Treadly and Me » exercise

Speedlinking 11 August 2010

Treadly and Me — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:38:51 +0000

World Bike Ride

Tour du Monde:

Everyone’s on bikes, from the pelotons of the Tour de France to the bicycle transporters of Burundi.

[twitterer]

Cargo – car = go

Cargo bikes, more cargo bikes, and a serious cargo trike.

Mountain Envy

Cycling Challenge: “Perhaps the best ride of the year. Certainly the most beautiful. Doreen and I spent the weekend in central Switzerland in Grindelwald – right in front of the famous Eiger north face.”

Check that scenery! Drool. [twitterer]

Bikeshare head cases

Andrew Bolt on bike share and helmet laws. [twitterer]

However, within its own scheme, Monash Uni solves the helmet problem (sort of). [twitterer]

Helmet hair

And while we’re on the topic, apparently mandatory helmets do not discourage cycling. Not touching that one. [twitterer]

On the other hand, wearing helmets in cars “has been proved more effective in preventing serious injury than cycle helmets, but promoting car helmets is likely to meet heavy opposition”. Oh, you reckon? Not touching that one, either. [twitterer]

The Rules (for Beach Road Poseurs)

The Rules

Sexy!

Sexy Dahon—but that’s a tautology, isn’t it? [twitterer]

Weight weenies extreme

When Milliseconds Mean Everything: “In the first-ever Tour de France, Maurice Garin beat second-place finisher Lucien Pothier by two hours, 49 minutes. In the last two decades, the sport has embraced technology—and the gaps have gotten smaller.”

Hmm, technology might not have been the only thing making the gaps smaller…

Shorthand for ‘loser’

Tom Vanderbilt wonders how not having a car became Hollywood shorthand for loser. [twitterer]

Death trap?

bicyclism ponders “Deadly Treadlies”:

He was working up to his point; a verbal victory of wit. The delivery of a decisive score of intellectual perspicacity to be absorbed like water into a dehydrated sponge. His triple chins quivered in excitement. His rotund button-popping belly was thrust outwards towards us along the lines of a peacock’s tail flourish; at least to the delusions of his own mind’s self-attracted eye… His considerable bulk was, somehow, testimony to the weight of his authority.

‘No…you would never get me on one of those death traps…’ ‘Bicycles are the shortest path to suicide’.

I reckon I’ve met that bloke. Although I don’t put much store by the risk estimation of someone who seems to have trouble assessing his own risk of heart disease, type II diabetes, lung cancer, emphysema and cirrhosis of the liver.

There are wankers everywhere

On A Hundred and One Wankers:

Wanker #5 had a convertible. Not a huge surprise. He leaned over when driving to shout “Watch me overtake you” which i did, while he drove off laughing. Five minutes later, as he sat in traffic leading up to Kennington Park, I smiled at him and said “Watch me overtake you”. Brilliant.

Bloggage

Cycle and Style “An Online Women’s Cycling Magazine. For Women. By Women.”
Cyclized “Devoted to Cycling Culture and Urbanism”
for the love of bikes

The bicycle has many attractions as a form of personal transportation. It alleviates congestion, lowers air pollution, reduces obesity, increases physical fitness, does not emit climate-disrupting carbon dioxide, and is priced within the reach of the billions of people who cannot afford a car…Few methods of reducing carbon emissions are as effective as substituting a bicycle for a car on short trips.

However, Energy Bulletin makes that the valid point that:

…in a a properly designed Traditional City, most people don’t need bicycles. This is true even today. In cities where people often do not own a car, such as New York or Hong Kong or Paris, these non-car-owning people usually do not own a bicycle either. Or, if they happen to own a bike, they do not use it every day as a transportation device. They get by just fine on foot, and using the transportation options available, especially trains and, if a train is not available, a bus. Occasionally a taxi. A bike is best as a least-desirable option, for those trips that are too long to walk comfortably, and not convenient by either train or bus. Ideally, these would be as few as possible, as a well-designed city should be a place where you can easily walk or ride a train (a bus if you have to) just about everywhere.

Excuse or solution

At Commute by Bike:

Come on now. I know that you think of yourself as a bike commuter. But all too often something gets in the way. As a small business owner who also likes calling himself a bike commuter, I’ve become quite familiar with all of the reasons (excuses) that it often seems much easier to take the car instead.

Just slow the f— down

UK’s Telegraph reports that one of Britain’s most senior police refers to speeding as “middle-class anti-social behaviour” that “all seems OK until something tragic happens, like their child dies because of a road traffic accident”.

But it is her criticism of motorists that is likely to cause controversy. Many motorists who are caught speeding complain that they are “soft” targets used to produce funds — speeding fines raise about £100 million a year — and that the police should be targeting serious criminals instead.

Hmm, there aren’t too many things more serious than placing the lives of random strangers in danger, I would have thought.

[twitterer]

Broads and bikes

No, no, no—The Broads. I remember Griff Rhys Jones talking about The Broads on his Rivers series, and I thought that they’d probably have some good cycling around there. Well, apparently they do: The Broads By Bike.

Chicks and bikes

Cyclepassion calendar [twitterer]

Flash mobs are so last year

And Queen’s “Bicycle Race” has been overdone, but still: bike flashmob Central Station Brussels. [twitterer]

Geez, was there anyone left there actually watching that?

This I do not understand

According to Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage the good burghers of that city want to change local laws “to make cyclists liable for accidents if they are hit while crossing a roadway”. What the hell…?

The bike economy

Sydney’s bike economy booms—so is it the beginning of a boom or the peak of a passing fad?

Designs

Forkless Bicycle Design by Olli Erkkila. Fork me, that’s a cool bike!
This electic bike is not for your granny—or maybe it is to her taste? [twitterer]
Ooh, shiny! Cyglo Bike Tires with Embedded LEDs [twitterer]

Driving makes you fat

Does commuting by car make you fat?

It’s a simple equation: Exercise more and lose weight. Still, many people spend most of their time either behind a desk or driving to or from where that desk is located. A few states buck that trend with large cities that allow for more walking, biking, and commuting via public transportation, but are their citizens any more fit?

I dunno about you, but I find that visualisation a little hard to follow…

Let’s get political

Tony Abbott. Not the Man. [via Melbourne Cyclist]

Long-distance relationship

TechNewsDaily reports on the “jogging over distance” system that takes the best interactive elements of computer games to make mere “exercise” more like sports and therefore more fun.

Recording rides a rewarding resolution

Treadly and Me — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 06:18:11 +0000

The best New Year’s Resolution I’ve made in recent times was the decision to get an el cheapo bike computer and start logging my rides. I started keeping a complete record during 2008, and I found it an interesting and satisfying diversion.

That cheap speedometer has died and been replaced by something a bit more hardy, reliable and accurate (although I have gone down the cheapskate’s route again with the clock I’ve just put on the Dahon). I think my key learning here would be to avoid wireless gadgets unless you’re really prepared to pay a big whack. On reflection, I can’t see too much benefit in having a wireless speedo.

In terms of records, I have no shame: I’m prepared to log any and every ride regardless of how short in distance or easy in effort. I don’t care—it’s all distance under my wheels. (That said, even if I’m making a quick run down to the shops, I’ll generally take the scenic route home to stretch it out to 5–10km.) Hey, I’m not in competition with anyone and the records are for my information and entertainment. I’m certainly not out to impress anyone!

A quick look around the Interweb suggests that there is no shortage of computerised tools, both online and desktop, to help the cyclist maintain good records. In no particular order, here are a few that I’ve stumbled across—naturally, they all provide different variations on the central theme of recording one’s effort:

Online

bikejournal.com: Billing itself as “a convenient and fun way to track your rides and meet other cyclists for camaraderie, motivation, and even competition”, bikejournal.com is my log of choice. Slightly daggy interface, but its functionality is pretty well developed.; (If you’re a bikejournal.com user, look me up and get me onto your ‘buddy’ list.)
comotivate: A social networking site that aims to help you “achieve your goal with the perfect buddy”, it’s not specifically about cycling but if you have a training goal to reach, this could be the place to try.
My Cycling Log: “My Cycling Log is an online diary for recording your rides, whether you are training for your next race or keeping track of your daily commute. The goal of My Cycling Log is to make this process quick, clean, and easy.” For some reason, I think this one looks pretty good—must give it a test run.
dailymile: “Dailymile is the easiest way to share your training with friends and stay motivated.” Looks like a fairly new contender, with all the Web 2.0 gloss that we’ve come to expect these days.
velog: “Velog is a simple place to log your bicycle rides and connect with others in the cycling community.” It’s more Twitter-for-cyclists than a serious stats tool, but if you’re not big into analysis it could be the thing for you.
netCyclist.com: There are both desktop and online versions of this tool that “allows users to easily maintain ride logs, chart training progress, and tracking bicycle maintenance”.
WinningStats.com: “This logging system allows athletes and coaches to track their personal or team stats.”
MapMyRide.com: Route mapping system that also provides logging features.
BikeIT: “BikeIT is a fully configurable training diary that allows you to enter both personal and ride details, then only your imagination will limit your analysis, graphs and reporting.” The IT in BikeIT is definitely short for “Info Tech”—this one has a very geeky look to it.
BikeTracker.com: …”is an Exercise / Dieting Weight Loss tracking tool that keeps you motivated and in shape!”
voomaxer: “Record and visualize your training data”; “Determine what you did leading up to your top performances”; “Know which equipment you perform best using”; “Map your training routes with Google Maps integration”; “Track your weight, sleep times, heart rate, and more…”; Appears to have integration to Facebook, if that sort of thing turns you on.
Progress Log: “Progress log has been created to give athletes a convenient online training log to keep track of their running, cycling & swimming activities. Progresslog.com includes tools to keep track of your rides and runs with more disciplines to come as the site grows.”

Desktop

And if you prefer to keep it offline:

CycliStats: “This powerful, easy-to-use bicycle ride diary and training log will help you get the most out of the sport you love. With CycliStats you can quickly and easily track all of the important information about your rides.” Windows software.
iSMARTtrain: “iSMARTtrain is a powerful and flexible application that allows all levels of athletes and fitness enthusiasts to get the most from their training and racing. It allows you to easily and quickly track your training, monitor your progress, and built a history of your training.” Mac OSX software.
ProLog Cycling: “Written for roadies by a roadie. A while ago I set out to find a good cycling log for the serious cyclist and found nothing to fill the void. I decided to write my own log using Microsoft Excel and this is the result.” Microsoft Excel required.
CycleAtlas: “CycleAtlas is a free, open-source software for managing track rides, mainly intented [sic] for cycling and other open air sports.” Java software.

Paper and pencil

PersonalLogs: Personlised cycling log books. Order online.

The idea of keeping an exercise log certainly ain’t new, but even if (like me) you’re not an athlete and your riding is about having fun and/or just getting somewhere, there’s still some enjoyment to be had in watching the miles pile up each day or sitting back at the end of the year and saying, “Did I really ride that far? FIGJAM!”

Speedlinking 10 November 2008

Treadly and Me — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 07:39:47 +0000

How dare those cyclists get on the freeway and hold up all that traffic?!?

What’s so funny?

Funny and Bizarre Bicycles—they all look pretty good to me! [thanks tom]

cycle2max reloaded

I see that cycle2max has had a revamp.

Lock innovation

A bike lock the ‘explodes’ on a thief. [thanks tom]

Don’t mess with orange mesh

A community service announcement by Tony A on Sydney Cyclist.

For what it’s worth, I always give stuff like this a wide berth—and now I’m extra glad that I do!

The joy of cycling in the rain

Two bloggers who I regularly read, Surly Dave and kimbofo, have both been caught in the rain lately. Neither complained about it. On the contrary, they seemed to enjoy it.

Compare and contrast

Original video [via just about everyone]
Remix [via velorution]

Either way, it’s a cool advert.

Finding the right motivation

A running friendship saves the life of one pal.

Remember

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims is on 16 November this year:

Initiated by RoadPeace in 1993, this day is now globally recognized with the adoption by the UN General Assembly on 26th October 2005 of a resolution to recognize the third Sunday in November of every year as the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, as an “appropriate acknowledgement for victims of road traffic crashes and their families”

[via velorution]

Big black box

Make your own Traffic Loop Sensor Activator complete with big black box and red ~~DESTROY~~ activate button. [via core77]

Volunteer

From the Bicycle Film Festival:

We still have a few spots left to fill in our crack team of bicycle loving volunteers. Roles include ushering, box office, bicycle valet parking, bar work (RSA preferred but not essential), bussing, merchandise sales and front of house. The Bicycle Film Festival requires minimum 4- hour / maximum 7 hour shifts, minimum 21-hour commitment. Apart from taking part in the most awesome festival taking place in Melbourne this year, BFF vollies will receive an invitation to the VIP and Volunteer closing party on Monday 24 November, a Melbourne BFF t-shirt designed by Lisa Gorman, food on every shift, a gift from the Bicycle Film Festival and a reference from Ambiguous Horse.

See the BFF site for contacts.

Speedlinking 8 September 2008

Treadly and Me — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 03:15:41 +0000

You little —!

Take a look at the photos in this blog post and before reading any of the comments, try to work out who’s doing what wrong.

Melbourne, anti-bike city

I was put onto the story of Mark Beaumont’s cycling around the world record attempt by kimbofo. I was really interested in his views on Melbourne: he identified my home town as the most anti-cyclist city he’d ever been in. And as he reached 12,000km for this trip while he was in Australia, I think he know whereof he speaks. He describes non-stop road rage and aggro as he rode across the city. Sad really.

Anyway, I’ll be interested to see how his story comes up on TV, when it finally gets shown here (probably around 2013…)

Roll-your-own

So, you think this might not work: roll-over bike?

Well, some nutcases out there have produced very similar machines that seem to work pretty well, if you’re into that sort of thing. For example:

[Thanks tom]

Snobbery

Noted in a recent issue of RoadBikeRider.com newsletter:

“An RBR poll indicated that only 1/3 of the respondents think that BMX racing is a good addition to the Olympics. As a roadie for over 30 years, road cycling is my passion. However, my son and daughter got involved in BMX racing in 1998 when they were 13 and 10, respectively. I even competed (if you can call it that) for 3 years until I finally decided that my speed was far greater than my skill and, therefore, I was a serious danger to myself and everyone else.

“I assure you that this is a real sport and the racers (pros, kids and old guys/gals) are some of the toughest, most dedicated athletes you’ll ever see. For most of the kids, this is their first exposure to competitive cycling. Many will go on to MTB racing, road racing/crits or track.

“BMX is a great addition to the Olympics! Don’t be a snob; if it can be done on a bike, it’s good.”

Sadly, I can believe that two-thirds of roadies would look down on BMX and consider it not worthy of “Olympic” status. But I agree with the writer: any time spent doing anything on a bike is time well spent—and who knows where those fit and confident cyclists will end up?

Drive me crazy

Say goodbye to bike chains; say hello to belt drives. Maybe. [Thanks tom]

Exercise for the brain

Putting new meaning into the old saying use it or lose it,

New Australian research seems to have proven for the first time that walking can help the memory and perhaps even delay the onset of dementia.

Researchers say if the onset of dementia could be delayed by just 12 months, 9 million fewer people would be living with the condition around the world.

A University of Western Australia study has found that walking for a total of two-and-a-half hours a week can lessen memory problems in the over 50s.

If this works with cycling as well, then if I didn’t ride I’d be a complete dribbling idiot. (No comments accepted on the topic of my dribbling idiocy!)

Alpine Classic open for business

In case you hadn’t noticed, the Audax Alpine Classic is open for bookings.

Tram service, 1999

The Sunday Age reported yesterday:

The number of peak hour tram services operating along some of Melbourne’s busiest routes has fallen since the network was privatised, despite record patronage growth in the same period.

And a privatised public transport system helps the travelling public how, exactly?

Dave calls it a day

I’m really pretty lazy and erratic in my reading of blogs, but there are a few that I like to return to regularly. For this I keep a “Check these daily” category in my RSS reader, and on that short list is Dave Moulton’s blog. But no more: Dave’s calling it a day. Good on him for knowing when the time is right to let things go (at least he didn’t pad out his blog with endless “list of links” entries like some other hack I could name).

But never say never, and hope springs eternal that he may be tempted to say something occasionally, and if he does it will be worth reading. So I think I’ll keep his blog in my RSS reader, just in case.

Pedal-powered Pong?

Treadly and Me — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 10:05:43 +0000

I’m really not sure what to make of Fisher-Price’s Smart Cycle Physical Learning Arcade System—that’s an exercise bike connected to a video game console to you and me.

We know that some kids (including some rather mature ‘kids’) can sit there forever happily twiddling a joystick. I suppose some would have us believe that the computer game is solely responsible for our current generation of sedentary, obese little fatty-boobahs. So making them pedal for their fun is an interesting idea and one with some merit.

I’ve really got nothing against video games (I did spent a fair bit of my yoof in front of a screen) but I’d be far happier to see kids spending some of their time outside really riding bikes. Or kicking a ball. Or chasing each other. Or climbing trees. Or throwing stones. You know, having a childhood.

And I notice that it is still possible for them to straddle the Smart Cycle and…sit there forever happily twiddling a joystick. Hmm, I wonder what games the little pork sausages will opt for in the long term?

Something that bugs me about this ‘system’ is that it could possibly make a kid quite a physically strong rider without helping them develop any corresponding street smarts. We don’t tend to give kids enough credit—I reckon they’re pretty good at telling reality and TV/video games apart—but for the reality of riding, split-second timing and a full awareness of one’s surroundings is critical (even on off-road trails). It’s not a video game, and you don’t get three lives. And this exercise bike is not going to help kids develop those skills. But in fairness, I’m quibbling—it’s clearly not intended to be a cycling trainer and any exercise that kids get is great.

While I’m on a roll, surely some parents could do with a bit more exercise too. Why not spend the same amount of money getting a hitch bike and hitting the trails together?

But it could be worse, I suppose—at least it’s not a kiddie treadmill:

Now there’s an idea that truly sucks.

So, with Chri$tma$ just around the corner, will you be slapping down the dough to get a Smart Cycle for a child that you love? Or will it be the hitch bike?