Let the good times roll

While most of our time in Ireland last month was spent with my husband's family, we did manage to reserve a few hours of one day to rent bikes in Dublin's enormous patch of open space, Phoenix Park. Our daughter chose to join her cousins on an open-top bus tour of Dublin instead, as she didn't feel her left foot was ready for cycling just yet.


Phoenix Park Bike Hire had a steady stream of customers that Monday afternoon, with a group ahead of us leaving on bikes and two more groups waiting behind us. I was happy to be handed a ladylike step-through framed Giant Expression (possibly the one ridden by Beyonce - see the photo on their website) with a bag on the rack to hold our belongings.
My husband was given an "ugly mountain bike" with a laugh from the friendly bike man.
Eager to be on our way and away from the crowd, we rode up the street into the park and hoped the darkening clouds would hold their rain for just a little while longer. They obliged, and I was grateful for their presence by the end, as it was warm enough without the sun beating down on us. The constant presence of the dramatic clouds above the smooth green fields made for a beautiful landscape throughout our ride.

As my husband is accustomed to riding alone at a moderately high speed for exercise purposes, our ride together didn't turn out to be the relaxed, romantic pedal through the park that I had envisioned. Instead, I struggled to stay close behind him and gave up on the idea of conversation until we stopped for a brief rest. Perhaps the presence of my camera on video mode kept him on the run. I recorded about 35 minutes of our 90 minute ride and chopped it up into this 3 minute video.

The Green Fields of Dublin from BIKE Lite on Vimeo.

I have no idea how much of the park we actually covered, but it seemed like we saw most of it. The majority of the park has a separated bike path, and the on-street bike lanes we encountered were comfortably wide with light traffic, although we did see three cars parked in the bike lane (try to spot them in the video).

Our bike ride through Phoenix Park was one of the highlights for me, and I'm sure we will make it a regular feature of our future visits. Hopefully next time our daughter will accompany us and keep the pace at a more comfortable level for conversation. She might even smile for the camera.

Bikes are back in Dublin

There has certainly been a bike boom in Dublin since my last visit in July 2006. Bikes are piled into racks and locked to street signs and railings everywhere. Brave cyclists claim their space among taxis and double-decker buses on the busiest streets in the downtown tourist areas. Bike lanes have been signposted throughout the city, usually within the bus lanes. Many of the bike lanes are reserved only during the morning and evening rush hours, and some bike lanes appear to be no more than 2 feet wide, but they are being used despite their shortcomings. Whether it's the higher cost of gas, the drop in the economy, or a growing environmental awareness, Dublin residents of all ages seem to be bringing out their bikes, and the city seems to be scrambling to meet their needs.

Catching a photo of any of these cyclists from the crowded sidewalks or our moving rental car sure kept me scrambling, but I eventually caught a few live ones. Click here or on the photo below to see my small set of photos from Dublin.



(For an insider's view of cycling in and around Dublin, check out Jack's blog, Le Vie en Velo.)

This ad makes me wonder

Although I'm not in the market for another bike, I still enjoy looking through the listings on the Philadelphia craigslist. A few days ago I came across this one:

20" Girls' Greenline Beach Cruiser - Baby Blue - $180 (West Chester, PA)

Reply to:xxxxxxxxxx
Date: 2009-05-26, 9:57AM EDT

Beautiful bike. Bought in March 2008. Used twice. Being sold because local traffic makes bike riding too dangerous.



• Location: West Chester, PA
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

I wonder what traffic conditions make the owner's neighborhood too unsafe for their child to ride a bike? Most towns allow children under the age of 12 to ride on the sidewalk to keep them out of traffic. However, many of the housing developments built in this area over the past 25 years have no sidewalks, only curbs. People moved further away from the city to have more land, more distance from the neighbors, more privacy. Sidewalks weren't wanted or needed, since no one really walks anywhere, and the properties look larger without them. But where is a young child supposed to ride their bike? I wonder how many children growing up in developments like these will never really learn to ride a bike? More space does not always bring more freedom.

Crossing the Delaware

The Delaware River forms the entire border between Pennsylvania and New Jersey. George Washington made his famous crossing of the Delaware River on Christmas Day in 1776. This Memorial Day weekend, we crossed it six times:

Saturday – We drove from our home in the suburbs of Philadelphia to Ocean City, New Jersey, in the morning (1st crossing), then back to Philadelphia in the afternoon (2nd crossing) for a wedding at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies.
I spotted some bike racks as we left the stadium to return to Ocean City (3rd crossing).

Sunday – Husband and I tiptoed out for an early morning bike ride.
We treated ourselves to breakfast after riding into the wind for 3 miles.
Afterward, a few more bikes (and dogs) began to appear.
This street mural is a traffic calming device on the bike route. (See its story on YouTube here.)
We headed home to Pennsylvania later in the day (4th crossing).

Monday (Memorial Day) – Daughter convinced us it was the perfect day to visit the Adventure Aquarium in Camden, New Jersey.
We decided to take the River Link ferry across the Delaware River (5th crossing) instead of getting stuck in the holiday traffic on the bridges.
I was happy to see two passengers bring their bikes aboard, and surprised when a crew member told me there is no extra charge to do so! (Adult fare is $6 roundtrip.)
Of course, you can always cross the Delaware for free by riding your bike across the walkway above the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. No thank you!
Inside the Adventure Aquarium:
This very large green sea turtle was Daughter’s favorite.
Piranhas! (Obviously not Daughter’s favorite.)
The Battleship New Jersey is docked next to the aquarium and would have been a fitting destination for Memorial Day, but Daughter ran out of energy due to the crutches, so we’ll have to return another day for a tour.
A father and child on bike watched our ferry return to Philadelphia (6th crossing). The warship Olympia from the Spanish-American War is behind them.
As we drove through downtown Philadelphia on our way home, we saw bikes in use and parked everywhere. Even as a passenger, it’s difficult to take photos from a moving car, but I managed to get this bit of a corner café scene:
And here’s a wonderful example of Philadelphia Cycle Chic – - that I just missed!

A Sweet Ride

On Saturday we took our first trip by bike to the Italian bakery just a half mile down the road. That is, it's a half mile as the crow flies or the car drives, but on a bike (especially with a child), the safest route is twice the distance. We certainly didn't mind taking the long way round through the neighborhood streets behind the busy main road, but most people would choose to take the car, and here's why:

This crosstown street has one lane of traffic in each direction with a center lane for turning and absolutely no shoulder. Only the most experienced cyclists take the road here. The sidewalk starts at the edge of the road, with not even a grass buffer zone between the curb and sidewalk. One false move and you are in the direct path of traffic. On the other side of the sidewalk is a series of parking lots for the businesses that line both sides of the road. Approximately every ten feet, the curb is cut out and the sidewalk slants as a driveway to the parking areas. To continue on a level path, a pedestrian or cyclist (as children and their parents are permitted to ride on sidewalks), must constantly zigzag from sidewalk to parking lot, avoiding parking space bumpers, raised planters and property dividers, while keeping an eye out for vehicles entering and exiting the road. No wonder there are rarely pedestrians on these sidewalks, despite the number of businesses. We have taken this sidewalk route by bike once or twice before, but it is not a pleasant ride nor much faster, due to the obstacles and changing surface.

The township is currently working on a plan to improve the appearance and traffic flow of this area, but is running into opposition from business owners who fear that any change to their parking areas could mean a substantial loss of business. I hope they can find a compromise soon and get working on it. We need more green here in every sense of the word. (Looks like a job for Jan Gehl!)

At this point, I have taken the long way round to report that we rode our bikes to the bakery on Saturday, so I will finish quickly.

Decisions, decisions.
I'll have a snickerdoodle, please.

The goodies went into my basket, and we took the long way home.

Admiring Amsterdam

As if the bike lanes alone weren't enough to make me want to move to Amsterdam, here are a few more reasons:


Amsterdams new climate from Bosch Film on Vimeo.

Well, at least my town has upgraded to single-stream recycling. It's a start.

Home(town) Improvement

2009 is off to a good start in our town.

One!
January 1 was the official start of single-stream recycling here, with the first collection on January 2. We can now put all of our recyclables into one container for collection once a week. Previously, we had separate pickups for four different items on alternating weeks. You needed a calendar to know when to put out what, and multiple containers to store it all. Naturally, many people didn't bother. Now one container does it all and gets emptied weekly. Best of all, we can now recycle all plastics numbered 1 through 7 (previously only 1 and 2), which means I can recycle the tower of wonton soup containers that have been stacking up in the basement!

When?
A very small but encouraging item appeared in a seasonal publication by our township's recreation department, mailed last week to all residents:

"Bicycle Friendly Town
A group of bicycle enthusiasts is attempting to make our township more bicycle friendly. If you would like to take part, email ..."

I emailed my contact info but haven't had a reply yet. I wonder if someone from our township attended the Jan Gehl presentation in Philadelphia last month? (Hm, I coulda-woulda-shoulda.) After the little bit of progress made this summer, I'm anxious to see what else is in the suggestion box.

Win!
The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the New York Giants by a score of 23-11. They will now advance to the NFC title game in Arizona next Sunday. Go Eagles!

It's looking like a very green year here.