fashion and culture

just posted some thoughts and great links on fashion and its influence and representation of culture over at WoolardSpeak. check it.

A lesson in green business: New Belgium Brewery

just posted a lengthy report from my tour of New Belgium Brewery over at my other blog, WoolardSpeak. check it out.

safety in numbers and in the cold

it's the time of year when bike commuting drops off sharply due to cold and incliment winter weather. i'm trying to increase my commutes to work and moreover, my time on the bike to hit errands or social events.

couple good resources:

from bikehugger, a report on safety in numbers (plus, it's just more fun to cycle with friends).
winter weather riding and maintenance tips.

Critical Mass in Chicago

my friend sara (and interwoven threads advocate extraordinaire) just shot me a link to a Chicago Tribune story on the city's famous (and huge!) critical mass. check it out. i'm a big believer in critical mass-type events within the cycling community. they help underscore a number of issues: car/bike safety, environmentalism, getting off the grid, fitness. but they also serve to energize a base and recruit new enthusiasts with the hope of converting drivers into pedalers (is that a word?).

one thing that caught my attention in the article is the questioning of participants dedication to the mission and meaning of critical mass events. "are you real?" do you come out and ride a mass or do you commute to work/school/jump on your bike when you run errands? i personally don't have any problem with people participating who may not live that vision daily - the more the better here. and some people are unable to bike to work, etc. because of distance/terrain/inability to show up sweaty for meetings.

this brings up a larger question: how many causes or issues are you involved in in theory, but not in practice?

it's cliche, but take action. however small your first step. ride a critical mass and then aim to cut a car trip a week via bike. watch the 11th hour, but then set up your home recycling system. you get the point.

Tour de Green

The target(s) of my cheering in this year's Tour de France is the Discovery Channel team. Not only does DC host American greats like George Hincapie and Levi Leipheimer , the team is taking a unique stand against pollution by going green during the opening prologue.

In addition to some sweet green kits (wondering, though, where they were made/where the fabric came from), the team will be planing trees based on successful stage finishes and will offset the carbon output of the vehicles used in the race as well as the output created from its corporate employees and daily business.

This is a great effort on a world stage, to remind people that we can all truly do our part. Kudos to Discovery Channel for leading the charge and standing strong at third after today's crazy stage two.

More at Reuters.

Kona Biketown Africa

I've been following Bicycling Magazine's Biketown program for a while - it's an incredibly simple example of doing little things (donating a bike to someone who doesn't have one) to transform a life. Some of the recipients use their new bike to ride to a job, some find a new way to exercise, and some just rediscover the joy of wheeling around like a kid again. The flip side, is a heightened awareness for cycling. Win-win.

Read an article on WorldChanging this morning featuring Bicycling Magazine's partnered with Kona bikes to create Kona Biketown Africa. Kudos to both the magazine and Kona for taking on this need and finding a relevant way to make a change.