Mirage

Ein textiles Fahrradschloss, das Spaß macht, sicher und flexibel.
Erhältlich in vier Farben und drei Längen. Perfekt für jedes Fahrrad.

Kryptonite Fahrradschlösser

I did a few bike repairs yesterday:

• Fastened one handle which suddenly went loose
• Replaced one valve cap
• Replaced my break pads

The breakpad replacment was pretty straightforward after getting a rough grasp from a video. For next time, I need to remember that:

• before starting the repair, switch to the highest gear to get the chain in a favourable position for removing the tires
• there is an easy way to get the tires out if you push back the chain holder on the back tire
• on the front wheel, be sure to remove the cable of the dynamo by removing the cap on the wires
• before putting the new brake pads in, push the cylinders inside the casing in to make space for the pads. Otherwise it will be hard to get them in.
• don’t use the brake while repearing to avoid getting the cylinders stuck

Mit Sprüchen wie: ORGANSPENDER, bitte vorsichtig überfahren

“Ich wohne in Bielefeld. Dort hat die Stadt die Aktion „Autofrei in Bielefeld*“ ins Leben gerufen. Ich habe mich beworben – und bin dabei! Seit April bewege ich mich zusammen mit 49 anderen Menschen ganz offiziell und mit einem Budget von 400 Euro ohne Auto in der Stadt. Hier kommt mein Erfahrungsbericht.”

The argument goes that bike lanes means less space for cars and therefore more congestion. While this might sound plausible, it appears to hark back to outdated traffic management theory. Josh Toussaint-Strauss finds out how traffic really works, and the actual impact of installing new bike lanes

kwt

Ich versuche, mich beim Fahrrad fahren möglichst allen respektvoll gegenüber zu verhalten und die Verkehrsregeln zu beachten, außer vielleicht, wenn die Autophase an der Ampel wieder unmöglich länger ist als die Menschen/Fahrradphase. Da rutscht mir auch mal die Pedale aus. 😁

Zu Fuß gehen oder mit dem Fahrrad fahren soll in Hessen einfach sein – das ist das Ziel der Arbeitsgemeinschaft Nahmobilität Hessen (AGNH).

Finally made an effort to look into the initiatives my state is supporting wrt near-mobility, as they call it. There is a seminar at 27. which I will try to join. Let’s see.

When I started my apprenticeship, I lived 2 cities away from my work place. With my limited budget, I could not afford going by bus and so I started cycling to work. I did it out of necessity and coming from a work day I remember cursing that uphill section just in from of my home.

After I finished my apprenticeship, I could afford to take the bus everyday and I happily did. For some reason, I never even considered a car to be an option for me, even though I have a drivers license.

My boss was a heavy proponent of cycling and he, his wife and their dog came to work by bike every day. Over lunch we had a lot of talks about how cycling is a good thing because it keeps your body fit (especially when you sit at a desk all day doing IT) and provides you with some balance.

Over the years this opinion found its way into my brain and I started cycling again, this time by choice. Luckily for me, I always stayed in cycling range of my work and so I kept ditching the bus for my transportation of choice.

I went from trying to find excuses for taking the bus (It’s cold outside, It’s raining, You’ll sweat, ..) to finding reasons to absolutely prefer the bike over bus, trains, cars in any possible situation:

• Time: No more catching or waiting for buses. The liberation I felt when I realized this was immense. If you miss your bus by just one minute, tough luck, there won’t be another one until 30 minutes. If this bus is late by 5 minutes, you might not catch your connecting one, again, tough luck.

• Space: While I can be hard to find dedicated parking spots for bikes, it is not that big of an issue. You can lock it to that lamppost over there, or on that fence. There are not many restrictions as to where you are allowed to park your bike 1.

• Balance: One of the most important things for me, being a software developer, is a change of pace when coming home from a long day. While enjoy sitting in the bus and just zoning off sometimes, nothing beats a 30 minute ride home where you can reflect, let off steam or simply enjoy the scenery 2.

The bottom line is: I love cycling, it’s good for my mental and physical health and it’s also a lot of fun 😊

It’s funny how car drivers tend to wave at me to let me through but then take left turns in front of me. Almost as if cars and cycles were not equal on german streets. 🙄