It does not matter that I don’t speak Danish. I know what he’s saying.
When I go to Denmark, I’ll be riding a bus. Well, if you can get me off of a bicycle. I hear they give out hugs to people on bikes.
Archive for the ‘Video’ Category
Bikes mean better business, the five E’s of becoming a bike-friendly campus, bicycle taxidermy, and more
Tuesday, November 20th, 2012 by Anne-Marije Rook
The Velo Room at an apartment complex in downtown Denver - The Denver Post
* Bike-friendly housing pops up in Denver. The Denver Post reports that as apartment complexes are sprouting up all over the Denver metro area, many of them featuring a new amenity: bicycle-maintenance rooms.
* SF Gate spotlights some of the nation’s most bike-friendly university campuses, and the Five E’s needed to become one – Engineering, Education, Encouragement, Enforcement, and Evaluation.
* Bikes mean better business, the MinnPost reports. Over the last few years, Minneapolis has invested heavily in biking, creating a network of off-street trails criss-crossing the city, adding 180 miles of bike lanes to city streets with plans to double that, launching one of the country’s first large-scale bikeshare programs, and creating protected lanes to separate people riding bikes from motor traffic. “Biking is definitely part of our strategy to attract and retain businesses in order to compete in a mobile world,” says Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak
- Pictures courtesy of bloon design
*Here’s a neat DIY project/Christmas wishlist item from bloon design: a mobile picnic station.
* Portland-based communications consultant Leslie Carlson says public skepticism about bike projects around the country is simply a sign that bikes have become part of the political back-and-forth – and she provides four strategies for fighting back.
*As e-bikes continue to gain momentum around the world, Al Nordin, president of NuVinci’s bike division, is convinced it’s only a matter of time before the market for electric bikes in North America develops into a thriving category.
* Speaking of e-bikes, Seattle E-bike is hosting a Black Friday E-bike parade.
* Agence France-Presse reports that the Dutch cycling utopia is being threatened by own success. “In a small country where bicycles outnumber people by 1.2 million, the Dutch have simply run out of space to accommodate the five million cyclists who take to the road every day,” the article states. “turning commuting in major cities into a nightmare.”
* A student of the Royal College of Art has come up with a “loving and lasting solution for your mechanical bereavement” – Bicycle Taxidermy.
Picture courtesy of bicycletaxidermy.com/
* What do super cyclists Levi Leipheimer, Rebecca Rusch, Tom Danielson, Kristin Armstrong, cycle blogger Eldon “Fatty” Nelson, and actor Patrick Dempsey (McDreamy) do for some extra training? They do a donut race for charity! Watch the video, here.
* Transportation Alternatives created this little video titled “Rolling”, a feel-good short film about the benefits of bicycles.
KING5 takes a look at cycletracks
Friday, October 26th, 2012 by M.J. KellyAs the city of Seattle looks toward building more protected bikeways like other cities are doing across North America, KING5 rode along with Evan Manvel to see what it looks to ride on urban roadways. They also visited the Linden Ave. complete streets project, which includes a new, but not yet finished, protected cycletrack.
Empty Seattle?
Tuesday, October 23rd, 2012 by M.J. KellyCool video. I want to bike there, though I imagine it to be a bit lonely.
Also:
Failing the Bike Test in eight seconds
Wednesday, October 17th, 2012 by M.J. KellyHave you seen this video yet?
I really liked that video. The incredible stunts, the upbeat music, the vertigo-inducing angles, the interesting mix of UK scenery, and the sheer joy emoted as Martyn Ashton rides his bike. Dude is talented and has a dream job. At 4:40, he rides across a dusky field whooping and hollering, just like I did when I rolled the Luna Line at Duthie for the first time, albeit with far less air. This video had me. It made me smile, laugh and shiver with the thrilling freedom of riding a bike.
Until 4:55.
That’s when my smile waned. My brow furrowed. This perfectly fun and inspiring video deflated me as it flunked the Bike Test in eight seconds.
I asked my colleague Kat Sweet what she thought.
“It’s just so typical of the bike world,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I think I’ve become immune to it.”
I’d probably brush it off with an eye roll too were it not for the recent uptick of conversations about sexism in the bike industry, women in the bike movement, creating environments that cater to women, “real women” on bikes, and our own struggle with gold body paint.
As Elly Blue noted in her Bike Test essay, “… we’re all part of a culture where sexism is normalized, celebrated, and rewarded. I think there’s a widespread sense that this is the game we have to play if we want to succeed.”
It doesn’t have to be that way. Pinarello and Ashton Bikes marketers could have easily stopped the video at the credits, and I would have been left with a huge smile. It was just about perfect as-is. Instead they reached for the old stand-by, the completely unnecessary sexy girl prop. Who puts WD40 on a frame, anyway? (Oh, right, this was lubing during service. Also product placement.) And what mechanic would have long painted fingernails. I suppose it could have been worse.
I still like the video, but not as much. If I watch it again, I’ll remember to stop it at the black screen. The final 15 seconds are unnecessary.
PS: My boss has a Pinarello that she loves to ride.
