Undeniably an attractive design (before the line painters got there)

Well, entirely unsurprisingly, it hasn’t magically made the inherent conflict between tram passengers and cyclists go away.

There is no magical solution for the fact that pedestrians and cyclist still cross paths.

But has it improved the situation or made it worse?

I’ve traversed the area as both cyclist and pedestrian, and these are my initial impressions.

Cyclist approach

Well, it’s wide and smooth to ride on, but despite Robert Doyle’s protestations, it isn’t immediately obvious where one is supposed to ride and where the waiting passengers are supposed to stand and walk.

I was a bit concerned that the fancy bluestone surface might be a bit slick in the wet but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Stepping on

Part of the design is to separate the road level for each mode—foot, bike and tram—the act of stepping down from the pedestrian area to the shared space should cue-in pedestrians that they are moving into a different space. This effect is diluted as for much of the length of the curb there are wide, gently sloping ramps (presumably for mobility aid access—a major reason for installing a raised-platform tram stop), which means there is no sense of stepping down (at least, I didn’t notice it). But elsewhere there is a noticeable step down at the edge of the footpath.

Like water

People, like water, follow the path of least resistance. In the afternoon large numbers of people get off trams on the southbound side, then queue to cross at the lights, heading for the train station. And in order to get to the crossing, they take the shortest route—down the bike lane:

People, like water, follow the path of least resistance

As a tram passenger, I found this was the natural thing to do. Bear in mind that this doesn’t feel like stepping down onto a road or even a safety zone—it feels like stepping down into a safe pedestrian-friendly space. Inevitably, people are going to walk with a bit less caution than they otherwise would when leaving a tram.

The cyclist’s experience of this is to ride through a narrow tunnel of people wandering aimlessly along the bike lane. This is sure to lead to verbal, and possibly physcial, clashes between cyclists and pedestrians.

Inviting criticism

Lord Mayor Robert Doyle invited criticism by making much of the top-notch bluestone that’s been used in the upgrade, saying it’s like paving the streets in gold—the sort of thing every rate-payer loves to hear. I don’t see it myself—it appears to be largely indistinguishable from concrete. I guess it’s attractive. But in an interview with 3AW’s Neil Mitchell, Doyle states that this installation is effectively a prototype: “We always said we would open this one first, we would see how it operates knowing there would be difficulty and confusion. And that means when we do Bourke St and Collins St then the onus is on us to get it right”. Why then would you use the most expensive materials when the design may need later modification as we learn more?

Counter-intuitive

But one of the main criticisms of the new setup is that it’s confusing. But is this really a problem? Let me run a half-baked idea past you: maybe a lack of signage and markings (and the consequent ambiguity) is a good thing.

David Engwicht talks about intrigue and uncertainty as mechanisms to bring about calmer traffic—and this is a place that needs calm traffic flow (even after the removal of most motorised vehicles).

Engwicht’s first proposition is “It is a myth that the only way to improve safety is to increase predictability”. It’s counter-intuitive, but it makes sense when you think about it: increase predictability and vehicles (in this case, bikes) can move faster, which increases the risk of collisions with pedestrians. But decrease predictability and increase the need for ‘negotiation’ and vehicles will move slower.

Hang on, I’m a commuting cyclist—why am I advocating slowing down cyclists? Because everything about the design of this new tram stop screams “shared space”. No amount of yellow lines and bike stencils on the ground is going to stop people sauntering along in the ‘wrong’ place, in the ‘wrong’ direction, without paying enough attention.

But it seems that the City wants to increase predictability on the new tram stop with lines and stencils being laid down, and no doubt all sorts of warning signage is also being prepared. Interestingly, if I hadn’t been specifically looking out for them I’d scarcely have noticed the new road surface markings. Like some others, I’m a bit disappointed that we weren’t prepared to give a fair trial to a true shared space before giving up and daubing paint all over the place and putting up ‘thou shalt not’ signs.

Conclusion

Overall, it doesn’t seem significantly different from the previous arrangement. From a traffic movement perspective, the same effect could have been had much more cheaply by making the same stretch of road car-free (e.g. by putting up some barriers to motor vehicles) and leaving the passengers, riders and tram drivers to sort it out on the unmodified roadway. But it does look great (or at least it did before the line-painters got to it)…I’ll leave others to decide whether looking fabulous is worth the price tag.

Imagine you’re approaching this stretch of road at about 40kph—actually quite easy to do, as you’ve just come off a steeper downhill section, so it’s not unusual for anyone to be coasting along at a fair clip here. Notice any particular hazards at this point?

Could you spot the hazard here at 40kph?

Let’s go in a bit closer:

If you hit this, where will you land?

Yep, that’s a base of one of those flexi-poles that I didn’t much like when they were installed last year. A number of these poles have been bent and a couple have snapped off, leaving the near-invisible base as a collision hazard for cyclists. And if a cyclist gets tipped off after crashing with that, where are they going to land…?

That this has been broken for weeks (and possibly months) without repair reflects poorly on the City of Melbourne’s willingness and/or ability to maintain dedicated cycling facilities. Not good when these lanes carry 17% of total vehicles in the morning peak on Albert St.

Upgrated

In fairness, it’s not all downside. Both of you might remember this dangerous drain cover:

An unforgiving grate

Astonishingly, that wheel-jamming hazard was simply left there unmodified as part of the initial installation. Well, over a year later, it’s had an upgrade:

A grate upgraded

That’s an improvement, but really that should have been fixed in the first place.

Any good at all?

Having sworn off Albert St in favour of Victoria St, I have found myself back there a bit more often, in spite of my ongoing concerns including:

• increased likelihood of clashes with entering traffic on the eastbound/downhill lane,
• turning lane conflicts—being dumped into a turning lane is still dangerous by design,
• the increased difficulty in merging into the main traffic flow to make a right-hand turn, and
• those damn poles are still a collision hazard (even when they aren’t broken).

I’ve also noticed a tendency for cars to stop in (and block) the bike lane during clearway times, something that drivers wouldn’t have dreamt of doing before the bike lanes were there.

But if I’m back on Albert St, does that mean I’m a convert? No way: I remain a committed bike lane agnostic. Maybe Albert St is better with curbside lanes than without, but for me it is just the least worst option on that part of my commute route.

Your Peak. Trailer on Vimeo. [via velosport]

Urban cyclist’s survival guide

Some great tips on tricksome: Rules to cycle and live by.

The Road to PBP

Forgot to mention this when Paris-Brest-Paris was on, but a highly recommended read is Raymond Parker’s series of posts on his road to PBP—I couldn’t get enough of this story.

Woodcrafty

Masterworks’ functioning wooden bike takes craftsmanship to next level [Thanks tom]

Questionable taste

What do you think of the Playmobil ambulance with hit-and-run victim toy set? via BikingInLA

I thought it might have been a clever fake, but no: it’s real.

Bark!

Says tom, “I hope I have a video camera ready when I see the first person try this” technique for dealing with aggressive dogs.

Share the lurve

Spinlister:

Spinlister is a bike rental marketplace that allows you to find a great bike to rent or list your bike to earn cash (or hopefully both!). We think biking is the best way to get around and explore…Spinlister takes all the best bikes available for rent, whether from bike shops or individuals, and puts them all in one place.

[twitterer]

“Melbourne’s troubled bike-share scheme”

“Melbourne’s troubled bike-share scheme has been pushed into the suburbs in a bid to boost its poor numbers” according to Melbourne’s little paper and by “suburbs” they mean “Port Melbourne, Richmond and South Melbourne”. Dude, to most people in Melbourne that’s still inner city.

At any rate, that sounds more like some bike stations are being redeployed to logical places where they should have been in the first place, not a concerted push into the suburbs.

Bike Shaped Objects: ugly, bad…good?

Are BSOs bad for business? makes a similar point to that which I made about cheap bikes at Aldi.

Cycling vs ADHD

Article in Bicycling Magazine, Riding is My Ritalin asks, “Did we put a generation of potential Tour de France riders on Ritalin instead of giving them bikes?”

Video bonanza

• If you ever wondered why randonneurs do it, take a look at this Seattle Randonneurs Trailer. [twitterer]
• Another cool bike ad by Hutchinson (even if I don’t quite believe what they’re offering).
• A terrific video via VeloTroll about a cross-country stage race—is it cyclocross, MTB orienteering, or rough-road randonneuring?
• I’m sexy and I know it.
• 3 year bike tour in 3 minutes!
• Gorgeous aerial video on Vimeo.
• The world has changed. You can too. [via PUT THE FUN BETWEEN YOUR LEGS]
• BOND bicycle with ejector seat and flamethrower [Thanks tom]
• A professional display of 50 No Handed Bike Moves performed to “Golden Tree” by Martin Brooks.

Herne Hill velodrome

guardian.co.uk: “London’s last remaining venue from the 1948 Olympics is to be restored to its former glory following an energetic renovation campaign from local residents and cycling fans”.

We are traffic—just not this sort of traffic

WSJ.com on why traffic jams are bad for your health:

As roadways choke on traffic, researchers suspect that the tailpipe exhaust from cars and trucks—especially tiny carbon particles already implicated in heart disease, cancer and respiratory ailments—may also injure brain cells and synapses key to learning and memory.

Oh, goody!

Laidback

• Mi recumbent
• Clip de una recumbent argentina
• Classy recumbent

And remember, if you diss recumbents apparently this is what you get.

Cyclist = bum?

Lovely Bicycle!:

Okay, so I’ve basically been told – albeit in the friendliest way – that I was either a bum or a woman of leisure if I had the time to travel by bike.

[twitterer]

Too true

How to true a bicycle wheel on a home-made stand. A very practical video.

Bloggage

• 449 km
• Hipster Nascar

Going soft?

Are you going soft? A’ME Heated Grips will be right up your alley. twitterer

HTFU!

Jahvahaah: not enough cool to go around.

The best route to road safety: don’t drive

Professor Hank Weiss, director of the Injury Prevention Research Unit at New Zealand’s University of Otago, aregues that the best route to youth road safety is not driving:

They call for deep change in road safety instead of the old paradigm of focusing in on trying to make people safe while they drive more. We should think about the more holistic approach, and think about the safety that stems from driving less, and about the multiple benefits across society from driving less…

I’m talking about active transport as a safety measure…The more you drive, the more you’re at risk…There’s a multiple flow-on effect from reduction in vehicle miles traveled in terms of safety.

Logical really: reduce your exposure, reduce your risk.

Put down that damn phone

Meanwhile road.cc on How to make the roads safer? Turn off those mobiles:

As cyclists we all know that mobile-phone-using drivers are a dangerous nuisance, and here’s the proof. UAE newspaper The National reports that during the recent outage in the Blackberry network, which affected email, internet and messaging services for users of the popular smartphone, accidents fell by 20% in Dubai and 40% in Abu Dhabi.

Evolution of speed

New Scientist: Cars have evolved to go faster – but humans haven’t

Car buffs more likely to be aggressive drivers. In other news, grass green, sky blue [twitterer]

Speed cameras work

Yes, speed cameras work, now shut the hell up.

Active transport FTW!

NPR.org on the secret to a long, healthy life: bike to the store:

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin were wondering if getting people out of their cars just a wee bit would create measurable improvements in health…They found that if the Midwesterners ran half of their short-distance errands by bike rather than by car, 1,100 deaths would be avoided each year, and $7 billion would be saved in reduced health-care costs. The trips were 2.5 miles one way; less than a 25-minute bike ride, the researchers figure.

Meanwhile, research out of Lund University finds that car and public transport commuters report poorer health than bicycle and pedestrian commuters.

Ridiculous!

Kim Harding: say no to ridiculous car trips, while Karl McCracken and Carlton Reid trade ideas on how to increase the proportion of short trips made by bike.

Utility cycling discouraged

The Courier Mail reports on a video campaign to axe mandatory cyclist helmet law. [twitterer]

So, what is wrong with bicycle helmets? [Thanks tom]

Car-free livin’

msnbc.com lists the best cities to live car-free in America:

The majority of cities that are easy to maneuver on foot or by public access also have relatively large bicycle communities. For example, more people bike to work in a city like Portland, Ore., than in a city like San Antonio, Texas, which is not very pedestrian or bicyclist friendly. These cities tend to have an exceptional number of programs and bylaws for bicyclists. Seven of the cities on the 24/7 Wall St.’s list are also featured on Bicycling magazine’s list of the top 50 bike-friendly cities.

Urban design fail

The Washington Post asks Can we stop gas prices from squeezing the middle class? [twitterer]

Speaking of design failure, BikePortland.org on ODOT ready to install 29 new bikeway signs near I-5 bridge. [via Paul Johnson]

29 wayfinding signs required for one bridge?!? Sounds like a fundamental design fail to me.

Zombie bike apocalypse

Is America ready for the Zombie-bike-pocalypse? [twitterer]

The zombies are coming, I tell you!

More crap

The Melbourne Urbanist on more bikes are for creeps and losers crap. See also the discussion kicked-off by Richard Masoner.

Passing

Remember Ian Walker’s reseach on passing distances? Well the most ‘dubious’ of his findings, based on how feminine Dr Walker looks in a long wig, has been replicated in a report by Florida Department of Transportation [PDF]. Yes, female riders do generally get more passing space. [twitterer]

Keep calm

The Urban Country Bicycle Blog argues the topic traffic calming a waste of money? [twitterer]

Punter

Hobsons Bay Leader on getting a free punt on the Yarra. Yep, the Westgate punt is back.

It doesn’t happen overnight…

How the Dutch got their cycle paths [twitterer]

But “how did we lose our pedestrian-, bike- and transit-friendly cities so easily?” The answer, as always, is “politics”.

Bikes outsell cars: the illusion

Preventive Medicine: “Where have all the bicycles gone?” Are bicycle sales in Australia translated into health-enhancing levels of bicycle usage? [twitterer]

Unusually good

Here’s something unusual in the mainstream media: a generally positive cycling story with generally positive comments:

But it’s now clear the benefits of regular riding with mates go way beyond just keeping physically fit, allowing participants also to tap into the sort of social support network psychologists say is essential to good mental health. In fact, while cycling has long been labelled “the new golf”, increasingly it is also winning a reputation as “the new men’s shed”.

The Japanese way

Toyota proposes 250,000km of bicycle lanes across Japan over 5 years [twitterer]

The Russian way

Moscow builds it’s first cycle path—and it looks like they used Crap Cycle Lanes of Warrington as a reference guide.

Melbournism calls for Melbourne’s best cycling paths

What do they ride at Microsoft?

Apple’s campus bikes are classically minimal—a plain silver mixte, to be precise.

Perhaps I’m reading too much into it, but if you think about it, this simple, classic bike seems like exactly the thing Apple would pick to get its employees around the campus. I wonder what Microsoft uses? Probably electric golf carts. Or even (shudder) Segways.

[thanks flipsockgrrl]

Once was car city

Detroit Bike City [Thanks tom]

Not quite bike city

Melbourne gains ‘bike city’ status. Oh, really?

Actually is bike city

NYTimes.com on The Dutch Way – Bicycles and Fresh Bread.

Number crunch

Mez Dispenser on checking the numbers on bike trips in Toronto—how did the city get it so wrong?

Design

• Plastic bike looks like a toy, but rides like the future [Thanks tom]
• Brian Cloyd’s Recumbent Trike impresses NASA [Thanks tom]
• Apparently Toyota is working on the bicycle of the future that shifts gears via brain waves. OK, cool idea and good on them, but I can’t see myself replacing reliable cable and levers any time in the foreseeable future.

Recognition

Dave Moulton on distinctive bike designs.

Retro

• In the Doone Valley by Frank Patterson [twitterer]
• Bicycles. Sears, Roebuck & Co. Advertising Booklet, 1914.
• The trend today is to BSA [twitterer]

You go girl

Bicycle Thief, Interrupted:

Some idiot has the brass balls to steal a bike in broad daylight. But Kristen Bell and her co-workers saw what was happening and sprung into action, taking revenge for theft victims everywhere.

[Thanks tom]

Light up those hoops

Project Aura: Bicycle Safety Lighting System [Thanks tom]

“These jeans hate me”

Commute by Bike on Levi’s Nerd-Repellent Commuter Jeans:

I’m working on finding out if Levi’s makes an uncool version of these pants, and if they do, I’ll review them sometime in the future — and I’ll find out if “higher back rise” means, “covers your butt crack.”

Park it there

Apple shaped multi-story bike park in Alphen aan de Rijn [Thanks tom]

Counterintuitive

New road sign: Lane Closed to Ease Congestion [twitterer]

Best advice ever

Keep calm and ride on.

Another way a bike is better

Simple way to cool down your car after it’s been baking in the sun.

Too much Tour de France is barely enough

• Dave Moulton calls it A Perfect Result.
• The Conversation on the science of the Tour de France time trial.
• I’ve really come to look forward to the Boston Globe’s two-part folio of shots from the Tour de France: Part 1 and Part 2.
  (Incidentally, if anyone ever tries to suggest that every single one of these riders isn’t an incredibly hard man, just point them this photo of Laurens ten Dam.)
• road.cc reminded me of the wonderful TdF film Vive le tour! Sure, you’ve probably seen it before but go and watch it again.
• And I just need to keep a bookmark of Senor Coconut – Tour de France for future reference.

Sadly, we need to keep it in perspective

Amy Gillett Foundation on a stark reminder of the dangers cyclists face on our roads:

As the nation celebrates Cadel Evans’ famous Tour De France victory, it is also a time to highlight the issues of safety for cyclists on our roads as we mourn the death of another cyclist on Beach Road in Melbourne last Friday.

Work it out

Triathleteurope on effective hour-long bike workouts:

Not everyone has the time to put in five-hour rides every week. Fortunately, there are a few hour-long sessions that you can do that are invaluable for developing your bike fitness.

Energy supply

Interesting article on Why do we get exhausted?

Futile

KarlOnSea on the futility of culture change through exhortation:

Supposedly, all we have to do to make the roads attractive to the 98% of the population who don’t ride bikes on a regular basis, is to change the behaviour of these drivers. Yeah. Like that’s going to happen by just asking drivers nicely to pay a lot more attention, and curb any aggressive tendencies they may have.

Apropos: Bike crashes in Queensland: cyclists most likely to be at fault. [twitterer]

And when cycling infrastructure is everywhere, you get installations like this. [twitterer]

Accessorise, dahling!

@noteon: “Finally, somebody makes an affordable saddle scrotum”.

Handlebar clearance

Heidi Swift suggests Don’t look down. Mmmmmokay!

The debate the just keeps on giving

Cycle helmets: safety essential or health risk?

Cycle helmets should not be made compulsory, according to medical experts. The surprise finding from a poll of readers of the British Medical Journal suggests there is no simple answer to improving cycling safety.

Back to the drawing board

Human Powered Cycles reports on a prototype utility bike:

Not long after we built the first prototype furniture removalist bike, we tried moving some wood. Well actually it was a few hundred kilograms of wood.

Ah. Oops.

Cook now

TravellingTwo offers a free bicycle touring cookbook (from 1979):

There are hints on proportions (note that the book was aimed at groups of cyclists, so all recipes serve 10 people!), nutrition and how to carry tricky things, like sticky jars of honey.

Girls in the biz

Oregon Business reports from Interbike on why women lag in bike riding and business. [twitterer]

Jens says

The Jens Voigt Soundboard: ’nuff said!

The Pillars of French Cycling

Interesting film on the French bike industry, in two parts: Chapter 1 and Chapter 2.

Fat tyre!

Is Andy Schleck in yellow?

isandyinyellow.com/

Letter From Rwanda

Philip Gourevitch in The New Yorker on Team Rwanda.

Obesity

Over 60% Australian adults now overweight or obese, and yet the myth persists that exercise makes you eat more food and gain weight.

Work it out

Bike advocates often point out how much people can save by driving less, but their general numbers are tough to translate to a personal level. [Thanks tom]

Gadgets and gear

• GPS Systems For Bicycle Touring
• Stuff That Worked – Patagonia Torrentshell Jacket

Mapping a route to an alternative

Once the pace-setting for online bike route mapping, bikely.com has been a bit shaky of late and some users seem to be abandoning ship for other services. Leading alternatives appear to be:

• Ride With GPS
• Bike Route Toaster
• MapMyRIDE

We’d be happy to hear about other interesting options.

Design

tom selects:

• Parlee Cycles is building a bike that encapsulates the forward-thinking design ideas of the Toyota Prius
• Solar + Cross (e bike)
• Pedal Powered School Bus—not a lot of fun to pedal back to the depot when all of the kids have got off.

Take a tip

Urban Riding Tips—hilarious.

Tech + bike = share

Engadget:

SoBi interfaces with a mobile app, which lets you locate and unlock unreserved bikes around the city…The system implements a clever financial incentive to have bikes returned to strategically located hubs, charging a fee for users who prefer to leave bikes elsewhere, then offering the same amount as a credit for riders who rent that bike and return it to a hub.

[Thanks tom]

In other cities

New York

Jason Gay at WSJ.com:

That’s the beauty of a bike, a simple machine with two wheels and zero ideology. When you can turn a pedal and feel safe, it’s fun and makes sense.

And anyone can ride. There have been cheesy distortions of cycling as a trendy, elite activity—to link bike paths to ongoing gentrification, and claim the city is catering to a hipster fringe.

You want to see what a fraud that argument is? Get on a bike and ride. For every Spandexed obsessive tucked on a $3,000 carbon fiber frame you’ll see 100 people of every imaginable background just trying to get to work, do their job, have fun with their kids, safely spin from A to B.

On the other hand, Christine Haughney at nytimes.com:

When Julie Hirschfeld opened a bicycle boutique for women, she envisioned fashion-obsessed customers with a disdain for spandex flooding in to buy bikes and accessories they would model along New York City’s paved catwalks: miles and miles of new bicycle paths…One year later, Ms. Hirschfeld has conceded that it takes more than fashion to get women on bikes…

Despite the city’s efforts to become more bike friendly, male cyclists in New York continue to outnumber female cyclists three to one, just as they have steadily over the past two decades. Data tracked by the city and private groups shows the gap between male and female cyclists is even wider in areas where vehicular traffic is more concentrated.

twitterer

Amsterdam

Peter Preston at guardian.co.uk

Cyclists rule in this city. Take a population of 780,000. Reckon that 75% of them over the age of 12 owns a bike, and that over half of them take a spin every day. Then look, in amazement, at the kit they wear (or rather, the kit they don’t wear). No lurid jackets or flashing lights. No protective pads, gloves or twiddly bits. And no helmets, either. Nobody wears a helmet.

Zurich

Elisabeth Rosenthal at NYTimes.com

“In the United States, there has been much more of a tendency to adapt cities to accommodate driving,” said Peder Jensen, head of the Energy and Transport Group at the European Environment Agency. “Here there has been more movement to make cities more livable for people, to get cities relatively free of cars.”

To that end, the municipal Traffic Planning Department here in Zurich has been working overtime in recent years to torment drivers. Closely spaced red lights have been added on roads into town, causing delays and angst for commuters…As he stood watching a few cars inch through a mass of bicycles and pedestrians, the city’s chief traffic planner, Andy Fellmann, smiled. “Driving is a stop-and-go experience,” he said. “That’s what we like! Our goal is to reconquer public space for pedestrians, not to make it easy for drivers.”

Plus a little note of reassurance for nervous Swanston St traders in Melbourne:

While Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has generated controversy in New York by “pedestrianizing” a few areas like Times Square, many European cities have already closed vast areas to car traffic. Store owners in Zurich had worried that the closings would mean a drop in business, but that fear has proved unfounded, Mr. Fellmann said, because pedestrian traffic increased 30 to 40 percent where cars were banned.

Rotterdam

Orangemaster at 24 oranges:

The city of Rotterdam is currently looking into the possibility of giving people whose bikes were stolen a new bike — well no, ‘another’ bike, one that was ‘towed away’. Illegally parked bikes (yes, if you park it in the wrong place because the racks are too full or whatever, the city takes them away) are to be re-used and given to people who had their bikes stolen.

[Thanks tom]

Riding without headphones

Problem solved: I don’t wear headphones while I’m cycling.

Look around

xcmankan:

My advice to you is that when you’re out on your bike, as often as possible, look up from your Garmin, heart rate monitor and bike computer, and look around and enjoy. Maybe even leave technology at home?

Envy

• Fallen Leaves
• Northern Italy is beautiful for mountain biking. Highly recommended!
• A European super classic in the middle of northern province with the taste of ketchup.

Saddle

Are you sitting comfortably?

Beauty in Utility

Mike Rubbo’s upcoming exhibition: Nothing but bikes: Beauty in Utility. [twitterer]

Hack: bike appliances

• Bike-powered sewing machine [twitterer]
• Spincycle is a washing machine that can be powered by pedalling [Thanks tom]

Watch out for the lumberjack

Tree vandals and bike thieves [twitterer]

Tourture

Not sure why Skoda doesn’t seem to be playing its Tourture advert in Australia. It beats the one with the dude playing glasses of water. [twitterer]

Doing it tough

American David Zabriskie aims to compete in the world’s most grueling bike race—as a (near) vegan:

Experts say he is the first cyclist to attempt the most difficult bike race in the world sans meat, dairy or eggs. (He will cheat slightly, he says, because he plans to eat small amounts of salmon two days per week to increase iron absorption).

Whoa! Respect.

Ride big: claim the lane

Helping motorists with lane positioning:

When the cyclist is in the center of the lane, it’s immediately clear to the motorist that passing within the lane is impossible, so the driver changes lanes at the earliest opportunity.

With video demonstration.