Do It Yourself

Sometimes you need something strange. One of those things that you are just not going to find ready made at Target. For myself, I found myself needing one of those strange things after Hubby the Bikeman (James) put something very useful and not strange on my Bat- a wheel stabilizer.

The front end of the bike was just so damn wiggly when parked that it was becoming a significant problem. Whenever I parked the bike on the center stand, the front wheel would flop into me and I would get tangled in the handlebars or my hair would get tangled in the brake levers while I was locking up the bike. More than once, this ended up with either me or the bike falling over. The problem with putting a stabilizer on was that my lower tube is very thick and tear shaped so James had to improvise with bits and pieces not meant for this purpose. The stabilizer worked, but the mounting was ugly and it caught on my longer skirts or wider pant legs. Thus the need for the "strange thing".

I needed something to wrap around the spring mount that would cover the metal that was sticking out. It needed to be removable in case we decided to adjust the mount. It had to be able to withstand the rain and sun, it would not be twine*, and it had to be made with stuff I had in the house. Of course, I decided to knit something! The World's First Wheel Stabilizer Cozy!

It was terribly simple- bulky acrylic yarn, a big plastic button and 20 minutes of seed stitch later and I had the "much needed strange thing" in hand. It has been on the Bat for about 6 months and has done exactly what I needed it to. I have not been caught on the mount, or cut myself on it once since I put the cozy on.

It isn't that noticeable on the bike, but it certainly serves quite a purpose. This of course what all "much needed strange things" have in common when we decide to make them for ourselves. What have you made for yourself? Share with the group!

*twine is all and well and good, and lots of people think it is great but I can't stand it most of the time and refuse to have it on any of my bicycles. Sorry if you love twine.

** This article is cross posted at Vélo Vogue.

The Grass Is Just As Green

In the Netherlands? Really? The land of the Ultimate Modern Bicycle Culture?

submitted to our Flickr group by Roermond op de Fiets

Just goes to show, no matter where you are, you gotta work to have a bicycle friendly society.

Things Heard In The Lane

The snippets you hear as you whiz by are always amusing.

"Don't tell me what to do, devil woman!"

"So next thing he tells me he has scabies"

"Don't get in a cab if you think you are going to pee in it. Take the bus."

Are We Cultured?

I started writing this terribly long post awhile ago. I have decided to leave it as is, unedited and rambling. Read it and continue the conversation in the comments, should you chose to accept the challenge. I am sure that you all have more to say that makes sense than I do!

I think it is time that we all started talking about "bicycle culture". It is a term that gets thrown around a lot, but I am not sure that anyone could actually define what it is if asked. Can you? I can't. There is a lot out there about adding to bicycle culture and creating bicycle culture and defending bicycle culture. There are whole blogs about it : ) but what do we mean when we say these things?

So today I thought about it. Having lived in San Francisco for the vast majority of my life I have been able to see what bicycling in the City has been like for the last few decades. When I was a kid in the 70's and early 80's it was just what everyone did in my little beach community. We all got around by bike or train or Mustang GT. We didn't think about it, we just did it. The bicycles were just part of the landscape, and unless they were 10 speed road bikes (which were sooooo cool) they were just bikes. We parked them outside of the corner store to get a soda, we rode them to the other end of the beach so our parents wouldn't see us smoking, we took them to the park to play ball. We only thought about them when they were stolen. Our parents used them as a means of not having to pick us up from anything.

By the time the mid-80's came around, something started to change. It became strange to ride a bicycle for any other purpose than competitive racing or to storm the dirt trails of any planted area you could find. This was the beginning of bicyclists as a fringe element. Whereas just 5 years before when you got on your old Schwinn to go to the library, now there was neon, lycra clothing and knobby tires and flat handle bars and a horror of anything practical like fenders or baskets or kickstands. We started wearing helmets that looked like toddler training potties. Of course, if all the riding we did was jumping over logs, then this wasn't so strange, but there was still that trip to the Park & Rec that needed to happen to take a cooking class. The only way to do it by bicycle had become a lycra, chamois, helmet experience and if we tried to do otherwise we were ridiculed and driven off the road.

This was the beginning of "bicycle culture". When we allowed ourselves to be easily pegged, and thus, marginalized by donning more gear than the guys on the Tour de France did just so we could ride along the beach in the summer. Those who rode a bicycle became a deliberately visible group, defined by the activity of riding and the accouterments that we put with it. We came to a collective agreement that unless you walked away from your bicycle dirty and exhausted that you were not a legitimate bicycle rider. We read magazines with articles about maximizing pedal stroke and how to shave grams and most of all, we became afraid of our bicycles.

By the early 90's we were all convinced that our bicycles would kill us if given half a chance. If we rode on a city street, we would be immediately struck down by a car. If we rode on the sidewalk we would get hit by a car pulling out of a driveway. It was indisputable. If we rode on a trail we would get thrown by every pothole or stick in the forest. If we did not wear a helmet, Satan would find us and it would be our own fault that we were dead. In response we became one of three types of riders- non-riders who looked at their bicycles in the garage and thought "I would ride it to the beach but...", weekend sport riders who drove their bikes to points of embarkation away from the crazy streets of death, or urban street warriors who would "live free or die". That was the next step of "bicycle culture". Those who didn't disappear became almost superhuman in the eyes of the non-cycling world (whether that was super-humanly stupid or super-humanly strong was up to the changing interpretation of society at the time).

The 90's were also the beginning of what we see in San Francisco, today. The 90's were the time of the bicycle messenger and the beginning of Critical Mass. While both were, and continue to be, somewhat controversial, they were nonetheless, the only non-sports related bicyclists any of us saw in San Francisco for a whole lotta years. They were almost all male, almost all young, almost all completely broke, and many of them were drawn to the drama of the daily fight for survival in streets that no longer welcomed any thing with less than 4 wheels and 150 horsepower. They looked nothing like the Bicycle Girls of Copenhagen. Hell, they didn't look like the Office Girls of the Financial District (remember the big hair and the skirt suits?). They were brash, confrontational, brave and fast and the people of San Francisco could only ever see them through the haze of bicycle fear that had engulfed the nation.

Until recently, this was the status quo of San Francisco. That has changed quite a bit. The people on the bikes look like the people walking on the sidewalk. The bicycles are no longer of the mountain type. More than that, there are lots of them. Everywhere. And they are all going to work or shopping or lunch or school...

Still, what is our current "culture"? I am not sure there is an answer to this question. There are so many different kinds of people riding and so many different kinds of groups that they could fit into that I do not think that there is a way to define it simply. Nor do I think it would be good to be able to do so. Back when just about every cyclist on the street was a kamikaze messenger we could define the culture very easily, and subsequently, very few people wanted to join in. Without firm definitions anyone can find a place.

of bikes and babes

fresh off the tribute to val, here's where we get to pass along the love of bikes to the newest generation.

the last time we talked of this little one, he was in his mama's belly, shopping for bikey onesies in the mission.

now? he's got his first birthday behind him and more than a couple of teeth in those gums.

we went to nomnom. while waiting in line, look at what his mom said that she got for him, but really for me. heh. ;)

they are sold out of the shirt, fyi....at least it appears so by going to their site.

he can barely walk, but he can stand really well!

oh haiiiiii! look at that smile. melts the toughest of cold hearts. (mine is not of those.)

mama here is wanting to take him around their neighborhood in LA on a bike. maybe next time he's on the blog, he'll be on a skuuuuuuuuuuuut it up! ;) well, maybe first he'll be on the back of a bike. he's certainly dressed for it.

other than bikes, looks like we have something in common. a love of hats.

ok, and he loves dogs too. he make friends easily :)

love my favorite baby b-boy! besos con mocos simpre! babas por vida!<3<3

Goodbye

It is with great sadness that I opened our email today. Long time friend to the blog, Val Kleitz has passed away from cancer. Val was a never ending source of stories and photos of his unique, and wonderful view of bicycle life in Seattle. His hat and handlebar mustache always made me smile, even if I only got a chance to see them on my computer. The Labor Day Cargo Bike ride in Seattle will be dedicated to his memory.

The below picture and email were sent to us by Val in May , 2010. It is the picture I always had in my head whenever I saw a new comment from Val on a post. Good journeys, friend. You will be missed.



Today, as I was walking through the local grocery store, I had to pause for a moment to give a couple of very young girls a chance to consolidate themselves to one side of the aisle. They looked to be 3 and 4 years old, out shopping with their dad. The older one (who had the task of carrying the basket) looked up at me as I passed and said "Cow..boy". I get this a lot from the small ones, and I always just walk away proud, thinking "Yep, well spotted, kid". This time, as I walked away, I heard the dad telling her "No, no - that's that dude on the bike, you remember, you've seen him...". Now I'm thinking "Oh HELL yes!" Say what you like, but I seriously believe that the cowboy hat makes me much more visible, and therefore keeps me safer, than any bike helmet.

friday fun times: foggy summatime!

welcome to summer in SF! where it's not sunny, but foggy, cool and windy with grey pea soup hanging low in the sky.

this is a little video i took the morning after the century ride. i woke up on the opposite side of the bridge. so while this may look like it's taken from chrissy fields (to some), it isn't. this place is also easily accessible by bike from the city. don't have reservations? go anyway during the day!



enjoy your hot weather and if you want to cool off after a bike ride, come and join us here in sun-deprived sf!