APEC Police Powers

The Police have been siezing people's bicycles as potential weapons of dissent.

I took these photos in Glebe today

Bike confiscated.

eye of the tiger, ala the pedal pusher society

http://www.pedalpushersociety.org

Blümchen - Bicycle Race

Play it nice n loud

2007 Bicycle Film Festival Trailer

Poetry in motion

The rain, the blur,

The world stands still

As I careen uncontrolled

On down the hill --

Don't wanna die,

Ain't ready to go,

Just another dent

In some yuppie's Volvo - Markus Cook

Bicycle Haiku

Wheels spin happily

Sudden hiss of punctured tube

The long walk homeward

Why are you still driving a car?

"Driving a car versus riding a bike is on par with watching 'reality' television rather than living your own life."

Rebel Girl

That girl thinks shes the queen of the neighborhood

Shes got the hottest trike in town

That girl she holds her head up so high

I think I wanna be her bestfriend

Rebel girl, rebel girl

Rebel girl you are the queen of my world

Rebel girl, rebel girlI think I wanna take you home
I wanna try on your clothes too

When she talks, the revolutions coming

In her hips, theres revolution

When she talks, I hear the revolution

In her kiss, I taste the revolution

Rebel girl...That girl thinks shes the queen of the neighborhood

I got news for you, she is!

They say shes a slut, but I know

She is my bestfriend

Rebel girl, rebel girl, rebel girl

I really like you, I really love you

I really wanna be your bestfriend

Love you like a sister always

Soul sister, blood sister

Please be my rebel girl

Bat For Lashes - Whats a Girl To Do

Creepy! But it does have bicycles and a burning car...

World's Largest Spoke Card

Jake the snake

Long time coming

Yes it's been ages I know. Sorry...

I went off to New Zealand so here are some photos I took over there. Lots of crazy old vintage bikes in that country. Most of the riders seemed to be either long haul members of the lycra brigade or elderly middle class ladies. Not a lot of bike pirates around.





And of course the obligatory mud bath photo...
****
Ok so it's not much to show for such a long hiatus, if you want something funny to read check out "The Freedom Blog"
Where you can enjoy gems like this "You can tell a lot about a man by the kind of car he drives; What does the fact that I drive a hummer say about me? Powerful, strong, rugged and All-American." and further down the page "The way I see it is that by driving this truck, I’m making a statement that I will not let the Democrats high oil-prices defeat me. America’s gonna keep on truckin’ no matter what the terrorists do. Anybody who rides a cycle has already given in to the terrorists."
Coming soon I will be presenting Sarah's specially commissioned photos of European cycling in all it's glory and Chris's Cambridge cyclist photos. Stay tuned.

Pedalpalooza Bike Fest - Portland, Oregon

Don't you just wish you lived in Portland?

Bike To Work Day testimonial

Roundtrip miles biked each weekday: 14.
Commute time, including 13 traffic lights: 30 minutes each way.
Days I've driven a car to work in the past five years: fewer than 10.
Accidents involving cars or pedestrians: Zero.
Patience level being in a car during commute hours: Very low.
Satisfaction level zipping past a long line of backed-up cars: High.
CO2 saved from entering the atmosphere each year: 2.6 tons (yes, tons).
Gas money saved each year, at current prices: $900.
Frequency of decadent dessert consumption: Daily.
Body Mass Index: Low.
Guilt over eating said sweets: None.
Cost of high-quality bicycle: $800.
Amount I would have spent to purchase a car and insurance if not biking: A lot more than $800. Cycling gear and maintenance costs during the past five years: under $230.
Flat tires since installing Mr. Tuffy liners a year and a half ago: Zero.
Bike theft insurance per month, covering complete replacement: $2.
Living a low-carbon lifestyle and practicing what I'd preach if I were the preaching type: Priceless.
Gillian Zaharias

Lords of the Chain Ring

Riding a bicycle is a revolutionary act.

Lexington Place Buskers Competition

I headed over to Maroubra Beach today with Charlie and Cooper to the Lexington Place Busker Competition. I'd been invited to help judge the competition. It was a beautiful suuny day and it was great to see all the locals come out to enjoy the show together. We were very impressed at the courage and talent of some of the very young performers who got up to sing or play for the crowd. Randwick City Council did a great job getting the competition organised. It was very encouraging to see the council working with the locals to create a fun community event.

Cooper made lots of new friends.

Samba Ninjas

Danielle won $1000 for her own arrangement of "Time after Time." She is only 15 but already has a very promising voice.

11 year old Taylor sung really well without any accompaniment, she only entered at the last minute but carried off a $250 third prize.

Eddie Jackson came second after an amazingly energetic tap dancing performance. (Once he'd found a bit of wood to stomp on)

Good reason not to insure with GIO

Reading the paper this morning I was annoyed to see this advert from GIO. The clear message is that public transport is only for losers and that everyone should aspire to commute to work by car. I'm also annoyed that Sydney Buses have allowed this photo to be taken on one of their vehicles. Why are Sydney Buses actively co-operating with a company that discourages the use of public transport?

Directly above this ad was an article which graphically illustrates the results of this kind of thinking. In Sydney 1600 people a year die because of air pollution (90% of which comes from cars) The article also states that Sydney has seen an explosion in car use with 7.7 million fewer trips being made by public transport than there were six years ago. (click on the article to see the larger version)

Check out the double chin on the poor suffering commuter. What he really needs to do is start cycling to work.

Clover riding in New York

http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/ta-rides-with-the-mayors-of-sydney-copenhagen/

Doctor Who: The Chaser

This is one of my favourite Andrew Hansen songs. You can watch lots of Chaser stuff on You Tube.

Golden Boy - Blumchen - Bicycle Race

Gladstone St

Last night I was reading on Nosey in Newtown's excellent blog a lot of idle speculation about the ex army trucks that park in Gladstone St and appear to have fallen into the hands of the Spooky Newtown Art Mob. So being a devotee of idle speculation (like most cyclists) I stopped this morning on my ride to work and snapped off a few shots. It's relevant because the thing in the back has pedals and at least two bicycles died to make it.

Who is Zoot Katz?

It occurred to me that the greatest value of our bikes is that they lead us to deeper enquiry. They carry us to new places within ourselves. We learn very real things about our internal physical functions. They expose the wonderous workings of our body/mind while connecting us in the outer world. They take us there under our own power at our own pace. Bicycles become our teachers and healers and friends. They guide us through the greater world by prompting us with questions and encourage­ment. Bicycles motivate us through the realms of science, sociology and spirituality whether carrying us to the corner or around the world. All we have to do is ride them. That's a damn good deal. --Zoot Katz

Bicycle Macho

We've all noticed that there are heaps more people out there riding on two wheels these days which is a wonderful thing. I love cruising down Wilson St when there are lots of other cyclists on the road. At the moment it still feels like a subculture and although I want everyone in this town to commute by pedal power I guess it will be a little sad when cycling becomes mainstream. While most people are still riding in cars you do feel like a bit of a daring rebel. Cycling in Sydney is sometimes percieved as being like one of those Extreme Sports where really tough dudes put their life on the line just for the thrill of it. Which brings me to my point. How come most of the cyclists I see are women?

My friend Des reckons it's all about male insecurity, men need the car in order to feel powerful and dangerous. Women are more community minded, they care about the environment and what's good for society as a whole.

I think the blokes out there need to realise that if they had real balls they'd be taking on the traffic. Real men don't need a motor.

Just between you and me, it's really not that dangerous, motorists seem to be getting more considerate every day. They wait for me at intersections and make sure they allow plenty of room when they pass. It's pretty rare for a car to come within half a meter of me and Big Red. The only times I've ever felt endangered are when I've been deliberately doing something risky.

Australian's love to support the underdog, they all know they're in the wrong when they are riding around in a pollution machine.

Here's a video sent in by Phuong that provides another reason why women love their bicycles.