Video | Utility Cycling

A Rather Unusual Commute

Posted on 10. Sep, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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Although this video is an advertisement for S1jobs.com, which appears to be the Scottish version of LinkedIn, I am posting it anyhow for a few reasons.

1. Danny MacAskill is amazing, and his riding is absolutely beautiful to watch.

2. The video is actually quite well done, when you consider the message. Indeed, I like the idea of suggesting that one ought to, or even could, love one’s job, and potentially also love getting back and forth to one’s job. This is certainly an advertising message I can live with.

3. I could go into some socio-cultural critique about the way in which the rider commuting to work in the video navigates the city space in a non-traditional manner, which therefore enables him to experience place in a different way, and consequently, be able to better love his job…but I’ll just leave it at that.

4. It’s fun to watch. So enjoy. And then go mix it up on your commute (no, I don’t suggest jumping off any buildings on your bike), but maybe try a new route, for example, and see if it improves your workday at all.

And because I simply can’t help myself (or get enough of this video), I’m posting another example of Danny’s riding. Kind of like a ballet of sorts.

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On Street Bike Parking

Posted on 09. Sep, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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Yesterday, I posted two videos about indoor bicycle parking facilities: one in Amsterdam, and one in Phoenix, AZ. Large, indoor bicycle parking facilities are really useful in locations that serve as a hub of sorts. These types of parking facilities are often located close to train stations, bus stations, light rails, etc. and allow people to easily commute into central business districts, downtown areas, etc. Or conversely, the bicycle parking facility might be located within the central business district, but the point is, that these large structures are usually built for more long-term parking (ie. the length of a workday) and are built to house a large number of bicycles.

However, in places where short-term parking is required, such large facilities may not be as convenient or as efficient. On-street parking is a common form of short-term bicycle parking, and it often presents itself in the form of U-shaped bike racks cemented into the sidewalk, which are designed to hold between 2 to 8(ish) bikes per rack, depending on the design. These types of racks are fine in areas with low bike use, but in areas with high bike use, parking can become difficult to find or even overflow into the pedestrian zones on the sidewalk or into the car zones on the street.

This morning’s video shows one version of on-street bicycle parking, whereby the City of Portland converted 1.5 car parking spaces into bike parking spaces in one high use, but mostly likely short-term, parking area. The result is cleaner sidewalks, plenty of bike parking, and a very nice piece of cycling infrastructure.

What is the bike parking like where you ride? Let us know and even send us some photos!

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Bicycle Parking

Posted on 08. Sep, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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I discovered this great video by Amsterdamize this morning called Convenience. The video depicts how easy it is to commute by bicycle in Amsterdam, what with the great infrastructure – in the way of bike lanes, signs, etc., safe parking – in a guarded facility with plenty of space, and convenient locations – in the way of close proximity to the train, the business district, and presumably shopping, eating, and so on.

Convenience from Amsterdamize on Vimeo.

In the United States, such bicycle parking facilities are fewer and farther between, but there are some popping up in unexpected places. For example, just up the road from me in Phoenix, Arizona – a very hot place, I can assure you – a bicycle parking, repair, and locker facility called The Bicycle Cellar has just opened. The Bicycle Cellar offers parking, showers (which are essential in a place like Phoenix, if not for your smell, but for your sanity), repair services, and much more for great prices. The Bicycle Cellar is gathering momentum too, due in part to its convenient location near the new light rail in Phoenix and also because it is a fabulous idea.

The Bicycle Cellar is the first of it’s kind in Arizona and hopefully not the last. I think a similar business would do really well near the University of Arizona in Tucson, which sees the highest bicycle traffic and probably also the highest theft in the city. A safe place to park your bike and shower would make commuting by bicycle even better than it already is!

The Bicycle Cellar from on Vimeo.

Next up on Utility Cycling.org, we are going to begin a discussion about bicycle parking. So please chime in if you have suggestions, ideas, or stories we can add to our next post.

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Happy Labor (on your bike) Day!

Posted on 07. Sep, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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Happy Labor Day to those of you reading in the U.S. If you are celebrating the holiday, I hope this post can provide a little inspiration if you plan to entertain some friends this afternoon with a BBQ or get-together of sorts. The inspiration of course, is to use your bicycle and endless human-power to help prepare your meal. Whether it’s simply riding your bike to get groceries or using it to make eggplant dip (see video below) or any variation thereof, today is a good day to well, labor, but just a bit, and always on your bike!

Enjoy!

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The Day of Electric Bikes

Posted on 03. Sep, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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Well, today is the day of electric bikes and wow’s. The first wow…erhm, I mean electric bike…is the Yike Bike. It sure looks interesting, efficient and so on, but my first question, is it comfortable? I just don’t know how I feel about that hand position for riding, but you never know until you try. Yike Bike has an answer, and they also claim that it’s more intuitive to ride than a regular bicycle. Hmmm…I would say that once you know how to ride a bike it’s pretty intuitive, but who knows.

Anyways, check it out for yourself.

I first read about the Yike Bike over at Cyclelicio.us.

And then there is this video. Again, wow. Just wow. I like the idea of an electric bike vs electric car challenge, but what is that guy doing riding down the sidewalk going as fast as the cars? Geez!!!

This video and some good comments were found at Commute Orlando.

And I’m actually not opposed to electric bikes, as I think they are a great option for many people for commuting. However, personally, I must admit that I prefer to pedal.

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Open Street Map

Posted on 31. Aug, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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Last Friday, I wrote a post about bicycle mapping, which inspired me to do a bit more research about it over the weekend. As I said, there are a lot of different mapping applications available online, most of which are focused around navigation and route-finding. Most of these online applications are available through large companies such as Google or Yahoo. However, there are some online mapping applications that are more open source.

One example of this is Open Street Map, which is a free and editable map of the whole world. The best thing about Open Street Map is that it is collaborative and interactive, so in many ways, it is much more up-to-date, dynamic, and user-friendly (especially for a cyclist), than say Google Maps, Map Quest, etc. Of course, there are trade-offs to using the different online mapping applications, but I really like the concept behind Open Street Maps.

Enjoy this short video excerpt from a presentation by Steve Coast of Open Street Map.

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“Go On the Bike!”

Posted on 28. Aug, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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A piece of good advice from one of the people interviewed in this video by the folks over at Kona Bikes about bicycling in Amsterdam. It is so great to listen to the people there talk about how natural it is to ride a bike and how much better it is than driving. And on that note, have a great weekend of riding!

Video originally seen over at Bike Commuters and Bike Hugger.

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More on Scraper Bikes

Posted on 26. Aug, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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When I first saw the original scraper bike video a few years ago, I could not get the song out of my head. And now that the scraper bike movement has really taken off, it would seem that my head is just going to have to deal with it. Fortunately, the movement appears to be just as tenacious as the song. The scraper bike movement has already provided a great opportunity for kids in Oakland and beyond to use their energy in positive ways, pay tribute to their friends, be mobile, have fun, express themselves, and so much more, and with all the press it’s been getting lately, one can only hope that the movement continues. After all, “My bike goes hard, don’t need no car!”

Here is a video from Streetfilms featured around the Bike for Life Ride in Oakland, with some great interviews.

And last, but certainly not least. The final cut of SCRAPER BIKE from Trunk Boiz. Be sure to check out the Scraper Bike website, as well.

So until next time, you know I’ll be cruisin’ on my scraper bike, on my scraper bike!

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Pedal Flower

Posted on 24. Aug, 2009 by Melanie Colavito.

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I really enjoy these videos – especially the bike themed ones – from Andrea in Canada. They are poignant, beautiful, and effective at conveying their messages. I posted one on this site a few weeks ago, and here is another to start off the week.