Eric Boehlert's Last Ride

 With his intense, knowing face,  shock of hair at the top of his head and focused eyes behind black-framed glasses, he looked like a combination of a philosopher, Indigenous warrior, surgeon and professor.  

He pretty much had to be all of those things to do what he became known for.  Being a cyclist also helped, I'm sure.  He biked around his hometown, where he "loved living," according to his wife and, she added, wore "protective clothing" and used lights when he rode at night.  

I can well understand why he loved living in Montclair, New Jersey:  It's about 25 miles from New York, my hometown, and has anything one would like about a city and a college town:  cafes, galleries and an active cycling community, of which he was a part.

Note that I am talking about him in the past tense.  On Monday night, he met his end while out for an evening ride.  In one way, his ending was like that of too many cyclists in the Garden State, and elsewhere in the United States:  He was struck by a motorized vehicle.  But said vehicle wasn't a car, bus or truck:  It was a New Jersey Transit commuter train that many of his fellow town residents take to and from New York or Newark.

I wouldn't have been surprised if he'd written or otherwise called attention to some hazard or another for cyclists or pedestrians, or for the need to provide the education and infrastructure that would make those modes of transportation and recreation safer and more enticing as an alternative to driving.  I say that because he spent so much of his life exposing all sorts of hazards and, more important, what brings them into, and continues their, existence.

If your go-to source of (mis)information is Faux, I mean, Fox News, or even if you take everything printed in mainstream media (which, of course, does not include this blog!) at face value, you probably were not a fan of Eric Boehlert.  While he was labeled, usually with justification, as "liberal" or "leftist," he was just as willing to take on the New York Times as OAN and even, at times, the publications for which he wrote and the programs on which he appeared. "We can't fix America if we can't fix the press" was not just a catchy sound-bite; it was his operating philosophy.

As his evening ride was part of his life, to and at the end. I, and his many fans--and fellow cyclists--extend our sympathies to his wife, Tracy Breslin and his kids, Jane and Ben.

Minneapolis Mandates Bike And Scooter Share Equity

The first known public bike-share program began in La Rochelle, France in 1974.  About three decades would pass, however, before other cities in significant numbers would adopt such programs.

Since then, the successes, difficulties and criticisms of bike share schemes have been similar.  In the latter category is the allegation--credible--that share programs were serving only central downtown areas and nearby neighborhoods where the young and affluent live and shop.  

Since then, some cities have tried, with varying degrees of success, to make share bikes available to older, poorer--and sicker--residents.  I've seen Citibike ports by city housing projects whose residents, for a variety of reasons, are more likely to have chronic and acute health conditions (including COVID-19) than other New Yorkers.  Rides and memberships have been made more affordable, or even free, for residents and others who receive public benefits in an effort to improve their health and transportion options.

Photo by Jeff Wheeler, for the Star-Tribune

Minneapolis, it seems, is going even further than most other cities.  Its "Nice Ride" share bikes and scooters will return to the city's streets in the middle of this month.  The city has just signed new contracts with vendors (Lime and Spin for scooters, Lyft for bikes, e-bikes and scooters).  What is interesting, and possibly unique (at least for now) about the new arrangement is that it attempts to remedy the problem I mentioned.  

According to the agreement, the vendors must distribute at least 30 percent of their scooters in Equity Distribution Areas of north and south Minneapolis.  A maximum of 40 percent of vendors' scooters are allowed in downtown and surrounding neighborhoods.

But the contract goes even further: All of the vendors are required to offer low-income pricing arrangements.   It also includes incentives for the operators to provide more parking infrastructures, including bike racks, parking stations and on-street corrals.  Moreover, the vendors are mandated to provide ongoing education and outreach on safe riding and parking behavior, and on state laws for motorized and manual scooters.

It will be interesting to see what comes of these efforts.  If anything, they sound like more integrated efforts than those in most other cities to provide a true alternative transportation infrastructure that includes bicycles.  As I've said in other posts, bike lanes and share programs, by themselves, don't make for an infrastructure that will encourage people to trade four wheels for two, at least for local trips.

The Constables' Response Boiled Someone's Bacon

 In January, I wrote about a British judge who, in sentencing two thieves, took into account that each of the bicycles they swiped costs more than many automobiles.  His thinking on this matter is more advanced than that of just about any of his counterparts in the US, or almost any American law enforcement officer.

In that post, I also expressed the hope that his insight also includes other effects of bicycle theft on the people who lose their machines.  While I empathise with the shop owner who loses multiple bikes with five-figure price tags, like the one who was victimized by the perps the judge sentenced, similar incidents probably don't comprise the vast majority of bike thefts.  More often, I imagine, those episodes include the nurse, teacher, store employee, student or someone else who locks their bike to a street sign outside their place of work or study in the morning and returns to find said sign sans velo at the end of the day.  Those incidents also include folks whose garages, sheds or homes are broken into and who may also lose other items or cash along with their bikes.

The latter scenario unfolded in Windsor.  As in the Duke Of.  The unfortunate property owner lost a Trek Madone with a graphite-colored Land Rover and other high-monetary value items.  In response, Thames Valley police tweeted an appeal for help in finding the bike.  Their message included a description, taken from surveillance videos, of the thieves and their getaway vehicle:  a white Audi A3 with plate number GN64 XMM.  

That message "boiled my bacon," in the words of one respondent.  For one thing, that person complained about the constables heading the tweet with the title "high value burglary" so that "some resident who is very very well off for a bob or three can pull strings!"

That respondent has a point, and amplified it with this, "Yet a local fella in Caversham has his electric bike stolen while in Reading and he can ill-afford to replace it until he's saved up enough earnings, and Thames Valley Police weren't interested."

That person has a great point.  While some ride electric bikes for pleasure or to commute to school or well-paying jobs, if the situation in England is anything like it is here in New York, I imagine that the majority of electric bikes are used by delivery workers.  Most of them are immigrants who speak English not well or at all and have few, if any, marketable skills or credentials recognized in their adopted country.  Therefore, as the person who reacted to the bobbies' tweet pointed out, they either save for their machines or buy them on credit or an installment plan, whether payment arrangements are made with their employer or bike dealer.

And the student or worker who parks and loses a battered old ten- or three-speed is losing his or her means of transportation and, possibly recreation or fitness.  Such things are often more important, especially where mass transportation is spotty or unreliable and for people who may not have the spare funds to join a gym or for other recreational activities.

I think the judge I mentioned in my earlier post and whoever reacted to Thames Valley Police tweet should get together and preside over a court for bike theft!

This Pyschologist Doesn't Think We're Crazy

If you cycle because you want to, non-cyclists probably have referred to you by any number of adjectives and epithets.  One of them might be "crazy."

I'll admit that I actually called one of my fellow cyclists "crazy."  So, however, did other members of our "crew."  Actually, Ray Tirado wasn't crazy so much as he was fearless and seemingly incapable of feeling physical pain. (All right, some might argue that such a combination of traits might add up to a listing or two in the DSM.) Most of our rides together were off-road and he made jumps and descents that, even when I still had most of my insecurity and testosterone, I wouldn't have dared.  Even on a straightaway on a the road, under a clear sky with the wind at our backs, I could see that his attitude toward riding, and life, was different from anything I could imagine.

That said, I admire him to this day.  Even though he seemed to be riding "gonzo," whether on off his bike, he always seemed to understand who he is--which meant that the risks he took weren't just acts of hubris:  He was pushing his boundaries because he understood what they were and didn't want them to be boundaries any more.

I must admit that, to this day, I value few compliments I've ever received  for anything more than the ones he gave me for my riding (!) and "for being you," as he once said.  "You know why you ride, or do anything you do."

He got half of that statement right.  To this day, I sometimes do things without knowing why.  Cycling is not one of them, which is why it's one of the few things I can't imagine my life without.

You see, after half a century of dedicated riding--which has included commuting, touring, racing, messenger work, riding on and off the road in all kinds of conditions in about two dozen different countries--I can say that I understand the risks of sluicing through city traffic, barreling down a rocky hill or pedaling into the teeth of a mistral as well as anyone.

And I know, as "Crazy Ray" surely did, that those risks are outweighed by the benefits, not the least of which are the ones for our mental health.  One of the world's most influential people also understands as much--which is why he got me to thinking about Ray.

He's just published his latest book, Rationality:  What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters.  One way you know he's an academician is that the book title has a colon in it. But he's more than that:  a real intellectual, a thinker.  That means that, as much as he enjoys cycling, it's not an unconscious or reflexive act for him.  "Given the value you put on your life and the fact that there's even a very small probability of getting killed," he asks, "does it outweigh the pleasure and health benefits of continuing to ride?"

Steven Pinker.  

The people who can't understand why we ride are usually focused on the first part of his question:  the risk.  But Steven Pinker, a Harvard psychologist who specializes in psycholinguistics and social relations, has been thinking about why he rides for as long as he's been riding. For example, as a kid, he tried to understand how he could remain upright while riding, which would lead him to learn about the brain's workings and how they relate to Newton's law of gravity.  Also, while growing up, he heard about men--including three uncles and several of his father's friends--dying prematurely of heart attacks.  So, he says, as a young man he resolved to keep himself in good cardiovascular health.  His studies in neuroscience would confirm the wisdom of his choice:  "physical exercise is one of the best ways to extend brain health."

So, the Harvard researcher and my old riding buddy--who, by the way, was a plumber--would agree on this:  Riding a bicycle is as about as rational as anything a human being can do.
 

Riding From Hunger

 When you reach a certain age, you see young people who don't ride nearly as much or eat as well as you do, but are skinnier.

Here is one possible explanation:

This came from a New Yorker series, "Cyclist Hand Signals and Their Meanings," by David Ferrier.

I have to admit that I never worked an unpaid internship.  But I have worked for very little money and, like the cyclist in the illustration, survived on food not bought in my local bodega!

Yes, Bicycling Helps You To Achieve Balance

Because I was brought up working-class, and have spent much of my life teaching people from backgrounds similar to or poorer than my own--including immigrants and refugees--I am aware that many people have talents and skills that go unrecognized and, therefore, unrewarded.

A recent encounter reminded me of that.  I was pedaling away from a Dollar Tree store when I saw a woman--from Senegal, I think (How do you tell a Senagalese?  In Yoruba or French, of course!)--balancing a load on her head. Many girls and women do the same every day, in that woman's native country and others but their ability to balance, not to mention their strength is almost never translated into cycling, in part because girls and women are discouraged of even forbidden from riding.  Such skills are also not transferred to remunerative activities because women are similarly discouraged or forbidden from work that pays as well or better than their husbands', brothers' or uncles', or any paid work at all.

To be fair (After all, I'm trans:  I have to see all sides of the argument!), many boys and men have skills and talents that aren't validated, let alone valued, because those talents and skills weren't incubated in the walls of prestigious or even state-recognized academies, universities and other institutions. The lucky ones, at least here in the US, became rappers, break dancers, graffiti artists, BMX riders, skateboard stunt performers and the like.  

To the list of such folks we can add this man in India:

A commenter described him as a "human Segway with a built-in gyroscope."  He reminds me of people I saw in Cambodia, Laos and in the Turkish countryside, who carried loads in every imaginable way while riding their bicycles.  I even see cyclists here in my native city, lugging bags almost as large as themselves (or so it seems) full of recyclable cans and bottles.  As much as I like the speed and spectacle of racing, and enjoy riding a finely-tuned bike, I actually have more respect for people who carry--without the newest panniers or backpacks--whatever they need to transport from Point A to Point B.

A Bike Lane Like No Other

In Florida, the Palm Beach County Department of Transportation has announced plans for a new protected bike lane.

This new ribbon for riders will link the Palm Beach Barrier Island with mainland Palm Beach County.  It will include a new segregated lane along the Royal Park Bridge.

The stretch along the barrier island will include what promises to be the "most amazing" cyclists' cafe, which will offer new, exclusive versions of Garmin as well as varieties of coffee, tea and other libations that won't be available anywhere else.  

That part of the route also offers easy access to a golf course, with free bicycle parking, although a PBCDT spokesperson admitted that few cyclists will avail themselves to that amenity.

The mainland segment of the bike lane, while not quite as opulent as the island leg, will nonetheless offer many places for cyclists to "fuel up," including some "health-conscious" options. The route will continue along some scenic waterfront roads to the renowned city of Lake Worth, on the a block of South Congress Avenue between Alabama and Ohio Street that "has a lot of character," according to locals.

The PBCDT spokesperson added that the island end of the bike lane will be on South Ocean Boulevard, at the request of one of its most famous residents.  

While plans for this bike lane have been rumored for some time, the PBCDT spokesperson waited until today to announce it, believing "there is no better, more appropriate, day."

Discounts—And Free Housing

 Listen to the news, and you’ll hear employers recount their woes in recruiting workers.  Some are offering incentives, such as cash bonuses  and flexible schedules.

And housing.  At least one employer—a bike shop owner—is offering his next mechanic free use of a house he owns.

Some might think that having some of the world’s most breathtaking scenery as a backdrop to one’s riding—and anything else in one’s life—might be reason enough to take a job at Cycles of Life in Leadville, Colorado.  And, of course, there are the added perks of industry discounts and the opportunity to blend passion and profession.

Turns out, those last two bonuses don’t carry as much currency as they once did.  Cycles of Life proprietor Brian Feddema placed a classified ad for a head mechanic/service manager nearly a month ago in Bicycle Retailer And Industry News (BRAIN).  He is offering free use of the 500 square foot house, within walking distance of the shop, in addition to pay of $20-25 hour and spring and fall performance bonuses, partly in the hope of casting a wider net.  “There is no one currently residing here in Leadville with the knowledge, skill set and drive we need,” he explained.

He once had a mechanic who stayed for seven years until “he moved away with his girlfriend.”  But, he said, mechanics typically stay for a couple of years because “most don’t consider it a profession.”

Jenny Kallista, president  of the Professional Bicycle Mechanics’ Association, said this is the first time she’s heard of an offer like Feddema’s. Ron Sutphin, the United Bicycle Institute president, “can only recall one recruitment offer that included housing.” That one, he said, “was some time ago, in Hawaii,” where the notoriously-expensive housing market is rivaled (at least in the US) only by San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles and perhaps a few other cities.

In addition to the reasons Feddema articulated, I can think of another why he’s offering free housing.  It has to do with another “perk” he can’t offer:  Bike mechanics and shop service managers can’t do their work remotely.

Helping Refugees Settle In--And Get Around

Putain's, I mean Puto's, I mean Putin's invasion of Ukraine has sent a tide of refugees across Europe.  It won't be long, I think, before the waves reach American shores.

Traditionally, refugees, like other arrivals from faraway lands, land in large cities like New York, San Francisco and Chicago that may already have communities of the new arrivals' compatriots.  But more recently, people who've fled wars and other disasters, manmade and otherwise, have been resettled, at least for the time being, in smaller communities away from the major metropoli. One major reason is housing costs, especially for families.  But, I think it might be easier for some folks, especially if they come from small towns or rural areas, to find their way in such communities.

Also, in a smaller city or town, people are more likely to come into contact with new arrivals.  While there might be resistance at first, it might also be easier for longtime residents and emigres to get to know each other--and be willing to help them.

So I was happy, but not surprised, to learn that folks in Owensboro, Kentucky have been collecting, repairing and distributing gently-used bikes to their new neighbors.  

Holly Johnson, a Physical Education teacher in Apollo High School, is also a member of Bicycle Owensboro.  Her organization solicited the donated bikes, and Be Real Sports Cycling & Fitness repaired them.  Owensboro Health donated helmets, lights and locks that will be distributed with the bikes.

Johnson said that recipients will get a safety demonstration, along with information about the Greenbelt and other places to ride in town, with their bikes.  Also, they will fit their bikes and helmets and be sure "they know how the gears on each bike work, and that they understand the local bike signage," she pledged.

Larry Myles, owner of Be Real Sports Cycling & Fitness and a member of Bicycle Owensboro, with a bicycle that will be given to a refugee student.  Photo by Alan Warren, for the Messenger-Inquirer.

She hopes that the bikes will help the students and their families in their everyday lives.  Some of those bikes will be used by more than one person in the family.  So, while the bikes are being distributed as spring break is about to begin, she hopes to do a second round of donations "for younger kids" before the summer.

She understands that the bikes not only provide a means of transportation and recreation, but are also a way for new arrivals to get to know their new surroundings.  That's why, whenever I go to a place where I've never been before, one of the first things I want to do is take a bike ride.

Not The "Right" Setup

If you buy a new bicycle with hand-operated brakes in the United States, it will most likely be set up so that the left lever operates the front brake, and the rear is activated by the right lever.  That setup is that is mandated by the Consumer Products Safety Commission.  My own bikes are set up that way because, even though I am a "minority" in some senses, in another, very important area, I'm very much in the majority: I'm right-handed. (Please don't infer anything about my politics, or any other preference of mine, from that!)

So, I suppose, was whoever made that CPSC regulation.  It makes perfect sense if you're right-handed, because the rear brake is inherently less powerful, in part because of its longer cable, than the front.  Therefore, it takes more hand force to achieve a given level of braking force, or even to modulate, the brake.  

I might also assume that Carol Penkert is right-handed.  She is suing Costco Wholesaler and San Diego e-bike company Phantom because, she says, her machine was set up in violation of CPSC mandates.  But she isn't merely playing a "gotcha!" game.  Rather, she claims, the setup caused her to flip over the handlebars when she hit the brakes.  As a result, she lost her right eye and suffered a number of facial fractures.

She wasn't aware of the setup until the mechanic servicing the damaged bike spotted it.  The suit alleges that Phantom knowingly shipped, and Costco knowingly sold, her the bike, which she bought fully assembled,  without any warning that it had an irregular setup.