By your side

Be still and just listen...

Cycling in NYC

Had a weekend to visit some friends and family...and just noticed that the cycling in NYC is actually quite well developed despite the number of road incidents including an unfortunate Singaporean who was knocked down in NY. I guess no amount of danger should stop one from doing what they love.

Manhattan has a Greenway path along the river

Love the show Premium Rush which featured hardcore cycling porn, and somehow wished I was 16 again when I was cycling recklessly around my neighbourhood. Yeah no brakes, no fear.

Cool and Affordable night wheel lights

This is just so cool...now pondering if I should get them?




Now available at The Grommet.

It's starting to rain

We have been advised by many Oregonians that it is about time our fascination and love for Portland should end soon....well at least until summer comes again. Apparently from September till next May, it will be raining and just grey clouds will fill the skies.

The song that comes to my mind from one of my favorite movies starring Brandon Lee, The Crow - Jane Siberry's 'It can't rain all the time'. Well not at least till 8 months after.....

Summer is coming to an end

It is starting to get chilly and the trees are starting to turn color....better get more rides before I need to don a jacket while cycling.

Arty bell..sounds good too

This is such a cool bell...it has a nice sound too...unfortunately, my Ferrari bike already came with a cool looking bell though this is way cooler, but I will give it a miss as I am trying to pull back my online shopping and wait for my other Kickstarter pledge - The HandleBand!

My small cool bell on the bike

Cycling Economic advantages

Here's an excellent article on what a mile on a bike vs a mile on car means to your economy.
Maybe our government should start sitting up and read. Unless you are just planning to line your own pockets for profits?

Copenhagen in Denmark published these results:

“When all these factors are added together the net social gain is DKK 1.22 per cycled kilometer. For purposes of comparison there is a net social loss of DKK 0.69 per kilometer driven by car.” 1.22 Danish crowns is about 25 cents and a kilometer is 6/10 of a mile, so we are talking about a net economic gain to society of 42 cents for every bicycle mile traveled. That’s a good number to have in your back pocket.

A number of factors are included in the equation such as transport costs, security, comfort, branding/tourism, transport times and health.

Since the total health benefit of Copenhagen residents’ healthy cycling habits is DKK 5.51 per km, the annual benefit is worth the equivalent of approx. DKK 2.0 billion.

Which means that Copenhagen, a city of 1.2 million people, saves $357 million a year on health costs because something like 80 percent of its population commutes by bicycle, even in winter. That’s $300 per person per year. Clearly, the reason the new Danish minister of the interior said she’d “rather invest in cycle tracks than freeways,” is that only one of those has a positive return. 

Cycling in Vancouver

Just sharing some interesting pics when I was in Vancouver recently.

As you can see again, cyclists can freely cycle here and co-exist in this city, pretty much like Seattle and Portland....when will Singapore ever embrace and change?

Even on pedestrian/cycling tracks, they made it wide enough to separate the two.

Just keep riding

Rode out into the sunset on Independence Day, trying to find a spot to watch the fireworks.

Portland Bike Scene

Well I hope my insight into one of USA's friendliest bike city can help to benchmark how far Singapore is, from making itself Cycle-Friendly...that is if Singapore wants to. I would think with a 6.9 mil population target, it should start embarking now. Portland is a small city at just under 600k people but I see more bikes here than in Singapore.
Here are some photos showing how bicycles are used, locked in Portland.

Bikes are locked everywhere

Creative bicycle post in the design of a bridge, with tiny cars and trucks on  it!

Normal bike posts easily found on every street.

Bike posts for customers found in the main front of Powell bookstore. (Biggest book store in Portland)

You can park and lock your bikes anywhere...even along the river

 People cycle to work as a form of commute, or a healthier way to exercise. Though cars are cheap and gasoline is easily available and affordable, people choose to cycle in Portland.

There are all kinds of bicycles, and people cycling them...especially on a wonderful Sunday

Cycling to the weekend market in Portland

Cycling to basketball

Smartphone accessory for the bike

This soon to be expiring Kickstarter project helps to make full use of your smartphones.
Will the smartphone sales going at 20% increment every quarter, it would be useful to take a look at this Kickstarter project for your bike.

Out cycling

Nice views and weather to cycle by the Columbia river

Cool night cycling display

This would be so cool if installed on my bikes...

Share the road in Portland

Here's my neighbour's car plate... Awesome community here with 8 bike racks all over the car park, enough for all residents. I have 2 assigned to my apartment. I guess it really has to start with the people, to push for government involvement? Do we really want to cycle in Singapore?

Cycling is big here in Portland!

How big is cycling over here? Huge... I see so many cool bikes over the weekend, took many pictures which I would be sharing later and guess what I have on my beer label?

Cycling as a way of life... When will Singapore ever be like that? When petroleum runs out?

All set up and ready to go in Portland

Finally had some time today to setup my bike, what a glorious sunny Sunday here in Portland. Everyone is out cycling and here I am leaving my bike in our small balcony to sun. Can't wait to go out there and do some road cycling around the nice bike friendly neighbourhood.

Portland!

Here's my bike arriving safely in Portland after 38hrs of travelling.

Smallest Bike ever

Trying to pack my Ferrari Bicycle for the airplane is a tough job securing the items and remembering to remove the air from the tires to prevent over pressuring in the air. I found this damn cute bike which I guess is the easiest to pack bicycle ever to bring travelling!




Hahaha

Cyclists cannot give themselves a bad name

This is not the way to go for car users to condone us sharing the road. Like many reports of cyclists confronting bus drivers, this unruly behaviour of hogging a single road lane, acceptable??

My new classic Ferrari bike - FB2401

So I did it, out of the blue and the fact I need another smaller road bike to be used in USA; I went to buy the FB2401. It is just too pretty after seeing it on SPIN magazine.

And I did what all bike owners would do...test it! And guess what, I brought a road bike to the Railway track trail! Have always wanted to go find the trail and finally found a few suitable entry points along Alexandra Road as well as Spooner Road, I went to try it out. Love the fact that the trail is very unknown and raw.

A lot of greenery along this track. Very bumpy because it is still pretty much undiscovered.

The bike handled well on the road despite the smaller frame but actually was an advantage handling the side curbs and railings due to the shorter handle bar compared to my mountain bikes. But to handle this trail, goes to show this bike is built to last and could handle the bumps and gravels along this trail.

Got my bike all set up, though it is primarily a road bike. Love the white seat!

It is a light ¬10kg frame which is perfect for me to ship to USA.

Careful on the fallen trees and branches all over the trail, easily one can fall at the gravel and muddy portions, many parts of the trail need to dismount and push.

 I just love the looks of this bike as it turns heads thinking it was a retro single speed bike. But it is actually a 7 speed 24'' road bike decent enough to handle tough trails like the new green corridor railway track.

Biking culture in Seattle

Found on the train from the airport to downtown Seattle. 

The biking culture in United States is amazing, seeing many states doing their part to create a healthier population. This is what we observed in Seattle over the weekend. The city allows full bikes on trains with signs on bike conduct on board the train.

Typical commuter cycling to work, making use of public transport. 

They have cyclists boarding buses and loading their bicycles up front, making it easier to travel longer distances. It's just amazing how much allowances they make to help encourage cycling. Or is it the other way around, making concessions because cycling is a way of life over here.

Bikes can be loaded at front of buses. 

League of American Bicyclists has released its latest Bicycle Friendly State ranking. And for the sixth year in a row, Washington continues to lead the nation, with high performance in all categories. This is no wonder why Seattle has such a vibrant cycling culture.

I heard of my VP and my wife's director who cycles to work in the state we will be moving to. Can't wait and getting excited on living a healthier lifestyle over here.

But while I am here in States, I just heard another cyclist got killed in Singapore at Changi Road. One of the popular tracks many cyclists go during weekend mornings and evenings for a nice long uninterrupted journey. Different cultures different importance placed in valuing lives and safety.

Just too pretty

Just got a copy of the Spin magazine, which has some nice reviews and bicycle pictures sometimes.

But this Ferrari bike which I just saw in the mag, it is so damn pretty... Looks like a classic bike which is similar to the current rage on Tokyo Bikes of late. Just that this is a Ferrari bike. And I bet it probably cost less than an overhyped Tokyo Bike! Time to check my wallet and my favourite bike shop.

Update: So I called up the shop, it only costs $799!

My Ferrari Helmet - FBH001

Almost forgot to blog about my helmet purchase at MKP Bikes store the last time back in Jan. Really love the helmet and just in time as my old helmet came apart after 3 years of usage. The Ferrari helmet has a back dial to tighten the strap, making it very easy to reach even as you ride with one hand to adjust.

Back of the helmet, the red dial on the back strap adjusts easily with one hand.

As you can see the back comes with a generous amount of holes which allows air to flow, and even after an hour of riding, my helmet was not drench in sweat proving the air circulation was rather good in this helmet.
The bike comes with a plastic front to allow some shade as well as make it look good and aerodynamic.

Side holes to snap the front plastic in.

Snapping in easily and love the Scuderia Ferrari badge on the side

Front look of the FBH001

The helmet is one of the nicer looking helmets around and it's extremely light. The Ferrari bikes and accessories come with licenses to prove they are genuine. You can get the pricing and models off their official website which has been launched by the distributors here in Singapore.

My next post will be on my Jetblack red handle grips which I also got from the store and I will be using on my Trek bike. To give it a grey black red look...

How do you store your bike?

I store my bikes in the bomb shelter. But this is one bike rack I would love to have in the house and display up my Ferrari Bikes.Though it is rather costly.

Beijing's efforts to go back to Cycling

So you've all probably heard about the huge smog situation in Beijing, and though by the time I got there 2 weeks ago, it was long gone. And there was blue skies to be seen, but the traffic jams are still there.
Anyway I managed to find this at night near my hotel.

Bikes for rental.

These bike kiosks are found all over Beijing. Imagine how China used to be full of bicycles and with the economic progression over the last decade, there are a lot more cars than bicycles and pollution has crept up. And perhaps now the government is regressing on its stance and hope that the people go back to cycling which will help to lessen the smog and pollution seen recently.

The tap payment method for renting bicycle.

Found on the local newspapers for a westerner innovating and inventing a anti-pollution bike to fight the smog in Beijing.

A westerner innovating in Beijing

His home-made in China bicycle has a build-in respirator attached to the bicycle. So one can still cycle despite how bad the smog is!

Nice souvenir from Korea

Picked up this nice metal wire bike from South Gate market in Korea to add to my collection of bikes at home.

Taiwan Cycling

Here I am again travelling on a long business trip, travelling through 3 countries and 6 cities. Spotted in my hotel newspaper, I spotted a race akin to Tour de France rather than OCBC Cycle Singapore event, the Tour de Taiwan gives one the opportunity to cycle in the mountain slopes, the city roads, suburbs and even by the coast.

Well I did not even get to watch the event, but merely a couple of kids on a nice bicycle/motorbike lane in the Tainan University area near my hotel. Still it was refreshing, wish I was here to cycle instead of work.

Making it safe to cycle in Singapore

Finally government initiatives showing commitment to safe cycling in Singapore!

A new committee will be set up to re-examine ways to make Singapore's roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim told Parliament on Wednesday that he will convene the inter-agency panel, called the Committee on Pedestrian and Cyclist Safety. It will comprise members from the Land Transport Authority, the Traffic Police and the Education Ministry.

Dr Faishal, who will chair the panel, said he will canvass the views of local communities and people in the public and private sectors before rolling out a five year plan. The committee will prioritise the safety of the elderly and school children.

First on the committee's to-do list will be safety within school zones. Besides tougher enforcement by the Traffic Police, the panel is looking into reducing speed limits around schools and providing additional measures like speed humps, flashing LED lights, more signs, and installing railings at both sides of the road in school zones.

Dr Faishal also said the authorities may test out the effectiveness of some of these measures in selected locations and put more pairs of eyes on the road to spot and stop illegal parking.

After a successful trial at Beach Road and Marine Parade Central, he said more surveillance cameras will be installed in more locations islandwide.

Source: ST
Well the good news doesn't stop there! More cycling paths!

LaFerrari - Hybrid..things to come for Ferrari?

This video just sets my heart racing...the Enzo successor!



Fastest Ferrari ever made to date and it is a hybrid!

A 789HP V12 engine mated with 160HP of electric power, the 949HP combination of which takes the supercar to 100kmh in less than 3 seconds. Looking at this...I am just wondering if Ferrari will make an electric bicycle in the near future! Just beautiful...does look like my Ferrari bike! Shall call my bike LaFerrari from now on. I heard from the Ferrari bike guys that my model -FB2613  is one of the best selling models, maybe because it looks like the LaFerrari!

Mr Brown's safe cycling lessons

Here's another useful tip from Mr Brown. I do hope bus drivers and taxis do read his blog and give way to us cyclists on the road.

Love the new helmet, and stuff

Got a matching Ferrari bike helmet in my last outing to MKP and I am loving the lightness and ability to tighten it easily with a dial. Shall write a review about it later.

Also my wife got me a nice armband for my mobile phone which was meant for jogging but I can strap it on the front of the bike and use the Runkeeper app to track my route as it reads out the journey's progress along the way.

Also love the new under saddle bag which I got, matching with the bike. The keys and wallet easily go in there as it also comes with 3M reflective technology to keep us safe at night.