100% agree. The less time spent thinking about gear the better. Get on your bike and go somewhere!

me also il like that

Seeing your shots always makes me fall in love with biking again. Beautiful.

Great understated editorial Marc. It's great. These images are so compelling.

Great post! I so wish I lived in Amsterdam :)

S.

hear hear :)

excellent!

I'm your average bike cupid ;) thanks!

cheers, mate, can't wait for your contributions :)

stop wishing :)

cheers!

[...] Amsterdamize » Blog Archive » We Don’t Need More Cyclists. [...]

Pencil skirts, high heels, stockings, hat and mittens. I'm ready for some cycling. *nod*

[...] [...]

hahahaha, good on ya! :)

Lovely shots. I'm definitely not a gear-head. I love bicycling for the beauty and simplity of the bicycle and the experiences I have while pedaling.

“it isn't easy being green” (with envy)!!! – missing Amsterdam sooooo much!!

Lovely site,
Thanks for playing the alley cat
Cycler 4505
(not sure if we needed to check in?

#1330 isn't sure this is the right place to leave a comment, but there isn't a place for comments on the checkpoint page…

Checkpoint comment for the record #2913

Check. Allium – 8247

Sure, as good a spot for a number dump as any =)

shanerh #9708

Agreed.

alleycat check in #6968

Just incase…

EPIC! Stratton

#1904

Beautiful photos for sure.

I've been looking at your life enhancing pictures for over a year now, I think they really add impetus to the whole Cycle Chic movement. I'm sorry it took me so long to say thankyou for all your fabulous work, I suspect you have many more silent fans out there who admire and respect what you do. Thankyou!!

BDG #3367 and what Parkypops said. I like your shit, man!

thanks! Yeah, so grand, isn't it?

Missing you too, Sue!!

Thanks!

this spot is as good as any, Widsith :)

ha, you beat me to it :)

thanks, Eric!

Thank you so much, Parkypops, that means a lot to me & keeps me going!

Cheers, Tom!

Nice site! I really like the pictures!

Cheers from Budapest

Borcsa #2957

thanks!

I'm a big fan of Copenhagenize, but didn't even know about this site! Beautiful pictures, brilliant words. Thank you.

Ruth Turner #6691

I love coming back here and getting my fix of Amsterdam, especially now that it's so cold that my bike can't take me everywhere…

checking in here. i like this site!
conjob #5853

What a beautifully written & illustrated article.

I’m very jealous.

Hilarious: the Chicago bike community cannot get over themselves to actually discuss people on bikes vs. cyclists.
http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/we-dont-need-more-cyclists?page=2&commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A293470&x=1#2211490Comment293470

lol, thanks for that, I had a good chuckle :). Funny how one of them makes the ‘counter’ point re; my wording about ‘just getting from A to B’. Erm, yeah, exactly. ;)

so that means you’ll be visiting soon? I’ll ride with ya ;)

In from the chainlink here, I find iam jlj’s criticism to be flawed, but at least he is entertained with his speculations about how “over themselves” his fellows on the chainlink happen to be.
To amsterdamize, I’m glad you had a chuckle I guess, but some of the people above are riding and wearing what I consider fancy stuff. It does not so much speak of someone just getting on a bike and riding, it looks like some stuff was bought beforehand. Also, the bald guy looks uncomfortably cold maybe, and the last two ladies with the shopping bags on the handlebars are downright grumpy looking, maybe from low blood sugar or something related to new people out for a ride they are not used to.
I would sum up your blog post as cycling is exercise and can make you feel better, mixed with cycling is fun. But cycling does involve gear and I cannot afford those steel bikes pictured above.

I think you misunderstand, travesty. I chuckled in general because my post made Chainlink’s thread spin off into a helmet debate & because this blog IS about A to B cycling (I just didn’t say it out loud in this post, as it wasn’t the point, it was about ‘in between A and B, so to speak). You would have picked up on that/known that if you had been following my blog for a longer period, but that’s ok, I’m happy to explain. This blog just celebrates people getting on their bike and go. Nothing else. My blog describes and shows what Dutch ‘bicycle culture’ is about. To an average Dutchman/woman there’s no ‘culture’, it’s just part of everyday life, it’s that normal.
I understand your remarks on my photos, because that’s your UK perspective. Let me assure you none of these people bought their clothes ‘for cycling’. They wear exactly the same thing as they would be walking. They dress for the destination/purpose, not for the ride. If that means, in your eyes, that they look ‘fancy’, I’ll pass on that compliment, because it’s just them, who they are, not trying to make a ’statement’ on a bike.
I happen to know what the two ladies were on about…they were having a very lively conversation about something and the one on the right pulled that face as a way to respond to what she heard. I don’t really see how you can correlate that with ‘low blood sugar’ or ‘not being used to new people going for a ride’. You’re looking for something that isn’t there. If you would ever come to visit Amsterdam or the Netherlands (and I’ll be happy to host a ride with you), you’d see that everybody rides, young, old, rich, poor. They go fast, they go slow, it doesn’t matter, there’s the opportunity and room for everyone. Because cycling is for everyone.
Cheers,
Marc

Fair enough, low blood sugar was pure speculation. But its one of “those things” that is involved when you ride. I’ve seen your blog for at least a year, and I’m pretty up on cycling culture as I can be over the internet, etc.
The issue about clothing I brought up was not just that it was fancy or whatever, but that that bald dude looked like he could be cold with gloves on but no head protection. I guess in some climated it is ok to bike in what you walk in but I am in Chicago so things are a bit different.
Cycling is not for the infirm, in some cases we simply can’t ask someone to ride a bike for instance in the case of osteoporosis.

Regarding the “fancy stuff” clothing comment…

I had the extreme pleasure of visiting Amsterdam in January 2011 (and meeting Amsterdamize/Marc).

Before visiting, I thought that Marc was selectively photographing the people wearing the fancy clothing. After visiting, I don’t think this is the case. Dressing in “fancy” clothing seems to be the norm for a majority of people outside in Amsterdam. (This was also the case in my visit to Milan and Como, Italy.) “Dressing to impress” is not just for going out to bars and clubs, but for all trips in the day.

As for the grumpy ladies at the end, I’m sure they just saw someone wearing a helmet and were perplexed ;)

I don’t think you should consider this forum as representative of the “Chicago bike community.”

There are thousands of people cycling in Chicago who are not members of any web forum – many probably don’t know another person who cycles in Chicago.

I agree overall, but, come on, basket, racks, panniers are all “stuff” as well. Surely you don’t advocate riding a naked fixie? (Hell, even my light little fixie has fenders, lights, racks, a bell, panniers!)

It’s not “stuff” that’s bad–a bicycle itself counts as gear, and most people are sold theirs, after all.

it’s choosing what’s appropriate rather than what’s stylish. I have to ride long distances, so my choices may be different from a Dutch cyclist commuting what are to me walking distances.

Funny how the Tweet that led me to this approvingly quoted “bikes = shoes,” and how many of the popular pix of Dutch & Danish women bicycle users show them wearing highly impractical but stylish high heeled shoes–fashion “gear” if ever there was! Stuff you don’t “need.” But it makes some folks happy.

I agree overall, but, come on, basket, racks, panniers are all “stuff” as well. Surely you don’t advocate riding a naked fixie? (Hell, even my light little fixie has fenders, lights, racks, a bell, panniers!)

It’s not “stuff” that’s bad–a bicycle itself counts as gear, and most people are sold theirs, after all.

it’s choosing what’s appropriate rather than what’s stylish. I have to ride long distances, so my choices may be different from a Dutch cyclist commuting what are to me walking distances.

Funny how the Tweet that led me to this approvingly quoted “bikes = shoes,” and how many of the popular pix of Dutch & Danish women bicycle users show them wearing highly impractical but stylish high heeled shoes–fashion “gear” if ever there was! Stuff you don’t “need.” But it makes some folks happy.