I see there are bloggers out there with more artistic abilities than me. The bone shaker at left is posted at the Trust but Verify blog; the witch on a bike at right was carved up at Velocipete.

I still struggle with the triangle-shaped eyes and nose and try-not-to-cut-yourself phase of pumpkin carving. Later, it's hand out cheap treats at the door, then go through my kids stuff after they'd gone to bed.

We've all experienced a sense of freedom on a bicycle. As a kid, I remember my bike giving me freedom from the confines of the yard, then the confines of the neighborhood. Now it's just the freedom of being on the road under my own power.

For others, bicycles have provided freedom from oppression.

Take for instance the story of Imre Antal's escape from Hungary, published on today's 50th anniversary of the Hungarian revolution ...   more »

It looks like the Michigan stroke victim, whose specially adapted bicycle was stolen last week, will get a new bike.

The Grand Rapids woman had locked it up at a bus stop during work only to discover it was missing when she returned. The 21-speed Diamondback Wildwood was outfitted with two extra wheels for balance and baskets for carrying groceries.

Beth Bailey, 53, needs the adaptations because of strokes she suffered in 1980 and 2003. ...   more »

Bicycle safety videos have come a long way in the past 40 years. Did I really have to sit through stuff like this? Fortunately, I've repressed the memory.

I stumbled across the 15-minute film while checking around for other examples of online bicycle safety videos before posting "Illinois bicycle safety video online." The vintage 1963 film is called, "One Got Fat," and it details how a group of monkeys (no, not children) fall victim to grisly accidents -- one by one -- for not following the rules of the road and not using common sense.

The monkeys are riding their bicycles to a picnic, but the one who had a bike basket to carry all the sack lunches is the only one to survive. He gets to eat all the lunches, hence, "One Got Fat."

You'll note in the 15-minute film that none of the children (monkeys) are wearing helmets. That's OK; helmets probably aren't much help when being run over by a steamroller or an 18-wheeler or when tumbling into a bottomless manhole.

Do you recognize the narrator's voice? ...   more »

Bicyclists in the U.S. loathe some rural bike routes because of the danger posed by being chased by loose dogs. In Australia, it's swooping birds that can frighten and endanger bicycle riders.

The problem is so great in some areas that signs are posted warning of swooping birds. Cyclists are encouraged to avoid those areas or risk being buzzed, scratched or pecked.

If cyclists must pass through native bird nesting areas ...   more »

Can you imagine two heart attacks and 25 injuries requiring attention from ambulance staffs during a single bicycling event?

Organizers of the Around the Bay in a Day bicycle ride in Melbourne, Australia, say that's not unexpected, considering they put 14,000 cyclists on the road for rides ranging from 26 to 155 miles. The bike ride ...   more »

Popular Mechanics magazine has given a Breakthrough Award to the Gyrobike, an invention that prevents bicycles without training wheels from tipping over.

Four Dartmouth College students developed the idea of putting a flywheel inside the rim of the front wheel. A drill is used to spin the flywheel, which keeps the bike stable under novice riders. ...   more »

What do they say... If it bleeds, it leads?

A publisher is offering a $500 prize for the best pictures of people crashing on bicycles. The winner gets the picture on the cover of a book to be released in May 2007 -- "Cycling's Greatest Misadventures."

The offer comes from Solano Beach, California-based publisher Casagrande Press LLC. It's self-described as a "new literary press founded or promote quality non-fiction and fiction. ...   more »

Robotic cyclist Murata Boy has achieved a new skill, he can pedal uphill.

Shown here on an earlier S-curve balance beam run, the robo-cyclist achieved a new goal by pedaling up a 25-degree incline at the Ceatec electronics show in Japan this week, says Digital World.   more »