If I needed a messenger bag, I would seriously consider purchasing one of theirs. But is that the direction this blog should take? Should we be reviewing products targeted to the cycling community and does this impinge on our ability to get our message out- namely, that all it takes to ride a bike is a bike?

There are a lot of bloggers out there in the cyber world that review goods at the request of companies. We have all read those reviews and used them to make purchasing decisions. Some have reviewed things they have purchased or simply been given, which I think is different than solicited endorsements (which I am not sure I have a problem with, BTW). Thom, of The World Awheel and I have talked about the pros and cons of sponsorship and product endorsement. We both question whether or not one can be objective when money or goods are part of the deal. Then again, is there anything wrong with reaping the benefits of all of the work that goes into creating a blog and its content?

Like all things, it depends on perspective and intent. What is the intent of this endeavour titled "Change Your Life. Ride A Bike!"? When Meli and I first started this project, I was just about to be unemployed and was looking for something new. We talked about the possibility of this being a profitable venture, but how that took shape was something we were not able to describe. We agreed that our greatest desire would be to support local business if we were to delve into sponsorship or advertising, but we both felt that our primary goal was one of advocacy and story telling.

Meli's take on it is this-

Having things sent or offered is nice, however as the blogger or exposed to an audience that follows your thoughts and daily posts, you have the power to accept or decline, as you feel like so, if that is the whole purpose of your writing/posting.

Adrienne and I do this for fun, we are not paid, nor expect any stipends, free stuff or sponsorship at all, anytime. We do it for the bicycle advocacy, the impulse to change your life around and get out there to discover the benefits of riding the bicycle in your city. We are both visionaries and we practice daily what we preach. Over at Bikes and The City I have been sent numerous things and they have always been highly appreciated, primarily because they have been from other fellow bloggers. That aspect of connecting globally by exposing your local efforts to make the world better, in my opinion is powerful and priceless.

Now because I praise coffee and coffee shops all the time does that mean that I would expect getting free schmuck from them? Not at all. I do it because I love my coffee. I post about coffee because it is part of my life and I don't have any expectations from that. Now if I walk into a cafe and the barista recognized me, Adrienne or my peeps, and has nice things to say about bikes, the photos or how they have found inspiration from our daily sharing, then yes - now that to me is awesome & very cherished!

What do you think about sponsorship and advertising? Would it change how you view this blog? Do you think it would compromise our simple message? We would really like to know what you think about this!

People Amaze Me

What is it about cycling that makes some people completely lose the ability to think or behave reasonably? While reading over at Cyclelicious, I came across a car review of the Tessla, written by James Martin. James Martin is a professional chef, and from his writings, a bit of a wanker (he is a British chef, thus the British slang. In American, the word "jackass" could be substituted). In his review, he writes that his favorite aspect of the electric Tessla, was how quiet it was. It allowed him to sneak up on cyclists so that he could honk at them and terrify them into running into a hedge.

I should be screaming mad over this. But to be honest, I am just sad, because this crap happens all the time. There was the firefighter that shot a cyclist in the head for riding with a child. Or the drunk who plowed through a pelaton of racers in Mexico (called a "terrible accident"). We covered the hit and run of Andrew Bennett and his son, here in San Francisco.


This is the Bay Taxi cab driver that tried to push me off the road so he could make a right turn. His excuse- there was no bike lane, so it was my fault for being in his way. His boss at the taxi company felt much the same way.

This kind of thing happens all the time, to people on and off bicycles. With the proliferation of electronic communication we get wind of it way more often. So I find myself shaking my head quite a bit, these days.

Having written this, I would like to share a positive story, and I encourage you to do the same (after you contact Tesla about your feelings of the above review)-

I was riding home with my 40 lb monkey, the other day, and of course, this being San Francisco, I was riding uphill into the wind (cue the violins). I had started out tired and I wasn't getting any less so, which means a lot less stopping if I can help it. As I came to an intersection with a stop sign, I saw there was a couple about to start crossing the road in front of me, so I started to slow down to stop for them. The couple saw me at this moment, stopped crossing, and the man waved me on with a smile, yelling over the wind "Don't stop! Keep your momentum!". This was a couple of months ago and I still remember what he looked like and how greatfull I was at that moment of exhaustion.

Remember the good times and keep riding, people!