We all know that bicycles and cycling have been used to advertised all sorts of products, even those that seem utterly antithetical to the reasons why people ride bikes.
Given that some of the world's most imaginative advertising comes from Italy (That is a completely unbiased statement! ;-)), perhaps it's no surprise to see that this ad aired there some years back:
I love the "halo" around one girl's head. Is it supposed to substitute for a helmets? You have to admit, though, that those girls look great, and that the shot of them descending that hill is really cool.
Now, to a confession: During the time I was riding off-road, I drank more Coca-Cola than I had at perhaps any other time in my adult life. In fact, almost all of the off-road riders--especially those in the then-nascent cult of downhill riding--I knew in those days drank it. Some even carried it in their water bottles (or, later, Camel Backs). As "Crazy Ray", one of the guys I used to ride with, said, "It's rocket fuel!" He was right: Humans can't ingest very many other things that will give as much of a rush of sugar and caffeine as the "Pause That Refreshes" can. Remember that back in those days, Starbucks' stores were just starting to open in this part of the US, and they hadn't yet introduced many of the hyper-caffeinated sugar bombs that teenagers and hipsters line up, and pay good money, for.
Of course, given that the ad is Italian, it's easy to read a lot into the "si, si, si" refrain of that ad!
Very few things in this world make me as happy as I am when I see cherry blossoms in bloom.
This year, they seem especially full and vibrant. Perhaps it's because they opened their flowers a bit later than they normally do (or so it seems). Or, they may seem so bright because Spring came late and the winter, though not exceptionally cold or snowy, seemed interminably gray.
Anyway, I didn't have my regular camera with me when I rode to work today. So, I used my cell phone to capture the radiance of these cherry blossoms:
While perusing the web, I came across a blog that featured photos like this one:
There hasn't been a new post on "Busted Carbon" in nearly two years. However, its author found enough material to keep it going for three years.
Here's another choice shot:
Imagine going more than 70 KPH and, suddenly, your bike's frame splits behind the head tube. Your handlebars and wheels fly out from under you.
No mention was made of what happened to that bike's rider. I hope he or she fared better than this one:
In previous posts, I mentioned that I resisted the "tri-spoke" wheel fad of about two decades ago. Although I tried a set and liked the ride (for fast rides, anyway), I didn't buy a set after seeing one fail like this:
One of the few carbon-fiber components I've ever owned was a pair of mountain bike handlebars I--in one of my more misguided moments--installed on my Jamis Dakota. I don't remember what brand the bars were. But I distinctly recall how they failed when I jumped a creek in Vermont because they ended up like this:
Those strands are as sharp and jagged as shards of broken glass. After my bars failed that way, I was so glad that I never had a carbon fiber seat post!
Today begins National Bike Month. And, the 9th of May is National Bike To Work Day.
Here in New York I see many more people riding to work, shop and to conduct other activities of their daily lives than I saw twenty-five, or even ten, years ago. Bike lanes, which were nearly non-existent just a few years ago, wind along the city's shorelines and cut across various neighborhoods and districts. Bike-parking facilities are being built, as well as kiosks for a bike-share program.
However, as I've said in previous posts, these developments don't make the city more "bike friendly" than it was in in the '80's or '90's. Sure, more people are biking, and know people who are biking. But you're just as--or perhaps more--likely to be harassed, spat at, cussed out or even run over.
From my experience as a cyclist, I know that facilities don't make for an atmosphere in which practical, everyday cyclists can ride safely, let alone in a tolerant atmosphere. In the early '80's, I was living in Paris. The City of Light didn't offer much more in the way of the facilities I've described than New York or other American cities had. And motor traffic was just as heavy, if not heavier, in part because Parisian streets are typically much narrower than the ones in the Big Apple. Yet I used to feel safer riding on even the main arteries, such as the boulevards de Champs-Elysees and Saint Michel, than I did on even the smallest side-streets in Staten Island or New Jersey.
What I've just said about cycling in Paris was also true of other French cities in which I've cycled, and in other European 'burgs.
I've long felt that one major reason why those cities were more bike-friendly is that, in those days, most European drivers also rode bicycles. That is still the case in some European capitals, most notably Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Once in a great while, a particularly obnoxious motorist would honk his horn repeatedly and shout things that Mr. Berlitz never taught his students. Such encounters were far less frequent in Europe than they were in America, at least for me. The European exchanges also seemed less threatening, whether or not I understood the motorist's language. Even when they drove "close enough to tear off the back of my glove," as I used to describe it, I never felt that I would be turned into a road crepe because the European drivers seemed to understand bicycles and cyclists, and knew how to act and react.
Even with the exponential increase in the number of cyclists in New York and other American cities, the vast majority of motorists don't ride bikes. For that matter, many of the pedestrians who fill New York bike lanes--and cross into them without watching the traffic-- also never ride. Or, perhaps, they think they're not going to be hit by a cyclist, or if they are, they assume it's the cyclist's fault.
While I'm happy to see bike storage facilities and some of the bike lanes (like the one that leads to the Queensborough /59th Street Bridge), I think we'll continue to see new "ghost bikes" cropping up all over town until we have a couple of generations of motorists who are also cyclists. And New York and other American cities will be "bike friendly" only in comparison to other cities.
I have some rather sad news to report.
No, I didn't crash or get diagnosed with some terrible disease. Rather, it's about something I did somewhat reluctantly.
You see, I sold the Schwinn Collegiate I'd mentioned in a few previous posts. I actually liked it quite a bit: While it was heavy and didn't have the nimblest handling (Then again, I can say those things about myself!), it was surprisingly quick when I got it up to speed. Plus, it did have a certain charm, some of which had to do with the color.
But it was too small for me. Perhaps I could have gotten a longer seatpost and stem for it, but either one, I felt, would have turned it into a Frankenbike: Bikes like the Collegiate simply aren't meant to have, and don't look right, with them.
At least the young woman who bought it from me was truly happy to find it. She lives in Williamsburg and, she told me, another bike "just like" it was stolen from her. Actually, she said, it was a Collegiate "from around the same time", in a different color.
As she is about 5'5" (about 165 cm), the bike is just the right size for her. When she test rode it, she looked very comfortable and confident on it. Plus, she was wearing a sort of "Mad Men" outfit, which somehow looked right.
She was so happy to find the bike that she didn't quibble about the price. Even if she had, I would been satisfied with selling it to her, as I knew the bike was going "to a good home". That, at least, balances some of the sadness I felt about letting it go.
