One of the advantages of being a regular cyclist is that when transport plans go awry, one is not stranded. I have often wondered how long it would take to ride from downtown Vancouver to The Rock (or vice versa). I no longer am troubled by this weighty of questions. 2hrs 15 mins from Quebec & Terminal, so add another 5 for the DT core.
I had a few errands to do Thursday, so I was unable to attend the kick-off the the Velomutation weekend (bike movies), but was all set for another Midnight Mass. Last week's experience imparting some logistical insight, I was better prepared. 22:28 on the 321, 11:10 on the SkyTrain, arrived Commercial & Charles 22:47. Perfect so far. Lots of people. About 60 or 70 this time. Didn't try to count, it just looked about 2X the size of last group. Not Surprising considering there were about 30 Portlanders up for the festivities (but not all in attendence for Mass) and the extra locals likewise . (Once again I was overly prepared, but considering the 16:00 1hr long downpour, I wasn't taking a chance with the weather. Jacket, rainpants, booties, 4 sets of gloves, and liquid "party suplies". 4 pairs of gloves? you ask? Regular, full fingered light weight, full fingered medium weight, and neoprene wet weather) OOPS! Spent too much time reading other stuff before beginning my epic tale, now it is time to dash for more bikefun.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
The End of the World
The old cliché goes that today is the first day of the rest of your life. Well, here is a sad parallel: Today is the start of The End of the World. Yes, it is true, the end is nigh. Anthropogenic global warming has begun. There is too much momentum behind the sources of change causing the warming to stop it before catastophe will be upon us, unless we all do our utmost to combat the problem. Every minute an internal combustion engine (I.C.E.) runs unecessarily is a minute closer to the brink of disaster, every plastic bag (because NO plastic bag is necessary. There is an alternative to each and every one.) is a few more grams tipping the balance in favour of doom. Every single non-renewable commodity used (or renewable wasted in such a way as to render it non-renewable) is edging us further down the slope into a morass from which there is no escape. And we are all guilty.
The ICE is the easiest target to point out, yet in our Western/Northern society heating/cooling of buildings, residential and commercial, produces more greenhouse gases than transportation. So it is clear that everyone must reduce heating and cooling energy use too. It is very simple to conserve. I know you have heard it before, but often fail to head the advice. This heating season, ask yourself if it is really necessary to turn up the heat, or will putting on a sweater do just as well. A draught causing a chill? Don't seek the thermostat, Stop the draught. Door seals, window film, various insulations and even closing internal doors at night when the heat is turned down. You would be surprised how much warmer a bedroom is with just the closing of its door. Are you only using one room for an hour or so? Don't turn up the furnace. Turn it down and just heat the small space being used. It is cheaper as well as using less energy. Don't be fooled by the appearent expensiveness of electricity compared to gas. An electric heater on Low (usually about 500 watts power level) keeping one room toasty costs less than heating a whole house to moderate warmth. (at 500W for 2 hrs, that's only about 8 cents. I know BCHydro is trying to confuse everyone by splitting the energy use and energy delivery charges, but that is what it is).
Someone recently (and others have done so previously) put it to me that bicycles weren't the answer to everything. I did not respond to it because the venue was not appropriate. But I unequivocally state here my belief that the bicycle, in one form or another, is indead the answer to almost everything. It is so much more than "just a bicycle". You name the problem, and I'll tell you how the bicycle is the answer. A whole host of health problems can be helped. Depression, anxiety, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and hypertension are just the starters. Transportation is obvious, but using bikes for transport solves other problems too. Urban planning and land use, when cyclocentric keeps people and their needs close together so they no longer have to travel far to do what they need to do. Mass transit becomes a viable option for the majority instead of a minority. No more urban sprawl eating up farmland, plenty of room for parks and recreational facilities (for velolovers and non-bikers alike). Bicycle ownership by everyone in the Western world is attainable, and would solve the problem of global warming. So many positive things would spring from bicycle usage that disaster could be averted. Those with wee chilluns ought to think about the state of our world, and what will become of it in the time when they will be thinking of propagation themselves. The prospect is bleak at present. But it does not have to be. You have to be proactive.
I know everyone who can read this knows about the 3-R's (Reduce, Re-use, Recycle), but how much of it is being incorporated into daily life. The answer for us all (yes, even me) is not enough. Reducing is 1st because uasage and wastage of all things is so great, Re-using whatever can be helps reducing, and almost everthing can be recycled. It just comes down to level of committment to find a way to recycle.
I had my epiphany a long time ago, I just didn't mention it. It is now time for me to proselytise. Propitiously, this Friday, September 22nd, is WORLD CAR-FREE DAY. I have been car free for over 7years (car-less even longer). It is time to free yourselves from the tyranny of the car. Truly, car owners are enslaved by their I.C.E. vehicles.
The ICE is the easiest target to point out, yet in our Western/Northern society heating/cooling of buildings, residential and commercial, produces more greenhouse gases than transportation. So it is clear that everyone must reduce heating and cooling energy use too. It is very simple to conserve. I know you have heard it before, but often fail to head the advice. This heating season, ask yourself if it is really necessary to turn up the heat, or will putting on a sweater do just as well. A draught causing a chill? Don't seek the thermostat, Stop the draught. Door seals, window film, various insulations and even closing internal doors at night when the heat is turned down. You would be surprised how much warmer a bedroom is with just the closing of its door. Are you only using one room for an hour or so? Don't turn up the furnace. Turn it down and just heat the small space being used. It is cheaper as well as using less energy. Don't be fooled by the appearent expensiveness of electricity compared to gas. An electric heater on Low (usually about 500 watts power level) keeping one room toasty costs less than heating a whole house to moderate warmth. (at 500W for 2 hrs, that's only about 8 cents. I know BCHydro is trying to confuse everyone by splitting the energy use and energy delivery charges, but that is what it is).
Someone recently (and others have done so previously) put it to me that bicycles weren't the answer to everything. I did not respond to it because the venue was not appropriate. But I unequivocally state here my belief that the bicycle, in one form or another, is indead the answer to almost everything. It is so much more than "just a bicycle". You name the problem, and I'll tell you how the bicycle is the answer. A whole host of health problems can be helped. Depression, anxiety, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and hypertension are just the starters. Transportation is obvious, but using bikes for transport solves other problems too. Urban planning and land use, when cyclocentric keeps people and their needs close together so they no longer have to travel far to do what they need to do. Mass transit becomes a viable option for the majority instead of a minority. No more urban sprawl eating up farmland, plenty of room for parks and recreational facilities (for velolovers and non-bikers alike). Bicycle ownership by everyone in the Western world is attainable, and would solve the problem of global warming. So many positive things would spring from bicycle usage that disaster could be averted. Those with wee chilluns ought to think about the state of our world, and what will become of it in the time when they will be thinking of propagation themselves. The prospect is bleak at present. But it does not have to be. You have to be proactive.
I know everyone who can read this knows about the 3-R's (Reduce, Re-use, Recycle), but how much of it is being incorporated into daily life. The answer for us all (yes, even me) is not enough. Reducing is 1st because uasage and wastage of all things is so great, Re-using whatever can be helps reducing, and almost everthing can be recycled. It just comes down to level of committment to find a way to recycle.
I had my epiphany a long time ago, I just didn't mention it. It is now time for me to proselytise. Propitiously, this Friday, September 22nd, is WORLD CAR-FREE DAY. I have been car free for over 7years (car-less even longer). It is time to free yourselves from the tyranny of the car. Truly, car owners are enslaved by their I.C.E. vehicles.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Lights Replacement
If you are starting to read this before the preceeding post "What Happened Next", stop. Read W.H.N. 1st.
Not only the cost of the lights ($16 + $17.50 + $8 +GST) but my NiMH batteries that were in them. Another $26 +GST&PST. Argh! Well, I have plenty more NiMH's, but the front lights were another matter. I do have ones so I can be seen, but I need to see too. My one highish powered halogen light eats batteries for breakfast, literally. Which is why I switched to LEDs. I used to use 2 of the halogens (burn time about 1 hr each with the older NiMH batteries) so that would last the ride in on weekends, but did have much allowance for unforseen circumstances. Plus, one of the bulbs had burnt out and was not yet replaced. So Friday night (at Canadian Tire)I bought an expensive ($30)helmet mounted 1W LED with a big reflector in case I needed it. On Saturday's ride I used my one un-stolen very low powered LED for times requiring visibility, and added in the halogen when required for vision. I left the new helmet light in my pannier, undecided if I should keep it or not. Sunday AM I decided to use it. It was really cool. The combination of the high power LED and the concentrating of the reflector made a really bright spotlight. Way brighter than the 2.4W halogen. And mounted on the helmet meant it illuminated whatever I looked at by turning my head. However I still bought another handlebar mounted LED Sunday afternoon ($17.50. I rode to MEC after work). It's a lot handier than the helmet mount. I'll just use it for the long, dark morning rides.
Not only the cost of the lights ($16 + $17.50 + $8 +GST) but my NiMH batteries that were in them. Another $26 +GST&PST. Argh! Well, I have plenty more NiMH's, but the front lights were another matter. I do have ones so I can be seen, but I need to see too. My one highish powered halogen light eats batteries for breakfast, literally. Which is why I switched to LEDs. I used to use 2 of the halogens (burn time about 1 hr each with the older NiMH batteries) so that would last the ride in on weekends, but did have much allowance for unforseen circumstances. Plus, one of the bulbs had burnt out and was not yet replaced. So Friday night (at Canadian Tire)I bought an expensive ($30)helmet mounted 1W LED with a big reflector in case I needed it. On Saturday's ride I used my one un-stolen very low powered LED for times requiring visibility, and added in the halogen when required for vision. I left the new helmet light in my pannier, undecided if I should keep it or not. Sunday AM I decided to use it. It was really cool. The combination of the high power LED and the concentrating of the reflector made a really bright spotlight. Way brighter than the 2.4W halogen. And mounted on the helmet meant it illuminated whatever I looked at by turning my head. However I still bought another handlebar mounted LED Sunday afternoon ($17.50. I rode to MEC after work). It's a lot handier than the helmet mount. I'll just use it for the long, dark morning rides.
What Happened Next
I know everyone is itching to know what else happened on my Midnight Mass adventure as I hinted there was a little more to tell. I could have written it then, but I thought my post was long enough as it was. So here it goes (Reders Digest version).
As there were so many of us at the Naam, there was not enough bike rackage for all right outside it, and I and many others locked up in neibouring racks. It was after 2am and so close to the restaurant that I did not bother removing my lights as I normally would if expecting to be separated from my baby for long. Mistake. Upon return and unlocking my bike, I immediately noticed the absence of my rear light, two of three handlebar lights, and my wedgie (a small zippered pouch under the saddle, for the non-initiated) was open. My patch-kit was missing (odd the thief didn't take my tire levers, tire pressure guage, and a mini slot-screwdriver, but at least they were left behind. I figure the one front light left was becaus it was mounted upside-down and thus a little trickier to detach). I was not alone in my perurbedness. Three others were similarly hit. So among the thieving denizens of Kits is an extremely well lit non-cyclist. After all, even a cyclothief wouln't take another cyclist's lights when it is dark and raining. While extremely P.O.'d, I did have spares (rear: helmet, knapsack & pannier all sporting LED's, plus extra small ultra portable "turtle" light from MEC in my pack. front: "turtle" light and the remaining headlight). While I was annoyed by the lights' absence, I was still in a good mood. I had had fun riding, I would be doing a little more riding (Eastward with the group as they headed to various parts on the eastside to home, and I to Main St to catch a "night bus" to Whalley and another 50 mins ride to home). So I get to Main & 6th for the bus, lean my bike against the pole, take off my back-pack to check the schedule. Oops! Rule No.1 in Transit is check your shedule before you leave. Yes, I did check it before I left home, but I forgot the corrolary of REMEMBER what the schedule says and its impiclations. The last Night Bus left about 20 mins ago, so it was time to consider my options. 1. ride along Kingsway, across the Patullo, and home. 2. to Richmond, Alex Fraser, & home (with subsidiary choice of Oak or Night st bridge). 3. Wait 1.5 hrs for the 1st skytrain. 4. Wait 2.5 hrs for the 1st 351. 5. Wait 45 mins for the 98 B-line, ride to the tunnel and catch a 351 starting south from the depot. 6.Call work and find out which of the morons were in town and wrangle a ride home. Since riding all the way home would be about 2hrs, any choice involving waiting was simply a waste of time. I headed south, rejecting the Kingsway option. By the time I got to 41st, I had decided on Oak for the North Arm crossing. Oh, I forgot to mention that as I was checking the bus schedule, it started to rain in earnest, not the spitting it was previously. Forwarned is forarmed. Cyclists check weather forcasts diligently. My raingear was in my pannier. So when I was crossing the bridge, I decided to stop by work to say hi and grab some coffee. But I did more than that. The new graveyard guy was on his last night of training, so the regular guy and I had some chat time.....and next thing you know it is almost 1.5 hrs later. So I dashed off and caught a 351 before the tunnel in the nick of time at 6am and got home 0640. To sleep, perchance to dream.
As there were so many of us at the Naam, there was not enough bike rackage for all right outside it, and I and many others locked up in neibouring racks. It was after 2am and so close to the restaurant that I did not bother removing my lights as I normally would if expecting to be separated from my baby for long. Mistake. Upon return and unlocking my bike, I immediately noticed the absence of my rear light, two of three handlebar lights, and my wedgie (a small zippered pouch under the saddle, for the non-initiated) was open. My patch-kit was missing (odd the thief didn't take my tire levers, tire pressure guage, and a mini slot-screwdriver, but at least they were left behind. I figure the one front light left was becaus it was mounted upside-down and thus a little trickier to detach). I was not alone in my perurbedness. Three others were similarly hit. So among the thieving denizens of Kits is an extremely well lit non-cyclist. After all, even a cyclothief wouln't take another cyclist's lights when it is dark and raining. While extremely P.O.'d, I did have spares (rear: helmet, knapsack & pannier all sporting LED's, plus extra small ultra portable "turtle" light from MEC in my pack. front: "turtle" light and the remaining headlight). While I was annoyed by the lights' absence, I was still in a good mood. I had had fun riding, I would be doing a little more riding (Eastward with the group as they headed to various parts on the eastside to home, and I to Main St to catch a "night bus" to Whalley and another 50 mins ride to home). So I get to Main & 6th for the bus, lean my bike against the pole, take off my back-pack to check the schedule. Oops! Rule No.1 in Transit is check your shedule before you leave. Yes, I did check it before I left home, but I forgot the corrolary of REMEMBER what the schedule says and its impiclations. The last Night Bus left about 20 mins ago, so it was time to consider my options. 1. ride along Kingsway, across the Patullo, and home. 2. to Richmond, Alex Fraser, & home (with subsidiary choice of Oak or Night st bridge). 3. Wait 1.5 hrs for the 1st skytrain. 4. Wait 2.5 hrs for the 1st 351. 5. Wait 45 mins for the 98 B-line, ride to the tunnel and catch a 351 starting south from the depot. 6.Call work and find out which of the morons were in town and wrangle a ride home. Since riding all the way home would be about 2hrs, any choice involving waiting was simply a waste of time. I headed south, rejecting the Kingsway option. By the time I got to 41st, I had decided on Oak for the North Arm crossing. Oh, I forgot to mention that as I was checking the bus schedule, it started to rain in earnest, not the spitting it was previously. Forwarned is forarmed. Cyclists check weather forcasts diligently. My raingear was in my pannier. So when I was crossing the bridge, I decided to stop by work to say hi and grab some coffee. But I did more than that. The new graveyard guy was on his last night of training, so the regular guy and I had some chat time.....and next thing you know it is almost 1.5 hrs later. So I dashed off and caught a 351 before the tunnel in the nick of time at 6am and got home 0640. To sleep, perchance to dream.
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