More cycling in the Arctic..

Solstice in the Arctic...and I got to go for a bike ride on the Dalton Highway, alongside the Alaskan Pipeline. Cool. Ha ha. Get it?

The Carriage Trade

Tom Vanderbilt's blog How We Drive had comments about a book The Horse in the City and how automobiles impacted the horse and carriage business — talk about disruptive technology. Did anyone document what happened to all those trades people? Did they start making automobile parts? Did unemployment soar? 

Published in 2005, the book The Carriage Trade took a look at the vibrant industry of horse drawn carriages. From author Thomas Kinney: "The legendary Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company in 1880 produced a hundred wagons a day — one every six minutes." And the carriage trade did not look like the highly industrialized automobile trade — it was built on small scale businesses.

You can read more about horses in the city here. 

Bike Month(s)

May is Bicycle Month in the United States. In Canada, most provinces and cities host a Bike-to-Work week in May, and reserve June for bike month. Although Toronto's Bike Month runs May 25 to June 25. Vancouver celebrates carfree in June with its Father's Day Carfree Day. In Edmonton, Bikeology coordinates a festival for the month of June. Sadly, however, Edmonton's People's Pedal has announced it's cancelling the bike sharing program in the city this summer. Why? Theft. They lost 95 percent of their bikes to thieves. That was 90 bikes. The idea of every city buying into Montreal's Bixi (scroll down the page if clicking that link) plan is very appealing.

Wouldn't it be neat if during Bike-to-Work weeks business ditched the car/truck if possible and tried for one week to do business by bike. The photo to the right is from India, where bicycles are transportation and a business tool. Worldbike is a non-profit international organization of bicycle designers, industry people, and development professionals who work together to come up with income-generating ideas that involve bicycles. While we don't see a lot of that in North America, some people do marry their passion for bicycles with business. In Portland, Oregon, Charlie Wicker of Trailhead Coffee Roasters delivers his coffee by bicycle. Other people incorporate the bike into their lives in other useful ways — the other photo was taken not far from my house. This cyclist hauls his garbage and recycling by bicycle and trailer. I have 60 empty 2-litre milk cartons to haul to an elementary school tomorrow so I can make bird feeders with 60 Grade 5 students. I'm wondering if I can borrow that trailer...

Bicycles, Futurama, and Shrinking Cities

On Earth Day, the US Secretary of Transportation brought up cycling again (he addressed the Bike Summit on March 13 to talk about the importance of bicycle infrastructure) in his blog "Welcome to the Fast Lane." Ray LaHood said, "Bike-friendly development also has the potential to contribute significantly to the revitalization of downtown districts and offer an alternative to sprawl and automobile-focused commuting." He goes on to talk about funding and new opportunities for the DOT to feature bicycling as part of a new American mobility within livable communities. Hey, what we need is a another 1939 World's Fair and a new Futurama, but this time with miniature bicycles and high speed trains. The top photo is an image of the GM exhibit at the 1939 World's Fair.

What is interesting about this nod to the bicycle as viable transportation, is that at the same time another nod to change is going on — the shrinking cities movement. It's about how to transform — in an ecological way — cities that are losing people. Take Flint, Michigan — this company town has lost almost half its population since 1965. City officials are talking about condensing the city to a few viable areas and allowing nature to take over the rest. 

Bike Blessing

Saturday was the Blessing of the Bikes at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City. It was year 11 for New York cyclists, of whom the only belief required is to believe in the bicycle. 

Going Dutch

Thank you New York Times for the article on fashion and bicycles. Which is impossible to write without mentioning the Dutch and Amsterdam. (In fact, NYC is getting 200 Dutch bikes for its 400th anniversary, fitting for New Amsterdam.) But it would be nice to note there are pockets where people get bike culture, Vancouver being one — every visit to Van I notice people on their Townies, no helmets, regular clothes, drinking coffee while riding, even smoking (it's the only time I don't get too grossed out by a smoker). Visit Rain City Bikes off West Broadway, just down from MEC and the Bike Doctor for cool bikes, accessories and clothes. Did I mention before how much I want the Biomega? I have to mention Momentum Magazine too, which is also out of Vancouver. Read it.