I bought another bike. Yes, I know that I already have one, but I have a sneaky habit of regularly perusing craigslist classifieds looking for that perfect 50cm frame of my dreams. Well, this wasn't the frame of my dreams, but it's a '94 aluminum ride that's a nice addition to my get-around-town-steel-frame-circa-1980-something Schwinn (albeit a sweet one). Plus, this new bike has a triple, which provides a good gearing ratio for those long, arduous, joint-stressing uphill battles. Dear knees, I want you to know that I'm looking out for you.

[Above: My new (used) bike, getting cozy with a Cannondale.]

[Below: My commuter bike, hanging out with the rest of the bike crew in the basement. So patriotic, I know. Notice the padded snowboard helmet hanging from the handlebars. This is KEY for riding in the winter months. It even has vents that I can open and close while I ride to adjust my temperature.]



To show my knees a little extra appreciation, I bought some clipless pedals on eBay (clipless what huh?). My new pedals will keep my feet in place, use more leg muscles by allowing me to pull on the upstroke, and increase my pedaling efficiency. They're also safer than traditional cage pedals with toe clips and straps. When you fall with clipless pedals, your feet pop out of the pedals. When you fall with cages, well, that's tough. I got into an accident a few years ago while riding with toe clips, and I'm fortunate that my pedals were cheap. [Sidenote: the Department of Transportation now uses the term "crashes" because most events previously known as "accidents" could have been easily avoided, and thus can't accurately be described as "accidents." This particluar one could have been avoided if that driver hadn't decided to swerve across three lanes and turn right in front of me. Curses! Crashes! Grr! ] The pressure from my body flying forward with my feet stuck in the toe straps caused the metal screws to rip out of the cages while tearing the pedals apart. My knees and ankles hurt for a week or so after the crash (along with injuries to other miscellaneous body parts), but I learned an important lesson: Don't try that again with good pedals.

I believe that a well-placed piece of velcro made to rip open under pressure could have prevented my knee/ankle strain in that crash. In my opinion, all toe straps should be designed to self-destruct with enough pressure. Manufacturers, take note. DIYers, buy velcro.

Anway, I had a wee problem when attempting to take the original pedals off of my new (used) bike. The left pedal was stuck. I mean STUCK. And yes, I know that the left pedal is reverse-threaded (as in, turn it clockwise to loosen, righty-loosy, lefty-tighty). Well I pushed and I pulled and I kicked and I pounded my wrench with a hammer. Wouldn't budge. I attached 3 wrenches together to increase my leverage. I dumped a kettle of boiling water over the end of my crank to expand the metal and loosen the pedal. No luck.

[Above: Crank arm and pedal. The pedal screws in at the bottom. This happens to be a right crank arm, which means that the threading is normal, righty-tighty, lefty-loosy. This also happens to be a flat pedal, including neither a cage nor clipless capabilities. I use these pedals when it's raining/snowing/hailing/monsoon-ing and I want to wear my big clunky waterproof boots.]

Then I bought some Liquid Wrench and let it soak into the threads overnight. I found a long pipe and attached it to the end of my somewhat small and rather cute pedal wrench...and Voila! It worked! It was awesome! From my understanding, PB Blaster is an even better penetrating oil, and Kroil is the best (so good, in fact, that you can only buy it online).

[Left: The Liquid Wrench, pipe, and pedal wrench that combined forces to save the day.]

It is my hope that bike commuters and DIY home mechanics can learn from my mistakes and adjust their bikes to be safer and more fun to ride. With cities like, ahem, Chicago leasing its parking meters to Morgan Stanley for 75 years ("Hey, do you have any pocket change? I need $6 in quarters for the meter"), and then raising public transit rates to help "fix" the problem of a broken economy and a cash-starved city, a Craigslist bike could really pay off. But it's not just a cost-effective form of transportation—it's also better for the environment, better for your health, a great way to connect to your community, [insert the countless other benefits of riding a bicycle here]. As long as you know how to fix your bike and take care of yourself, you can keep riding FOREVER. Yes, forever. And ever.

More quick tips on knees:
- Adjust your saddle height properly. Most people ride with their saddles too low. You should not be able to sit on your bike and touch your toes to the ground at the same time. You should, however, be able to stand over the top tube with your feet flat on the ground and have at least a half-inch of clearance between the bike and your crotch.
- Avoid pushing too hard in a low cadence. As in, if you have to struggle with every pedal stroke, switch to a lower gear.
- Stretch frequently. Flexibility is very important. Seriously.
- Drink water. Keeps your joints lubed up and ready to go. Water is a miracle elixer. Even better than candy, I swear.
- More advanced fitting and positioning. This becomes more important the more you ride. Repetitive use injuries have a tendency to sneak up on you. This includes forward/back saddle positioning, cleat alignment, crank length, and other factors. It gets really complicated really fast. Some people go to school for this stuff.
- Did I forget something important? Feel free to chime in on the conversation.

If you want more info on pedals, proper positioning, maintenance, or pretty much anything bike related, check Sheldon Brown's website. It's wonderful.

Meet Jeremy Smith. He's a cyclist, a community builder, a German-cookie aficionado, and the winner of the 2009 Focus Roots Fellowship. To be fair, Jeremy didn't win the fellowship per se; he earned it through his incredible dedication to both the bicycle and his community. Along with co-founder John Williams and a crew of volunteers, Jeremy is building a community bicycle cooperative in Spearfish, South Dakota.

[Image: Jeremy Smith (beard on left) and John Williams ride their tall bikes with a banner to spread the word about the new bike co-op]

Jeremy was born in Montana but grew up in Spearfish. A number of years ago, Jeremy randomly met a bicycle-based traveling circus and spent the next year touring China and Hong Kong on his bike while honing his unicycle, tight rope, juggling and stilt-walking skills. [Note to self: I want to run away with that circus, too. That journey sounds nothing short of AWESOME.] From there, Jeremy's interest in bikes has continued to grow.

As a new Focus Roots Fellow in the struggle to find climate solutions, Jeremy recently rode on a week-long bike trip that started in New York City and ended in Washington, D.C. The Brita Climate Ride brought together 170 cyclists from all over the country to ride bikes, learn about climate issues, and push for constructive political change.

Here's what Jeremy had to say:

First off, congrats. This is a really cool project. How did you come up with the idea for a bike co-op?

For the last 3 or 4 years I've been getting more interested in bicycles, especially garbaged and salvaged bicycles. I enjoy taking parts that no one else wants and putting them together again. Spearfish is a community that could benefit from more bicycle commuters and a stronger bike culture. Plus, I have a desire to see more old bicycles put to new use.

[Right: Some of the many tools available for the community at the Spearfish Bike Coop.]

Big cities like Portland, Oregon and San Francisco tend to receive most of the attention for their bike lanes, alternative transportation resources, and community bike projects. Do you think that a smaller town like Spearfish is ready to embrace biking as a viable form of transportation?

One of the issues we're facing is the small nature of the community. We don't have the town size we need to make bicycles a main focus. In time, we'll see a lot more people on bikes, using trailers, and traveling around town without cars. I think the community is ready. It's a small university community with wide streets and some bike paths. We'd like the community to view the bicycle as a utilitarian tool for picking up groceries, taking kids to school, and other common tasks. [Spearfish is] ready for it, and many small towns across the US face a similar need.

You just went on a major bike trip from New York City to Washington, D.C. with a large group of climate-minded folks. What was that like?

[Below: Jeremy and Erin Coffey (another Focus Roots Fellow) on the Climate Ride]

This was my first big bike ride with a group of people that strongly identify as cyclists. I never trained as a bike racer and I don't own any spandex, so it was really neat to hear others' perspectives and talk about how we can make cycling more inclusive. I learned about different ways to reach a larger cycling community. The speakers were fantastic. [The trip] exceeded all of my expectations. Being from the west, I always thought the east coast was filled with continuous traffic, but I was pleasantly surprised to see open roads and green spaces.

[Side-note: Jeremy also told me that he saw a cool shop on the trip that sold only Springerles. Just what is this so-called "Springerle"? I asked. (Is it a type of dog? a twisted coil of wire under pressure? A knock-off dramatic daytime talk show?). Jeremy informed me that it is a funny German cookie pressed into hand-carved wooden blocks, and often anise-flavored. Of course I had to Google it. The self-proclaimed "Springerle Baker" says that the first designs for Springerle molds were created in the 16th century. The early molds usually depicted riders and their horses. However, I think someone should carve a Springerle cookie mold in honor of the Climate Ride that depicts riders and their bicycles. I don't think it's too far of a stretch. Image from Wikimedia Commons.]

Have you worked on any bikes that you're particularly proud of?

[Above: John and Jeremy touring together in Colorado. Nice handlebars, Jeremy :) Those are pretty slick.]

I really like building mutant bicycles—choppers, tall bikes, funny bikes...the works. I've got a couple of tall bikes that I like, especially a half-tall bike that's pink with a chopper fork in front, with a 26 inch wheel in the front and a 16 inch wheel in the back. We have one swing bike that has a second pivot halfway between the handlebars and the seat. Pretty much all of our mutant bikes are fun; we like to re-appropriate bikes and completely redesign them for a different purpose. Re-creating bikes from parts that nobody else wants helps to remove garbage from landfills while teaching useful skills, like how to fix brakes.

How can others help this project?

Anyone can help to keep the shop clean or fix bikes. We're also trying to work with local business owners to promote bikes and provide incentives for community members to ride. We'd also really like to work more closely with city planners and make the area more bike friendly. We're looking to design some t-shirts and bike art for the community, and transform scraps into functional bike sculptures. With extra funding, we could potentially expand our solar and renewable energy set up for the shop.

[Above: The main shop space. I expect that this space will soon be completely filled with bikes and people.]

Thanks, Jeremy! Also, thanks to everyone else involved in the formation of this community space. Your work will be truly appreciated by many.

Jeremy and John hosted the grand opening to the Spearfish Bike Co-op last Saturday, October 10th. The event included a celebration of about 30 community members, plus a bike co-op showing of the Triplets de Belleville to set the stage for a growing bicycle community in Spearfish.

Exciting environmental news from Charlottesville, VA: Dave Norris, our mayor, and Kristin Szakos, a city council candidate, just revealed their bike and pedestrian safety platform.

Translation: they are undertaking an effort to get more bikers and walkers safely on the road.

Irony: Szakos carpooled to the meeting, asserting that "There really is no safe way to get here on a bike" (as reported by Lisa Provence writing for The Hook).

How this affects me: My bike is in the shop getting a tune-up from a 4-year hiatus spent in the garage. Why haven't I ridden my bike, you might ask. Two reasons: 1. As a student I could walk everywhere and didn't need to bike, and 2. The Charlottesville roads are frickin' scary to bike on.

In other news...

Biggest enlargement of Charlottesville's carbon footprint: Thursday, October 1st's U2 concert, just one more installment in their 360 tour that includes The Claw, the biggest stage in the history of rock'n'roll, which takes 104 trucks to transport.

It's crazy, right? Especially given that Bono is all about saving the world. Granted, he's putting his fame and money behind the specific cause of alleviating childhood poverty, which is admirable.

However, I think his commitment to the abstract principle of doing good in the world requires him to make more of an effort in other aspects of his behavior, such as how much his behavior is contributing to global warming.

I realize that it's difficult to act in accord with all of our principles 100% of the time, but isn't this a gross act of negligence? Couldn't U2 still put on a good show despite a drastically smaller stage?

It's a question that's up for debate, and I'd love to hear your opinion. Do you think U2 should be held to a higher standard? Or do you think their current efforts are adequate and should be praised, inconsistent though they may be? Or do you just love Bono so much that obviously, he can do no wrong?

Hit me up on the comments section below!

"Humans produce more energy for their mass than the Sun! We just need to tap into that bio-energy and beating gasoline will be a breeze.  Biking is great. I would argue that in an urban setting biking is just a fast as driving (and you don't have to pay for parking). I'm really stoked to have won, and I hope more people start beating gasoline by biking."

Thanks,
Khiza Mazwi

Khiza Mazwi is the grand prize winner of Nike's Beat Gasoline contest.  Besides receiving his Nike 6.0 package which included a BMX bike, shoes, apparel, and a $1000 Global Gift Giving Card, he continued to share his enthusiasm for beating gasoline(read below).  With a response like that to an email congratulating him as the winner of Nike's Beat Gasoline contest, you know he deserved to win it all.

(Khiza posing with the star of the video)

Alright Khiza, the people want to know about your video and how you beat gasoline, but lets start with the basics.  Where are you from?  What are you doing?

I was born and raised in Zimbabwe, went to school in Botswana and am currently in my 3rd year at USC studying Chemical Engineering and Material Science.

You got a lot on your plate, yet you still had the time to put together a stellar video entry, tell us about the concept of the video.

Living in LA can get pretty hectic, with the traffic, sometimes it can take an hour to get somewhere 10 miles away.  I had originally bought a motorcycle which helped beat traffic but I was still heavily dependent on gasoline so I decided to use a bicycle as my primary mode of transport.  I wanted the video to be focused on the bicycle itself so all the shots are of the bike itself getting around Los Angeles.

It was a really modern type of video.  Almost like a music video, really fast, quick edits, it makes the viewers really feel what its like to pedal through the streets of Los Angeles.  What are some of the benefits of riding a bicycle in a big city?

I actually saw this chart online that compares different vehicles and their overall fuel usage.  The bike is the most efficient besides walking.  For one, a bike is a simple machine that doesn't require any fuel and very little maintenance.  You can get around just as fast as a car, you don't have to sit in traffic.  You don't have to pay for parking and you'll always be able to ride it directly where you're headed, you won't be in a parking lot two blocks away.  Of course, riding a bicycle is good for your health, you feel immediate effects when you start riding a bike everywhere, I feel more fit and I have more money in my pocket.  It's win/win.

And I imagine that you would get to see the nooks and crannies of the City that most people who were driving wouldn't notice.

Oh yeah most definitely, you really get to experience the city, see all the little things that you normally wouldn't pay attention to.

I also liked your track selection, what made you decide to go with The Strokes, it really set up a good vibe in the video.

Thats just the kind of music I'm into.  I thought it would go well, and I'm happy with the result.  I like rock n' roll music and I love bicycles, why not have them all at once.

Well Khiza, thank you again for participating in our Beat Gasoline Campaign and congratulations on winning the grand prize, did you get your new bike yet?

Yes, I received it earlier his week and I'm putting it together.  Thanks YouthNoise Play City and Nike for pimping my ride!  It couldn't have come at a better time, the bike that I used in the video just broke recently.  I just wanted to show something that I feel very strongly about and enjoy.  Thank you for the opportunity.

(Unpacking his brand new prize.)

(Already running into some security with his new ride.)

Thanks to Khiza and to everyone who participated in the Beat Gasoline Contest.  Just because the contest is over doesn't mean that we still can't keep beating gasoline.  Keep riding, walking, skating, hovering anywhere and everywhere to keep the movement alive.

We love to cover big fundraising trips here at PlayCity-- whether it's Rudy Van Prooyen cycling to raise money for Clean Drinking Water or three art lovers from Chicago on an auto trip to fund open studio spaces.

It's awesome to read about people who use the means in front of them to increase the resources others could use, but a lot of the folks undertaking big cross-country projects are a bit older than me, and probably a bit older than you guys out there, too.

That's why I'm so juiced to have an interview with Sarah Cheshire today. Sarah just finished a cross-country bike ride to raise money for the organization Students Take Action Now for Darfur (STAND) and their Civilian Protection Program. But I'll let Sarah do the explaining.

How was the trip? Was it much like you expected?

I had no idea how much of a challenge it would be! Every day presented new obstacles to surmount, new hills to climb, new stretches of desert to traverse, but it was also so, so gratifying- the sense of accomplishment I experienced at the end of each day made it all worth it. I constantly drew upon my fundraiser as a source of motivation; not only were there hundreds of friends and donors who had invested in me finishing, but there are thousands of people in the world- the people who I was riding for- who are deprived of the basic elements of the freedom that I got to experience in such a head rush every day.

How did you become inspired to plan such a massive fund-raising project?

I have always spent my summers either working or attending really academic camps but this summer, with my last year in high school approaching, I wanted do something that would both satiate my free spirit and challenge me- by testing my will power and pushing me to become less reliant upon materialistic comforts- while at the same time impacting the greater world. I have been involved with STAND (Students Take Action Now for Darfur) for the past couple of years, helped coordinate their National Conference last year, and am the president of my school’s chapter. I couldn’t think of a worthier cause than their Civilian Protection Program, which provides protection for women in refugee camps so that when they leave the camps to get firewood, they won’t get assaulted.

How did your friends, family and classmates react to the plan?

Well, I’ve never really been classified as a “jock” amongst my peers, nor do I consider athletics to be among my passions, so I think everyone was a little surprised when I mentioned my summer plans of biking across the country. I think they probably all had doubts about how far I’d make it (and I don’t blame them), but they were all also so supportive. Not only was it great to see everyone who I know and care about coming together in support of this cause, but I was surprised at how quickly the word got around; soon people who I barely knew were calling, wanting to contribute

What advice do you want to share with other young activists who might be considering a similar project?

Be sure to use as many resources as you have access to, especially the internet! Also, try to reach out to as many different sections of your community as possible. Doing something like this is a great way to bring the people you know and care about together and you'd be surprised at how many seemingly- apathetic, unapproachable people are in fact interested and willing to help you out!

Anybody you'd like to thank?

Yes! Everyone who contributed of course, but also the countless strangers along the way who demonstrated such generosity and hospitality. Doing something like this, you really have to rely on strangers (for basic things such as water, the occasional use of a phone) and seeing how eager people were to help really gave me faith in humanity. This one lady in Texas pulled over her car and, noting that we (I biked with a group of teens led by an outdoor adventure company, but the fundraiser was my own initiative) looked tired, handed us cold water bottles and granola bars. When she heard what we were doing and that I was doing it as a fundraiser, she took out her wallet and handed me a $100 bill, then drove away without even telling me her name. Quite inspiring! As a rode, I tried to correlate the kindness demonstrated by the people I met with my own intentions in doing the ride and my desire to cast goodness into the world.

 

 

What's really inspiring to me is the resourcefulness that Sarah showed by hopping onto a group ride and using it to raise money for a cause that's important to her. See, you don't have to be a lone wolf or a grown-up to make a huge difference in the world-- you can do it by tapping into the communities that you're already a part of.

So big thanks to Sarah for the pictures, words, and general encouragement! Check out her blog and think about ways to harness your hobbies and make someone's life better!