Mix’n it Up

This fellow, spotted by Charlotte, has an interesting mix of the modern and the classic. The suit says Amsterdam or Copenhagen businessman, while the cap, backpack and hybrid bicycle say American college student. Someone get this man a vintage Raleigh three-speed and some baskets, quick!

 

Riding the Straight & Narrow

Spotted by bicyclesonly in New York City.

 

Moving at the Speed of Style

This is such a great example of how to look good on a bike, I don’t even care that it’s blurry.

Another from bicyclesonly.

 

The Stance

This image reminds me a little of the iconic Tiananmen Square image from the protests of 1989. The square stance, the comprehensive safety gear, and the almost-defiant “I will take the lane in front of this Toyota” attitude represents everything the Cycling Gentleman should be. Good work, Anonymous Sir!

Thanks Charlotte.

 

Brompton World Championship, Redux

 

Copyright John Spooner

Here’s how the 2008 Brompton World Championship turned out:

 

Category	Position	Name	Country	Time
Fastest Male	1st	Alistair Kay	United Kingdom	0:21:59
	2nd	Roberto Heras	Spain	0:22:02
	3rd	Pau Milla	Spain	0:22:24
Fastest Female	1st	Debbie Lister	United Kingdom	0:27:21
	2nd	Helen Lucas	United Kingdom	0:28:18
	3rd	Jane Bradbury	United Kingdom	0:28:21
Fastest Veteran	1st	Rob Howells	United Kingdom	0:25:13
Fastest Junior	1st	Piers Benton	United Kingdom	0:31:52
Team Category	1st	Cap Problema	Spain	01:07:12
	2nd	Transport for London Tornados	United Kingdom	01:11:54
	3rd	Eunomia 1	United Kingdom	01:15:51
Best Dressed	1st	David Presly	United Kingdom	0:25:40

 

Bike Zen and Rolled-Up Trousers

This guy is truly in the happy-bike-sunny-morning zone. It’s a good zone. Check the socks. Another one spotted and submitted by Charlotte.

 

Brompton World Championship

The Third Annual Brompton folding bicycle world championship race is coming up on September 28. Rule Number 5 of the race is as follows:

All participants, both male and female, must wear a suit jacket, collared shirt and tie. Shorts and three-quarter length trousers may be worn if preferred, though sports attire (e.g. Lycra shorts/leggings, tracksuit pants, etc.) is not permitted. There are no restrictions on shoe-wear. For health and safety reasons, it is an absolute condition of participation that a helmet is to be worn.

Thanks to disgruntled for the tip, and search Flickr for photos of past races.

 

Bicycle Style Goes Corporate

Well, I guess that’s not really a “breaking news” kind of headline, but two recent television commercials have highlighted bicycling as transportation, and feature stylish gentleman (and ladies) riding bikes. Target’s “A Brand New Day” commercial features a well-dressed gentleman riding a cheap department store bike ($59.99 at Target, big surprise) rather poorly, but happily.  

The other is from Kaiser Permanente, that bastion of corporate healthcare, and features a blue bike cycling (get it?) through a bunch of different riders, including some pretty sharp-looking gentlemen. Someone at EcoVelo pointed out that some of the riders are riding the wrong way, and there’s some sidewalk riding, too.

My feelings are pretty mixed. On the one hand, I’m glad to see bikes being normalized as transportation, and I’m happy to see people in everyday clothes riding bikes, but I doubt the sincerity of either Target or KP to actually advocate anything meaningful in the way of bicycle infrastructure, for example. I’ve never been to either a Target or KP facility that was located in a bicycle-friendly area, or had bicycle parking. But, I must say that it’s a far cry better than the typical anti-bike dreck we usually see in commercials (this link goes to a Streetsblog post about a State Farm commercial that has now apparently been taken off YouTube).

 

The Weekly Shot

Spotted in Peppino’s Garden, Giuseppe and his Little Helper remind us that wearing a helmet needn’t compromise one’s sense of style. A lovely old Raleigh doesn’t hurt, either.