Know Your Biker!

A week ago, I was talking to a friend of mine who had just started a new job. She said to me, "You have GOT to meet my new boss, you would love him, he rides his bike everywhere!" "Oh yeah?" I replied, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah! He does these 100 mile rides every weekend, with the whole racing outfit and everything!" My grin then turned to a grimace. I thought to myself, do I really look like the type of guy with that much free time and a voluntary urge to wear spandex?

The truth is, there are many types of riders out there. Different riders have different motives, different techniques and different reasons to be loved or hated. Most riders fall into one of several categories. In New York City, here are the top 9 different types of riders.

1) The Regular Commuter: These are the most noble of riders. They have one goal: Get from point A to point B. Most of these riders take their ride seriously because it is their most common mode of transportation. Therefor most of them follow the etiquette of the road and don't really cause a nuisance. Men and women alike, some are wearing business attire with sneakers to change out of later, and others are just casual normal looking people, just trying to beat the subway. This is me, and hundreds of thousands of other city dwellers. Respect them, because they are worthy of respect.

2) The Hardcore Cyclist: Nobody can be criticized for some good wholesome cardio, but is the outfit really necessary? C'mon, you look ridiculous. I don't go for a run in short shorts, nor do I take batting practice in a full baseball uniform, nor do I shave my legs to go for a swim. Actually, I would never shave my legs but that's besides the point. I honestly wish I had the free time to spend my mornings and weekends riding, but sadly for me I have a job and a social life to maintain. Sorry.

3) The Hispanic Food Delivery Man: Here come the stereotypes! But if you can prove me wrong, I'll shut up. These riders are typically found with plastic bags both covering their seat and also carrying delivery food. They are usually riding an old beat up mountain bike on the wrong side of the road, frequently going the wrong way in a bike lane. Sometimes they are wearing helmets and safety vests with the name of the restaurant (which is now the law) and sometime they are wearing only kitchen attire. Their poor road manners make normal bikers cringe and scream insults, but they ignore it because their speedy arrival promotes higher tips for the hungry awaiting customers.

4) The Asian Food Delivery Man: We've all seen them. The 45-year-old asian man riding an electric bicycle with an awkward baseball cap and a cigarette. I still remember the first time I saw one of these battery powered "bicycles" silently whiz by me. Within the last several years these riders have increased exponentially. Some appear to be delivering food, others seem to be up to no good. Verrry Mysteeeerious. We'll never know.

5) The Messenger: These frequently dreadlocked daredevil defy the logic of bicycle physics. Putting in hundreds of miles a day, these riders perform unlike any other, both in stamina and agility. Squeezing through crevices between busses and wiggling through crowds of people crossing the street, these impressive riders snake their way down the street with graceful form, almost invisible. They intimidate some pedestrians, but if you need to get a role of architectural plans from East 53rd St to Church Street, they are your go-to-guy.

6) The Tourist: These riders are easy to recognize because they are dressed like Europeans, not wearing helmets while slowly and awkwardly swerving around on dumb looking cruiser bikes they rented at Columbus Circle. They frequently have no clue whatsoever where they are going, and they love to get in your way. It's like they do it on purpose.

7) The Pedicabbies: These are the foreigners who take advantage of other foreigners. Ride by them and just listen to the garbage they spew. "I rode by Alec Baldwin yesterday." or "That building is the one from Ghost Busters." Fredereick Law Olmstead would turn over in his grave if he knew his park was infested by such sleazy sleeveless scammers. The only thing that makes horse and carriages worse is the fact that they poop all over the place.

8) The Hipsters: Hipsters are the only reason fixed gear bikes even exists. Maybe it's because fixies are the vinyls of bicycles: inferior yet "authentic." Anyway, these epically rad riders are mostly found in Brooklyn, where style trumps performance. Vintage style bikes line the streets and even the guys have baskets in front. It's weird. But that's why it's cool.

9) The Crazy Non-Bikers: These are riders who get the double takes. You see them mostly in the parks or on the Hudson Greenway. They are riding the recumbent bicycles or even bikes that look like elliptical machines. It makes you wonder what stoned bike shop nut came up with these ideas, yet its impressive performance makes you intrigued and somewhat jealous. Then again, it seems like something you would try once then go back to a regular bicycle.

Then again, maybe you are a mix of several categories. The point is, one type doesn't classify all riders. Some people hate all bikers because they associate all of them with the rule-breaking delivery guys or the wreckless traffic swervers. Some people think all riders are training for the Tour de France because of all the silly spandexed people out there. False associations just make it frustrating for the rest of us who are just trying to get from point A to point B. So the point is, know your biker, ok? Now get out of my way, I have somewhere to go.

Bike-umentary

I've finally finished my long awaited Bike-umentary. This also served as a portion of my thesis project for my recently completed M.S. in Urban Environmental Systems Management at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY. It's nice to be done and have at least something somewhat interesting to show for it...

Part 1: Bike-umentary - Part 1
Part 2: Bike-umentary - Part 2
Part 3: Bike-umentary - Part 3

Zoom

I had several glimpses this weekend all over New York, each celebrating the magic of zoom to the tune of 250mm.

Yankee Stadium from the roof of the Lucida @ 86th & Lex

A hawk on 17th St @ 2nd Ave

Bank of America tower (1 Bryant Park) from Ray's Williamsburg roof top

Anaerobic digesters over Greenpoint from the same Williamsburg roof

A cardinal at Paddy's house in the Hamptons

5 cents more

$1.05, huh? In a vending machine? Well I didn't want your stupid trail mix anyway.

Add this to the list of the countless things at my school that don't make any sense whatsoever

My Second Bike Ticket

I guess #2 was bound to happen. My second bike ticket was issued to me by a police officer who disagreed with my assessment that it was OK to ride my bike on a small portion of the Altantic Ave 4/5 subway platform. I honestly didn't ride more than 100 feet, but apparently that warrants a $100 fine. Well, we'll see on February 18th when I plead my case in a U.S. court of law using the amazingly effective, Peter Griffin-inspired, "C'mooon! C'mooooooooon!!"

To see the outcome of the ticket, visit my Bike Blog.

Bedford Ave Discussion

On Monday night, a discussion was held at Pete's Candy Store in Greenpoint to address the ongoing debate of the Bedford Ave bike lane, or lack thereof. Moderated by James Hook, who hosts a biweekly discussion at the venue, the panel was comprised of local Jewish bike store owner and promoter Baruch Herzfeld, Hassidic Jew and city council candidate Isaac Abraham, Transportation Alternatives bike advocate Caroline Samponaro, local bike advocate Lyla Durden, and loudmouth bike messenger/ringleader Heather Loop.

The overall message was that everybody agrees the debate really isn't a cultural issue as it is often described, but rather a safety issue (according to Abraham) or a crooked power brokered move (according to Baruch) the later with which I agree most. The debate continued as to the biggest of the current and real dangers on the street and whether or not the lane should be reinstalled. Although the risks to both bikers and pedestrians were cited to be substantial, a single resolution couldn't be met by all. Abraham seemed to be arguing alone that removal of the lane was the right decision, because adding it in the first place was a mistake. All others agreed that the bike lane was not only a necessary component of a viable bicycle transportation network, but something that promotes a positive practice in so many facets. In facing strong opposition, Abraham stated at one point, "I'm supposed to go to the people and say it's your way or the hi way?" to which Hook cleverly responded "Their way IS the hi way..."

My logic is that if you truly want to discourage cyclists, the only option is to not allow them at all. Removing a bike lane but acknowledging that bikers are still on the road is hypocritical. Furthermore, allowing them should require a lane on any street they use. That leaves two options: bikes or no bikes; lane or no lane; no middle ground. The middle ground is obviously more dangerous than having a lane, as proved by statistics stated by Caroline. Since bikes should always be allowed then they should be protected with a lane, and this is the obvious better choice compared to prohibiting them altogether. Furthermore, a protected lane is even better than a marked one.

One day the right people will either wake up or be pressured to revert Bedford Ave to its obvious safer condition. In the meantime the danger will continue to loom.

Note: For more (and only) biking related posts, visit Brock's Bike Blog.

Brooklyn Biking Boondoggle

In an attempt to be as unbiased as humanly possible (it’s hard), the following is an analysis/summary of the recently hot issue of the removal of the Bedford Avenue bike lane in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

The conflict involves mainly two significant distinct communities:

-The population of biking commuters who go to or from Manhattan, to or from the 90% of Brooklyn which is south of the Williamsburg Bridge

-The tightly knit group of Hasidim who almost exclusively occupy a large continuous area south of the bridge and approaching Fort Greene on the south and Bed-Sty to the east

The Hasidic community, like many other curtural zones in NYC, is one of extreme self-segregation. The vast majority of pedestrians are Hasidim, as are a large majority of motor vehiclists and 100% of the school busses. The area is patrolled by the Hasidic paramuniciple police force (Shomrim) and generally governs itself. However, there is no legal precedent for independent jurisdiction, as a Native American territory in the United States would have. NYPD does inhabit the area, as the city has a responsibility to protect all city streets, including the public streets passing through any cultural zone.

From a biking perspective, approaching the Williamsburg Bridge from anywhere south would involve a route through the Hasidic zone. This is unavoidable unless travelling at least half a mile out of one’s way (From Bedford, east on Park, north on Union, west on Broadway) on a route that is not only out of the way but completely void of bike lanes.

Going to the bridge, Bedford Ave offers a direct one-way route with a bike lane straight to the entrance at the base of the bridge. Coming from the bridge, the Bedford route is complimented by the parallel Lee Ave offering a one-way in the opposite direction of Bedford, but without a lane. The only other main biking thorofare in the zone is Kent Ave, along the water, part of the continually developing Brooklyn Greenway. While this two way road and has a two way bike lane, use is only helpful traveling to and through Greenpoint, as it under cuts the bridge making it 4 blocks downhill out of the way for bridge access.

Currently, a conflict exists due to the dangerous nature of all three mentioned routes. Typical motor vehicle infractions include double parking (even in bike lanes) and over-aggressive driving. In addition, pedestrians have a greater tendency (greater than typical NYC pedestrian behavior) for jay walking and crossing during reds. Close calls (biking collisions) are more frequent in this area due to both the unique nature of the local occupants and the greater volume of commuter bike traffic through the corridor. Furthermore, the conflicting sentiment is only exacerbated on both sides as the dangers increase.

Bedford Ave’s 14 blocks of bike lane (from Flushing Ave to Division Ave) were recently grinded away in late November, 2009. This now makes Bedford Avenue even more dangerous as the elimination of the lane increases the ability for motor vehicles to dominate the rode and it gives bikers less legal leverage should there be an accident. As stated earlier, bikers have no viable alternate route approaching the bridge that would avoid such dangers. Therefore, the bike volume on Bedford Avenue will not significantly decrease and the route will remain more dangerous than before the removal.

Recently, bike advocates tried to repaint the bike lane at night, only to be arrested.

However, the repainted lane stayed for several days before DOT finally repainted over it in black. The strong opposition to this decision has even followed Mayor Michael Bloomberg to Copenhagen. Locally, efforts are currently underway to find a solution to the obvious and unavoidable problem. Hopefully the effects of this will include, at a minimum, bringing back the bike lane…

Note: For more (and only) biking related posts, visit Brock's Bike Blog.

Eggs are for Eating

To the 3 young teenage boys on Willoughby Ave:

Don't you know that eggs are for eating, not for throwing? They offer no value when strewn throughout the street. Plus, you have terrible aim, I was like 15 feet away from you, c'mon. And watch your language.

Sincerely,

Brock

PS: If I ever see you again I will strangle you worthless pieces of...