A few weeks ago I mentioned the Alternative Cars feature in AutoSpeed mag. The series finished today, and I nearly fell off my chair when I read the concluding article—I had to go back and check that I was reading a motoring magazine:
We live in a society where, as one grows up, there is a transition in personal transport. Other than walking, the first independent, personal transport that most children have available to them is the bicycle. I for one remember the enormous freedom that a bike gave me: it immediately extended my geographical and philosophical horizons in a way that remains to this day a sweet memory. In much the same way, my first car opened my horizons another distinct step.
Such a tale is not unusual; in fact, itís the norm for western societies. However, this transition ñ walking, perhaps public transport, then bike then car ñ implies to many a hierarchical progression. A car is seen as better than a bike ñ so going back to human-powered vehicles is a retrograde step. Riding a bike suggests the owner cannot afford a car ñ otherwise, why would they be bothering to ride a bike?
Therefore, the first requirement for the adoption of human-powered vehicles is the societal recognition that pedalling is not automatically subservient in socio-economic status to cars.
Or, indeed, that the two modes of transport are in conflict.
This is an astonishing and refreshing thing to read in a motoring magazine and I applaud it (I guess it helps that the author is also the editor!) Motorists and cyclists are not inherently in opposition—in fact, cyclists are often both.
The author goes on to talk-up human-powered vehicles, saying that comparing the old dragster you had as a kid to a modern HPV is like comparing a 1950's VW Beetle in a cross-wind
to cars of today. The fact that his wife is a Greenspeed reseller doesn't strike me as a problem—rather it indicates that Julian knows whereof he speaks.
There are some really interesting thoughts in that article, so you might want to give it the once over.
To my knowledge I haven't come across any of Julian's writing before, but he's got some interesting articles on his wife's web site, among them a not overly technical note on recumbent tricycle handling and plenty of stuff on HPV suspension.
I've briefly mentioned the importance of bicycles in developing nations before, but the article that hielke pointed to really drives it home as clearly as a smack in the head.
He's also fairly active on the trike forums and has built a rather impressive fully-suspended trike which appears from video to have very good handling characteristics. He's a bit prone to hyperbole when it comes to suspended HPVs (says that it's essential to have suspension - it's not, it's just really really nice...), but has definitely raised the bar with his home-built efforts. Good to see HPVs promoted in motor vehicle magazines.
On the notion of bikes bringing you freedom as a kid, the notion of freedom is still there for adults in developing countries. John Larson, an NBC corrspondent, has a blog entry on hope, loss and bicycles in Zambia. The article (not for the faint hearted) refers to World Bicycle Relief who have some simple powerful stats on how bikes expand your world.
Comments
Thought Julian and other riders of HPV in and around your part of the world might be interested in this website and the links to others. Go here, http://www.recumbents.com/home.asp