This evening I bumped into this magnificent video, ‘Earth | Time Lapse View from Space, Fly Over | NASA, ISS‘:

Time lapse sequences of photographs taken by the crew of expeditions 28 & 29 onboard the International Space Station from August to October, 2011, who to my knowledge shot these pictures at an altitude of around 350 km.

Meanwhile on the surface: sometimes I feel like I’m hovering in this urban space of ours, zooming in on the little things that we, more often than not, pass by on a regular basis, without noticing.

Like this scene: a mom trying to put her gloves on with her teeth, while riding home with her child.

She figured she could manage the last stretch by rubbing her hand over her upper leg.

She couldn’t, so she finished the job the way she started.

Life’s little observations. Precious.

In September BikeSnobNYC wrote about his family trip to this ol’ continent, cycling around Amsterdam on Henry Cutler’s Workcycles bakfiets & observing London’s day-glow extravaganza on top of a Boris Bike. Go on, read that first, it’s a good laugh.

In his post he succinctly & humorously describes the differences between his own American/NYC bicycle culture and that of ours (and the UK/London’s accordingly). It neatly amplifies and supports the ‘cultural’ context I elaborated on in my previous post ‘Bicycle Cultures Are Man-Made‘:

WARNING: Do not attempt international travel. Leaving the United States may provoke thought and result in reflection, dissatisfaction with the quality of your social services, and acute Arby’s withdrawal. The US Department of State shall not be held responsible for your imprisonment or death at the hands of a godless socialist foreign power. If you must visit another country, be sure to wear latex gloves at all times to avoid foreign currency-borne illness. Have a great trip!

“With that out of the way, I spent the bulk of my time in two (2) non-American cities, one of which was Amsterdam. When one thinks of Amsterdam, one thinks of the heady aroma of “Wednesday weed” wafting out of the coffee shops, the even headier aroma of human genitalia wafting out of the red light district, and of course the notorious feral cats that have taken to the canals over the centuries and evolved into strange flesh-eating otter-like creatures that have been known to bite off at the wrist the hands of unsuspecting tourists. But let’s leave all that aside for the moment and look at that other hallmark of “the big A,” which is bikes.”

“Simply put, in Amsterdam people ride bikes to go places. More than this, though, they ride bikes to go places without making any sort of fuss about it.”

“…and to say that riding around a city where cycling is a completely normal mode of transportation is to understate how pleasant it is to be someplace where you can simply get on a bike with your family without giving a shit.”

“Ironically, while I was in Amsterdam a bit of a kerfuffle arose on Bikeportland about how Fred Armisen of “Portlandia” is too much of a “woosie” to ride in the most cycling-friendly city in America. In particular, he’s afraid of the streetcar tracks:

“Armisen is young and healthy. If he’s too afraid to bike in the Pearl, what does that say about our city?”

“To me it says that the city of Portland should remove an entire mode of public transportation to make it easier for someone who probably hasn’t been on a bicycle since he was 9 to move there and ridicule them. I wonder if anything will ever be enough for the people of Portland–who, were they to be liberated from their hated streetcar tracks, would probably find some other cycling injustice to rail against, such as the high cost of Stumptown coffee or an overabundance of low-hanging tree branches. It seems to me that focussing on streetcar tracks as an obstacle to cycling is like saying the problem with living in Antarctica is that there aren’t enough Whole Foods. Anyway, Amsterdam is completely covered in tram tracks and it doesn’t seem to pose much of a problem.”

BikeSnobNYC…I mean Eben Weiss, has inadvertently entertained us with the notion how perception creates a certain reality. Many people with an equal interest for history and culture, aka the framework that entails describing and dissecting bike ‘cultures’, would agree with me when I say that it stems from a unprecedented decline in everyday cycling, fading from the public consciousness, shoved aside by prosperity, suburbanization and motorized transport, leaving one single vertical market for the sport cycling industry and ample growth of a zealous Health & Safety complex in a hostile urban traffic environment.

However, at the same time his post bridges that cultural gap, one step of many, taking us back to that place, to the perception that so many people around the world have forgotten about: cycling is a perfectly normal activity. Thus creating a ‘new’ paradigm for ‘perception creates reality’. Oh, the irony :).

I know I’m working on it and, naturally, in an unfazed and nonplussed kinda way, I’m very pleased to see that many more are and that it’s gaining ground & momentum around the world.

‘3 + 1′

‘Errands’ & ‘Out Of The Wind’

‘A To B’

‘That’ll Do’ & ‘Grace’

‘Unfazed’

‘Solitude’ & ‘Urban Fabric’

‘Someone Needs To Pedal’

‘Top Of The World’

‘Run, Darling, Run’, ‘Hop’ & ‘Anticipation‘

‘Lining Up’ & ‘Shuffle’

‘In One Go’

The European Cyclists Federation launched their new website earlier this month and for this occasion I did a guest post, which of course also belongs on Amsterdamize. Here it goes (with a few [add-ons]):

I was asked by the ECF to tell you a little bit more about Dutch bicycle ʻcultureʼ and Amsterdam in particular. And it starts right there: I use quotation marks for ʻcultureʼ, because thereʼs a big difference in how the Dutch understand this word and how itʼs defined and used abroad. To have understanding about the differences and commonalities there needs to be context, and this is an important context to start off with.

Outside the Netherlands (particularly in the English-speaking world) ʻbicycle cultureʼ is generally defined by its minority status: within the whole transportation & lifestyle spectrum, urban cycling forms very much a ʻsub-cultureʼ, eager to become mainstream. Either marginalized by society or just not overly prioritized on a policy level, there everyday cycling is far cry from ʻcycling is for everyoneʼ.

Cycling is so much part of everyday life in the Netherlands that not many Dutch people give it a second thought, let alone recognize the ʻcultureʼ part of it. Itʼs that normal. As normal as water from the tap. Itʼs just there and we use it. And yes, the Dutch take it for granted. Which can be tricky with regards to advocacy, but on a whole itʼs a very positive thing.

Following the popular discourse: Amsterdam is unlike any other city. In the same way any other city is not Amsterdam, but unique in itself. The same applies to the whole country. Allow me to explain.

Amsterdam has the reputation of being the Bicycle Capital of the World. Rightly so. In the world of everyday cycling there is no other place like it. Yes, Copenhagen is up there as well, but weʼll let wonks and data miners worry about the numbers. Whatʼs more telling is that the Netherlands on a whole have hundreds of ʻCopenhagensʼ. Cycling in the Netherlands is ubiquitous.

A population of just 16.7 million souls, owning close to 20 million bicycles. Virtually every Dutch person cycles, to a greater or lesser extent, be they young or old, rich or poor.

A few samples: 27% of all movements in the Netherlands are by bicycle. 80% of all Dutch cycle at least once a week. The average age for a child to cycle to school (or otherwise) independently is 8 years (which has the Dutch worried, as that used to be 6 years). On average, the Dutch make 14 million cycle trips a day, each covering 3,5 km on average. Per year, the Dutch travel well over 200 billion km by bike and the average distance pedaled per person is still rising. During rush hour, there are more people going from a to b (for all purposes) by bicycle than by car. Since 2007 the number of bike trips in Amsterdam is greater than the number of car trips. Amsterdam has a bike modal share of over 50% 60% in the downtown area, 38% in the greater city. The city of Groningen (the actual Cycle Capital of the Netherlands) has a modal split of over 60%. 40% of Dutch train commuters get to the station by bicycle. Train stations have a total of 200.000 bike parking racks. This is far from enough, as current and rising demand (over 10% each year) actually require a minimum of 400.000 racks.

Contrast these few samples with other places and most people will conclude (and actually have) they are unimaginable, ʻout of this worldʼ and, I hear and read this a lot: it would be unattainable, impossible to replicate. Hereʼs the kicker: nothing could be farther from the truth.

There are a few very persistent myths circling the globe about cycling in Amsterdam, and the Netherlands in general:

- the Dutch have, for some undefined reason, always cycled. Also known as: ʻcycling is in their blood/DNA’;
- the Dutch cycle so much because the city/country is flat as a pancake;
- itʼs a small country, everything is close by;
- the Netherlands have a moderate climate;
- car drivers are all well-behaved.

I could go on. Of course itʼs a very well-established human condition: the need to find excuses why some (the minority) do or have something the others (the majority) donʼt. Itʼs persuasive and powerful, persistent to a degree that it doesnʼt just dominate the general public discourse, many bicycle advocates and organizations abroad often donʼt allow themselves to look beyond these myths. This of course stems from being unfamiliar with the essence of Dutch bicycle policies, the many differences in social attitudes towards everyday cycling and the reluctance to divert from familiar paths, while feeling trapped within the status quo of car-centric policies and spending, resulting in bicycle-unfriendly infrastructure (to put it mildly).

By the logic of the aforementioned myths, we actually wouldnʼt be talking about the ʻuniquenessʼ of Dutch ʻbicycle cultureʼ, we would instead have seen hundreds, if not thousands of Amsterdams and Groningens emerge around the world by now. But we havenʼt. Instead, we often hear ʻBut this is not Amsterdamʼ.

When the majority of people feels itʼs unsafe to cycle, they wonʼt. Only the brave will. [The Dutch experienced that from WW2 to well into the 1970's]

As proprietor of the website Amsterdamize and acting as a Bicycle Ambassador on the global stage with the emerging interest for cycling, I try to show the essence of cycling in the Netherlands by recording this urban cycle life as it reveals itself to me on a daily basis [,relate that to existing and new policies & putting it in context of cycling in the rest of the world]. Nothing more, nothing less. I attempted to do the same when I wrote and produced the promotional film for the Dutch Cycling Embassy putting the Dutch success in a much-needed historical context.

Yes, the Dutch have been in that place where many cities and countries find themselves now. At the expense of too many lives lost and a degrading quality of urban life, they came to terms with outdated and one-sided urban/road design, citizens rose up and decided a different way was needed, putting people and livable cities first. Through trial and error, sustained efforts and a long-term vision the Dutch managed to reverse a downward trend and put bicycles back on the map & make them a viable part of our lives again. Fast, convenient, comfortable and safe.

My point: each city has its own particular history regarding design, architecture and social contract, but in essence humans behave the same way the world over. When you facilitate a particular mode of transportation and make it safe and convenient, people will use it. This was the case for automobiles and this is certainly the case for bicycles.

The bottom line: there are more similarities than differences between the Netherlands and the rest of the world when it comes to everyday cycling. Thereʼs more than meets the eye, too, you just have to have an open mind.

Bicycle cultures are man-made. Itʼs a choice. Cycling should be for everyone, not just the brave and few.

Going around Amsterdam it’s not particularly hard to capture people on bikes. They are everywhere. They take it very much for granted (a point I’ve often made, but meant as a positive one, what I call ‘the endpoint of building a bicycle ‘culture’, its nirvana) and I often have to take my time explaining my efforts to my fellow (and often puzzled) Dutchies when the subject comes up.

‘Time’ is the operative word here. If you take your time a little bit in Amsterdam, stop to smell the roses, if you will, you can witness all kinds of everyday, yet very entertaining scenes. The devil is in the details. Case in point: after crossing a junction to make good use of the beautiful fall light, I parked my bike and as soon as I looked up I hit the jackpot.

A woman, nicely dressed for a chilly but warm enough autumn Saturday, her broken left arm in a sling, stopping at the light. It was clear she had been doing her shopping rounds around town, accompanied by her Jack Russell. ‘Jack’ was clearly loved and pretty excited as she rolled to a stop, leaning on the edge of the front crate. She laughed at him and said: “Easy, boy, be patient. Yeah, be patient!” The best guess then is that Jack just likes to move. Quick observers of this scene would just think he wanted to get out or that he’d be very close to leaping out. Not the case. He just wanted her to get going already.

The streetcar..I mean the tram beside her was already accelerating, so she double-checked for green and off they went again.

Time was the operative word. It all transpired in less than 30 seconds. The best 30 seconds of the day.

Update: Xander of Toronto Cycle Style quoted it eloquently on Flickr:

Stop dog stop the light is red
go dog go it’s green ahead.

Dr. Suess

Today I read this. Then I browsed through a few folders. Which led me to putting together this little token: We’re only human.

You remember Rose from my video posts ‘Rose Loves #bikeAMS TV’ & ‘Fishing To Catch A Bicycle’.

Last Monday was her birthday. She came round to show me what she had treated herself to…

As you know her best:

Naturally, this happy occasion deserved another Bicycle TV video:

Again, happy birthday, Rose! xox

As you might have heard through the grapevine, not so long ago I was busy creating the film ‘Cycling For Everyone’ that officially launched & introduced the Dutch Cycling Embassy.

It was quite the process. Challenged by a very tight time frame before it was supposed to be presented (at the Dutch Embassy in Brussels during the Smart2Wheels Forum), I was scrambling to put both a team together and plan things accordingly.

The weather forecast wasn’t very promising. But we struck some much needed luck; nice temperature, mostly sunny and just a ‘bit’ of wind.

Of course this project was right up my sleeve. Amsterdamize has grown into something solid (albeit, I really need to catch up on posting affairs), I have years of experience in online marketing & particularly in combination with video, I’m no stranger to the historical context of things and I like to think Amsterdamize has contributed to the idea of this embassy :).

I managed to put together a great team. The creative, subtle & insightful camera skills of Erwan van Buuren, the charming presence of my friend Mi-Ah Roediger as ‘Girl On Bike’, production assistence by Reuben Hamburger and the smooth editing of one of my best friends and film director Gabe Bauer.

On day 1 we shot scenes in Amsterdam:
At the Workcycles shop…

At the underground bike parking garage (of which there are many) at Zuid WTC train station…

At the Apollolaan/Stadionweg junction, where we were often blocking people going from A to B…

Contrary to common use & customs, we sometimes put the Omafiets in the back of the van…

…to get to the infamous Nescio bicycle bridge (of British design(!)) on time, that connects Amsterdam suburb Diemen with IJburg…

Day 2 had us:
Shooting the morning rush hour on De Lairessestraat/Jacob Obrechtstraat, dominated by the school run…

Then we moved to the Nieuwe Spiegelstraat/Prinsengracht area, which included a stop-at-a-shop scene that I ended up not using…

On to Houten for the train station’s ‘Fietstransferium‘ and junction scenes…

And at the end of that busy day we moved our equipment to the majestic Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam. Unfortunately, these scenes were entirely cut from the film, due to playtime constraints.

On day 3 I had to fly to Reykjavik to be a keynote speaker at a cycling conference organized by the Icelandic Cyclists Federation (on which I’ll post soon), so the crew went ahead and worked with my instructions. And they did great, filming a tongue-in-cheek scene with a representative of the Fietsersbond (Cyclists Union) & their ‘measure bike’ and putting academics at ‘work’ at the ITC of Twente University.

Luckily (for you), I had also reminded myself to shoot a few videos along the way, for a modest ‘behind-the-scenes’ edit:

As traditions go, I also couldn’t resist assembling the footage we either didn’t use (as I said, often you have to ‘kill your darlings’) or cut it up beyond recognition. Hence: here are the outtakes. Warning: it’s almost 24 minutes long ;).

Oh, and of course, here’s the final product of all our efforts: Cycling For Everyone. Enjoy, if you haven’t already :).

And thanks to all who helped spreading this video, the counter now stands at over 45.000 views on Vimeo & the Dutch Cycling Embassy received a very warm welcome on Twitter and all the blogs!

Here are the YouTube links of two of them:
- Cycling For Everyone
- Cycling For Everyone – Behind The Scenes

And here’s the complete Cycling For Everyone photo set.

Meet my good friend Rose. A free spirit, a talented artist & a lover of Amsterdam. Today I helped her out at one of the locations that displays her art. After finishing up we hopped on our bikes and rode back into the center. An off the cuff, yet perfect moment to get her on the record: Rose loves #bikeAMS TV. Enjoy.

On August 18th I had a meeting in Utrecht. As usual, I got there by train and I had brought my bike. Stepping outside Utrecht Central Station and riding towards the center is always a joy, despite the ongoing road works & the obstruction by the building sites.

This video spans about 10 minutes of recording around the tip end of the morning rush hour. When I say ‘rush hour’ & ‘Utrecht’, you immediately think of Mark Wagenbuur’s famous videos. He’s done plenty of them, rain/snow or shine. This is no different. Just my drop in the media bucket of covering Dutch people on bikes. Going from A to B, conveniently.

[Update] Can’t believe I forgot to mention this. ‘Speaking of the devil’, Mark coincidentally happens to be IN this video, turning right on the bike path intersection after the first light, with the yellow/blue plastic bag hanging from his handlebar, 26 sec into the video. :)

PS: Utrecht has a bicycle modal share of 35% of all trips. Recently the city council voted on a new investments to raise that nr to 55% and reducing car use by 50% by 2025. This is no hogwash or PR spin. They really put their money where their mouths are. Why wouldn’t they…funding of bicycle infrastructure & provisions has a real return on investment. It’s an economic decision above anything else, with far-reaching positive effects, building a livable city.

In NYC I hooked up with professional photographer Dmitry Gudkov of BikeNYC Portraits fame. As it often goes, we found out about each other’s existence through the interwebs, given our mutual interest for people on bicycles, bike culture & photography. Subsequently, it was an even bigger pleasure meeting him in real life.

It took some time for me to do this post, but now it’s even more relevant, as Dmitry’s efforts were put in the lime light as a feature on the Flickr blog this week. Greatly deserved & no small thing, when you consider Flickr has millions and millions of photographs to choose from.

From the middle of Soho we rode towards the Hudson shore, where Dmitry was keen on finding a nice spot to take my #bikeNYC Portrait, as he’d insisted on via Twitter ;).

He lead us to Pier 54, in front of the High Line.

Dmitry started his art direction, I positioned myself behind my Workcycles Omafiets (which Julie from Adeline Adeline was so nice to let me borrow for the weekend), fiddled with my bag for #bikeAMS exposure, and this was the result:

Dmitry still owes me the picture of me lifting my Omafiets over my head, in true hipster style…you know, just to bust another myth about Dutch bikes ;).

We continued our ride on the Hudson Greenway and a few minutes later I spotted something familiar up ahead on the bike path: a black Dutch granny bike, a long haired woman riding it, in normal clothes, without a ‘magic mushroom’.

To Dmitry: “Look, I think that’s a Dutch girl.” “Yeah?” I immediately shift into gear: “Let’s catch up, go go go!”

I passed her, turned around and said: “You MUST be Dutch!” “Huh?” She had music on, so took out her earplugs. “Sorry?” “You MUST be Dutch!” Haha, no, I’m Danish!” “Ohhhh, so close!”

There was nothing left for her to do than stop and have a chat with us. We introduced ourselves and the reason for chasing after her. It turned out her name was Carina Jensen, a Danish expat living and working as a video journalist in NYC. Coincidently, she was hired to cover the New Amsterdam Bike Show that would take place the next day.

Dmitry wasted no time and asked if he could take her bicycle portrait. Of course he could. And of course I captured that process.

Dmitry could appreciate the humor of it a few days later:

His #bikeNYC Portrait catch:

Together we rode back into town, chatting up a storm.

Just so you know what all that stalking looks like, here’s another ‘behind the lens’ moment, me photographing alongside Carina & then spotting Dmitry taking a picture of me…and shooting that. ;)

A perfect start of my NYC weekend, a great time with new-found friends. We went our separate ways, into the city jungle, with the knowledge that we would see each other again the following days. My cliffhanger for the upcoming posts…

On occasion I get asked to explain the side saddle hop, because to quite a few people it looks complicated & the Dutch make it look so easy. Or my guests want to try riding along on the back of my bike & but they’ll settle for getting on while stationary. So here it is, an instructional video, the anatomy, if you will, of the genuine Dutch side saddle hop. A three-act. Perfection in motion.

No pressure, of course. Practice makes perfect, that’s all :).

UPDATE: Ricardo Javier sent me the following video of him and his girlfriend cycling around Amsterdam (it starts in the same area as where I shot my video), it includes some very nice side saddle action too. Thanks, Ricardo!

PS: riding side saddle is illegal in many countries, including Germany and Denmark. That’s also the case in Australia (unsurprisingly), but little birds told me that some Ozzies continue to break this law and that they call it ‘dinking’. Winners.

I recently stated that bicycles are the most social means of transportation. Some would say I’m merely preaching to the choir, others might quip “Yeah, sure, maybe in your world, over here it’s war/we’re not even allowed to ride two-abreast/we don’t have time for that sort of thing”.

I understand all that, but putting that aside for a second, I’ll go out on a limb and say it’s really the case. I witness it every day, the socialization factor is X. Yes, Social Factor X marks this mode. This social mobility is vertical, horizontal and diagonal. It enhances city life, personal experiences & generally puts the observer in a very good mood. A win-win.

Using a bike for practical purposes is no different than, aka part of, just going about life, really, so just this fact alone allows every aspect of life to continue, albeit on two wheels (or more).

Amsterdamize was established to not talk the talk so much, but show it, so here we go. First up, a man moving his painting by bike. Again, Dutch people carrying stuff on their bike is as ordinary as…well, name anything.

Then he slows down and gets off his bike. At first I thought he had arrived at his destination. But no, he dismounted because he saw a friend and decided to catch up with him, walking along.

Others bumping into a friend and catching up…

Which brings us to the classic ’sharing the ride with your offspring’…

Equal to walking, it also allows you to catch up with the state of affairs on the fly…

And it helps speed up the shopping together process…despite a few inclines here and there…

You’re also more likely to have some heartwarming interaction with street photographers…

Finishing lunch while making the handicapped more able…

Strengthening the father-daughter relationship…

Checking up on your daughter and friends, swimming in the Amstel River…

Finally, when you’re a kid, there’s no reason not to continue fooling around with your best buddy…

Well, the following ain’t half bad, either :)…

A new day, a new video camera, new opportunities. The early evening light was exquisite, so I just headed out, doodling about. 25 minutes of footage brought back to a little under 13. It was a beautiful maiden voyage for my little HD friend & it passed the test…no, it aced it. For those interested: I shot it at 720p & 60 frames/sec*.

Here you go, ‘Veraneando En Amsterdam’, or: enjoying summer in Amsterdam. Enjoy the ride*.

* I wanted to export it to HD 1080p, but it turned out to big. The same applied to the 720p version, too big for Vimeo. I had to choose between cutting it up yet again or leaving it at a lower resolution. I chose the latter.

** Over the years I’ve noticed (to put it lightly) that when people watch a video like this, they often comment: “But what about when it’s raining or snowing? Surely, people won’t cycle that much then?” Sure they do, because it’s convenient. Here’s an old video of mine shot in December 2008, ‘Sinfonia Cyclissimo‘. Or watch Mark Wagenbuur’s videos, winter & http://amsterdamize.com/?p=2432

Statistics don’t sell cycling, cycling does. People have to see and feel it for themselves to really understand the significance of putting cycling at the forefront of rethinking our urban mobility. The most powerful means second to that are the visual arts: photos and videos. My modus operandi.

I have more than plenty of photos to show, the video part has been falling behind this year. That’s going to change. I ordered a GoPro camera. I recognized the power of this camera when I saw Paul Martin, part of the Australian Cycling Dutch Style group which I joined a few times on their study tour around the Netherlands a little while ago, put that camera to good use. It’s awesome.

Many visitors I host, have either followed Amsterdamize or have read up on cycling in the Netherlands otherwise, also going through tons of pictures and videos. Either they still couldn’t believe it, or were expecting the ultimate cycling Walhalla. Yet, all of them, really all of them realized upon arrival that nothing beats experiencing the reality on the ground. Steven Vance from Chicago, for instance, was only half-joking when he uttered I was cherry-picking the best cycling moments with my camera…until he rode here himself.

Alas, enough of the babbling. I positioned myself on the bridge over the Prinsengracht, leading towards one of the arterial bike routes in downtown Amsterdam, Nieuwe Spiegelstraat.

That street is a one-way street for cars (not a through-way, but mostly used by people who live there or delivery vans), which can rarely (and won’t) overtake people on bicycles (as it’s a Bicycle Street) and a two-way street for people on bikes (and mopeds unfortunately) & a narrow sidewalk on each side. At that time on that Saturday it was not particularly busy, not like during the week when on average 25.000 people travel up and down this stretch on a daily basis. It’s a fast, thus popular connection between the Museum quarter in the south and the downtown area, en route to Central Station.

The video already received a first comment on Vimeo:

That is what the motor vehicle to bike ratio should be in every city…ideally.

I know, that’s why I’m still living here :). Enjoy. If you have any questions, write it in the comment section.

A recent survey by the Dutch Gazelle bicycle company among 800 people asked what their motives are for cycling. For short trips of around 4 km 88% uses the bike instead of the car. The main reasons: 70% said ‘it’s good for my health’, 40% opt out of the car ‘because it’s good for the environment’ and 35% prefer the bicycle ‘because it’s faster than by car’.

This is common knowledge, it confirms many other surveys and research papers. I’m more interested in what follows:

66% said ‘cycling clears my mind’, 60% uses their time on the bike ‘for deep thoughts’ and 44% find it perfect ‘for day dreaming’. Good, good.

Here comes the kicker: it also revealed that 27% regularly flirt while cycling.

Powerful. It speaks volumes on how comfortable it is to cycle in the Netherlands. Based on just this, I can easily back up what I say on a regular basis: here, cycling is like walking, a faster way of walking. It’s that accessible & easy. Not just that, it’s by far the most sociable mode of transportation.

It confirms the fact that, particularly over here, people don’t have to change into a different mental mindset when they hop on a bike. And we also know that the particular bikes we use allow us to maintain that posture in a practical sense. ‘Upright is right’, as it’s often coined.

Flashback: Jasmijn Rijcken of Van Moof visited the New Amsterdam Bike Show in NYC almost two months ago, just like I did (on which I’ll post soon). We briefly met and talked, a real pleasure. Like me, she got around town on a bike (why change a habit). All good. You’d think.

A few weeks later she shared what happened to her on that day (April 30th) with Joanna of New Amsterdam Bike Show. She got stopped by a cop:

Our friend Jasmijn was stopped in SOHO by NYPD for riding in a skirt! The officer said she could distract drivers and cause an accident…and should go home and put pants on.

Outrageous, of course. Hence, this news traveled fast. I mean, real fast & around the world. I read about it first on Lovely Bike.

Not surprisingly, New Yorkers on two wheels could relate to this feeling of harassment, as the NYPD has been notoriously cracking down on people on bikes for the most frivolous things, ranging from handing out tickets for having a bag hanging from the handlebar, for speeding in Central Park, to fining people for not riding in the bike lane (which resulted in the video ‘Bike lanes’ by Casey Neistat, that subsequently went viral worldwide).

It’s the infamous & flawed ‘cheat sheet’ at play here.

So, back to skirts. Followers of this story quickly started to doubt it, as Jasmijn works for a bicycle company & she’s actually responsible for its marketing efforts, viral marketing efforts. Controversy was born. Streetsblog dove into it, and they confirmed what I thought initially: if this was a stunt, it’s a pretty bad one when it comes to aiming to sell bikes. It’s far too risky to make it up, the backlash would destroy sales. I’d also e-mailed with Jasmijn & couldn’t imagine her playing along with it off the record.

Doug Gordon of BrooklynSpoke asked if someone would be willing to organize a protest ride. Liz Patek had already been contemplating organizing ‘Fancy Rides’ to get more people on bikes in the Broadway bike lane, so she volunteered & combined the two: the ‘Short Skirt Celebration Ride/Love The Broadway Bike Lane’ for June 15th was born, with a little Facebook & blog help from Copenhagen Cycle Chic.

This is not about teaching NYPD a lesson. This is about normalizing the idea of people on bikes here in NYC. I repeat this is NOT about teaching the NYPD a lesson. If you plan on shouting or carrying protest signs, please do not join us. No silly antics or street theater please. I do welcome my friends in the Broadway community to please join us. I will send you off at 7pm so you can make your call times.

This is NOT a protest; this is a Celebration of People on Bikes.

Maureen, aka @InspiredCyclist, captured it for prosperity & shared her experiences.

That was Volume I.

Volume II is happening this evening. Joanna is organizing ‘Skirts on BIKES: The Official NYC Ride – Celebrating Freedom and Fashion‘. Initially, she had coined it a ‘protest’ ride, but it’s good to see Liz’s smarts rubbed off on her ;). The ‘official’ part, take it as you want. In the end, it’s all about the right intentions.

Jasmijn is in NYC right now & she will be participating. I’m looking forward to hearing from her afterwards.

Have fun, #BikeNYC, we’ll be riding in spirit with you.

(Message to #NYPD: people on bikes, get used to them, embrace them…or at least shed those inhibitions; flirt with them. You’ll feel so much better.)

UPDATE:
Julie Hardee, aka @juleskills participated in last night’s Skirts On Bikes ride and took great pictures! Looks like they had a great time celebrating. And the pictures of Jasmijn retelling her story ‘on stage’ are priceless :).

UPDATE II:
Jasmijn’s company Van Moof recorded the ride, here’s the result. Lovely.

Just a few summer images from the Bicycle Capital. A stack of postcards, if you will.

I have to admit, I have it easy. I live in Amsterdam. Whether I stick my head out of the window or step outside, ANYwhere I go and look (aka, point my camera) there are bikes. Either stationary or with people on them. There’s not a single angle you can view this city without them draping the mis-en-scene. The same, and often more of it applies to the rest of the country.

Anyway, as Amsterdamize’s faithful readers know, it doesn’t mean I take that for granted, unlike many of my fellow Dutchies. They just ride. They put cycling on the same conscious level as walking. You just move, from A to B. “Cycling is just a faster way of walking” & “Bikes are like shoes” are popular memes. We’ve come a long way since the destructive decline between 1950 – 1975. Newcomers: that’s geek speak for ‘this bicycle culture was man-made‘.

Sundays aren’t any different from other days of the week. So similarly, I had my camera with me and on my A to B to C to D route I first stopped for 15 minutes at Meester Visserplein near Waterloo square I started clicking away, aka I put my hand in the proverbial cookie jar.

It’s always nice to get a kiss for your efforts ;).

Next up, I positioned myself in front of Cafe Americain of the American Hotel on Leidseplein, again for about 15 min. Plenty to see.

And often enough, somebody notices me too ;).

Last week I was on my way to Foam, the photography museum on Keizersgracht, to go on a guided tour of the exhibition ‘Set Amsterdam‘ by Dana Lixenberg.

I had 10 minutes to spare, so figured I could shoot a few pics of people on bikes & how they were dealing with the rain and heavy winds that had come upon us.

The tour was supposed to be led by Paul Marbus, location scout for the popular Dutch tv series ‘A’dam & E.V.A’ (Adam & Eva / Amsterdam & And Many Others), but he called in sick and the tour topic changed to ‘Antiphotojournalism‘. I had been looking forward to hearing more about the visual backgrounds of this show, as its main character is the city of Amsterdam, so this was quite a bummer.

Here’s the trailer for ‘A’dam & E.V.A.’:

Every day our lives cross that of dozens, maybe hundreds of others, other people we don’t know: incidently passing by, people from the same neighborhood, shop keepers, complete strangers, a voice at the other end of the line, young, old, closeby or at a distance. Our existence continuously touches that of others. Often there’s nothing particular that happens; we just happen to be close, at the same time and at the same place, to then disappear from each other’s lives forever.

The series’ season ended a month ago, I had never watched it on tv, so I resorted to the internet archives. I was blown away. So clever, so nice, so compelling and so true to form. The reason I got to this show was that Marco (the author of Muenchenierung) and I did a presentation about marketing (cycling) at the Agora Symposium, and he’d picked this video as a prime example of co-promotion. (Marco was also the one who tipped me about the photography tour).

Back to Foam: ‘Antiphotojournalism’ was very impressive, moving and interesting as a viewing excercise (being the news buff that I am), but it was not what I came for. Dana’s photos of humanless interiors in Amsterdam were beautiful and I was able to put them in the right context, but Paul’s presence was needed. All in all, I was glad I went.

Before exiting the building I bought the spring issue of Foam magazine, themed ‘Happy’.

Its feature article starts with:

What is the fundamental nature of happiness? Is it a mood, an emotion, or simply a series of agreeable events? Are there different kinds of happiness and what characterizes a pleasant and satisfying life? And, of course, how can we achieve a state of supreme happiness? Perplexing questions indeed.

It explores the cultural and economical aspects that so popularly define ‘hapiness’, states different surveys and looks at the question through the prisms of different photographers, sprinkled with famous quotes on the subject:

To be truly happy and contented, you must let go of what it means to be happy or content. – Confucius.

Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory. – Albert Schweitzer.

But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads? – Albert Camus.

For me it is easy. My two-wheeled friend lifts more obstacles between myself & happiness than I can count. I just have to remind myself of it occasionally.

Then I read this…

I had some time to kill, walked around the neighborhood, moved closer to the edge and finally positioned myself along the arterial bi-directional bicycle path in front of Central Station and clicked away for about 20 minutes.

As always, I wasn’t just an outsider (on foot) or a perceived tourist, but I quickly became part of that stream of consciousness. Interactions usually occur when you create pleasant circumstances where people can see eye to eye.

Weekend in Vondelpark. You wonder how it’s possible, 3 weeks straight of nothing but summer-like weather. Yet another day (*gasp*) of getting together, in this case with Álvaro, his girl Tatiana & their friends from all over Europe, each bringing a contribution to the bbq.

Off and on, I glance in the distance, pick up my camera & snap. Or walk to the bike/ped path, sit my ass on the gravel & gaze in wonder. Or frantically hop on my bike and actually chase after some individuals. My bewonderment doesn’t manifest itself because of the sheer ‘critical mass’, as that’s a given. No, it’s just about how incredibly at ease everybody looks, much more so than usual, as if my brain needed another reset. More of the ‘take a load off’ & loads of ‘joie de vivre’ vibes intoxicating one’s mind. I’m Marc & I’m an addict.

‘Adjust’

‘Back Seat’

‘Face It’ & ‘Hi!’

‘Trailing Young’

‘Atta Girl’

“This Small!”

“There!”

‘Comfy’

‘Different Priorities’

‘Back Bending Fast’

‘Straight Up Fast’

‘Audience’

‘Dottie’

‘Rokjesdag’

‘Matrimony’

“LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL” & ‘Sindändùne’

Beautiful & grand.

Last Thursday Lauren and I met up after work at Cafe Oranjerie on the Binnen Oranjestraat (‘B’ on the map) on the edge of the Haarlemmerbuurt. It’s narrow, one-way (like many streets in the center of Amsterdam) and quaint. Residential, shops, galleries, cafes, etc. This street connects the Jordaan neighborhood (via de Oranjebrug [Orange Bridge], ‘A’ on the map) with the popular, aka busy shopping street Haarlemmerdijk (‘C’ on the map), which also functions as an important arterial cycle road towards Central Station (one-way for cars, bi-directional for bikes). Not surprisingly, Haarlemmerdijk is one of the busiest cycle streets in Amsterdam.

View Larger Map

Below: the streetview of Binnen Oranjestraat, in the direction of Oranjebrug, Jordaan. One view step ahead you’ll see the cafe by panning left.

View Larger Map

So that’s the backdrop. Lauren and I got our tasty beers, sat down in front of the cafe and talked about our day while rush hour picked up a little steam:

Mum & daughter…

He was helping his mum taking a box of wine home, saying hi to the neighbors.

Gender equality when it comes to picking up the kids…

Dad with front load…picking up a second load.

A smile & some laundry to do…

Suddenly, a traffic cone appeared. It turned out to belong to a group of kids. They probably found it somewhere and decided to have a little fun with it. More than that, it was their actual intent to stop car traffic.

“Car traffic?”, you say? Yes, as quaint as the street is, the few cars that drive by have about the same impact on this urban environment as a whole lot more cars would have on a bigger road. Noise on this narrow street gets amplified in a way that you can quickly speak of pollution. The acoustics will drown out many conversations (like ours) and generally annoy. No matter how slow they drive. However, far worse are the scooters, which pass by at high speeds (think souped up, 2-stroke engines), higher than cars ever will and add real danger to people walking and cycling. All combined, rush hour isn’t that nice in a bicycle city when a few ruin it for the rest of us, including kids who just want to play in the streets.

Victory! The driver accepted her (temporary) defeat gracefully by smiling with the kids. Knowing very well this blockage could not be sustained…

The answer? Simple. This street doesn’t actually need to serve as a connection with/through way for Haarlemmerdijk. It only has car traffic because it’s allowed and still convenient. Just like in many other areas of the city (and proven traffic grids elsewhere in the Netherlands) you can make it bicycle/walking only (no scooters either), forcing cars to make a…wait for it…250 meter detour along Brouwersgracht. So direct routes for bikes/peds, longer routes for cars. Neighbors with cars (and parking) on streets in between could get access by automated systems, as used for commercial traffic at certain hours of the day.

Amsterdam is very much a livable city for all. Let’s keep working at it. If not for us, do it for the children. At least they spot the bull. And do it quickly, before they grow up and forget.

As witnessed on the corner of Nieuwmarkt and Zeedijk last week.

I like my Amstel rides. No, not the Amstel Gold Race, my Fr8 would be out of his league & element, aside from the fact that this event, ironically, takes place in the far south of the Netherlands. That, and this website is not of the lycra-persuasion.

Instead, I’m talking about just hopping on and riding down the Amstel River in the middle of the week, checking out the terraces to see which one would facilitate our need to enjoy the early evening sun & some consequential beers the best.

Passing Rembrandt’s House, he was nice enough to leave a bike path in his will…

Joining the line at Meester Visserplein…

Passing people on the Hermitage exit…

Taking a gentile short-cut, avoiding the shade of Wibautstraat, merging at the Amstel waterfront…

Looking right towards Skinny Bridge never fails…

Crossing some streams of consciousness along the way…

A bit of tunnel vision passing the Amstel Hotel…

We found the perfect spot, the terrace of Cafe De Ysbreeker. We were hardly original, aka hardly alone…Still, we easily managed to grab the best spot.

It’s far from summer, so not much later it got chilly, pre-dinner drinks were over & we headed back.

Nothing really beats this, right?

I know! Cycling is great ;). In every single way. So, you owe yourself taking advantage of it, too. Not enough inspiration for ya? Then come on down the Twitter way, join the good folks of @30daysofbiking and many more people, who are sharing and celebrating this simple but most effective, convenient & fun piece of machinery.

I think you get it by now: even when you ride alone, you ride together. Be very sure of that.

Today, like other days, I hopped on again. And not because it was such nice weather. I had to get from A to B. It sort of speaks for itself, doesn’t it? Never mind you missed out on a few days, hop on & embrace those rides.

Top photo: A female traffic police officer directs traffic at a zebra crossing. Amsterdam, December 1955.

One of the photo streams I subscribe to on Flickr is that of IISG, the International Institute of Social History:

The International Institute of Social History is the largest documentation and research centre in the world in the field of social history. Since it was established in 1935, the institute has focused its efforts on collecting, retaining and making available the heritage of social movements worldwide. The institute is independent and trustworthy, and is thus a natural repository for the cultural heritage of the workers’ movement and other emancipatory groups and movements that are often under threat. The research department of the institute focuses on the history of labour relations and organizes international projects in this field. The collection (archives, library and audiovisual materials) occupies approximately 50 km of shelf space. The IISH is an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (‘Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen’(KNAW)).

IISG regularly posts selections of material on Flickr, often in line with current news, such as a vintage collections of posters railing against the introduction/use/expansion of nuclear power (aka the sentiment now doing the rounds with regards to Japan).

IISG’s Flickr collection may not be vast, but it serves its purpose; making invaluable documentation available to the public & trigger interest to make use of its online catalogue and/or visit the institute. The latter is now on my bucket list. ;)

Let me share a few examples from a collection of photo sets, all taken by (the late) award winning photo journalist & co-founder of World Press Photo Ben van Meerendonk.

I picked the post-war era, roughly from 1946 to 1955, particularly interesting because the German occupiers had confiscated most of the people’s bikes & with the rebuilding progress came the rise of the automobile. These sets give great insight in the everyday urban environment, in which you can easily spot the problems that would lay ahead.

The first photo set in question is ‘Jobs‘. From it I picked the ones in which the job related to bicycles, visa versa & otherwise.

Left: Man working at the bicycle parking shed is suffering from the cold, February 20th 1948, Amsterdam. Right: Fireman with hose nozzle on a bicycle, at the Blue Bridge over the Amstel River, July 1947.

Plastic bicycle by inventor Keijzer, Eerste Jan Steenstraat, November 19th 1952.

Left: Woman receives a citation for cycling without working lights, Nieuwe Nieuwstraat, Amsterdam, November 21st 1952. Right: Police check for bicycle light, Amsterdam, 1946.

Left: Traffic ‘action’, the police checks ’slow traffic’. On the left a knife sharpener. Vijzelstraat, Amsterdam, March 1948. Right: Police checks ’slow traffic’, Vijzelstraat corner of Herengracht, Amsterdam, March 1948.

Left: Nurse with bicycle, Amsterdam, September 27th 1951. Right: American girls assemble bicycles, Amsterdam, July 1st 1953.

Left: Peasant woman with milk buckets on yoke on her bicycle, Walcheren, Zeeland, 1946. Right: Milkman with cargo bike full of milk bottles, Amsterdam, September 24th 1953.

A random selection from different sets with people on bicycles, in traffic & other captured moments:

Left: Traffic exam for scouts, Oosterparkstraat, corner of Linnaeusstraat, October 22nd 1949. Right: Muntplein, September 23rd 1958.

Traffic on Haarlemmerstraat, Amsterdam, November 5 1947.

Traffic chaos on Muntplein, Amsterdam, September 23rd 1958.

Demonstration by pawnbrokers and merchants, March 21st 1951.

Left: Spuistraat, October 13th 1950. Right: Racing car, October 1st 1950.

Start of the election bicycle parade for the Communist Party Netherlands (CPN) youth, from Waterlooplein, Amsterdam, July 1 1948.

Intersection Paleisstraat / Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal, Amsterdam, June 30th 1947.

An English cab overtakes a postal worker on a cargo bike, Jan Luijkenstraat, Amsterdam, November 27th 1952.

Protest on the street against exhibition ‘Greek Photos’, Museum Fodor on Keizersgracht, December 29th 1948.

Woman on bicycle carrying her child on her back, Juni 29th 1953.

Little boy is riding his mini racing bike, guided by his father, Sarphatistraat, Amsterdam, July 13 1949.

The little elephant Murugan practices for the upcoming official parade (June 4th 1955), Weesperstraat, April 20th 1955.

I’ll try and make this is an ongoing series. It only requires some research ;).