Merry Christmas

Burrard Bridge Bike Lane OK So Far

In today's Province newspaper:

"The Burrard Bridge dedicated-bike lane trial is finding support, says a new survey..."

That's great to hear. It's certainly much safer than crossing the bridge like this:

H1N1 Vaccine is Safe and Wise, Get it

I'll be getting the H1N1 flu shot soon (stay tuned for video) and will be feeling very superior to those who avoid the shot and later contract the illness.

It's understandable that people are skeptical about the government wanting to inject them with the secret sauce of science.

But a high school education and five minutes of proper research on the internet will assure any reasonable person that vaccines in Canada - including this one - are a safe and tested bet. Our scientists are honest and very competent, especially when they're re-using a proven technology that already spares many thousands of people and families the pain, suffering and death of diseases past and present.

For anyone in the real cheap seats, VACCINES DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM.

I think it's very interesting that people who are against vaccines are also very likely to answer "yes" to the following questions:

Was 9/11 an inside job?

Is it possible that free energy technology is being suppressed by industry or government?

Did someone other than Lee Harvey Oswald participate in the JFK assassination?

Any chance that NASA faked the moon landing?

Is the world being influenced by a secret cabal of powerful super-rich elites acting behind the scenes?

If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, congratulations - you're a conspiracy theorist! You are cherry-picking some facts and ignoring others to confirm what you already believe about the world. Which could easily include a government conspiracy to push an unsafe vaccine on it's population.

I invite everyone to join me in getting vaccinated for H1N1, and let reason overcome the irresponsible media coverage and pseudo-science confusion that has dogged this issue from day one.

I'll see you in health!

MEC Bikes on Sale Now

Mountain Equipment Co-op is now selling bikes! After 20 years as a MEC member, I was thrilled to see rows and rows of shiny new two-wheelers on display at the Vancouver store today. Several other members were snapping photos, and the staff didn't seem to mind, so I took a few too:



A close inspection tells me the MEC force runs strong in these bikes: designed thoughtfully they are, manufactured to high quality, and value priced. Soon they'll have up to 15 different models for sale; I captured two on film today (click pics to enlarge):






Stay tuned for more soon.

Dealing with Road Rage

Last summer, I filmed a strange and crazy road rage ruckus between two cyclists:



This summer, Bob Mionske wrote a great article about driver/cyclist road rage for Bicycle.com:

"The first rule is: don't engage with rage."

When road rage erupts, a disparity exists between the impact of the encounter on a driver, and the impact on a cyclist; the driver’s life hasn’t been threatened, while the cyclist’s life has, and thus, it’s the cyclist whose emotions are showing when law enforcement arrives on the scene.

This concept should be included in our criminal code, so judges can consider it when ruling on driver/cyclist court matters. Like when a driver has used his/her car as a deadly weapon, e.g. purposefully swerving at a cyclist or otherwise trying to crowd them off the road by threatening use of a motor vehicle.

For instance, how would a reasonable person react if they were walking down the sidewalk one day when suddenly someone screamed at them "Get the fuck out of my way!" and swung a baseball bat past their face? What is the reasonable response to such an assault?

Running away is a good idea, as is calling 911. But a person also has the right to react and defend themselves (and others) by tackling and disarming the baseball batter without being blamed for damaging the attacker or their weapon.

In the future, hopefully, driver/cyclist incidents like those in Mionske's article will be viewed in the same light: a cyclist shall not be held liable for damaging a vehicle that is used as a weapon by it's driver.

Until then, cyclists who bang and dent cars in self-defense or bash off rear view mirrors in post-traumatic rage are behooved to ride away and escape the injustice that authorities might bring to the situation.

Road-raging drivers who use their vehicle as a weapon deserve to be put in jail. In lieu of this, they should feel lucky when their actions result only in a dented hood, smashed rear view mirror, cracked window, or a mouthful of broken teeth in the eastbound lane of 800-block Georgia street.

Marshmallow Experiment Tests Kids' Mettle

Although off-topic, I'm a big fan of science and so felt compelled to share this gem.

The experiment gives children an opportunity to double their sugar bounty if they can exert self-control for 20 minutes without supervision. Cuteness is the overriding data point, as you'll see:



Studies like this have a long pedigree, as recounted recently in The New Yorker online.

Fixed Gear Fahrrad Fräuleins sind Fabulös!

Here's a bike video from Germany, earlier this summer - truly wunderbar! It gets better as it goes, so keep watching till the end. The balance and focus demonstrated here is truly astonishing.



Imagine, the thousands of practice hours it takes to learn these skills and get the routine down pat. While it's generally believed that 10,000 hours of experience qualifies one as an expert at something, these two agile athletes probably have 30,000 hours or more in the saddle. Doing what they do requires a lifetime of dedication and daily practice, starting at a very early age.

Like this young lad here, preparing for his career in the Russian circus: