Gimme Shelter

22/09/2010 11:19 by Amsterdamize

This week David Hembrow made the case that bicycle paths make rain more pleasant.

Being away from motor vehicles in bad weather has a number of advantages. For a start, you have no concerns about "not being seen" by drivers whose vision is obscured by rain, spray or mist. You also remain drier because you are not hit by spray or splashed water from puddles. And you also don't ride over spilled diesel or broken glass from cars.

Never thought of that this way, but yeah, he has a point. One aspect he doesn't touch on is that rain comes and goes in NL, quite literally. This being a given, as a consequence many will just adapt the easiest (aka most convenient) way: a rain jacket, sometimes a cape, often an umbrella. With strong winds (the real culprit over here) you'll see amusing scenes, but the Dutch are pretty pragmatic, if it works, great, if not, so be it. If you can do it walking, you can do it cycling. Moving on. The latter bewilders visitors often:

I have to say: after seeing it in so many photos (and once when I was actually in Amsterdam), I tried the umbrella+cycling thing. It did not work!! How do you guys do it? Only my hair was dry when I got home - and I had a huge umbrella. I guess I need more practice..

Anyway, rain can't really be an excuse not to cycle. You get wet and you dry up again. "You're not made of sugar" comes to mind :). Mais oui, it helps living in the Bicycle Capital of the World, where thousands upon thousands of fellow citizens, young and old, show every day it's not an obstacle at all.

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