Fahrradsozialismus

Going through the hit stats for the past few months revealed an curious fact – Audrey Hepburn is still really popular:

By far the most Google hits to my little rant factory are searches for “Audrey Hepburn” linking to the three images I alluded to here, which is really rather interesting since one of the points I tried to make is that having such graceful & elegant idealisations (no matter how selective) such as Audrey Hepburn or the inspiring snaps from Cycle Chic is great for getting people into cycling. If one more person got interested enough to hop on a bike because of this superficial but ultimately human mental association, then all the linguistic & logical burden I’ve placed upon the blogosphere & the English language in general will not have been in vain.

Having recently signed up for flickr, it was wonderful to discover some great pics of bikes with or without people on them, and finding communities where you can share your visual experiences in things that interest you. One particular group of some considerable interest is Vélocouture, dealing with an issue I think quite important to many cyclists & potential cyclists alike - that of what to wear when you ride a bike & look good at the same time. It’s something I think that deserves some serious intellectual scrutiny & contextual analysis - but since I lack the ability to even maintain rudimentary cohension, you’d have to look elsewhere for that.

“Vanity thy name is Whoah man those are some totally awesome jeans!” is something you will never hear or say unless you are a total fool with no regard for the sanctity of the Bard. But beauty, or more plainly looking good - be it appreciating it in others or pure narcissism, is something most people enjoy, regardless whether it is just an uncontrollable animalistic drive or not. Fashion is but one facet, albeit perhaps the most overt & immediate realisation of such mental processes. Whether we admit it or not, we do make choices, however minor, in what we wear most of the time, and having to alter one’s choice just so you can ride a bike is agreeably disagreeable, to say the least – at least in the minds of some potential cyclists.

As it can be seen, however, in all established cycling cultures such as Copenhagen, Beijing or Tokyo, you don’t really need to get all kitted up for the daily commute, though of course that’s all fine & dandy if you combine your exercise/training with your daily commute. In fact it would be actually quite an efficient way of utilising your time. But for most people, especially if you’re terminally lethargic like me, you really can’t be bothered to shower or change once you get to your destination, or lack the facilities to do such things conveniently. Many cyclists are therefore reluctant to commute by bike so they won’t be too sweaty and/or smelly for the rest of the day, and understandably so.

As I shall demonstrate here with obviously irrefutable proof by the very virtue of having given them myself, I’ve posted a few images of yours truly in the Vélocouture of the stuff I wear when I cycle around commuting. If you ignore the pretentious obnoxious poses, you’ll find everything there are just normal clothing that you see on people who drive cars, catch buses or if you’re James Bond, defuse nuclear devices wear.

To me it might have something to do with one’s attitude towards how one should cycle for different purposes. I must admit I do enjoy trying to catch up to (and usually fail miserably) the bike in front when I ride my roadies when I ride for fun, I mean it’s just like a car racing game - except for the car & game bit. Such competitiveness, innate or otherwise, is something we all experience every now & then, regardless of what things like Taoism preach in terms of achieving equanimity through disengagement – something so very ideal & yet impossibly difficult to convince oneself with. What is life but a continual struggle of the self against !self?

Again I did have a point to make apart from drivelling sentimentalities. For most people like me it doesn’t take long to work up a good puff & sweat when you pushing 30km/h, so riding in such a manner when you’re just trying to get from A to B is probably a little excessive, and I ride at a pace which only exerts my body minimally, in fact far less than walking since there’s always wind to cool you down. For most commuting distances – say around 15km one-way, you really don’t save too much time by going from sub-sonic to warp 5, at most perhaps 10-20 minutes depending on your easy going speed & “racing” speed. Indeed the faster your easy going speed is to begin with, the less time you knock off by pushing yourself & going faster still.

A few things that might help in changing the road racer mentality:

1. Ditch that Speed/Cadence/Power computer/HRM/GPS, etc, so you are not constantly trying to keep an eye on maintaining that golden AVG or Cadence whilst monitoring your heart rate to achieve optimum output. Also, your bike also looks less cluttered without all those dials & readouts which imho looks better.

2. Ride “clunkers”. I don’t mean something that’s mechanically broken down, but something that puts more emphasis on comfort & durability rather than performance or speed. In Australia, many who start out to cycle as adults often end up a mountain bike – or more usually an imitation of one, I know I did. There’s nothing wrong with these especially at the price point, and are perfectly adequate for commuting once you get some slicks on them & sort out the riding position. However if you are looking for something more specialised, then some of the modern hybrids are very good also based on what I have read and are designed for commuting, though I have no personal experience with them. For some style (again a personal thing), by which to me is old-fashioned roadsters & ladies’ step-throughs, there is eBay where there’s usually a few on offer in most major cities. Some Danish, Indian & Swedish models are also available in Australia through various retailers. To me, and I am sure many others, full on road bikes aren’t really ideal for everyday commutes, unless it is turned into something that resembles a tourer/hybrid/roadster.

3. Just relax & enjoy the view along the ride, you’ll find there’s so much curiosity & beauty around if you just look, it’s makes the ride a whole lot more enjoyable – just don’t get carried away & missed that turn to school or work, ahem, unintentionally.

Since Monday Canberran cyclists have been able to catch the bus for free if they bring their bike along with them.

I always thought it a great idea for buses to have racks for bikes to encourage cycling, though I’m not too sure whether there is any rational rationale behind it. I myself have only used the racks once, and that was when I got a puncture and didn’t have a spare tube with me. Indeed I don’t see myself using it unless this happens again. On the rare occasions where I did catch a bus since I’ve started cycling, I left the bike at home.

It might have something to do with the fact that the bus services in Canberra isn’t exactly what you’d call developed. Many routes come once every 30 minutes during weekdays, and every hour on the weekends, making it quite inconvenient as you’d have to plan rather carefully around the timetables.

Still, irrespective of exactly how efficient & effective such a system is for Canberra, as a highly visible & cycling-specific infrastructure it does demonstrate the government actively promoting bikes as a commuting alternative, and that is something commendable in itself.

More info here at ACTION Buses’ website.

No, not a neglected Sentai show from the 80s sporting fluorescent speedos outside lycra knicks, as interesting as it undoubtedly would have been.

Transport officials in Taiwan are trying to introduce a new term for cyclist – 速人 Su Ren, literally, “Speed Man”, and is defined as someone who uses a two-wheeled vehicle (presumably unmotorised), travelling at less than 25km/h, basically I guess someone who is a pedestrian & a slow moving vehicle at the same time with rights assigned to the respective role depending on circumstance & road condition. The concept is to allow cyclists to share existing infrastructure better with pedestrians & motor vehicles, a part of a grander scheme to increase bicycle usage in Taiwan. Despite of its good intentions, having such a vaguely defined concept could have serious consequences under actual conditions where disputes & accidents do happen, especially in high-density areas like Taiwan. Having dedicated, clearly demarcated cycle lanes like mainland Chinese cities & Europe would cause a lot less confusion for all users, as difficult to implement onto existing roads as it may be.

Political power may indeed grow out of the barrel of a gun, but on the internet the only damage you’d do would be your precious computer & probably a friendly visit from your local law enforcement. Here I shall present the propaganda material for cycle socialism, so that you can see what terrible consequences the convenience of digital imaging & uncontrolled naïvety can regurgitate back unto the the world.

Having never been a big fan of anything that’s skin-fitting, I had very few pieces of actual dedicated cycling apparel – that is until I got into road cycling on a proper road bike. Riding for anything more than an hour on a “performance” saddle with normal pants is not an experience I wish upon the worst of my enemies. No, not even the one-eyed bastard son of Ming the Merciless & Megatron.

So I got a few pairs of cycling knicks, certainly not the most comfortable to sit down in, as basically you are wearing a glorified diaper, but there be certain localities concerning about oneself that would eternal gratefully thanked upon its own personage (as perhaps English as she is spoke will put it). Unfortunately there’s very little choice when it comes to the design of knicks, and as with all situations like this, I went with black.

Thankfully there are far more choices when it comes to jerseys. It is surprising how many riders from Predictor Lotto & Team CSC you’d meet on a daily basis. Many think it is pretentious to wear team jerseys if you don’t ride for one, and some would even consciously avoid wearing anything yellow whilst on a bike. I think people should have the freedom to wear (or not wear) whatever they feel like, but to me, most team jerseys, particularly in the modern era, are simply poorly designed & unattractive, regardless of contractual obligations with the sponsors concerning what must be displayed. They are too often covered with several vastly clashing logos displayed as often as space would allow. I pity the fool whose responsibility it is to design (unintentionally putting a rather heavy burden on the word) the jerseys, as Mr. T would say. But aesthetics is very much a personal thing, so who cares what others think – especially in the blogosphere.

One thing about jerseys, is that like the number fetish that is the modern clothing industry, sizing labels are practically meaningless. In addition to variations between manufacturers, depending on where the garment is marketed, the sizing can be very misleading. Always try to find out the actual measurement rather than go with the labelled size.

This is the first jersey I bought – unsurprising considering my unhealthy obsession with totalitarian symbolism & propaganda in general, just in case you haven’t noticed.

This is the second, purely typographic, can’t go wrong with a strong sans-serif. Thanks to google, I now know ARBÖ stands for der Auto- Motor- und Radfahrerbund Österreichs, sort of like our NRMA I guess, though it also caters explicitly for cyclists as well.

The hammer & sickle is one of the most recognisable non-commercial symbols worldwide, and imho one of the most successful asymmetrical symbols ever. As I am with most media that doesn’t exist in 1s & 0s, I am a certifiable imbecile, so the workmanship is definitely sub-standard, though I could claim that I was aspiring to capture the proletarian ambiance & spiritual voluntarism of the Spanish Civil War.

One thing I have notices is that many jersey from minor local teams are far better looking than those from the pro-tours, simply because they tend to have a lot less sponsorship details to cram in, there are many jerseys like these on eBay at a fraction the cost of new ones, and being the retro grouch that I am (especially when it comes to clothing):

Another important piece of garment for cycling in the sun a bandanna, they are great for soaking up the sweat, & will prevent interesting patterns on your forehead if you ride for any considerable period of time under the Aussie sun.

The recently released ABS Census data for 2006 showed that 2.13% of Canberrans cycled to work, risen from 1.94% & 1.85% in 2001 & 1996 respectively. Though more than twice the national average, the number is still insignificant compared with Amsterdam or Copenhagen, but it is still somewhat encouraging.

In a city where the chances of being shot at or beaten to death with baseball bats whilst riding is thankfully exceedingly low, where your worst enemy is probably the dreaded winter mornings & the occasional killer headwinds (I would add rain, but the term is almost mythical down here for the past few years, bureau of meteorology predicted rain for most of the past week; kilometrage on the bike: 492.1), it’s no wonder more people are joining the fun.

A long time ago in a place far, far away, not so much in absolute terms, relatively speaking, I was taught to love one’s country, one’s people & the Communist Party. Looking back, as surreal as it seems today (though perhaps most people feel that way about their childhoods), there is something to be said about having had some absolute ideals to look forward to – if it could be perpetuated. People deal with disillusionment differently. In addition to the inevitable bitter cynicism, I reconciled myself by embracing further the ideals regardless of the ironic reality under which they were propagated, along with the imageries associated with it.

Indeed the notion that morality exists only because of immorality, that the seemingly dichotomous values simply could not exist without one and other can perhaps be regarded as a limitation of language, but unfortunately it also means that it is something innate in human beings. Same reason why I adore so many things anachronistic perhaps, for the harsh realities represented is dampened by the passage of time, and it is easier to have fanciful notions about, no matter how erroneous, for it is all introspective. I suppose it is like religion in a way, only without the reassuring conviction of things will certainly get better, but what good is wool-gathering if one can’t fool oneself.

But this is supposed to be about my current commuter bike. One of the first I stripped & built up again from bits & pieces. There’s nothing even remotely prestigious about its pedigree, nor is it an exemplar of Chinese workmanship (sadly an oxymoron these days). but I still love it, that’s what silly sentimentalism is all about, right?

Started off as an old roadie I scored off eBay for $10, the frame is rather small even for my Lilliputian stature, making it a perfect conversion to an upright commuter, as the stand-over height is lower.

The paint job is nothing to write home about, I simply stripped the top coat and a few minor rust spots off with a hand sander, skipping random hard-to-get spots & whenever I got bored of sanding. First a spray of undercoat white, then topped off with glossy black. Of course it doesn’t compare with sandblasting & a proper paint job, but it doesn’t seem to chip easily and much easier to recoat if it does.

The components came off a few different bikes, the only new part being the bottom bracket, as you basically don’t have to worry about sealed bottom brackets once there are mounted. The great thing about bicycles is its serviceability. Even a mechanical retard like myself could get most parts onto a bike without too many expletives simply by looking at how it is mounted on existing bikes. Along with internet guides like Sheldon Brown & Parktools, most tuning can be performed at home if you have the right tools (easily the most expensive part of putting together a bike from old bits & pieces).

Being my main utility bike, its cargo capacity is of great concern, I have experimented with many configurations, and finally settled with the current setup. I dislike most modern panniers simply because of their deliberate “outdoor” appearance – though admitted there are some nice canvas & leather ones to be had albeit at a considerable price. I also wanted something that’s permanently attached to the bike so I don’t have to lug it around. The two baskets can handle most things I carry around on a daily basis, but in the rare occasions when more space is needed, I adapted one of those pensioner’s trolley bags by removing the wheels & clamping it to the rear rack.

And the pièce de résistance, “subtle” communist propaganda reading “East wind crushes West wind” as a head-badge. Politically incorrect in so many ways but nevertheless an attractive design radiating that conviction so common in socialist contrsuctivist art.

It still lacks the traditional full chain guard for that classic look, but they are hard to come by. Perhaps it is just petty attachment to classical aesthetics, but I can’t see why utility bikes such as these are no longer readily available in Australia. The decline of the bicycle as a mode of transportation here is certainly a factor, but there still are bikes called “commuters” or “hybrids” which seem to be the closest thing most bike shops would actually stock that fills this niche market - though these usually do not come with mudguards, racks or lights as standard, and since they are such “specialised” units, the final price bracket is closer to the low-end racing bikes than the K-mart specials. It is hard to imagine these would cost more to produce & import than the cheap mountain bikes which dominate the mass market, and are infinitely more suitable for urban riding, especailly as commuters.

Captures perfectly the holier-than-thou elitist attitude too often associated with anyone who consider their intellectual, moral & spiritual superiority a scientific fact (i.e. pretty much everyone) simply due to their supposedly progressive approach to life, and particularly acute in some pseudo-retro-progressivists. Indeed I must admit that to some I myself must be gulity of it too, but at least I realise (or at least I hope I realise) the ionee of it all.

German ridefastmake 1800 speedhaste, Selflive doubleplusgood

Though without full knowledge of the affair about initial agreements & settlements from both sides it is unwise to make any comment, but it is a proud tradition to root for the underdogs regardless of legal & moral correctitude - though one could always argue about what can be construed by the term “underdog” and its specific interpretation under this particular circumstance, but such things should come from the heart, not the mind.

It is not too often (or perhaps it is not often enough) you see such defiance against the currents of globalisation where profit reigns supreme. Of course conditions of the workers in mass manufacturing plants in developing countries are bettered in absolute terms, and the economic progress & social stability implied by such inflows of foreign capital does wonders for market confidence, so that they too can one day become a developed nation, so it all seems like a win-win situation. But without even suggesting the neo-impreialist undercurrent of such mode of development & the inherent condescension of the morality behind it, the smaller manufacturers in the developed world are also direct victims. Call it petty provincialism, but keeping local things local has its quaint charms.

I’ve always wanted one of these dutch workcycles, they look great, and can carry pretty much anything you throw at it. They are the perfect solution if you have small kids or have extreme cargo needs. I was delighted to see something similar today on my way home from the City, I’ve always thought these types of trikes would be quite wide, but in reality they take up little more space than a normal bike, and certainly no more room than a recumbent trike you often see in Canberra.

The Trike is an Christiania from Copenhagen, available in Australia from PS Bikes.

On a somewhat related note, saw this video on the development of bicycle infrastructure in Copenhagen over 40 years, some very heartwarming comments by the commuters, as well the cute, inescapably Scandinavian accent.

In stark contrast, another great cycling culture - the Chinese, especially in cities like Shanghai & Beijing, is slowly marginalising cyclists in favour of automobiles. Bikes are no longer allowed on many of the roads, and existing dedicated cycle lanes are either removed or narrowed in order to accommodate the exponentially increasing traffic burden. There are even some academic studies (not surprisingly funded by an auto company) suggesting that bicycles are a cause of major traffic congestion, and even recommending the reduction of bicycle use. It is true that traffic regulations are often taken as subtle suggestions by many road users, unfortunately a phenomenon witnessed in many other aspects of life as well in China, but it is ludicrous to even suggest that bicycles places a heavier burden on traffic conditions than cars. It may be a sign of progress where more and more people are able to afford private cars, but it is sad to see the loss of one of the things worth preserving.