37 posts tagged “cycling”
London does these great cycling tests. This is just part of a series.
Share the Road Challenge from Diana Wilson on Vimeo.
It's Bike to Work Week in Vancouver. My commute is actually about 10 minutes shorter when I drive, but it's quite a bit less enjoyable.
The New York Times has an excellent article on the evolution of bike design and the impact of the UCI's traditional view of bikes.
Professional cycling is in a heated struggle among its governing body, its teams and the companies that manufacture expensive equipment over what is a legal racing bike.
The International Cycling Union abruptly alerted teams at the start of this season that it intends to clarify and reinterpret its often oblique rules governing bicycle design through increased equipment inspections.
The announcement was an unwelcome surprise. Bicycles and accessories may be banned within weeks. That could leave teams scrambling to find new bikes for top riders, and the manufacturers could find it harder to sell their merchandise.
The city of Vancouver today voted in favour of a trial to improve cycling on the Burrard Bridge. The bridge currently requires cyclists and pedestrians to share a narrow sidewalk, with only a curb to separate fast moving traffic. The speed limit is 50km/h, but traffic is moving much faster than that.
This is is a good move, and a forward thinking move. It's a recognition that bicycles play a vital role in transportation strategy, especially in the densely populated downtown areas.
I still want a pedestrian and bicycle only crossing of False Creek. This is a baby step in that direction.
Meanwhile the now Seattle Post Intelligencer, now an online only publication, highlights a study that should be so obvious as to be unnecessary, although the quantification of the amounts involved is welcome. For what it's worth, I spent CDN$18,035.98 on my car for the three calendar years 2006, 2007 and 2008, an average of $6012 a year That doesn't include a monthly payment, and I don't drive that much.
Ditching the car saves thousands, study says
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFFA typical Seattle resident could save more than $10,000 a year by cutting out a car, according to a new study.
The American Public Transportation Association's Transit Savings Report looked at the savings on gas, parking, maintenance, tires, insurance, registration, depreciation and finance charges if a household gave up a car and used transit.
This is a slick solution to secure bike parking, similar to another proposal from Japan. The advantage of this is that it doesn't require underground storage, though there is a slight decrease in the level of security provided as a result.
Two stories on Outside Magazine's blog were interesting today. First comes the news that Tyler Hamilton has tested positive for a banned substance...again. He says he's retiring from professional cycling.
Whether this test was due to a prescribed medication or not, Tyler should be smart enough to make sure that he doesn't test positive again. His first positive test resulted in a ban which Tyler fought vigorously. As part of his defense he claimed that the genetic markers for the drug were the result of an unborn twin residing in his body. Ridiculous.
If Tyler had admitted fault and not put forward such a ridiculous defence, it might be possible to have sympathy at this point. It's not.
Vail Resorts will be requiring its on mountain employees to wear helmets while working and skiing or snowboarding. This is a very good thing. As helmets become more common on ski hills, the ridiculous social stigma that prevents people from wearing them will disappear. It can't happen soon enough for my taste.
This is almost silly just on its face. When you consider the fact that the proposed registration fee is as expensive as vehicle registration it's so ridiculous it's almost sublime.
Oregon's spandex-clad cyclists are splitting at their seams in anti-establishment anger after Republican state Representative and non-hipster Wayne Krieger proposed a bill in the state's House that would charge bike owners a $54 bike registration fee every two years. The bill proposes a handful of other small fees for licensing transfers or tampering with a bike's serial number.
The good news here is that White Rock and Delta have both managed to hold great bike races year after year, over a variety of terrain. The bad news is that the urban cobblestone run Tour de Gastown with the hairpin turns "is canceled.:http://www.vancouversun.com/Economy+forces+cancellation+Vancouver+2009+Tour+Gastown/1470969/story.html
It's a fun event that draws a huge crowd, larger than the suburban ones. Here's hoping it's back next year.
A couple of years ago, Cannondale was acquired by a Canadian company. Cannondale had always been a proudly American company, and it was seen as a triumph of Canadian business. A relatively small manufacturer of frames, Cannondale had broadened from its history of pure aluminum to include other even lighter materials. They were hugely innovative, particularly in the area of front suspension. The Headshok system put the suspension mechanism in the headtube, eliminating leg flex and resulting in a lighter mechanism (albeit at the cost of custom, proprietary headsets); The Lefty system was even more radical, eliminating on half of the front fork altogether.
The road frames were beautiful too. They were light, and stiff, and strong. When Miguel Indurain retired and had to buy a bike he chose a Cannondale.
The only mountain bikes I've ever owned were Cannondales, and I used to beat the hell out of those things. I still have my last one, though it's retired as I've moved back to the road. It's in the garage, and basically gets used for neighbourhood cruising by others when they need it.
In a move that's surprising only because it comes so long after the acquisition, Dorel Industries has announced that they're shifting production of Cannondale frames to Asia. While this may be completely unsurprising, it's sad. It's what happens when a company built on passion becomes a company run for profit...a notch in a portfolio, a cog in a machine.
It's been a long time since cycling's been covered in the New York Times, and an even longer time since any even outside of Le Tour has been mentioned (with the occasional North American event garnering coverage.)
