A new study authored by John Pucher, Ph.D. and three other researchers was published this week in the American Journal of Public Health. The study sought to determine the relationship between active transportation and rates of obesity and diabetes. From the abstract:

The results aren’t surprising, but the conclusions are important because the researchers are recommending policies that encourage active transportation.

Walking and Cycling to Health: A Comparative Analysis of City, State, and International Data →

There are countries in Europe where the bicycle is so commonplace and utilitarian that it ranks alongside household appliances and farm equipment. Most bike riders in those countries no more consider themselves bicycle enthusiasts than the typical American in his SUV considers himself an automobile enthusiast. It’s hard to imagine that kind of ubiquity here in the U.S. where the bicycle mode share is still hovering at somewhere around one-half-of-one-percent nationwide, and where, a majority of bike riders consider themselves enthusiasts.

Yesterday, over at Bike Hugger, DL Byron made the excellent point that there still exists a major cultural divide between Europe and the U.S. in regards to the bicycle. As he put it, “We’ve got this misplaced vicarious belief system that we can become Copenhagen or Amsterdam while marketing dollars are spent on convincing you that one company’s carbon layup is better than another.”

The question is whether it’s possible, or even desirable, to change our way of thinking. Perhaps bicycle enthusiasts are actually our best evangelists. Perhaps, instead of trying to change the thinking of existing bicyclists, we need to employ riders from all of our enthusiast subcultures in the effort to get more people using bicycles for transportation.

As much as I’d love to see a mode share in the U.S. that rivals those of the great bicycling countries in Europe, I can’t help but feel something valuable would be lost if we turned the bicycle into a purely utilitarian tool like a garden spade or vacuum cleaner. I wonder if it’s possible to maintain our enthusiasm for bicycles and bicycling while mode shares grow into the double digits? It’s a question that won’t be answered anytime soon, but I, for one, hope that when (if?) the time comes, we don’t lose sight of the beauty and wonder of our favorite machine.

Well, not really (the autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere falls on September 22 this year). But, we year-round bicycle commuters have our own way of gauging the seasons. We experience the ebb-and-flow of nature directly, in a way that can’t be discerned from behind the wheel of a car. Just this morning, I stepped out and realized it was time to put the lights back on the bike, which in my mind, signifies the first day of the fall bike commuting season.

What are some of the changes in your routines and rituals that signify a seasonal shift?

We’ve been using a Rickshaw Zero Messenger bag for over a year now and it’s become our favorite all-purpose messenger bag. It’s perfect for quick trips to the library or coffee shop when we need a bag for a wallet and phone, maybe a book or three, or even a small laptop and a snack. The best thing about the Zero is that it’s manufactured using a “zero waste” process:

Now Rickshaw has kicked it up a notch with their new Rickshaw Performance Tweed™ fabric made exclusively for them from 100% recycled polyester:

Isn’t that a cool looking bag? We’ll have a Zero Messenger in Performance Tweed™ for review later this month.

Rickshaw Bagworks →

Even after all these years, every little grocery run or errand that involves a bike and a friend still feels like being on vacation. Who needs exotic travel when you can toodle around town with your sweetheart on a beautiful summer evening? :-)

The physical benefits of regular exercise are universally accepted, and the mental health benefits—particularly as they relate to anxiety and depression—are becoming more widely acknowledged as well. Now, according to a study presented at the American College of Sports Medicine’s Annual Meeting, we may be able to add anger management to the list. From the ACSM press release:

In another paper, published in 2005 in the International Journal of Environmental Health Research, researchers from the University of Essex confirmed something that most of us bicycle riders already knew intuitively: as little as five minutes a day of exercise in a natural environment can improve mental health. The activities studied included walking, gardening, cycling, fishing, boating, horse-riding and farming. From the study:

The message here? Ride your bike and participate in active transportation on a daily basis to be a happier and healthier person!