At last, we’ve got an Australian importer for a Dutch utility bike. Yay!
Start the New Year on the right foot, say I. While others are sleeping off their hangovers—a particularly bad start to the year in my view—we head for the hills and hit the trails.
This afternoon the Co-Pilot and I were in the mood for a breath of salty air and an over-priced coffee. So we headed off to the beach along the Rosstown Rail Trail.
In August I made an entry called How To Steal a Bike, prompted by a couple of films on the web showing people ignoring someone stealing a bike right before their eyes. In the discussion that followed I suggested a possible approach for witnesses to a suspected bike theft: simply shouting Oi, that’s my bike
might be enough to see-off a thief. However for reasons of personal safety I didn’t think this was an entirely foolproof method.
Comments on the topic went quiet until last week when Paul from Adelaide recounted his largely unsuccessful attempt to use this approach. Feeling that the story shouldn’t be hidden away in the comments, I’ve asked Paul to go back and start at the beginning for this guest entry. You may not agree with what Paul did—you may even think him reckless or that he brought a bad outcome on himself. Maybe. Regardless it stands as a warning: your bike is replaceable, your life is not.
–T&M.
A school where almost none of the students arrive by car? That would be Albert Park Primary.
In some parts of the country Ride To Work Day was just the start…
Making video recordings of staged bike thefts is starting to become popular…
The Census is here again - on 8 August we’ll be asked (among other things) what transport we used to get to work. So let’s get in early and it an extra Ride to Work Day – or maybe we should call it “Ride and Be Counted Day”?
Star News Group local newspapers are the source of a couple of really positive bike-related stories this week.
“Year 7 students at private and government schools said in a study that they were forced to sit and talk during breaks because they were not allowed to run, play informal games or have access to sporting equipment” - The Age
Yeah, cycling is a great family activity and you can’t beat parental example as a way to teach stuff to kids. Is it a vehicle for broader social change? Maybe. But on one level, who cares?
In the USA, some school districts are banning playground equipment, games of tag, and even running in the playground. What the …?
Two of the dullest items of gym equipment are now available in kiddie sizes - at your local Kmart.