Murky, Moody, March

We are having a very atypical March. Rain, fog and early melting, causing puddles in the streets that turn into ugly, muddy tsunamis when vehicles drive through them.
It isn't much better in the afternoon, when I park my bike and take the bus to the University.
We now have plenty of water on top of the river ice.
And I hope global warming never progresses to the point where this is a possibility.


I crave our normal sunny days.

Cycling the Tour de France

After reading my post on The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, Richard suggested I read French Revolutions by Tim Moore.

Mr Moore, with very little recent cycling experience, and in not the best physical condition, decides he is going to cycle the route of the Tour De France. He buys himself a new road bike, and, without master the locking toe-clips or the bicycle's gears, sets off on his adventure.
I found Mr Moore's writing style highly entertaining and he critiques and praises everyone and everything, including himself, with the same degree of honesty and humour.

The book gives a good overview of the route the tour takes and the history of this race.I am not inspired to try the same feat, but I enjoyed Moore's take on the caper.
It was a very enjoyable read.

Working Bicycles

I certainly can't speak to the rest of Mexico, but Playa del Carman certainly has adopted the bicycle for everyday work purposes. It could be that one of the busiest streets, as well as the street to the ferry terminal, were pedestrian-only corridors.

We saw bikes that shuttled people from the ferry to taxis or to their hotels,(these ones were waiting for their riders to finish breakfast before heading off to the docks)

hauling produce,

serving as a fresh-squeezed orange juice stands for morning commuters,

and supporting floats in parades.

Different Approaches

Bicycles are mixed with scooters and motorcycles in the parking areas of Playa del Carman. The bicycle, I was happy to see, was used extensively in this city.

Some people had greater security concerns than others, and the salty air played havoc with the finish of many of the bikes.

I wish I had seen the person who rode this bike. The geometry of the handlebars is amazing.

These were the types of helmets worn by most people on scooters. Cyclists didn't wear helmets, but I think they would make a cool alternative for people on bikes in other parts of the world.

Mayan Bicycle

This was such a cheerful bicycle, surrounded by flowers, on what I felt was a very Spanish/Mexican style of fence.

Origami

On the way home from work on Friday, we stopped by Mountain Equipment Co-op. The Geek was looking for some wool t-shirts. I have been wearing wool as a base layer for a couple of years and I have finally brought her over from the dark side.
We happened to see MEC's version of folding bicycle while we were waling into the store. It was cabled to the stand with some other bicycles, so it was difficult to take a clear picture but it might be more obvious if enlarged.

The bike is called Origami, which I think is cute, and is manufactured by Dahon. The geometry looks off for my needs, but there may be some who find it highly practical. You can read the description and any reviews (there are none at this moment) here.

Filthy Bicycle

I don't know if this picture gives a true appreciation of how very dirty the Geek's bike really is.

Suffice to say it has been well used on the slushy streets for the last few weeks. Now things are just icy so she is temporarily back to running and bussing to her destinations.