Cycling

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sinewav
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Re: Cycling

Post by sinewav »

I just bought one of these today: Mongoose: Montana
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Jonathan
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Re: Cycling

Post by Jonathan »

Look what I found on Street View: police bikes. It's a rare sight, though.
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Re: Cycling

Post by sinewav »

Jonathan wrote:...police bikes
Lots of them in Chicago. Everywhere actually.
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Re: Cycling

Post by nux »

Wasnt there a series about policemen on fugly bikes?
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Re: Cycling

Post by compguygene »

21 Jump Street. There was a movie made a few years ago as well.
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Re: Cycling

Post by Z-Man »

That's about grownup cops going undercover in schools because they look so young. They may ride bikes on occasion, but this thing I actually remember watching an episode of sounds more like it.
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Re: Cycling

Post by Jonathan »

sinewav wrote:
Jonathan wrote:...police bikes
Lots of them in Chicago. Everywhere actually.
What are people doing out there to warrant it? I don't usually see much of police anything. Although the bikes may be more common in some cities, where you don't find me too often. There are also apparently some experiments with segways and other alternative means of transport, but I have yet to see them.

Has anyone ever seen a velomobile on Street View? I have, but I think it would be more fun to spot one elsewhere. I spot them occasionally in real life. Definitely more often than police bikes but not as often as police cars. They're some mighty machines. I might end up with one eventually.
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Re: Cycling

Post by þsy »

I LOVE cycling! It is the best thing. If you look over your handlebars, especially when going downhill, it feels like you're flying.

It's amazing how easy it is to travel on a bike as well. If you cycle regularly, you can easily cover 65 km in three hours or so. Over the course of a day that's a long way. My friend, who is very athletic and a little crazy, cycled from Sheffield to London in a day, which is about 305 km...

It is the most efficient form of transport, and the best way to admire your surroundings when travelling. With a car, it's about getting from A to B. With a bike, however, it's the getting from A to B which is the fun part.

As for road conditions for cyclists - it's all about money right? In England, they shove us next to the cars, who usually just ignore cycle lanes and the like. It's different in other European countries though, France has an especially great road network designed for cyclists.

Anyone ever do critical mass? It's a monthly protest that occurs in most city centres - it is targeted at changing a lot of the bad things discussed on this thread. It's also really fun :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_Mass
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Re: Cycling

Post by nux »

Z-Man wrote:That's about grownup cops going undercover in schools because they look so young. They may ride bikes on occasion, but this thing I actually remember watching an episode of sounds more like it.
Yup, that one.
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Re: Cycling

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þsy wrote:I LOVE cycling! It is the best thing. If you look over your handlebars, especially when going downhill, it feels like you're flying.
Yeah, I like how they're smooth little machines that make a very direct connection between yourself and the road. Some overlap with roller coasters there. Both just roll along.
þsy wrote:It's amazing how easy it is to travel on a bike as well. If you cycle regularly, you can easily cover 65 km in three hours or so. Over the course of a day that's a long way. My friend, who is very athletic and a little crazy, cycled from Sheffield to London in a day, which is about 305 km...
Ha, nice. It's interesting that people seem all the more amazed by distances in this country. Probably because most people cycle, but mostly as a practical way of getting around town. 40 km (25 mi) is guaranteed to get some remarks along those lines, when it's actually easy. You know, in the Tour de France they ride 200 km nearly every day for a few weeks, at a race pace. I don't suggest that we should all go and do that, but 40 km? Really?
þsy wrote:As for road conditions for cyclists - it's all about money right? In England, they shove us next to the cars, who usually just ignore cycle lanes and the like. It's different in other European countries though, France has an especially great road network designed for cyclists.
NO WAI

I've seen some of those British camera cyclists on YouTube. Those cycle lanes aren't worth too much, where they exist in the first place. At least ours are good and extensive (they never ever leave you stranded, no matter where you go). Unfortunately there is some kind of taboo against criticizing our 'perfect' system, but it does bring a lot of good.
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Re: Cycling

Post by sinewav »

Jonathan wrote:
sinewav wrote:
Jonathan wrote:...police bikes
Lots of them in Chicago. Everywhere actually.
What are people doing out there to warrant it?
Nothing really. Most of the bike cops are in low-crime, tourist driven areas giving out parking tickets and ensuring people aren't drinking in public or jaywalking. Other parts of the city might use bike-cops where traffic is generally bad and it is quicker to report to a crime scene on bicycle. Bike cops are usually additional support for areas when there is a local event, like a festival or parade. Either way, you see them everywhere in Chicago (though I honestly can't say if they are used frequently in the bad parts of town because I don't go there for fear of my life).
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Re: Cycling

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What bikes do people have? I bought a Nigel Dean Tourmaster for £200 about a year and a half ago, here is a picture http://sphotos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-a ... 8117_n.jpg

It was on that particular tour that I met FoFo haha, not a good experience for anybody.. :P
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Re: Cycling

Post by Phytotron »

We have bicycle cops here, too. A lot of what sinewav said. In part, they replace the old mounted horseback and foot patrols, especially in areas with plenty of foot traffic; you don't usually see them in the 'burbs. It also doubles in serving as a visible police presence, as well as functioning as part of the community outreach initiatives.

Actually, the first use of bicycles by police dates back to the turn of the (last) century, being put in as part of the mounted police. Then their use waned, coming back over the last couple decades.

Hey, here's a video of them—in my part of town, no less. :) You can also see there what I was describing about lack of discrete bike access; you're just right there in traffic. Streets like that there's no room to put in bike lanes even if the gubment wanted to. Road, sidewalk, storefront.

Heh, and just for the heck of it, here's my Metro Councilman's "Bicycle Safety 101" video, also mostly in my part of town. Kinda funny; he's a bit of a character. But he also makes some good points; some of the things I said earlier about sharing the road. Most of that is shot on Bardstown Road, though, same as the bike cop video, which is a main drag. We tend to stick to the side streets where possible.


Whoa, this is weird. I was looking on the Louisville Metro Police Department website for a section on bike cops, and...what?
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Re: Cycling

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Phytotron wrote:Streets like that there's no room to put in bike lanes even if the gubment wanted to. Road, sidewalk, storefront.
So get rid of the cars. ;) But seriously, they take up all the space and don't make the place any more hospitable. I wonder how Americans would react to entirely different design principles, if you actually gave it to them and allowed them to adjust. Not that you just rebuild cities on a dime…
Phytotron wrote:Heh, and just for the heck of it, here's my Metro Councilman's "Bicycle Safety 101" video, also mostly in my part of town. Kinda funny; he's a bit of a character. But he also makes some good points; some of the things I said earlier about sharing the road. Most of that is shot on Bardstown Road, though, same as the bike cop video, which is a main drag. We tend to stick to the side streets where possible.
Doesn't seem too bad. Showing how to survive a busy road doesn't imply you must ride there?

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Re: Cycling

Post by Phytotron »

That same road used to have a trolley system, believe it or not. Check out this photo, right in the same corridor as the bike cop video: The Ghost Of Bardstown Road Past

In fact, some of the original Louisville Railway Company cars are still running in San Francisco, complete with original paint and label.
12562 Louisville Web.jpg
The only trolleys we have now are really just shuttle buses made up to look like trolleys, heh.
Jonathan wrote:I wonder how Americans would react to entirely different design principles, if you actually gave it to them and allowed them to adjust. Not that you just rebuild cities on a dime…
We're trying, slowly but surely. But it requires a lot of investment and the public and political will to back it up, and sadly there's little of either. Car culture, sense of independence, stinginess in public financing, current infrastructure, etc..

Still, there are bits and pieces here and there. Here they're putting in a sort of "bicycle station" downtown, for example. I mentioned our mayor is pro-cycling. Here's the gubment page with all the info about what we currently have along with current and proposed/future projects, if you're really interested.

There's been talk for years about reinstating some sort of light rail in Louisville, but it's never gotten beyond the proposal stage, and unfortunately I don't think it'll be happening any time soon; my whole life we can't even get a damn bridge built (local joke). That same site above has a look back at the 1996 proposal for light rail, with mock-ups.

Yadda yadda, there's a Wikipedia article called "Light Rail in the United States." (URL omitted due to limit.)
Doesn't seem too bad. Showing how to survive a busy road doesn't imply you must ride there?
(Is that a question?) It's not terrible, depending on traffic and where you are. Keep in mind that Owen's video is mostly in one neighborhood, and with fairly light traffic and lower speeds. And along Bardstown Rd., heavier traffic means even slower speeds. For an example of that, here's another video by the guy who shot the one with bike cops, cycling through the corridor—you may even be able to identify when they ride through the stretch where that trolley photo was taken, beginning about 3:28 in the forward-view (Doo-Wop Shop on the left). Although, in either case you're still sucking exhaust, which I'd rather avoid. There's also the lights, and oftentimes the side streets can be quicker, despite being hillier.

Other main roads can be a bit more hectic, however. I mean, going uphill in a 35mph zone (where everyone drives 45mph) with a car on your ass and others whizzing by ain't so fun. For me, anyway.
Getting more comfortable sharing your location?
Well, it's always been known I'm in Louisville. And I thought I'd mentioned the Highlands before, which is large enough for me to maintain my anonymity, I think. That's as specific as I'll get. :)
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