From Keds To Pajamas To...Bicycles

 "They shall beat their swords into ploughshares " comes from the book of Isaiah.  It's been used as a metaphor for a transition from one industry or economy or another.  The real transition, of course, is in the way resources are in the types of resources, and the ways they are, used.  

An example was 5 Pointz, an old water meter factory converted to artists' studios in Long Island City, just four kilometers from my apartment. Its owner also held a competition every year to decide which artists would grace its exterior with mural art.  It actually became a tourist attraction; people would ride the 7 train from Manhattan just to see the building as the train made its turn from Court House Square to Queensboro Plaza.

Sometimes I fall into the cynicism that tells me if I like something enough, it won't last.  In this case, that jadedess was justified:  The owner sold the property, tore down the factory and build just what this city--and the world--needs:  two luxury condominium towers, which kept the name "5 Pointz."

But some property-use conversions are more welcome.  I am thinking of what David and Louise Stone have done in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.  Their Bicycle Recycle shop, like other similar programs, "rescues" used bikes and either refurbishes them or strips them for parts to repair other bikes.  Some of those bikes are sold; others are donated.  And some of the the bikes and parts are used to train volunteers who work with them.  Their work, they say, is motivated by their knowledge that bicycles can change lives.

What might be most unusual about them--aside from the fact that they started Bicycle Recycle when they were of a certain age--is their location.  Yes, it's was a factory. What it made, and what distinguished it, seems about as incongruous for a bicycle-related enterprise as anything can be.

The name says it all:  The Pajama Factory.  Today it houses other businesses and artists' studios, in addition to Bicycle Recycle.  But it wasn't any old pajama factory: It was the largest of its kind, where, starting in 1934,  the Weldon Pajama Company  produced more of the garments than any other facility in the world. (Was Williamsport ever described as a "sleepy" town? Sorry, I couldn't resist that one!)  

The complex, however, dates to half a decade before the first sleepwear was made in it.  The Lycoming Rubber Company, a subsidiary of the US Rubber Company, built it between 1883 and 1919 as a place to manufacture their tennis, gym and yachting shoes--and their most famous product, Keds sneakers--in addition to other rubber goods.

From Keds to pajamas to recycled bikes--that's certainly an interesting trajectory.  And the Stones sound like interesting people.

Driver Rolls Coal, Cyclists Treated Like Invasive Species

A recent incident has cyclists "arguing that consequence-free way to kill someone in Texas is to do it with a car."  

So wrote Dug Begley in yesterday's Houston Chronicle.  He was referring to the inaction of law enforcement officials against a 16-year-old who "rolled coal"--accelerated and passed a group of cyclists in order to blow black exhaust on them--then whipped around and plowed into another group of riders, injuring six of them.

The driver stopped and talked to police, but it's clear that his actions were intended to at least intimidate, and at worst to maim or kill, cyclists.  He cannot plausibly claim he "didn't see them," as Begley describes the road as "ramrod straight" and the weather was sunny, with scarcely a cloud anywhere, on Saturday morning when he struck.

Cyclists on the Bluebonnet Express Ride in 2012, near the site where a young man plowed into a group of cyclists on Saturday.  Photo by Patric Schneider

While other jurisdictions are starting to take incidents against cyclists more seriously, BikeHouston executive director Joe Cutrufo says that cyclists in his area are "treated like an invasive species" when, in fact, we "have every right to use the roads."

I hope that Waller County police and prosecutors acknowledge as much, and to treat the driver as someone who committed assault with a deadly weapon.

What Would The Wright Brothers Have Done?

Photo by Cornelius Frolik

Two New York City boroughs, the Bronx and Queens, had similar histories and patterns of development, at least until the 1970s.  During that decade, fires ravaged parts of the Bronx, and others areas of the borough were gutted by de-industrialization and disinvestment, both by the city and private entities.  Still, the Bronx has more buildings and districts considered historically significant—some with landmark designation—than Queens has.  In fact, there are more Art Deco buildings in the Bronx than anywhere else in the United States except Miami.

One  reason why the Bronx has more historically significant buildings is, ironically, that the devastation of the 1970s discouraged developers from coming into the Bronx—and, as they are wont to do, tear buildings down.  On the other hand, during that time, Queens had a Borough President—Donald Manes—who never met a developer he didn’t like and had absolutely no interest in historic preservation.

I mention all of this because whenever a building is suggested for preservation, there is a debate about what, exactly, makes a structure historically significant and to what lengths should a city, county or other entity go to preserve it.

Specifically, both questions are being debated about 1005 West Third Street in Dayton, Ohio.  The city government wants to tear down the building because its internal structures have deteriorated after decades of disuse and neglect.  “It could collapse tonight, it could stand for another three years—nobody knows,” says Don Zimmer, Dayton’s nuisance abatement program supervisor.  

The Dayton Landmarks Commission has, however, denied the city’s request to tear it down.  They, along with Preservation Dayton, argue that at least  the building’s exterior could be preserved, which might entice a would-be investor.

So why are they debating about this particular building?  It’s not because the edifice was home to Gem City Ice Cream Co., as significant as that might be to some people in the area.  Rather, it has to do with GCICC’s predecessor:  a bike shop.

Specifically, it was home to the Wright Brothers’ first bicycle shop.  Yes, those Wright Brothers—who based much of their first successful aircraft’s design on their bicycles.

One wonders what they would do about the building.

Who's Directing The Ride?

 As I've mentioned in earlier posts, I've ridden tandems only a couple of times in my life.  I can't, therefore, claim to understand the relationships between members of a tandem-riding "couple," some of whom are indeed married or otherwise enjoined.

Somehow I imagine that in at least some tandem-riding couples, one member serves as the navigator.  In some ensembles, the "captain"--the rider in front--is directing the ride and the person in back is mainly supplying muscle power, while other pairings include a "stoker"--the person in the rear--who navigates.

I got to thinking about those relationships when I came across this:

Can A Bicycle Make Your Life 15 Percent Better?

Almost nobody would dispute that receiving a bicycle will improve an impoverished person's lot in life.  But  by how much?

Dave Schweidenback, founder and CEO of Pedals for Progress, has an answer:  "Every one of those bikes represents a minimum 15 percent increase of income for the individual who gets it."

He was referring specifically to the bikes the Green Mountain Returned Peace Corps volunteers are collecting for Pedals for Progress, who is sending them to Guatemala and other developing countries.  But his claim is probably valid in reference to bikes donated to just about anyone, anywhere, whose income-earning (and, in many cases, educational) opportunities are constricted by a lack of transportation.  I would imagine that receiving a bicycle would enable not only people going to regular jobs in stores, factories, offices or other sites, but also folks who weave, sew, cook, bake, carve, paint or practice other crafts--many of whom are women-- and sell their wares.  They could use bicycles to bring their work, say, to a marketplace or to deliver to people's homes.

Dave Schweidenback, founder and CEO of Pedals for Progress, with the 150,000th bike collected.

Speaking of which:  The Vermont-based Peace Corps group is  collecting, in addition to bicycles, used sewing machines.  I would imagine that while a bicycle might increase someone's income by 15 percent, it--or a sewing machine-- might allow someone else in an impoverished area to work in the first place.

He Says We're Charity Cases

When laws or policies are enacted so that members of "minority" groups can love and marry whomever their hearts desire, get jobs commensurate with their education and skills, and live in communities they can afford--and where their children will enjoy the same opportunities as their majority-culture peers--some folks whine that we're getting "special privileges."

This phenomenon is, sadly, hardly unique to the US.  It persists in other places, though the "minority" group in question might be different.  And the fear and resentment echoed in that complaint might be expressed in different language or other ways.

An example Patrick Lefevere's answer when presented with the idea of starting a women's cycling team in the manner of Movistar, FDJ or Trek-Segafredo.  The Decuninick-Quickstep team boss, widely regarded as the most succesful cycling team manager in history, hails from Belgium, arguably the most cycling-intense country in the world.  So, if anyone seemed a likely candidate to launch a top-tier women's team, he would be the one.

So how did he respond?  "I'm not the OMCW"--a Belgian welfare organization.

To be fair, he claimed he doesn't have "the experience, time, money or desire" for such an undertaking.  Perhaps his pockets aren't as deep (or it's more expensive to start a team)  and the time commitment in running a team is greater, than we suspected. Also, he's 66 years old, so he may want to spend whatever time he has on other pursuits--or his grandkids.  

But his experience?  While female racers differ from their male counterparts, I think someone like him can spot talent and train people.

Belgian Team Liv member celebrates her victory ahead of Elisa Longo Borghini in La Vuelta Stage 4 (Getty Images)

Again, in the interests of fairness, I should point out that he doesn't know how to convince someone with the requisite talent and skills to become a professional cyclist--a pursuit that, at times, has more in common with the life of a monk or nun than a rock star.  And, he claims that there's a chasm between the level of Belgian female cyclists and their peers in neighboring Netherlands, which has turned out champions like Marianne Vos.

Now, if he'd stuck to his claims about talent levels or what he was able and willing, or not, to commit to a women's team, he at least would have had some credibility.  But to liken such an undertaking to a welfare organization is to say, in essence, that we're charity cases.  We aren't, any more than the US Women's Soccer team is.  

Disrupting Mass Transit--With A Citibike

For me, it was the kind of story that I couldn't believe when I first heard it, three nights ago.  But once it "sank in," I wasn't surprised.

After all, bikes from share programs have ended up in exotic faraway places, at the bottoms of rivers and canals or in "chop shops."  Theft and vandalism killed the bike share program in Rome and nearly did so in other cities.

But the way a Citibike in my home town met its demise--and disrupted transit service in my neighborhood--took aggression against public bike programs to a new level.

At the Steinway Street station--which is the second-closest subway stop to my apartment--someone tossed one of the blue share bikes onto the tracks.

It just happened that two trains, traveling in opposite directions, entered the station.  Whether or not it was the vandal's intention, the bike landed in just the right spot for both trains to hit it, or parts of it.    

Here's the result:

Was the vandal's intention to "blow up" Citibike--or the subway system?   

Vision Of A Ride At The Autumn Equinox

Today the Autumnal Equinox comes to the Northern Hemisphere.  For those of you on the other side of the line, the Spring Equinox is getting sprung on you.

While I envy those of you who are about to enjoy more daylight every day, I also look forward to riding through crisp autumn air and into vibrant sunsets.  And, as much as I love the city, I hope to leave it for a weekend or two now that there are fewer travel restrictions.

Here is a vision of something I'd like to see on a ride:

It's in Vicksburg, Michigan, but I know there are red barns, weathering and weathered, closer to the Big Apple.   

Driver Accused Of Causing Cyclist To Crash

Just about any person, place, thing or state of being can be a tool or a weapon.  Included in the latter category are advanced age and the knowledge and wisdom it brings--for some people, anyway.  Among the "things" are the pharmaceuticals and the automobile and its many safety and convenience features.

Age, pharmaceuticals, the automobile and one of its features in particular came together to endanger the life of a cyclist in Gerry, an Erie County, New York town near the Pennsylvania border.

Dale Reynolds of Meadville, Pennsylvania was driving along Route 60 when he flashed his high beams at a cyclist traveling in the opposite directions.  High beams, of course, can be useful in dire situations, when the weather is brutish and visibility is poor. But those same lights are too often used to bully and otherwise intimidate cyclists, pedestrians and other drivers.

According to New York State police, Reynolds showed "multiple signs" of drug impairment, which resulted in his arrest.  Oh, and he's 82 years old.  I'm not saying that there should be a cut-off age for driving.  But I think there should be more frequent and stringent testing of senior citizens' reaction times and other cognitive abilities if they are to be allowed to continue driving.  You have to wonder, not only about Reynolds' reflexes, or his judgment:  He ought to know, at this late date, not to drive while impaired.

The failed sobriety tests resulted in his arrest for impaired driving--and causing the cyclist at whom he flashed his high beams to crash.  Gerry EMS workers took the cyclist to a local hospital as a precaution,  while Reynolds was taken to the State Police Barracks in Jamestown, where he was processed, charged, released and scheduled to appear in Gerry Court later this month.

While there are cyclists who ride carelessly and flout laws, my four decades-plus of cycling have shown me that drivers are too often not held to account for endangering, deliberately or not, cyclists.  While I am not hoping for a long prison sentence for an 82-year-old man, I am hoping that Reynolds gets whatever help and treatment he needs and, if necessary, his driving privileges restricted or revoked.

He’s 78 And Rides A Bike—But Doesn’t Have “Stamina”

 The folks at Fox News want to have it both ways.

On one hand, Faux News contributor Rachel Campos Duffy accused President Joe Biden of being “too old” and not having the “physical or mental stamina” for his job.  The evidence?  He went for a bike ride in his home state of Delaware while “crises” raged in his country and the world.

What’s even more ludicrous is that she compared Biden’s actions to those of his predecessor, Donald Trump, claiming he “worked those long, long hours” and had “impromptu hour-long pressers with the media.”

Ok, so Joe went for a bike ride.  Donnie spent lots of time golfing—or simply hanging out on his golf courses.  Now tell me:  Which activity requires more stamina?

Also, look at all of the time T-rump spent on Twitter. How much stamina does that require ?

Oh, and Biden works out five days a week and his medical records show no major health problems. El Cheeto Grande, on the other hand, is said to have nudged his doctor into falsifying his health reports.

As for being “too old:” Biden is keeping up his bike rides and workouts at age 79.  When he took office, he was six years older than the Orange One was when he entered the White House.

I think Ms. Campos-Duffy’s real beef—and that of others in the right-wing media—is that Biden hasn’t held a “presser” since taking office. Trump’s press conferences, on the other hand, were mainly opportunities for self- promotion, or for bullying and belittling anyone who didn’t further his agenda, which begins and ends with himself.

That Biden can be the most powerful and famous person in the world not make it all about him shows me that he has some kind of stamina:  the kind one needs to have self-discipline.  Maybe the bike riding has something to do with it .