Today I met a new beauty in town, the Velorbis Studine at Copenhagen Cyclery, a “younger” and more affordable version of the Velorbis Classic bikes (which I reviewed here). The differences are subtle – fewer gears, painted rims and no lights or leather grips.
Designed in Denmark and handmade in Germany, these stylish steel bikes are chic and cheeky at once. The Studine aka Student comes in three colors (red, green, black) and four sizes (51 and 56 cm for step-through, 54 and 59 cm for diamond frame). If cream-colored Schwalbe tires are not luscious enough, these ones are coupled with powder-coated rims to match the frames. The classy and comfortable Brooks B67 sprung saddle tops the design off perfectly.
Week one of our Bike Lover’s Gift Guide highlighted fun and beautiful handcrafts available on Etsy. For week two we are shifting our focus to gifts that give back to the bicycling community.
Life-Changing Bikes – Gift a bike in honor of someone you love via World Bicycle Relief. The Bicycles for Educational Empowerment program aims to give 50,000 bicycles to school children in rural Zambia – 70% of whom are girls – to enable the children to travel to and from school more easily. The cost is $134 per bicycle, which includes shipping and assembling the bike, as well as paying for a trained bike mechanic for each school. Any donation amount is welcome.
Local Bike Advocacy – Give the gift of membership to your local bike advocacy organization. In Chicago the Active Transportation Alliance works to create better conditions for bicyclists, pedestrians and public transit users. Membership is inexpensive and includes lots of discounts at retailers across the city, several membership events and a newsletter.
Bicycle Cooperatives – Give the gift of community. Examples include gift memberships at co-ops like Bici Co-op in Birmingham and used bicycles for purchase at Bikes Not Bombs in Boston and Working Bikes Cooperative in Chicago. Your community may have a bicycle cooperative you could support in some way through your holiday gift-giving.
The Open Road – Give the gift of adventure. A gift membership for the Adventure Cycling Association includes a subscription to Adventure Cycling Magazine, discounts on route maps and affiliate benefits, and if you join or renew for yourself now, you can give a holiday gift membership for half off. If you really want to go all out, you could give someone an amazing cycling tour.
Magazine Subscription – Momentum, The Magazine for Self-Propelled People, is distributed free in several cities across North America. Gift subscriptions are super affordable and help support this first-class publication.
Organized Rides – Give the gift of a fun day together. Many rides support bicycling or other environmental causes. If you find a ride you like in another city, make a whole weekend vacation of it. This ride along Chicago’s beautiful lakefront benefits Climate Cycle. The annual ride is scheduled for May 14, 2010 and cyclists select from a 4, 10, 20 or 62-mile course. Proceeds go to installing solar energy in Chicago public schools, which currently pay more for energy costs than books and computers combined.
If you have any other ideas or know of a worthy bicycling cause, please share in the comments!
This post title is inspired by the homepage of Performance Bicycle, which announces: “Who needs cashmere? Wrap yourself in Spandex!” (Thanks Steve for the heads up.) While I appreciate that some cyclists prefer spandex, I thought I’d represent for all the cashmere-wearing cyclists out there. After wool, cashmere is my favorite clothing for winter cycling: luxurious and warm.
Cashmere
Unfortunately, after I snapped this picture in the morning, I realized my narrow skirt was impossible to cycle in, especially sitting upright. Taken down by a skirt! I was in a rush, so I garaged Oma and took the L train. Too bad, because I missed Chicago’s first flurry.
If Chicago’s Lakefront Trail did not exist, this blog would not exist. At least not in its current form with me as a co-blogger. That’s because I never would have attempted to ride my bike to work without the trail.
Oma Sunrise
Before I started cycling, I’d only been to the lakefront once or twice during my one year as a Chicago resident. All I knew about the trail was that it went all the way downtown and had no cars.
This weekend we took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather (~50 degrees F) and cycled along the lakefront to the Christkindlmarket downtown.
I love being able to take off my helmet when I get on the Lakefront Trail with Oma. The wind in my hair feels so good.
Helmet off, hair loose
Chicago’s Christkindlmarket claims to be the only authentic Christkindlmarket outside of Europe. I’m not sure about the “only” claim, but it looks “authentic,” based on pictures of a Christkindlmarket in Salzburg via Academichic.
As I work on the review of the Jango Flik, and about five other half-finished blog posts, enjoy this photo of the bike posing with the last of the autumn leaves. Like Chicago, Nashville has passed a mild, dry fall that has been a joy to ride in.
Confession: Internet shopping is one of my favorite pastimes. I know it’s not right, but somehow filling a virtual shopping cart with crap I don’t need and then closing the window at the last moment, without checking out, is just as therapeutic as actually making the purchase.
Know what else is therapeutic? Passing the finds on to someone else. In that spirit, and because it is the season of gift-giving, we will be sharing some of our favorite bikey finds with you over the next few Saturdays. First up are some items from one of the places I find near impossible to resist: Etsy.com. If you haven’t heard, Etsy is a fabulous online marketplace where people (like our friends at cyclemumbreeze!) sell handmade or vintage goods. All of these unique gifts are under $50, by the way.
I think today was the coldest of the season, dropping down to 32 degrees F. We donned our winter Bern helmets and safety glasses for a trip to a home improvement store. I got caught up in the holiday ribbon section, where I picked up some trimmings for Oma (more on that later).
Waiting for Winter
Despite the chill today, the weather tomorrow is expected to be sunny and up to 54 degrees F. I feel like I’ve spent a month bracing for a winter that never comes. By this time last year, snow was on the ground. Not that I’m complaining – I’ll be on my bike enjoying the sunshine!
Our friend Elizabeth of Bike Commuters created a Chicago Bikes calendar with great pictures that she has been taking year-round from her bike. All of the proceeds support Chicago’s Ride of Silence, which Elizabeth plans and coordinates.
I wanted to reiterate Trisha’s thanks to the bike blogging community. Having a place to discuss, vent about and celebrate transportation cycling is priceless. So thanks.
This year, I am thankful for family and friends near and far; the community we’ve found through blogging, good health and the good food that will be on the table today . . . etc.
But most of all, I’m thankful that after a year and a half on two wheels, I’ve yet to inspire a highway art installment like this one.
Bike art near Guntersville, Alabama
How about you, friends? And what do you think of this installment? Humorous, or hostile, given that it’s located next to a highway?
And to our American readers — how are you celebrating Thankgiving? I’m spending it away from my family for just the second time in 29 years (yikes). Planned to bring a cake to a friend’s, but a pan extraction incident means I’m making cake balls instead. Something tells me my hosts won’t complain.
I admit that I was all fired up to write this post when I got home, but after a hot shower, a cold beer and a phone call with my mom, I’m feeling pretty chill. Nevertheless, the show must go on.
You can't tell, but I'm flipping her off
My ride home today was scary. It was pouring rain, dark out and with all the city lights reflecting off the pavement, I was nervous about drivers seeing me and my lights. Then one particular driver had to go and be an a-hole. I was in the bike lane passing a line of stopped traffic when a car started moving into the bike lane. I yelled on the top of my lungs, “HEYYYYYYY!” to prevent being run over. The car slammed on its brakes (I’m loud) and I proceeded on.
In celebration of the mild weather, Sir Raleigh and Betty Foy went for a date ride today – chaperoned by me and Mr. Dottie, of course. I think they are a perfect match. (Tip: you can now see a bigger version of each picture by clicking on it.)
Well, for the day at least! Afraid that continued neglect of my darling Batavus could lead to a pant-snatching incident, á la Oma, I took her out to enjoy one of the last days of fall. Together we posed in front of a scraggly tree that is desperately holding on to its leaves. Keep ‘em up there, little tree — I’m not ready for winter!
Off to work -- I look skeptical of the self-timer feature
After two weeks plus of riding the Flik, my Bat felt . . . heavy. But also — stable! And comfortable. I know you roadies out there will probably say it’s just what you’re used to (and you’ll have a point — to an extent, I have gotten used to craning my neck on the Flik), but an upright riding position is SO much more comfortable than being launched out over the handlebars. The Bat was forgiving of my neglect and my sweater tights made it to work without complications.
Weekend plans include meeting up with Andrew, a local owner of a Bike Friday, during a ride through Shelby Bottoms. And, gulp, a viewing of New Moon. Don’t judge, people. As this spot-on article in the WaPo warns, it could happen to you.
My new commute is not very different from my old one. The biggest difference is that my office is not by the lake, so it makes sense to take city streets the whole way instead of the Lakefront Trail. The other big difference is that I don’t have to ride through downtown.
The streets I take have either bike lanes or marked shared lanes. As you can see below, I’m able to slide past car traffic in the bike lane.
These pictures are from last week. I’m remembering it fondly, as this week has been gray and dreary. Rain was pouring this morning, so I sighed and took the L train to work. I’ll be back tomorrow with a report of my new commute.
Good Times
A Final Burst of Fall
Cycle Chic
P.S. I’m rarely able to take good pictures of other cyclists going by, but I managed to snap the one above. Note that she has a Jimmy Choo bag on the handlebars of her vintage Schwinn. Only when I was cropping this picture to post did I notice that her pants legs are tucked into her socks. Thank you, anonymous beauty, for proving that tucked hems can be stylish.
Oma was very naughty this morning. I need Super Dutch Bike Nanny. Angry that I was returning to work and spending less time with her (Trisha’s astute observation), Oma lashed out by tearing my pants leg. I was feeling spiffy, riding in my best Brooks Brothers pants suit, when the hem fell and Oma grabbed it with her crank arm.
The Aftermath
I had to show up on my first day of work with pants held together by a safety pin, and being yanked by my bike was not fun. I’ve never had a problem riding Oma in wide-leg jeans, but from now on I will secure long and loose pants.
I’ve been out of town for a few days, but I’m looking forward to getting back and spending more time with the Flik. It’s a pretty sweet ride so far, and a real conversation starter. Before I left, I recorded this brief, bare-bones video of the folding process over my lunch break — couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spend some time outdoors in “Dragon Park” on such a beautiful fall day! Apologies for the lack of close-ups — a full review is coming soon.
p.s. if you haven’t found it yet, check out our YouTube channel. From the whimsical to the informative, we’re adding all sorts of things to it these days.
As two girls who practice city cycling with style and think you can too, we started this blog to share our stories, learn more about cycling and encourage others to rediscover the fun of riding a bike. All opinions and reviews are our own, and we are not paid to provide them. Check the "About us" page for more details.
Email Us
letsgorideabike [dot] wordpress [at] gmail [dot] com
Posted by dottie 
Posted by dottie 
Posted by dottie 
