Gee, wasn’t that fun following the adventures of “Balloon Boy” Falcon Heene today, and it turns out he’s safe and sound at home the whole time. My buddy Brian wonders if this was a publicity stunt.

What else happened today?

US headed for massive decline in carbon emissions.

A San Francisco cyclist hit and run journal entry. With photos! His Boing Boing friends seem to think the driver might actually face some consequences, but the reality is that many hit and run cases are never prosecuted or even investigated.

Thomas Dekker — the guy who played a young “John Connor” in The Sarah Connor Chronicles — was arrested for felony DUI after he hit a bicyclist. The victim is a 17 year old kid who was transported to a hospital for minor injuries.

Bicycle Design looks at the Spooklight.

Riding Pretty: Fall bicycle chic dressing trends.

Curtis rides an old man’s bike with old man gear.

Have a good one!

Arc’teryx, a Canadian sporting goods company known for their climbing and hiking gear, has introduced their Veilance men’s technical apparel (sorry again, ladies) for the urban environment. Check out this blazer, for example, with Windstopper fabric which would look good and work great while biking to work.

Other items from Arc’teryx Veilance include urban styled technical jackets, pants, sweaters and shirts. The pants have zippered pockets! And with the rugged fabric and high quality, the pants might even last through more than a single season of bike commuting. Some of the shirts also have discrete shoulder pockets.

At several hundred dollars and up for these stylish and well made digs, Veilance will be offered at the premium men’s stores that I never shop at.

Via Bike Commuting in Columbus.

A little birdy told me that the New York Times may publish an article about business travel and bicycles next Tuesday. The article may or may not quote me.

But it’s a perfect lead in to Bike Hugger’s experiences with travel and bikes. They use S&S Couplers so full sized bikes can be broken down to a size that will fit into a 26″ x 26″ x 10″ case that travels as regular airline luggage.

Recently, though, airlines are charging their bike fees even when the bike case does not exceed 62 linear inches! Unbelievably, Air Canada charges their $50 “bike handling fee” even for a Strida folding bike because they claim “the carriage of bicycles requires additional and special handling procedures.” As if.

Bike Hugger’s suggestion? Don’t tell the airlines your transporting a bike. It’s trade samples, or camping gear.

When I travel, I just rent a bike at my destination or use public transportation.

See also:

• Bicycle commuting and international business travel.
• Airline bicycle fees.

I’m flipping through TMBK, a Taiwan mountain bike magazine, and see an ad for the Woho Firefly saddle bags and handlebar bags.

A closer look reveals these bags are actually transluscent plastic that are available in several bright colors; you put a light inside the bag so they glow.

Flash heavy website Wohobike.com has some more illustrations of the bags in action, but I think their Flickr photostream works better for me.

I see now also that my friends at Urban Velo got the jump on me and posted about the Woho Firefly last week.

Vancouver, BC and environs will be a traffic nightmare during the Winter Olympics, so organizers are promoting “alternative” transportation in a transportation plan that restricts on street parking and encourages public transportation, shuttles, walking and even bicycling.

“The goal is to reduce vehicle traffic by 30 per cent, which is about 26,000 vehicles,” says Terry Wright, 2010’s head of Olympic services. “We will have new cycling networks and bike parking in and around the venues.”

Pedestrian corridors will be established where people can walk, bike and ride pedicab to events. Temporary bike parking will be provided at Games venues and LiveCity celebration sites. Bike lockers will be available at all SkyTrain stations, with the exception of Stadium station. Olympic organizers encourage Vancouver residents to participate in Bike to Work Week November 2-9 to practice cycling in winter conditions, which I think is pretty rad.

For details, visit the City of Vancouver online map page which includes maps of the Olympic and Paralympic Venues, Vancouver bike map, and an Olympic road network map.

This stationary bike is a Wii controller.

From the game screenshot, it appears you use this bike drive a pedal powered chopper over the planet to clean up the planet.

More at Kotaku. Due for release January 2010 from French game publisher BigBen Interactive. Since they’re French, is it too much to hope for a bike racing game to use with this accessory?

Via Gizmodo. I thought I mentioned it earlier but I guess not. Also at WIRED Gear Factor, where Charlie suggests just playing Mario Cart with a normal WiiMote while sitting on the exercise bike that’s gathering dust in the basement.