"Those who wish to control their own lives and move beyond existence as mere consumers—those people ride a bike." —Wolfgang Sachs
Just a quick note to point out an excellent new resource for those interested in making Cardiff even better than it already is. Share Cardiff is a network of grassroots community groups and projects in and around Cardiff that aim to make Cardiff a better, healthier, more connected and more social place to live.
I sit here, feeling as though I missed a great party. Having only discovered the magazine fairly recently it feels like those moments when you've binge-watched a TV show only to discover it has been cancelled; or you've exhausted a late author's back catalogue. In a sea of cycling magazines focused on selling expensive bikes adorned with the latest incremental tweak, to people who already have bikes, Boneshaker was a breath of fresh air.
Pete Adeney, also known as Mr Money Mustache retired at 30, mostly through a combination of living frugally and by saving money where he could. Unsurprisingly, one of Adeney's main money-saving mechanisms was riding a bicycle instead of a car. Cars suck more cash than most people imagine. On an average income half of a … Continue reading Something to read: Money Guru’s #1 Tip For Health, Wealth & Happiness: Drive Less
Public Health Wales has published a response to the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. Creating healthier places and spaces for our present and future generations talks about the importance of activity-friendly neighbourhoods and the importance of green spaces.
The common wisdom when faced with traffic congestion seems to be that just adding more lanes will sort everything. It won't. Whilst it may initially relieve some pressure, it won't be long before more traffic arrives to fill the space. Just as with the Katy Freeway expansion, adding new roadway capacity also creates new demand … Continue reading ‘Induced Demand’
The folks at Uneven Earth tracked down and re-published this essay from 1973 by André Gorz, a philosopher and journalist. It's as relevant today as it was back then. People rushed to buy cars until, as the working class began to buy them as well, defrauded motorists realized they had been had. They had been … Continue reading Something to read: The social ideology of the motorcar – Uneven Earth
Whilst not strictly about cycling, as users of sustainable transport we have a role to play in making our world a better place. This rather fascinating piece in the New York Times is required reading. Grab a coffee, perhaps utilise your browser's reader feature (because the white text on black is tough on the eyes) … Continue reading Something to read: Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change – The New York Times
Whilst we were debating whether to dip our feet into this murky swamp, right now we would probably struggle to do a sufficiently good job of it. Fortunately, our friend over at RoubaixCycling has done the hard work for us. And there are a few things to deal with there. The first is driving, does … Continue reading Something to read: Crime and Punishment redux: that fixie case –via RoubaixCycling.cc
Hailing from the other side of the estuary in Bristol, Boneshaker Magazine is one that defies the current publishing convention. It has no set publishing date and you'll be hard pushed to find mention of a new bike within its pages. Instead, Boneshaker focusses on the human side of cycling --the epic journeys, the emotions, … Continue reading Something to read: Boneshaker Bicycle Stories – Volume 1
We're not the only ones embracing bikepacking this year. Over at CycleStuff, Simon shares his own adventure in the wilds of Mid Wales. Simon can always be relied upon for his excellent photos and this looks like it was a lot of fun. On Saturday, I headed into Powys for a micro-adventure* with two of … Continue reading Something to read: Mid-Wales Micro Adventure – by @cyclestuffblog
