The common definition: A 1950s or 1960s-era style of motorcycle made famous in England by rebellious, rock & roll-inspired riders. These speedy bikes are typified by grand prix-style cues including “clip-on” handlebars, an elongated fuel tank, a small single seat followed by a cowl, and “rearsets,” or foot controls moved rearward. [From About.com]

Our definition: Whatever bicycle you’re riding early on a Sunday morning on the way to your much-needed first cup of coffee at a favorite café.

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!

Image Source: Richard Masoner

We often discuss helmet use, infrastructure, and accident statistics, but hopefully, we all know bicycling is a relatively benign activity that doesn’t warrant so much focus on safety. Really all we need to do is get some training and treat the bicycle with the respect it deserves as a vehicle. Beyond that, I believe we should leave it to each person to decide where they ride, and how they outfit themselves for that ride.

That said, there is one safety infraction I want to bring up because I see it so often. Just today, I took a 5 block walk at lunchtime, and in that short distance I saw a half dozen bicyclists riding at speed, squarely within the door zone, on a busy one way street crowded with traffic. Two of these riders were professional bike messengers. An inattentive motorist exiting any of the many cars parked along the route could have resulted in serious injury to the bicyclists.

Without a doubt, riding in the door zone is the most common, but easily resolved, dangerous riding activity I encounter. If there’s not enough room to clear the doors of parked cars, we need to either take the lane, get up on the sidewalk, or find another route. Barreling down a busy road, squarely within the door zone, hoping and betting that no one opens a car door, is just asking for trouble.

We spent a day this past weekend touring the downtown area on our Bromptons, visiting with friends, looking at historic homes, drinking coffee, and eating good food. It was a fun day and a perfect situation for a pair of folding bikes. Bromptons are so nimble and tiny, and they’re so easy to park and store, they make the perfect vehicle for roaming over an urban landscape.

Practical and fun bikes for bopping around town

A friend takes the Brommie for a spin

A view from the cockpit (chasing a pair of Rivendells)

You’re looking at the first foreign object to penetrate my Marathon Supremes’ impenetrable Vectran layers in nearly two years of riding. I pull these out of Supremes all the time with no ill effects, but this bad boy made it all the way through to the core. It’s such a grand specimen I may have to give it a coat of shellac and mount it in a shadow box.

The wimpy racing tires on our little fixie were attacked by a handful of these same (but smaller) thorns and every single one penetrated the tubes. It goes without saying that the tubes were toast. It’s official: I hate wimpy racing tires (you would too if you were the designated flat fixer in a family of five).

Recovery is a term used in exercise parlance to describe the process of taking a break from training to allow the body to rebuild tissues torn down during exercise. From Wikipedia:

As transportational bicyclists, it’s easy to forget that we’re also exercising, sometimes to fairly high levels, over long periods, and with little to no recovery time. Back in the summer of 2008, I made the mistake of riding nearly every day for 4 months straight, the result of which was a bad case of tendonitis in my left knee and a 3-month stint off the bike to nurse the injury. The knee eventually healed, but more importantly, I learned a lesson: when those little aches and pains from riding everyday start up, it’s important to take a rest break to let the body heal before they turn into something major.

For various reasons, all unrelated to recovery, I was off the bike most of this week. Prior to this unplanned break, I had been riding nearly every day for a fairly long stretch. Yesterday, after being off the bike for the fourth day in a row, I noticed something; I was suddenly pain free. Pretty much all of my little aches and sore spots were gone. Prior to this epiphany, I wasn’t consciously aware of being in pain, but in retrospect, I was experiencing chronic, low grade soreness and discomfort resulting from riding many days in a row without a sustained break. How quickly we forget those hard-earned lessons!

Somehow I feel as if I dodged a bullet here. My aches, pains, and general fatigue could have very easily turned into a more serious injury if not for this week’s serendipitous break. The lesson re-learned is that our bodies don’t know the difference between riding a bike for training or riding a bike for transportation. Either way, we need to occasionally take a break to heal up and fully recharge our batteries.

It’s really warming up in our neck of the woods; yesterday it topped out at around 104F. When summer temps start reaching these heights, we adjust our normal routines and take some of the following steps to stay safe and healthy:

• Carry plenty of water. This one seems self-evident, but it’s often overlooked by transpo bicyclists since we’re not officially “exercising”.
• Dress appropriately. Again, self-evident. When it’s hot out, we wear light, loose fitting, breathable clothing. When temps approach the triple digits, we’ll also carry a change of clothes to work.
• Plan trips for early and late. We check the weather report every evening during the peak of summer, and when it’s going to be a scorcher, we plan our errand runs for before 10am or after 7pm.
• Take advantage of transit. If we must ride during the hottest part of the hottest days, we minimize our exposure by taking advantage of transit.
• Throw in the Towel. On days when the heat is just too much, we’ll telecommute or simply save whatever it is for another day.

We’ve found that planning ahead and using a little common sense goes a long way toward taking the edge off of the most intensely hot days of summer.

[I'm surprised by the number of couples I talk with who both ride, but choose not to ride together for reasons related to speed, performance, etc.; I happen to think they're missing out on one of the most enjoyable aspects of bike riding. I don't often republish old posts, but this subject has been on my mind lately, and I've written about it more than once, so instead of reinventing the wheel, here are my thoughts on the subject from last year. —Alan]

They say there’s nothing quite like a long ride on a tandem to shine a bright light on a relationship. If the relationship is good, the ride will be too, but if the relationship has its problems, well…

Riding together on individual bikes is not too unlike riding a tandem as a couple. In other words, it can be a real joy or a real pain depending upon how it’s approached. We’ve been riding together for a number of years, and though we’ve experienced a few bumps along the way, we’re fortunate to have a harmonious relationship on the road in which we read each other’s subtle cues and ride together with little effort and zero conflict. We only arrived at this on-road relationship through many, many miles of practice, and lots of talking about how to better communicate and take care of each other while riding our bicycles. Following are a few of the things we think are key to riding smoothly and safely as a couple:

Someone needs to lead and someone needs to follow – It’s usually best if a ride leader is determined before departure to reduce the likelihood of confusion or conflict on the road. Typically the more experienced rider leads.

The slower person determines the pace – The slower person should always determine the ride pace, even if they’re in the following position. It’s the leader’s responsibility to be sure they don’t drop the follower or inadvertently push the pace beyond the comfort level of the slower rider.

The slower person should be on an equal or faster bicycle – If at all possible, the slower rider should be on the faster bike to reduce the speed differential between the two riders. It’s common to see the less-experienced, less-fit rider on the heavier, slower bike, which only undermines the pacing rule above.

The less experienced rider sets the comfort level of the route (traffic levels, infrastructure, distance) – It’s up to the less-experienced rider to determine what type of roads they’re willing to traverse. The leader should never pressure the less-experienced rider into situations in which they’re uncomfortable.

The leader always defers to the less experienced rider unless it’s a safety issue – A less-experienced rider may not understand what they’re getting into and find themselves feeling overwhelmed once they’re on the road. It’s imperative that the leader defers to the follower and respects their need to turn back, take an alternate route, or whatever is necessary to reduce their unease.

Develop a consistent method of communicating (hand signals, voice, visual) – It’s important to learn each other’s signals and cues. Agree upon a set of simple hand signals to indicate upcoming turns, slowing, debris in road, car-behind, etc.

A sure way to put a quick end to a riding relationship is to simply head out the door without a clear understanding of each other’s expectations. Acknowledging each other’s expectations and agreeing upon a plan for the ride, while always putting the other rider’s needs above your own, is the most effective way to ensure a healthy, long-term riding relationship.

My son is taking a photography class at the local community college and this evening’s assignment was to concentrate primarily on light, with an emphasis on shadow. Ironically, the evening was somewhat overcast and there were hardly any shadows; we normally like those conditions, but it made the assignment doubly difficult. Fortunately, the sun peeked out from behind the clouds and we were able to get a few shots in before it went away for good. It was a fun time, riding the bikes around with our cameras on our backs, looking for interesting vignettes and just enjoying the evening. Riding doesn’t always have to be about saving the planet….

Lined up on the wire

There’s nothing more frustrating than getting stuck at an on-demand signal and having to wait for a car to come up from behind to trigger the light. In some jurisdictions, if you’re unable to trigger the light, it’s legal to proceed after stopping, but that doesn’t help when you’re at a cross street with heavy traffic moving in both directions. The good news is that in many cases it’s possible to trigger a light with your bicycle.

On-demand signals use what they call “induction loop vehicle detectors” to sense when a vehicle is waiting at a light. These detectors are essentially metal detectors embedded into the pavement. They work by sensing changes in an electromagnetic field and have nothing to do with the weight of the vehicle. You can often see evidence of loop detectors as lines cut into the road surface just behind the crosswalk. Wire sensors are embedded in these cut lines, and it’s possible to trigger a light by placing your bicycle wheels precisely on top of one of the wires to disrupt the magnetic field. Some sensors seem to be more sensitive than others; in those cases where the light isn’t initially triggered, I’ve had some success by leaning my bike over toward the inside of the detector loop. In cases where there are two side-by-side loops, lining up over the center where the two loops meet doubles your chances of triggering the light. Once I understood exactly how loop detectors work, my rate of success at triggering lights considerably improved; I’m currently getting somewhere approaching a 90% success rate on the detectors where I live.

How are the detectors where you ride? Are you able to trigger a majority, or are you stuck running red lights or waiting for cars to help you out?

A Creative Solution

When we went car-lite a few years ago, I’m pretty sure our kids thought we went off the deep end. At that time they were 12, 14, and 16 and the idea of their parents being seen around our conservative suburb as the “weird hippie couple on bikes” had to be a living nightmare. Fast forward three years and surprisingly, they’re pretty well-indoctrinated. Our now 19-year-old son is a serious transpo bicyclist who routinely rides his Breezer to college and other events 10-20 miles away at all hours of the day and night. Our youngest, who has not quite made the transition to using her bike for all of her local transportation needs, has at least embraced bike culture and loves to participate in tweed rides and other events. And while they were initially petrified at the thought of it, now they seem downright proud to have the old folks out setting a good example in the neighborhood.

One of the little challenges of getting groups of teenagers around from here to there is the fact that everything seems to be decided at the last minute. As a matter of fact, I’m pretty sure the proverbial best laid plans of mice and men were put to rest by a group of teenagers. Add to this the fact that our kids have chosen to wait until they’re older to get their driver’s licenses, and we’ve had to get creative at times.

One handy tool is the cargo bike. Most people probably think of the cargo bike as a way to haul things such as groceries, building supplies, or furniture. What they may not realize is that a bike like the Mundo (shown above) can also tow a bicycle and carry passengers, replacing an SUV in the process. For example, a mother of two can tow one bike behind her to after school pick-up, give the second bike to the older teenager to ride, and give the younger kid a lift on the back of the cargo bike (assuming the teenagers don’t mind being seen with Mom… LOL). In the case of the Yuba, there’s also a child seat available if there’s a third, younger child in the family. Mixing and matching these various options goes a long way toward meeting the transportation needs of spontaneous and fickle teenagers.

We keep saying this over and over, but we’re firm believers in the idea of blooming where you’re planted. We also believe getting creative can lead to many wonderful and inspiring transportation solutions. Our family is living proof that even with a house full of teenagers in the suburbs, it’s possible to simultaneously limit your car use while maintaining familial bliss, and yes, even have a grand time while doing it.

Transportation planners talk about something they call “the last mile problem”; the challenge of bridging the gap between a public transit stop and a person’s final destination. Typical solutions include walking, bicycling, and so-called Park-n-Ride lots. Walking is an option for able-bodied individuals, though time and distance can be major drawbacks. For obvious reasons, the Park-n-Ride solution is popular, though it presents a number of issues including neighborhood traffic congestion and limited flexibility. Bicycling combines efficiency with flexibility while solving the congestion problem; arguably, this makes it the best “last mile” solution.

Folding bikes are the perfect solution for a different, less-common type of last mile problem. Let’s say a car-lite or car-free person needs to travel to an area that’s not served by transit and is left to drive there. And let’s imagine they have to stay in that location for a few days but they were unable to bring a full-sized bike due to storage issues or lack of a bike rack on a rental car. Typically, a person would have no choice but to use the car more than they’d like. But, with the addition of a tiny folding bike, they can park the car once they’ve made their long trip, and then use the folding bike for getting around the area during their stay. This often overlooked use for a folding bike saves gas, cuts down on emissions, and provides some exercise while on a road trip.

As much as we like to use public transit in combination with our bicycles for transportation, limited service on the weekend sometimes forces us into the car. We drive a tiny, fuel-efficient vehicle, and we don’t like racks on the outside because they negatively impact fuel economy, so a pair of folding bikes that fit in the back are a perfect way to extend our reach.

This past weekend’s excursion was a great example of how the folders work for us. It was too far to ride from our house to the events downtown. We could have taken the bikes on the train, but because of limited weekend service, it would have been a 13 hour day; not too practical for a 3-hour event. The alternative was to throw a pair of folders in the car, drive to town and park in a central location, then use the bikes to get around. It was a reasonable compromise that met our needs while keeping our fuel consumption to a minimum.

Sidewalk riding is always a controversial topic. It’s legal in a surprising number of places, though the fact that it’s legal is no indication of whether or not it’s a safe practice. I feel sidewalk riding can be relatively safe in certain circumstances and when approached with a certain mindset, but I often see bicyclists on sidewalks riding in ways that are dangerous to themselves and others.

One of the main issues with sidewalk riding is that motorists don’t expect to encounter vehicles traveling at close to motor vehicle speeds anywhere other than in the road. We’re all accustomed to looking in certain directions at certain times while riding or driving, and anything that doesn’t fall within normal traffic patterns runs the risk of being overlooked. Consequently, bicyclists traveling at anything over walking speed on sidewalks are in danger of having vehicles pull into their path at intersections and driveways.

Likewise, pedestrians are only accustomed to sharing the sidewalk with other pedestrians. Because they’re not expecting a bicycle to come up from behind, they have no reason to maintain a perfectly straight path, so there’s potential for collisions there as well. While collisions with pedestrians are not as dangerous as collisions with motor vehicles (obviously), these negative sidewalk encounters reflect badly on bicyclists in general.

In my hometown, we have a number of high-speed parkways with 2-3 lanes running in each direction. These roads have a center median and wide sidewalks on both sides that are separated from the traffic lanes by grass buffers. The only side streets are major intersections or entrances to neighborhoods. No residential driveways enter these roads. The sidewalks are wide enough that they could easily be considered separated bike paths. The lack of driveways and minimal cross streets make these pseudo multi-use paths safer and more useful for bicyclists than most sidewalks.

On the other side of the coin, we have sidewalks inside residential neighborhoods that are lined with parked cars and criss-crossed with driveways, cross streets, and alleys. They’re also often filled with small children, dog walkers, and skateboarders. Certainly, everyone can agree bicycling on these types of sidewalks is not a good idea.

As I see it, the only way to safely ride on a sidewalk is to act as a pedestrian anytime we’re near a pedestrian or an intersection. That means riding at walking speeds while in the presence of pedestrians, and it means slowing or stopping at intersections, driveways, and alleys to look in all directions (including behind) before crossing. Other than in certain special circumstances such as those along our parkways, I think most bicyclists would find the above approach barely workable. Unfortuantely, any other approach to sidewalk riding may be an invitation to conflict or even injury.

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The Brompton: perhaps the ultimate human-powered, multi-modal commuting machine. Light, quick, and folds to the size of a postage stamp. Not bad for early-Saturday-morning coffee runs either.

While effortlessly and quietly cruising along on my bike on a perfectly perfect spring day today, I had the epiphany that there is no better, more pleasant, or more efficient way to move about on this planet than the bicycle. Then the following quote from Elizabeth West came to mind.

Did you know that a gallon of gasoline contains approximately 31,000 calories? If a person could drink gasoline, they could ride approximately 912 miles on a gallon (assuming 34 calories per mile). Not bad for a vehicle that also provides so much (priceless) pure joy!

In a paper published 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:

Read the study [PDF] →

Dealing with illness while maintaining a car-free or car-lite lifestyle can be a challenge. Michael and I were both sick with the flu this past week, and now she’s developed pneumonia, so we’ve been depending upon our one car much more than usual to keep the household running while doing our best to rest up. She’s at a point where even a short walk up an incline causes her to be winded, so she’s totally off the bike; this is somewhat shocking considering her usually high level of fitness and bike-dependence.

We were talking about how difficult it would be, and what strategies we would have to employ, if we were totally car-free while dealing with illness. Renting a car would be one solution, as would asking for help from friends and family. Public transportation is always a possibility, though it’s questionable whether someone should expose others to their illness in tight public spaces. Of course, if we lived closer to work, health care, shopping, and other essentials, this would be less of an issue for us.

This has been an interesting week; dealing with illness while living car-lite has provided copious food-for-thought regarding our housing and transportation choices. We were wondering how you cope with illness while maintaining your car-lite/free lifestyle? Have you had to resort to renting a car or asking family members for a lift? Do you live close enough to work and essential services that it’s not an issue? We’d love to hear from you.