[see Biking Bis for a detailed commentary]

Pedalocity

1. the effect of pedaling.

2. a euphoric state of being.

3. the rate at which pedaling reduces one’s carbon footprint.

4. generating energy by expending energy.

Well On Earth [thanks cycleicious]

Waxing lyrical

I’m not sure how I missed this one when it first appeared—Matt Seaton waxes lyrical on cycling:

When asked what their favourite invention of all time is, what do you suppose people say? Mobile phones get some votes; computers, too; iPods, inevitably. And there are always some people who love their car and couldn’t imagine life without it. If it’s a poll conducted by a radio programme, some will generously nominate the transistor for making their listening possible. But what comes out top? The bicycle, every time.

DIY

A DIY rack that stores five bikes [thanks tbagalerts]

Eyewear

As I’ve been known to say before, always protect your eyes while riding. Here’s a discussion on the topic on the randon list.

Hooked and folded

Dang! I think I’m hooked: I keep reading reviews on folding bikes. This time it’s the Dahon Speed TR

Recumbents are the new fixies

Last year, someone, somewhere said that recumbents are the new fixies (yeah, OK take it easy—you’ll note that I couldn’t be bothered tracking down who said it).

Anyway, some joker has gone and taken it literally, combining both: Single Speed Giro “FIXIE”. I notice that he recommends “keeping the extra brakes and not to depend upon leg braking”—important safety tip that. [via Pirates of the Burley Griffin]

Juxtaposition

Two different responses from drivers:

• Why can’t motorists wait two seconds? [Twitter source]

• In Which I Relate an Unusual Happenstance [Twitter source]

Random bike twits

Having just got onto Twitter, this may be just what I need: Bike trade tweeters (or perhaps I’d best avoid it).

Training

AustCycle is the Australian leader in providing cycling training for all people who want to ride bikes for recreation and transport. We help people ride better, more often and more safely.

SMS from Buffalo

This year Audax offered a new “I made It!” SMS notification system at Mt Buffalo for riders in the Alpine Classic:

We are trialing a new SMS service from the Mt Buffalo checkpoint this year where we will sms your family and friends once your Mt Buffalo arrival has been processed.

Hopefully the trial was a success and the service will be offered again in future years because SMS reception on Mt Buffalo is non-existent.

Cost > Income = Loss

Another “genius”, this time at The Seattle Times proposes licensing bicycles:

In these times, something nearly like the Great Depression and a country at war, cyclists may help us by acknowledging their role in the continued maintenance of our city and region. A modest fee, either at time of purchase or annually, would go down well with Seattle’s and King County’s other taxes on our modes of recreation and commuting.

Perhaps his points are valid, although I doubt it, but one aspect he completely misses is the administration costs of a bicycle license scheme, which would almost certainly exceed any income collected.

And lets not go into the fact that a license fee would place yet another barrier in the way of people taking up a low-impact, congestion-reducing transport mode.

[Twitter source]

What was I thinking?

Remember that inopportune snipe by British columnist Matthew Parris at the end of 2007? On the tail-end of it all, a commenter at the Times Online offered a real gem, which I’m happy to repeat here:

Strange isn’t it. When I drive my car, I’m seen as Mister Normal. When I drive my van I’m seen as Mister White Van Man with all that implies. When I ride my bike I’m seen as lawless bunny hugging hooligan with no respect for the law. But all the time I’m the same person using a different vehicle on the public highway. I’m not some crazed outsider on the fringe of society just because I choose to use my bike for some of my journeys, am I? What’s wrong with everyone? Just because it’s illegal to verbally bully ethnic or religious minorities nowadays are you are so desperate that you pick on someone just because of their travel choices? In spite of all the nastiness some people the bike remains for me the most enjoyable form of travel there is. And as a free bonus it keeps my fitness up and my waistline down. Some of you folk should try it sometime. It’s fun.

But it turns out eye protection can be just as effective at keeping out considerably bigger crawlies:

This one hit so hard it jammed itself between the lens and the frame—better there than in the cornea!

[via ligfiets.net]

What’s really bugging me at the moment is…well, bugs. Clouds of the tiny buggers come swooping into my face without any warning. They get in my mouth and up my nose—even in my ears! They get sucked into the air holes in my helmet then wriggle around inside and make my head itch. And on these warm evenings they even splat onto my arms and get stuck to my sweat.

But they don’t get into my eyes. I never ride anywhere without wearing glasses—sunglasses during the day, clear glasses at night—and frankly I can’t understand why anyone would hit the road without eye protection. It must be like driving a car without a windscreen. From insects at dusk to road spray on rainy days to the cloud of dust from a lawn-mower on a windy day (such as I rode through this morning!) there are everyday dangers to the eyes that can be reduced or eliminated by covering up.

That’s not to mention the possible bodily injury that could occur due to being suddenly blinded while on the move. Even momentary disorientation or discomfort due to having something lodged in the eye could be enough to throw a rider off balance and onto the tarmac.

But eye protection doesn’t need to be expensive: my clear “night vision” specs are just a pair of industrial safety glasses that I picked up at the big hardware store for about $13. I figured that the requirements of industrial safety wear—lightweight, comfortable, impact-resistant, wide field of vision—would be pretty much what I needed on the bike. And I was right, they’ve been great and they don’t look too bad either. In fact, I think I’ll go and get some tinted ones for the summer months.

Now if I can just work out how to keep the damn bugs out of my nose and mouth and ears…