Tour De Hometown

With Australian cyclist Cadell Evans winning the Tour de France this week, many people are going to be dusting off the old bicycle (or getting one for the first time) to experience the joy of bike riding.


So one of the newspapers did a helpful piece on some really good places to go for a ride. Places with nice scenery (though not exactly France) and most along bikeways, or roads with bike lanes. Each suggestion has its own map and, like the Tour de France, a terrain map to indicate the 'hillyness'.


OK, compared to "the Tour", the trips might be short, and the hills might be small, but for us mere mortals it's the closest we'll ever get :)

"Hokey Spokes"

"Probably be the most flamboyant bicycle accessory i've seen so far", i thought. (When a friend pointed these out to me).


The side-benefit of something so intensely eye-catching is surely an increased visibility for night-cycling ;)

Several small blades (about ruler-size) each attach to a spoke. Each blade runs a series of LED lights, creating these colourful patterns as the wheels rotate.

A Really Aggressive Driver

In the sidebar i list some reasons i like going car free. One that i don't often talk about is a semi-spiritual one. It's the strange effect whereby even quite relaxed people can turn into angry creatures - just by getting behind the wheel.

You may have seen this video on the news during the week.



On Tuesday it was posted online, in attempt to identify the driver. By Thursday the man had been charged.

Of course, it's incredibly unusual that it goes this far (hence it is on the news) but the underlying anger seems to be something all drivers have experienced. Personally, I don't like the feeling. It's much more enjoyable to sit and read a book on the train.

Tour De France / USA?

I thought this cartoon managed to be both funny and sad at the same time.