Interesting viewpoint, insight and wisdom from an older (?) gentleman in regards to the vid: Guy from Cycle Chic.
(Yours, I already kinda know where Mikael stands)

Same with the Sinking of HMAS Adelaide. I know we toy with Nature at our peril, but didn’t realize the potential effects to the shore.

Very refreshing and different. Thank You!

I think you are wrong though, utility cycling will become very newsworthy.

Our cites are being strangled by cars. Europe has proved that a great burden can be lifted off cities by the humble bike, with benefits in public health at the same time. Since transport stories are front page almost daily, it’s a mystery to me why the bike, as an option, is not getting proper consideration. It is everywhere else

The usual reason given is that conditions here are too different for us to emulate those European successes, and so they are not relevant. We like to claim our distances are greater, for example. David Hembrow, whose blog is linked here, and who commutes 60 kms. a day by pedal power in Holland, proves that’s not true.

What holding us back then? our climate is superior. Finding what the blockage is, physical, attitudinal, whatever, is a huge story I would think.

Some say it’s the helmets we are forced to wear but which are a matter of choice in Europe, that these are holding back utility cycling .

If they’ve crimped utility cycling, here, that’s not true of sports cycling. Racers and risk takers love helmets and would wear them to the last competitor, optional or not . That’s an interesting story angle on the perennial helmet debate, I guess.

Then, there’s the story about Bike share, the street rental systems which are sweeping the world. That’s a big bike story and nothing to do with racing. 10,000 Bixies are due on the streets of London any day now.

They are coming to Melbourne too, or so they say. But will they? can they? given our helmet laws. That’s a big story, I believe . It’s revenue and tourist story as well, since these bike share schemes bring visitors, and they spread the tourist dollar around like turbo charged garden sprinklers. Cities love them. Ask Montreal.

Lastly, shall I put the cat amongst the pigeons and suggest the really big story, has to be whether the dominant cycle culture, the one you write about , bears some responsibility for Australia coming last, or near to, in utility cycling, world wide.

Why? How could it? Well, all the experts agree that to grow utility bike use, you have to make it safe and fun. They also agree that the way to do that, is to have separate bike-ways so that bikes and cars are kept separate and cyclists going to work feel safe and happy.

Such Bike-ways cost big money and can’t happen without strong public pressure. There is little such pressure, here, and the reason in part is because the sport and leisure cycling lobby don’t care much about bike ways.

They wont oppose them, but they don’t particularly want them either. The Lycra crowd are happy on the existing roads, either riding single file, two abreast as the law allows, or taking the whole road for special events. They’d like motorists to behave better for sure, but they are no about to quit the field because of road rage.

They have little interest in bike-ways into cites, sure to be clogged with slower riders and perhaps, worse still, with pedestrians, all in their way. Every ride is a training ride to some degree for the sports rider, and that is better done on the road.

The second reason why the dominant culture impedes utility riding is that the machine you need for such riding , the bike of choice in the big bike transport countries, has been made something of a pariah here . I’m talking the stately sit up bike with rack, mudguards, lights enclosed chain, etc.

This sort of bike is pretty much despised here, as a wimp machine, by serious riders, and bike shops actively discourage people from getting them . Many complaints, relayed to me by people who’ve been steered away from these comfortable machines, convinces me this is true, though they are creeping in here and there, but on sufferance. When the stately sit-up is the main bike on offer, filling shop windows, we will be getting near to a utility bike culture

Why sport cyclists feel threatened by these bike, I have yet to find out. and i pan to do so in upcoming films. But right now , wade, no can deny they’re rare, nor that they are the bike of choice in the big utility biking countries .

Thanks again, Wade, for being part of the debate. Mike Rubbo

Thanks for taking the time to write this blog post. I find it very interesting and you’ve introduced me to a form of cycling that I never knew had such a passionate community. It seems that any form of cyclist is very passionate about what they do. You can’t say that about many other sports!

The type of cycling that I’m deeply involved in is quite different however. I do use a bike to get to work, go to the store, go to a friend’s place, etc. But what would I write about that would interest people? I’m sure there’s heaps, but my passion lays somewhere else and therefore I can only write about the cycling culture that I immerse myself in.

The reason newspapers only write about the lycra side of cycling is because it’s newsworthy. Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France, etc are of great interest to people, have lots of drama and excitement associated with it. What would there be to consistently write about in terms of news and popular interest if there wasn’t bike racing? A story about my ride to work would not be a very good to read. Just like my jog around the Botanical gardens is not newsworthy, the NY Marathon certainly is. I understand that and I don’t expect it to be any different.

You carry a very different view and I respect that. I encourage you to share your passion with the thousands of other cyclists like yourself and do everything you can to nurture that niche. You’re very influential and I’m certain you’ll do very well.

All my best!

Kind regards,
Wade

It would be extremely unfortunate if I had to write articles on topics that keep the corporate big wigs happy. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with blogging to make your living, but I’m sure as hell glad I have the freedom to write about whatever I want to write about and not be a puppet for a lycra manufacturer