The real reason you should cycle to work…
[via Copenhagenize.com]
What's your helmet doing right now?
Yeah, I've often wondered this too:
I don't understand why people so often lock their helmets along with their bikes. You should never, ever leave anything you intend to wear unattended on a sidewalk and attached to a pole. Unless you like wearing things that have been urinated on by dogs, bring the skid lid inside.
And there's really no point just putting your lock through the strap, is there?
Slow Bicycle
Sure, this little video has been on the Slow Bicycle Movement web site for a month or so, but who said I had to be fast or first?
Cute. Love the song too. (But watch out for that football in the nuts! Oops!)
Sydney Road=Cycleway?
Moreland Council is considering Copenhagen-style bike lanes in a "plan to turn Sydney Road into a cycle way". It's unlikely to get up if cycling visionary Mark O'Brien gets re-elected.
Beneath a Dutch window
I watch the morning traffic by. Meaning: bicycle traffic. Ja, ja, OK: fietsenverkeer…Cup of coffee in hand, I realize that it's true what they say: Bicycles Rule in the Netherlands…I set up the camera, on a tripod. How long did this take? A pot of coffee, 3 CDs--choose your measure.
The result? A really cool photo essay, and a conversion:
I'll be damned if I'm going to let all this just pass by under my window while I sit up here like some old man watching life pass him by…I'm going to have to be part of it, do what they do. A bicycle would seem like an excellent start. What's stopping me?
You fail
"Watch for Bikes" because they will be riding around this sign. [Thanks tom]
Show Connex the door
Dr Nick Low reckons the Victorian Government should fire Connex, and I can't say I disagree.
Connex has failed to manage the system to the benefit of rail travellers, Professor Low argues, by not doing everything possible to run more services and reduce waiting times.
"The Government would be wise to not reappoint Connex to run the suburban railways, and wiser still to bring the whole operation back into public hands," he says.
Comments
I think locking through the straps is okay. The helmet is pretty much useless with cut straps. However, it probably isn't a good idea to leave the helmet locked to the bike too regularly. It could be knocked, hit, bumped etc without you knowing it compromising the effectiveness of the helmet when you need it most. Also prolonged exposure to the sun can damage the the polystyrene ad cause it to deteriorate - you're meant to replace your helmet every couple of years so this may not be a major issue if you replace your helmet more regularly. Locking your helmet to your bike is convenient when you don't want to lug it around with you.
I leave my helmet with the bike, even after someone kicked the crap out of my old one when it was locked to the bike. I was just happy that they didn't damage the bike - maybe they would have if they didn't have the helmet to focus their anti-cyclist rage on!
Another helmet-locker here. The chances of dogs urinating on it or people cutting the straps while it's bolted to my bike on a fairly well-populated train platform are low enough, as is the replacement cost should it be stolen.
I'm actually a helmet-locker convert. I always used to strip all my lights etc. and sometimes even saddle and lug it all around. None of it was actually valuable (in terms of street-value) but I was in a mindset of different times and different cities. I have become more trusting and leave my lights on now. I also started locking my helmet to my bike. And yes, I do loop my chain through the straps. I now also leave my reflective gear and/or rain cape on the bike if they are wet. Last week I even left a brand new Aldi microwave in there! (my bike is quite big).
er.. i actually leave my helmet locked to the bike a lot. I'm a bit absent minded, if I take it in places with me, I can be some distance up the road before I realise I don't have it. I might not leave it locked to the bike if i was in the city, but I do at the local shops and when i go to lunch...
The railways will have to collapse hopelessly before a state government takes them back up again, sadly. By which point they will be hopelessly inadequate, or just plain broken. Or petrol will have to reach a point where it costs so much to drive that 0 to get into the city doesn't seem so bad for the commuter and they will reach that magical place where they pay for themselves (you know, apart from pissing 00m away on miki).
Yeah, gotta agree with that. Especially after they tried to ban bikes. Why was public transport sold off in the first place? Oh yeah, Kennett didn't want to have to deal with unions.
Closing comments due to excessive spam received on this entry.
I can't imagine why, but there you go…