The Life-Sized City Blog

Ole's new Batavus bicycle. The whole day at the recent TEDx Copenhagen event was brilliant. I was especially thrilled that so many good people came up to me after my own talk and relayed positive feedback. It was quite humbling and inspiring. I'll have a hard time forgetting one man in particular. His name is Ole. There is an old children's song in Danish called Oles Ny Autobil / Ole's New Autocar. Ole's new autocar drives 8 miles in an hour (the old Scandinavian mile is 10 km) Ole said he enjoyed the talk but then he revealed that Copenhagenize and Cycle Chic are the direct reason that he and his family sold their Volvo station wagon. These blogs have generated an incredible amount of positive feedback over the years and it is especially when I'm giving talks abroad that I get fantastic face-to-face experiences with readers. For some reason, Ole's revelation was more moving and touching. Perhaps because I was on my home turf in Copenhage...

I was just reading this article " Bicyclists to LA Drivers: We are traffic " and I recalled a poster I had done last year. Isn't it time to just make this point? Fortunately, there is a silver-lining in the clouds of anti-bicycle sentiment. A spot of research in the UK has shown that sentiment towards cyclists is actually rather positive and it's improving. Read the good news at The Guardian: " Cyclists! The public thinks you're cool and normal "

Another poster generated from the wealth of leftovers from a job for a client. Let me know if any other taglines pop into your mind. Maybe the text could be different.

Displacement activity. Playing around with t-shirt designs. A Danish t-shirt with a Dutch word. Viva l'Europe. Available on a t-shirt from the Cycle Chic/Copenhagenize online boutique . Oh, and a canvas shopping/tote bag . Oh, and a coffee mug . And with this I step firmly into the wasp's nest. Buzz.

It is with absolute enthusiasm that I can highly recommend the book - Traffic - Why We Drive the Way We Do (and what it says about us) by Tom Vanderbilt. Carlton Reid over at Quickrelease.tv recommended it and I promptly ordered it from Amazon. I'm glad I did. It may not have been the author's intention, but I'm left with the sense that this is the greatest bicycle advocacy book ever written . It's all about cars and how motor vechicles affect those who drive them - or those who walk/ride next to them. Filled with references to countless studies and research, Traffic will make you think differently the next time you hop into a car. It also helps cyclists and pedestrian understand the intricate happenings in the heads of motorists. I've had a driving licence for about 25 years and enjoy driving. I don't do much of it now that I live in Copenhagen but on every single page of the book I found myself muttering an inner 'wow' or 'hmm'. So many peopl...

Five Wheels, Three Arms , originally uploaded by [Zakkaliciousness] . I waited behind them, snapped a shot. But then as i waited I was wondering why the chap would choose a tricyle. He looked all dapper and casual in his suit and scarf and even engaged the girl next to him in a charming exchange of words and smiles. I figured it was a style choice, that bike. Fair enough. It's a trendy European city. When the light changed, he cycled away, keeping his right hand in his pocket. Or so I thought. It was then i realised that he was missing his right arm. Of course. That's why he pedals around on a tricycle. And how wonderful and Copenhagenesque that he still chooses a bike over other transport forms. And looks sharp in doing so. There are so few reasons not to ride.

"Everytime I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race." - H. G. Wells Let's get one thing straight. While we're not banner-waving activists, we think activism is fantastic. We're all for it, especially the activism towards creating bike culture and infrastructure like we have in Copenhagen in other cities in the world. We just feel the need to play devil's advocate regarding the Critical Mass movement. Certainly the style of Critical Mass prevalent in, for example, North American cities. Rides that feature an aggressive, in-your-face tone. There are many positive examples of protest rides that are calm, cool and accepted. Budapest comes to mind. Even the rides in Prague - where they changed the name from Critical Mass to something akin to 'bike ride' in order to remove themselves from the North American versions. Generlally, it's a brilliant concept. Democratic to the core. Celebrations, even. Even if there ar...