2009 archive

City of Brotherly Love: “Get out of the road!”

Bronze level bicycle-friendly Philadelphia is in the throes of a bike-riders vs. everybody-else controversy.

After two pedestrians were struck and killed by bicycle riders in Philadelphia in October, the police launched a crackdown last month against cyclists on sidewalks as well as those who don't make full stops at stop signs or traffic lights. (As you can see in this video at left, [spoiler alert!] most cars, buses, taxis don't stop either.)

Then, a state legislator introduced a bill — HB 2096 — that would require all bikes in Philadelphia to be registered and be equipped with lights and turn signals. A similar law has been proposed by City Council. There's also a proposal that all bikes have brakes, a law that would target fixies.

The piling on doesn't stop at government …..

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/02/city-of-brotherly-love-get-out-of-the-road/

Survivors guide to riding a bike at the Vancouver Winter Olympics

Visitors to the 2010 Winter Olympics based in Vancouver next February should certainly consider riding bicycles as the easiest way to get around town.

Of course, people might want to think twice about riding their bicycles to the mountaintop skiing slopes, but bikes should be an ideal choice for accessing the sports complexes, athlete residences and other Olympic venues in the Vancouver area.

Vancouver is one of North America's most bike-friendly cities with 250 miles of bicycle lanes on city streets. [Interactive bike route planner.]

Some of those routes will be closed or altered during the Olympics because of security around the venues or increased numbers of people on foot. But I agree with the Dutch government that the bicycle will be the best form of transportation during the Winter Games; the Netherlands is sending 450 bikes to Vancouver for use by its citizens and officials …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/02/survivors-guide-to-riding-a-bike-at-the-vancouver-winter-olympics/

Vancouver bike map

Go to Vancouver Bike Route Network to view interactive map.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/02/vancouver-bike-map/

Paco stretches his legs

Paco leaves the box atop the Big Dummy to survey the scenery. More at Cycling Gypsies.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/01/paco-stretches-his-legs/

Traveling across Europe by bike with two dogs

Note: Dawn Lumsden of Canada and Finley Fagan of Australia are on a long-term, around-the-world bike tour with their two SPCA-rescue dogs, Jack and Paco. Right now, they're settled into a Berlin apartment for the time-being and are writing about their ongoing adventures at their Cycling Gypsies blog.

Dawn and Finley, aka Zoa and Fin, were kind enough to offer this story to the Biking Bis website. It tells what prompted them to embark on their bike tour, and how they chose some of the equipment for their unusual entourage.

A bicycle odyssey with dogs: Our customized rides 

“Cycling around the world? Ha! Yeah right… Bicycles are for around town, not for around the world.”

But my girlfriend was serious, and a quick Google search proved she was right. Thousands and thousands of cyclists were traversing countries and continents at any given moment. The idea seemed absurd, yet irresistibly epic. Sign me up!

Only one small problem. Well, actually one medium sized problem, and another big, hairy problem. Our two dogs! Can you believe it? Nobody wanted to look after them while we cycled carefree into the horizon …..

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/01/traveling-across-europe-by-bike-with-two-dogs/

Zoa with dog trailer

Zoa and Fin are bicycling across Europe with dogs in tow. More at CyclingGypsies blog.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/01/zoa-with-dog-trailer/

Checking rigs overlooking a French gorge

Couple takes two dogs on a tour of Europe. Cycling Gypsies

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/01/checking-rigs-overlooking-a-french-gorge/

Bike-powered hauling in Philadelphia by the Pedal Co-op

Bicycling, recycling, composting all come together at the Pedal Co-op in Philadelphia.

Using bikes, trailers and some muscle, these entrepreneurs have created a business that specializes in low-cost, bike-powered hauling.

Although they provide package and bakery deliveries and intercity moving, I guess you could say their bread-and-butter is composting and recycling ….

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/12/01/bike-powered-hauling-in-philadelphia-by-the-pedal-co-op/

How bicyclists are trying to make an impact on climate conference in Copenhagen

Many bicyclists are seeking to influence a political agreement at the UN Climate Change Conference that begins next week in Copenhagen.

A global bike commute challenge is underway and cyclists are joining climate-change bike rides in selected cities this coming weekend for Ride Planet Earth. Meanwhile, activists in The Bike Bloc Project who are planning to take to the streets in Copenhagen are designing a method of civil disobedience that will use recycled bikes.

Of course those who use their bikes to commute or run errands regularly make a statement about the bicycle as a sustainable form of transportation every day.

Calling attention to the bicycle as a no-emission form of transportation and travel is Ride Planet Earth, a bike tour from Australia to Denmark led by Kim Nguyen. There are a couple of spin-offs of this ride that bicyclists can participate in ….

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/11/30/how-bicyclists-are-trying-to-make-an-impact-on-climate-conference-in-copenhagen/

New Lance Armstrong book: Excerpt, TV and personal appearances

“Comeback 2.0: Up Close and Personal” is the story of Lance Armstrong's return to professional cycling in 2009.

The story is told in his own journal entries interspersed throughout the book with color photos by Liz Kreutz, who followed Armstrong throughout the 2009 season.

The 208-page book will be released on Tuesday and will be followed by book signings and TV appearances (on “The Daily Show” and “Live with Regis and Kelly”) by Armstrong.

In an introduction written by Armstrong, the 7-time Tour de France champion tells what led him back onto the saddle after three years of retirement.

In an excerpt from the introduction ….

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/11/30/new-lance-armstrong-book-excerpt-tv-and-personal-appearances/