hairy legs on the track

last week was my first time on the amsterdam velodrome, and i admit i was a little intimidated. its 200m long compared to the 250m im used in alkmaar which means the turns are considerably steeper and sharper. and when i say im used to alkmaar, after only 4 times thats being a little generous with confidence. so with this confident generosity, my best dutch and a bike i rode there and cleaned in the parking lot, i talked my way into a free training session. needless to say, me and fish were the only people on the track without shaven legs but we put on our best lycra and fish even broke out his chrome bmx helmet for the occasion, i'll try get photos next time. speaking of photos, riding to work just started looking up...



turns out there is a sweet network of trails just waiting to be strung together each morning thru the multitude of little green areas between home and work. perfect cyclocross bike territory, finally. otherwise a stroll along the beach promenade is always an option. apparently the beach is being extended from 40m to 70m - coastal defence they say - but the engineering doesnt stop where the water starts. apparently a designer was contracted to come up with a sea floor that produces better waves. cant wait till some swell arrives

alkmaar track day

this happened last weekend:



thanks to taka, fish and tjeu



it was all about face melting speed in the scratch race. cheers to pierski for the photos



respect to kees as he and i snagged a 2nd place in the team sprint. cant wait till the next one

now what?

there's no snow like the snow in osdorp, and there's no cereal like chocolate coated sugar bombs

fridays off

suzue track hub gets a QR upgrade. 3rd lifetime of wheel begins :-)

winter blues?

hoping these will be the cure

ecmc2009

Manifesto (in progress)

We are primarily a group of current and former bike messengers, but welcome all good-natured, socially aware cyclists to participate in our events. Though we share no common political ideology, we share values that define us as a distinct social group, naturally beginning
with our shared love of the bicycle.

We believe in equality; we do not differentiate between sex, nationality, race, gear ratios, or riding ability. Men and women race together.

We believe in sustainability. We support products and manufacturers based on product reliability and longevity. (Followed of course by aesthetics, if money permits.)

We love to push the physical and mental limitations of our bodies. We believe in the inherent health benefits of cycling frequently, and assist others in adopting the lifestyle of the urban cyclist by openly sharing our expertise.

We ride “just for fun”!

We champion the superiority of the bicycle as the all-around fastest form of urban transportation. We have legitimized the bicycle as an essential component for every modern package delivery business.

We question the necessity of a substantial portion of inner city auto traffic, but are realistic and strive to promote balance. We are not bike fascists! Many of us have mothers, friends, children and loved ones who are non-cyclists (though we will never give up on trying to convince them to get on a bike!) not to mention co-workers in the package delivery trade.

We rejoice in the possibilities that exist for emission-free motorized transport. We believe a revolution in urban transporation is self-evident and well underway. We believe the bicycle is a central feature of responsible modern urban planning.

We rage at the senseless deaths resulting from the opening of car doors before checking for
cyclists, and we mourn every victim of road rage. We strive to promote understanding between all road users.

We are proud that our home, Berlin, is a world leader in cycling policy and home to hundreds of thousands of daily bicycle commuters, bike paths and bike racks.

We believe the increasing worldwide phenomena of urban cycling began with the example set by the bike messenger. We view this phenomenom as a fundamental shift in consciousness that will continue to grow and increasingly affect society in a positive way, not only improving urban transportation policy.

We are proud to host the ECMC in our hometown Berlin, to showcase our committment to the international bike messenger culture, our love of the bicycle and the lifestyle that follows its daily use, and simply spreading the word that riding around the city with your friends or alone is FUN.

We welcome you to join us in celebrating the culture of the urban cyclist, chiefly its progenitor and most expert adherent, the bike messenger!

HOORAY FOR BIKE MESSENGERS!
VIVA LA BIKE-FRIENDLY CITY!
SUPPORT ECMC 2009!

walking is silly

[11:45:20] james says: and im doing research
[11:45:27] B says: on facebook?
[11:45:32] james says: im not sure how work related it is...
[11:45:44] james says: hehe nope i just pop onto fb once in a while
[11:46:00] B says: haha i made research on bicycle helmets yesterday
[11:46:10] james says: oh yeah? which one u like?
[11:46:13] B says: there are actually a couple of really good papers
[11:46:18] B says: aah i don't use one!
[11:46:34] james says: u reading academic writing on helmets?
[11:46:43] B says: and i made research to find an empirical reason for it
[11:46:53] B says: yepyep 8-|
[11:46:56] james says: and?
[11:47:05] B says: okay... i try a short summary
[11:47:41] B says: laws making wearing helmets mandatory are bullshit
[11:47:43] B says: because
[11:48:16] B says: this makes less people ride bikes -> less bicycles on the streets -> higher risk for those left on the streets
[11:48:46] james says: ha ha ha i like it... so helmets = dangerous!
[11:48:54] B says: exactely!!
[11:49:17] james says: great use of statistics (smoking)
[11:49:44] B says: less people riding bicycles -> way higher costs for the public health system by people doing less sport then the actual little less costs by maybe little less severe head injuries
[11:49:54] B says: another thing:
[11:50:19] B says: riding with helmet -> ø 5,8cm less distance kept by cars driving by
[11:50:29] james says: hahahahaha
[11:50:33] james says: brilliant!
[11:50:38] B says: helmet -> more feeling of safety -> riding less careful
[11:51:02] B says: riding bikes is no risk sport
[11:51:22] james says: my mountain biking friends in cape town always say: there is only one thing more dangerous than putting on a helmet
[11:51:30] james says: and that is when someone pulls out a camera
[11:52:02] B says: of all serious head injuries: 50% in cars (passangers+öedestrians), 20% falls, 10% homicide/suicide BUT only 2%cyclists
[11:52:19] B says: SO why should not all the others have to where helmets???!!
[11:52:30] james says: hehehe
[11:52:33] B says: hahaaa, fucking right!
[11:52:44] james says: youre right! we should have to wear a helmet just to get out of bed...
[11:52:55] james says: but sometimes bed can also be a source of head injuries...
[11:52:59] james says: eish
[11:53:00] james says: sorry
[11:53:03] B says: hehe
[11:53:25] james says: i mean that after a night drinking i often wake up with a headache... damn bed!
[11:53:27] B says: you have to ride 18 000 years to get one fatal head injury
[11:53:31] B says: in average
[11:53:42] B says: hahqaa u so right!!!
[11:53:55] james says: aaah i love statisitics...
[11:53:59] B says: damn i found so many cool statistics

nope!

how about a little mid afternoon subversion..?





our dreams dont fit on your ballots indeed

arnhem

heres a race report in vincent's own words, respect to the man on his 13th anniversary of being a courier www.haute-courier.nl



so yeah, stinky messengers, beer, bikes, manifests and some flat out riding in a strange city following someone that i thought was a local and turned out to also be from another country, but me and stoffel definatly represented



mental note: wear more black



many people have asked what this photo is all about, am i asking for my dignity back? have i just set free a peace pigeon? erm well no not exactly... i was just telling the guy who beat me in the final sprint what i thought of him. lets just say if it wasnt such a bold overtaking move and there were actually some rules, i might have been grumpy, but respect to mr blom!



this weekend is the 'take me to the bridges' alleycat in amsterdam, this is all i know about it:

-------------

Tevens wordt op Zaterdag 4 april 19.00 uur een alleycat georganiseerd in Amsterdam:

Take me to the bridge Alleycat

http://www.dutchmessengers.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&p=307#p307

------------

see u at the belgique...

james dawson

u know when u just have to tell someone..?

so i just did the un-do-able. or undid the totally done. or what ever way u look at performed a small miracle like just in the nick of time! i wish i had before and after photos to illustrate the tale, but i have at least a few witnesses of nico falling on my back wheel during last sunday's polo game, and the resulting "wheel-so-buckled-it-wont-pass-thru-the-frame"-ness. strangely, i was more concerned about the scrape he got on his arm than my wheel and he was more concerned about my back wheel than his arm. but anyway, what are days off for? fixing bikes! or performing small miracles, but yeah, witnesses are required for the latter i guess. anyway, it didnt need a new rim, it didnt need any new spokes, and its almost more straight than it was before the game of polo! all i did was totally reduce the tension on the spokes, hit the rim on the ground a few times and tension it back up till it was straight. and no, i havent measured the tension to check if its even on all the spokes, i dont want to. i dont need to infact. there is no chance it is. but the wheels on my bike go round and round again. just in time for the arnhem alleycat! see u there