Adolf Hitler was a bike messenger? Yes, indeed. And a decorated one, at that. But more on that later. If the Great War had been fought in accordance with the fantasies of armchair generals, then the bicyclist would have replaced the doughboy as the symbol of gallantry and heroism.
“A Bike, A Bike, My Free-State for a Bike!” The utility of any invention is most tested when it is put to war, and the bicycle is no exception. Like any invention, mankind was quick to press the bicycle into making war.
So, my husband and I want to travel for our last summer hurrah! You know, in Tucson, before school starts it is HOT! We have one last chance to experience the beach and cooler weather possibly before the kids head off and life, well, gets even crazier all over again! And you definitely know you…
I live in Louisiana, a place that carries the ignominious designation of being one of the most dangerous places to walk or bicycle in the country. We’re in good company in the Sun Belt and in the Deep South in particular which, with certain important exceptions, is especially hostile to non-motorized transportation. Part of the…
When you have kids, you want to pass down to them the things you love and the love of outdoors and bicycles is an easy one. Sometimes learning and teaching your kids to ride a bike can be stressful but balance bikes take away the guess work and tears. Strider makes riding a bike easy,…
If you’ve been to an outdoor festival or a marathon, you’ve seen the guys standing on the sidelines with overloaded mountain bikes. At first glance you might have thought they were just part of the crowd, but their matching uniforms and EMS embroidery tells a different story: they’re Bike Medics. Surely in the Twenty First…
So, you have a new addition to the family. Small, cute and precious. You have been taking care of this bundle 24hrs a day and going crazy with an urge to ride- with them. Now what? Where do you go? What do you do? What do you choose? They are so small, moody and well,…
May is National Bike Month so I only see it fitting to write a little about events taking place to strengthen the bicycle community and with that, biking families. As author Russell Anderson so eloquently states ‘Bike riding is great for family involvement. It’s something fun to bring everyone together.’ Being from Tucson we are…
And we are back! Big Tex! But all jokes aside, the Burley D’lite is a great trailer for anyone looking to start using a kids trailer.The suspension is a huge plus because it makes the trailer “jar” a little less if you decide to ride on rough roads. One thing I personally love about the…
“Contagiousness is an unexpected property of all kinds of things, and we have to remember that if we are to recognize and diagnose epidemic change.” -Malcolm Gladwell A couple weeks ago, I had dinner with a woman I hadn’t met before who told me she’d recently started biking to work. My ears perked up at…
Putting a rack on a bike is a pragmatic statement of utility. It separates the practical peddlers from the the casual or competitive cyclists. It says, I’m going somewhere, and I need to bring more stuff than I can just stuff in my pockets or comfortably carry in a backpack. It says, I’m less worried…
Hi, my name is Carissa Sipp and I am a trailer parent. I admit it, I am addicted. So what is a trailer parent you ask? Any parent who commutes or hauls little kids on bike rides and would rather do this than get in a car. We are a little lazy as the thought…
As I’ve mentioned recently, we’ve got some big plans here at the Campfire Cycling blog. We’re focusing on #1 improving the quality and consistency of our content. And #2 improving the design and functionality of our blogging software (Through WordPress Custom Theming). For the content side of things, we’re currently recruiting four bicycle bloggers to…
For the first time, in our short history down here in Tucson, we were an official sponsor of Cyclovia Tucson. To captivate the Cyclovians we decided to bring out some of the bicycle touring rigs we had set up for our new showroom. We brought out a Surly CrossCheck and ECR both setup with Ortlieb…
Let the Holiday adventures begin! Enjoy our list of gifts optimized for everyday cycling adventures. Revelate Designs Viscacha Ready to break away from the everyday? The Viscacha is the first bag to start your ultimate bikepacking setup. Ortlieb Commuter Bag Looking for a better way to do it? The Commuter is going to get you…
I walked the floors of Interbike for the last 3 days. I met with our suppliers, the folks behind brands like Ortlieb, Revelate, Thule, and Weehoo. After some catching up and business talk I captured video of their latest products some of which I will be sharing here after some editing. The culture shifts of…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
There are lot of photos of my left hand and arm in this post. But if you look closely, you’ll see a couple of bikes. Some bicyclists do need to carry water — a few yards, or even miles from where the water will be consumed. It’s the way of the world, but maybe not…
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…
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…
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…
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