Having worked in advertising a bit, I was intrigued by the ongoing debate about the representation of gender in bicycle advertising. At first, I was inclined to be offended too. But then, as I was watching the cyclists in my neighborhood, I realized something: the media really has us women figured out! For example, I saw this very […]
It’s not good to honk at a cyclist because, well, it’s startlingly loud: I can understand the need to communicate, but horns don’t do the trick. But even when some folks use their words, they don’t really do much better… So when find myself the target of horns or yells, I simply don’t respond. They’re […]
I bike pretty much everyday. And biking is great. Until it’s not. Then I have to come to terms with reality. Yes, I biked so much I basically wore out my bike. While I’m flattered to be stronger than metal (apparently,) repairs are always easy to put off. Biking is free, right? Nope. Because if […]
There are many new bike lanes around town. However, just because there’s a bike lane it doesn’t mean that I get to bike in it. For a while I tried flag down cops and ask them to ticket illegally parked cars. But that really didn’t do the trick. However I have a proposal- one that will […]
There are what some folks call “fast girls:” And then there are fast girls: Apparently I’m the latter. And I feel bad sometimes because I really don’t mean any harm. But when the weather is good and I’m in a groove I get carried away. And then I go very fast.
It’s been pretty hot this summer but it’s finally starting to cool off and my energy is starting to return. However, while it is “technically” better biking weather, for me biking is going to get worse before it gets any better. That’s because I live in a city where I pass no less than 5 […]
I don’t know much about designing roads- but I think I know a little about it just from biking around the city. I really think the streets could be designed to better suit everyone’s needs. Maybe something like this: By doing it this way, suddenly all the unpredictable things are predictable and tucked inside neat […]
The other day I was waiting at a red light while a flood cyclists passed by me in every direction. It was a particularly long red, and car traffic was lower than normal. And I’m glad there has been such and increase in biking. However I witnessed several close calls because no one was operating […]
The other day I witnessed a crime… The wheels had “quick-theft” levers and the whole transaction was done in 2 minutes. Which made me wonder how many bikes are lost to poor lock-up jobs just waiting for the wrong person with the right tool to come along… And if that doesn’t happen, there could be […]
When I first started biking the whole routine was unfamiliar. I really didn’t know what I needed but I didn’t want to get caught off guard. I wanted to be prepared for anything. But I found it overwhelming to just get out the door… I didn’t need all that stuff when I drove or took […]