The Archives
Life with an Abundance of Roadside Bike Mechanics
I just pumped a tire for the first time in 10 months.Not because I haven’t had a flat. I have. Not because I ride on my rims when my tires are flat. I don’t (usually).It’s because between my house and my workplace there are at least six roadside bike repair guys. I live in Antananarivo,…
#Trending in 2015: The Mobile Bike Shop
Mobile bike shops are an important industry trend to watch in 2015, reported Fred Clements, the executive director of the National Bicycle Dealers Association, on Bicycle Retailer and Industry News earlier this year. Humbly, I admit that Commute By Bike predicted this trend many moons ago, when I first wrote about CycloMend in 2013 and…
Bone Conduction Headphones: Safe, Legal or Reckless?
If you do a quick search for earbuds or headphones on Campfire Cycling, you likely will not be surprised to learn that we cover the controversial topic of cycling with headphones about once a year. Posts appear from as early as 2006 to discuss the logic and legality of riding while wearing sound-restricting devices. At this…
On My Radar: The Garmin Varia
“If you’re one of millions of cyclists, you know every time you saddle up, anything can happen.” That, according to Garmin’s promotional video, is why you need the Varia Rearview Radar, scheduled for release this fall. Before watching the promotional video that likely had the working title “Fear Sells,” I present you with a brief,…
Vision Zero: The Plan to Eliminate Road Fatalities
Back in 1997, Sweden adopted the concept of Vision Zero. The Swedish approach to road safety is a straightforward and powerful initiative that can be summarized in a single sentence: No loss of life is acceptable.Admittedly, when I first started learning about Vision Zero, which has been gaining traction in European countries as well as…
Mixed Bag: How I Really Feel About the McBike Bag
Once again, it’s been awhile since my last contribution to Commute by Bike. Loyal readers of this wonderful blog may remember some of my posts from years past, which range from insightful (I hope) to asinine (I suspect). I could not, however, miss an opportunity to write about one of the most important recent developments…
Introducing the Wandertec TUBA Cargo Trailer
Our long-time readers might remember our Kickstarter project from 3 years ago focused around the Wandertec TUBA. The project didn’t fund which meant that rather than quickly launching this new product to fill the pre-orders, it became a backburner project, worked on at a gradual and organic pace. The TUBA Has Finally Arrived Well after…
Madness is a Squeaky Bicycle
There is a clanking, creaking noise in my commuter bike right now. I am pretty sure I know where it is, but laziness is getting the best of me. Let me qualify my laziness. Where I think the clank is coming from is in a part of my BionX powered Xtracycle Edgerunner that is very…
JOYBAG – The Fastest Lock-Up in the West
One of the more annoying aspects of everyday bicycle use is fumbling with a bicycle lock. Arriving at your destination by automobile, on the other hand, is a smooth elegant experience. With the click of a button, you are off on your merry way. Why can’t we ride our bicycles and lock them with ease…
Reflecting on Reflection – The EVT Safe Zone Mirror
I’ve been riding bicycles for a long time without ever having used a helmet mounted mirror, 33 years to be exact. And I know plenty of cyclists with far more miles under the belt who scoff at the idea of attaching a shiny piece of metal to their brain bucket as a matter of principle….
Volvo Life Paint is the equivalent of Colt Camo Paint
The NRA convention just concluded a few days ago, and let me say that I had a great time — not being there. But I’ve been thinking about the NRA for the last week because of the ongoing fuss over Volvo “Life Paint” — the amazing new reflective paint that Volvo thinks will bolster their…
Riding Red – City Bicycle Company's Chicago Bike – A Review
Prelude. Cars can be habit-forming. I lazily slid into the All-American habit of driving my car to work as I navigated a series of changes in my career, domicile and personal life. So when I received the email from Commute by Bike asking for someone to review a bike, I thought, Hey, that might be…
A Child's Bike that Says Bikes are for Adults
I bought a bike in Madagascar.I met a kid in the town of Mahajanga. Five years old and full of attitude. I couldn’t understand much of what he said in Malagasy, but bicyclette came through loud and clear.He wanted one, bad. I told him I’d work on it.A month later I heard from the kid’s…
Monkey Lights Lighting up a Chilly Commute – A Review
I spent one week bicycle commuting and mountain biking with a front-wheel mounted Monkey Light M204 a wheel light that offers (mostly) 360 visibility. The M204 is the less expensive model of Monkey Lights from MonkeyLectric.After watching the installation video, installation went fairly smooth. A quick peak of the user guide then I was off…
Selling E-Bikes Online, an Eye-Opening Experience Concluding in a BionX Clearance
In 2011 we decided to explore the opportunity of selling electric bicycles and e-bike kits online. It didn’t go well, but we learned quite a bit along the way. I’m here to tell the tale and while I’m at it announce our 25% off BionX Clearance.As you may already know the business behind this blog,…
High Visibilty and High Fashion? Yes Please! – Vespertine Vespert Review
Let me just cut to the chase; I dont normally wear clothes made for bike riding. However, Vespertines reflective Vespert vest intrigued me as a fashionable solution to my recent concerns about being visible on Phoenixs often inhospitable streets. When I started blogging about my experiences commuting by bike, one of the points that…
Riser Bars become Drop Bars South of the Equator (and more Science from Madagascar)
We all know for a fact that toilets and drains swirl counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. (And by “fact” I mean “falsehood.”)But did you know that south of the equator riser bars become drop bars? That’s right. I have the scientific proof from Madagascar.Check it out: I think…
17 Bike Commuting Accessories Schlepped 10,000 Miles
More than ten thousand miles from where I sit, there is a storage unit filled with the other 99 percent of my life’s accumulated crap; the stuff I left behind when I shipped off to Madagascar. This includes all four of my bikes. I crammed that unit full of my material attachments like a minor…
2014 Holiday Cycling Gift Guide
Its beginning to look a lot like Black Friday, soon it will be Cyber Monday. Take a look at our bike gift recommendations, glistening once again with exactly what the cyclists in your family really want. I’ve broken down our gift recommendations into a few main categories. As this is CommuteByBike.com we’ll start with bike…
DIY Trailers and Cargo Powerhouses – A Reader Round-Up
Here at Commute by Bike and our sister site, www.CampfireCycling.com, we get a lot of happy folks who are very excited to share how they use their bikes for tours, commutes, and all other fun adventures. Today, we’ve got a round-up of some of the creative and epic uses of some great gear. DIY Trailers…
New Crowdsourced Bike Safety Map: BikeMaps.org
Anything that combines two of my favorite things – geography and bicycling – is something I can’t help but share with you all! Hooray for bike maps! Earlier this month, at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, geography professor Dr. Trisalyn Nelson launched a new bike mapping website called BikeMaps.org. The website is a…
Car Free Day from Riga, Latvia
Car Free Day from Riga, Latvia
'Transportation Colonialism' and Inequality
Before coming to Madagascar I spent a lot of time organizing my storage unit – and getting pulled into the kind of distracted, time-consuming reminiscing that happens whenever I get near all my old junk. I came across this booklet: “Transportation Patterns in Nairobi & Programs to Improve Opportunities for Bicycling [PDF]” published by the…
Why Aren't More US Women Riding Bikes?
An article recently came out in The Guardian titled, “The reason fewer US women cycle than the Dutch is not what you think it is.” This title grabbed my attention immediately, as it was meant to do, and I began to wonder if there was something I already thought about this matter as the title…