True Story: I ride the bus from Santa Cruz with “Sharon.” She works at Adobe and recently attended SXSW in Austin, where she told me she rented a bicycle.
“Austin has these wide one way streets,” she told me this morning. “I can’t go fast and I didn’t really know how to get across four lanes of traffic for a left turn. I started to follow somebody who looked like he knew what he was doing and saw him riding in the middle of the lane.”
Sharon shrugged and continued, “I tried it too and I felt a lot safer. Nobody crowded me and changing lanes was cake.”
Take the lane for safety and convenience.
More bicycle news
Darryl talks to a few Car Free and Car Light people at Loving The Bike today.
Emily attended last weekend’s Transportation Camp in San Francisco and posts her “Sexy Transit” notes here, using a photo of herself by Yours Truly.
From Chicago – Why DO Drivers Hate Cyclists (via Steve Vance):
Write an article about bikes, safety, and transportation, and you will get a flood of commenters. Most of them will be angry; most of the angerbears will be angry at cyclists, which is something that’s long fascinated me. And the answer, I think, is a bit of a paradox, but it might be good news.
Filipino town works to become the biking capital of the country. Via Bicycle Fixation.
Car insurance advertisement illustrates the horror of life without a car! (Video via Amsterdamize.
Ted remembers deceased bike advocate Mark Bixby.
Did you know Arizona Republican representatives Ben Quayle and Paul Gosar are cyclists?
I’m telling my “liveable community” story to [Gosar staffer] Thomas Van Flein, he cuts me off and says, “You’re preaching to the choir. Doctor Gosar gets it. He is a cyclist. Doctor Gosar knows the health benefits of cycling, and he lives in Flagstaff. He voted in favor of the Transportation Bill.”
Driven to distraction because “Driving sucks,” writes Keri at Commute Orlando.
Distracting technologies sell cars. Why does the consumer want these things? Because they’re bored out of their minds. Driving sucks.
Finally, Bike Hugger was also in Austin at SXSW and took a few “bike culture” photos.
Don’t forget: Nikwax giveaway!
Thanks for including us in your Hump Day post, Richard. As for Sharon who was here for SXSW….the bike was the only way to get around downtown. Traffic (both vehicle and people) were insane while it was going on.
Darryl
It’s always surprising when people discover the basic idea of being part of traffic by traveling well into the lane. The hardest part is to put your fears aside and try it.