Category: Culture

DKNY orange bicycles

man and woman on bicycle - DKNY fashion models For Fashion Week in New York City, DKNY says to “Explore Your City” on bike. DKNY informs fashionistas of the benefits of cycling by noting New York’s high population and flat terrain make it an ideal city for cycling; informing people that May is Bike Month in New York; DKNY stores in NYC are distributing free bike maps.

DKNY also will give away what they describe as a “custom folding bike,” which turns out to be a Huffy painted in a DKNY color scheme. (Since when did Huffy have folders?)

According to Conde Naste Portfolio, DKNY has also chained about 75 orange bikes around New York City, noting that it’s a publicity stunt that’s seems to have gone awfully well for DKNY. Why else would DKNY be mentioned by Bike Snob, Streetsblog, Bike Blog, Bike Hugger, Gwadzilla and now even Cyclelicious?

woman on a bicycle - DKNY fashion model
Not all the attention has been positive, with some people thinking it’s too much like the ghost bike memorials.

Photo: “DKNY Pro Bike Campaign” from Amanda Ford in Brooklyn.

I guess I should point out that none of the female bike commuters I encounter ever look like the fashion models pictured here. They mostly look something like me — you know: a little bit dorky, wrinkly clothes, wripped and oily pant hems, smelly bike gloves, yellow jacket, helmet hair, a little sweaty — they just usually have longer hair than me. I sometimes run into sanguine cuties like Emily though, too.

Cycle Dog

Megan is a cyclist in Texas. She likes guns, Panda bears, polar bears, fixed gear bikes, and short fenders. This is her dog, Pie.

he loves to trot

Here are a couple more adorable dog with bike photos.


Some might accuse me of pandering to those who hanker for cute pet photos, but really I’m just following industry trends. Sickenly cute pet photos is almost the definition of a succcessful blog, and besides I’m just following CycleDog’s lead, here. That’s the ticket.

(Click on photos for captions and photographer info)

What a pretty bicycle, she said

Greetings and thank you to all those visiting from whatever mailing list posted a link to Cyclelicious. I really like the Luka Bloom song that you all are listening too. You might also consider watching this video, which uses the same music but with different photos.

Some time ago I created a compilation CD of my favorite bicycle songs that included “The Acoustic Motorbike.” Another song from this CD is Bicycle Song by Orbit. Click on the link to Amazon for a preview, and instead of a CD these days you can download it to your MP3 player. The bicycle is a metaphor for something else but it’s still cool to listen to.

Skirt and bicycle

Cyclist in Santa Cruz California Many women I know prefer the more “feminine” look of skirts and dresses even while cycling; my wife is one of them. In the San Francisco Bay Area, I see a handful of women who dress up for work and ride their bikes in their office wear. One in particular I see almost every day dresses fashionably and rides to and from the office on an old white Peugot 10 speed. Even in her straight skirt on a bike with a top tube she manages to ride demurely and confidently.

A common way to stay modest is to wear bike shorts or tights under the skirt. Byron the Bike Hugger posted some links to handy tips for the ladies who might want to ride a bicycle in a dress or skirt. Pauline seeks to excite onlookers with her advice in Happy Woman Magazine in which she advocates stretchy, short skirts. Lisa offers somewhat more practical advice for the more modest cyclist at at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. She suggests an elastic band on the thigh to which you can safety pin your skirt to prevent wind-blown exposure. The Guardian notes that long skirts become short skits and short skirts become shorter skirts on a bike. Darcy writes she can ride in anything with no fear.

I’m glad to see more and more people who see cycling as an activity that can be done in any kind of clothing.

Top photo: “Santa Cruz Cyclist” by me.
Bottom photo: “Kirsty” by Hen Waller. See also the excellent Velocouture pool for many more photos of stylishly dressed cyclists.

Chanel bicycle

Chanel has apparently announced a $12,000 city bike as part of the fashion house’s 2008 spring/summer collection. So far, only fuzzy black-and-white images of this bike are available, which features black leather saddle and saddle bag, 8 speed hub gearing on a *cough* “lightweight” 36 pound bike.


Although the Chanel bike features fenders and a chainguard, Chanel last summer also introduced jeweled pant clips to keep your pants from getting caught in the chain.

Seen also at Vogue and Female First. Be sure to keep this baby locked up.

The Acoustic Motorbike

I’ve loved Luka Bloom’s “Acoustic Motorbike” (the album and the title track) ever since I first heard it a few years ago. Somebody put the music to a slide show and posted it to YouTube. Bloom captures the vibe of cycling wonderfully with his acoustic music and lyrics.

You see whenever I’m alone
I tend to brood
But when I’m out on my bike
It’s a different mood

I work my legs
I pump my thighs
The antidote to my emotional ills
A motion built upon human toil
Nuclear free needs no oil
But it makes me hot, makes me hard
I never thought I could have come this far
Through miles of mountains, valleys, streams
This is the right stuff filling my dreams
So come on, get up on your bike
Ah go on, get up on your bike.