You rode your bike to work on Bike To Work Day, got the free schwag from the breakfast stations, and took photos of the pretty girls and cute guys on their bikes. Feel free to link to your photo albums and blog entries in the comments here, or post your Bike To Work Day stories…
Commute by Bike
Jeff's Trailer Reviews, Part 1: BOB Trailers
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Coming from the land of two-wheeled trailers, I’ve long held some reservations about the single-wheeled variety. Most two-wheeled models behave in, more or less, the same way. One wheel has always seemed, well, weird. I guess it’s time for me to slay a couple myths about BOB Trailers.
Myth number one: The Hitch
Two-wheeled trailers carry their load squarely on, well, their own two wheels, and only a small portion of the load is transferred to the hitch. Conversely, BOB trailers shift a good portion of their load-carrying capability forward, to the hitch. Not only that, the hitch must also resist the additional torsional force inherent in single-wheeled designs.
Gas wasting tips
We’ve seen tips on how to save gas all over the place. I like Matt’s stories on wasting gas at his blog. I see stuff like Matt reports all the time, where people leave their engines running for now discernible reason. How about you?
Commuting 101: Dealing with Road Rash
I had a rainy commute a few mornings ago. It was the light rain that’s heavier than mist but not quite a shower. Temperatures were pleasantly in the high 50’s. I’m usually careful of slick spots when it’s raining. Particularly, metal surfaces (manhole covers, steel plates and railroad crossings) and painted road stripes are quite…
Noah's 15 minutes
Commute By Bike’s own Noah D is momentarily famous. He made the news in Kansas City, Missouri. For Noah Dunker, it started last year when a car part broke down. The Lenexa resident tried to order a replacement, but discovered there was a backlog that would delay its arrival for several months. “I live three…
Bike to Work Week: Invite a Friend or Coworker
Fear is the biggest deterrent I see to people not commuting by bike. Being out of shape, getting cleaned up at work, not having the “right” bike, etc etc… these all come second to the fear of sharing the same pavement as those enormous, fast, internal combustion vehicles. When I first began riding my bike…
Motorist Involved in 50 (!) Bicycle Crash
I subscribe to a feed on Google News with the search term bicycle. It tends to be a rather depressing feed, with news stories of bicycles hit by cars on a daily basis. This one stood out among the rest: “Furious driver takes out 50-strong cycle pack” from the Sydney Morning Herald. Witnesses to the…
Little Things get you Noticed
A couple months ago my daughter drove past me as I was pedaling home in the dark. When I walked into the house she told me that she had seen me, so I took the opportunity to do a little research. Me: “Could you see me fairly well?” Miss T: “Yeah.” Me: “How far away…
Journalist seeks new bike commuter in New York / New Jersey area
Brooke is working on a commuting-by-bike story for CNBC.com. Are there any new bike commuters in the NY-NJ area who wouldn’t mind being interviewed? Please email Brooke at brooke dot sopelsa at nbcuni dot com.
Join a bicycle convoy
Several individuals and groups have started bike commute convoys around the nation. These group rides provide social interaction and help encourage new riders. Because bike commute convoys generally have a fixed route with time points to allow others to join the convoy, they’re also called bicycle buses or bike trains. Kansas City. Noah (who writes…
The Wacky World of Bike Trailer Tents Part 2
I’ve been discussing the fusion between bike trailers and tents. In a past post, I looked at the tent shelter bike trailer by Tony of Tony’s Trailers.
This next trailer, the SpeedLobster, seems like it may have been a German Engineering student’s thesis project. It is very impressive in its design and application, but seems to miss the boat a little bit when it comes to real world application.
Puma Urban Motility: The Glow Rider
We talk a lot around here about staying seen and safe while riding at night. You can use lights and reflective material, but what if your bike glowed in the dark? Puma has a bike in their Urban Motility line called the Glow Rider. It comes in two colors (cream and orange), both of which…
Commuter Story: Score one for the cyclist!
From the Surly Blog: I play this little game while riding to and from work where I memorize the license plate of a passing car. When the next car drives by I memorize that one, and so on and so on. If there is an altercation, I’ve trained myself to look at the license plates…
Tim Jackson (the MasiGuy) in the hospital
One of the frequent commenters here at Commute by Bike and a good friend of mine, Tim Jackson (the MasiGuy), was involved in a wreck during a track race a couple nights ago. He hit the boards at close to 40mph and has plenty of injuries to show for it. concussion (he was out for…
Happy USA National Bike Month
May is National Bike Month in the United States, and with gasoline approaching $4 per gallon in the United States now is as good a time as any to ride your bike to work, to the store, to school, to the park or just for fun. The League of American Bicyclists suggest 50 ways to…
Last day to enter to win the Raleigh One Way
Update: The contest is over and I’m contacting the winner. That doesn’t mean you still can’t browse and get involved with the Commuter Bikes Database. Thanks for playing everyone! If you haven’t entered already, today’s your last chance to enter to win the 2008 Raleigh One Way. All you have to do is visit our…
Portland goes Platinum
The League of American Bicyclists announced that Portland, Oregon has been promoted to the platinum level of its Bicycle Friendly Community program. The designation of “Bicycle Friendly Community,” given at levels from Bronze to Platinum, recognizes those communities that are improving conditions for bicyclists and cycling safety. Portland is the first large U.S. city to…
Fort Collins bike library opens
The Fort Collins, Colorado Bike Library opened earlier this month. The Bike Library, which is run by the city of Fort Collins bike program, currently has 50 bikes available for for anyone to use for free for up to seven days at a time. Unlike the automated bike kiosk rentals available in Europe, planned for…
Bicycle-Sharing Program to Debut in Washington DC
WashingtonPost.com: The metal racks are for SmartBike DC, a bicycle-sharing program touted as the first of its kind in the nation. The program is a public-private partnership between the District government and advertising giant Clear Channel Outdoor, which operates similar automated bike rental systems in France, Norway, Sweden and Spain. By mid-May, the racks will…
Grade your bike locking skills
New York bike mechanic Hal Ruzal goes out with Bike Church founder Kerri Martin to evaluate how New Yorkers lock their bikes in this video at Streetfilms. Bikes with secure front and rear wheels and saddles using quality locks get an A, while those secured with “Craptownite locks” from the hardware store get a D….
What are the top cities for bicycle commuting?
As Commute by Bike continues to be the most visited resource for bike commuters on the web, I’m able to take a look at our stats and see where people are reading from and get a good feel for the top locations for commuting by bike. The top ten cities in the US are: Chicago…
Snapple's Antioxidant Water
Snapple recently announced the release of their new line of Antioxidant Water. As part of their launch I was contacted by them to try out and review some of their new water. Apparently we were chosen because this site promotes fitness. If only they actually knew me and how much of a slacker I really…
Turn signal cycling jacket
Here’s something just for Sue, who keeps asking for turn signals for her bike. Michael Chen of Middlesex University in the UK designed his “Reactiv” responsive cycling jacket. The jacket uses an accelerometer that senses movement to change the color of the LEDs in the back from green (accelerating) to red (braking). It has amber…
Finally, a Mobile Phone that Fits on my Bike Trailer
Sorry, I just couldn’t resist that headline, but this is actually a serious story about an interesting new concept in Nicaragua. From the Triple Pundit story:
Here in the US, we’re used to the near ubiquitous access to cell phones, with the possibility of thousands, if not unlimited minutes. But what if every phone in the US was prepaid? Such is the case in Nicaragua. There, people use their phones mainly to receive phone calls, or as address books to make calls at one of the numerous, more affordable “call shops” in the country. Brian Forde looked around, saw the prevalence of three wheeled bikes, carrying cargo, people, ice cream, and had an idea: create a pedal powered mobile version of the call shop, able to go wherever the people are.
The company, Llamadas Pedaleadas, makes the trailers using common parts for easy repair and maintenance. The electronics run off of a car battery that is charged through the pedal power of the bicycle (with a kick stand to raise the tire for stationary charging). Check out the video below to see it in action.