The Treble-Lighter (2)

Red light district

Previously we talked about the treble-bagger who uses three bags. How about a treble-lighter who uses three red-lights at once? One on her head/helmet, another one on her body and last one on her bike, just in case. After all, it is important to be visible.

Frankly, it's not such a bad idea, in case the battery ran out or the bulb broke, but it could be nice to see lights distributed more evenly amongst cyclist. Some cyclists don't use any light after dark whereas others, as you can see, use three. Those of you who follow this blog for a while may have recollection of another treble-cyclist. I encountered a bicycle user using three rear lights before. It seems to be a trend amongst Dublin's cyclists.

I took the photo on 15 January 2013 on the Canal cycle path. There is another photo taken in the next junction:

There's a light that never goes out

The Treble-Bagger

Did I take everything?

Don't get me wrong, most of the time I carry a small backpack or a messenger bag while cycling. It is useful. However, what could the lady above possibly carry in such a sizeable backpack and two big panniers? As I didn't ask her, it will always remain a mystery.

Picture taken on the 11th of February 2013 in Rathmines/Portobello.

The Pompomer

Brrrrr

Cheerleaders carry shiny pom poms in their hands all the time. It's hard to imagine cyclists with pom poms (perhaps those who don't use their hands, like this one or that one), unless, of course, it's on their hat. Alright, enough. It starts to feel more of a fashion blog than a cycling photoblog.

I took the picture on 7 February 2013 along the Canal Cycle Path.

The Head Mirror Man

Behind you!

Safety is something cyclists should not compromise (many do though). Danger sometimes lurks behind. That's why some cyclists use mirrors. Personally, I don't see the advantage of using a mirror while cycling. What's wrong with turning one's head from time to time?

I came across the guy above on 2 February 2013 on Donnybrook Road (N11). I should have waited half a second longer for a closer look, but his amusing apparel is visible here anyway.

The Snow Cyclist

Girl cycling in snow

When crocuses, daffodils and cherry trees are blooming all around, one wouldn't expect snow. Nonetheless, Dublin has seen a mini snow blizzard today after a period of relatively warm weather (ended two or three days ago). The thaw almost made me forget that about a month ago, the fair city was also covered with snow.

Luckily I took a few pictures of cyclists in the light snow as a reminder. The girl above was spotted in Rathfarnham and the cyclist below in Terenure. I shot both photos in the morning of 21 January 2013.

If you're still in an icy mood, why won't you take a quick look at the icyclist (ice + cyclist), another Dubliner who fears no snow or at the Slovak snow cyclist from Namestovo?

Cycling on thin ice

The Tower Bridger

Cycling on Tower Bridge

Once again, it's neither about the cyclist nor Dublin, but about the place. This time it's a Londoner who happened to cycle in an interesting spot. Which bridge symbolises London most? Nope, it's not London Bridge (is falling down falling down), an ugly twentieth century construction with a misleading glorious name. It's the Tower Bridge, London's most famous bridge and one of the city's most recognisable landmarks.

The picture was taken on 4 December 2012, a sunny day (very windy though) in London.

The Dublin Bikes Distributor

So where do we need more bikes?

Nowadays, when there are talks about expanding Dublin Bikes scheme, ie allocating money for this end (for the plan has not been finalised, the council is still negotiating the terms with the operator, JCDecaux, as can be read in Cycling In Dublin), it's a great opportunity to pay a tribute to the people who make Dublin Bikes happen.

Bicycle sharing systems are a brilliant idea. They help to put more people on bike and thus make the roads safer and the air cleaner. However, some stations are more popular than others, there are cold spots people want to leave (say, home in morning) and hot spots people want to get to (say, work in morning). This deficiency, a market failure (to borrow from economics), poses a problem. When one needs bicycle most, the docks are more likely to be empty while at the same time, dropping off the bike can be nightmarish when all stations are full. If this happens very often, people are not likely to rely on this scheme.

Here comes our friend, the Dublin Bikes distributor, who, like Robin Hood (or Dennis Moore), takes from the rich (stations) and gives to the poor (stations). I came across this guy many times and I found it fascinating that he is always on the phone while doing his job slowly. It's not a complaint (moving bicycles from one place to another can be awfully dull, as dull as charted accountancy), just an observation.

In this occasion, I met the bike distributor in Exchequer Street on 7 January 2013. I also shot a photo with his vehicle from a different angle:

Release the bikes

The Boxer

Huge box in basket

Cyclists, don't be bothered by the size of your basket. You can always squeeze bigger items into it.

I shot the photo on 7 February 2013 on the Grand Canal cycle path.

The Cyclist Wannabe

Skateboarding Track

The cycle path along the Grand Canal doesn't serve solely cyclists. If you cycle along, you've probably seen pedestrians walking on it all the time. Joggers love it in particular, as they see themselves faster than other footwalkers. And, as you can see from the photo above, teenagers on skateboard also love to use this fabulous facility. Who knows, perhaps one day he will also become a cyclist.

In any case, it demonstrates how cycling infrastructures serve the whole community, not only cyclists, ergo it's a wise investment. You can read more about segregated cycle facilities here.

I took the picture last week, on 12 February 2013, by the canal.

The Ladderman

Long bike

Bicycle can be a useful substitute for a wheelbarrow or helpful in carrying a ladder. Such long ladders don't fit into most vehicles. So who needs car anyway?

I came across this gentleman on 14 January 2013 on Baggot Street. And you can take a closer look at him in the following photo:

 Bicycle & ladder

The Rainbow Cyclist

Somewhere over the rainbow

The Irish weather provides us with a lot of rain and sunshine, which together bless us with tonnes of rainbows (technically rainbows are weightless or as Kermit the frog put it, "rainbows are visions, but only illusions", yet, there are "tonnes" of them). At the end of each Irish rainbow there's a leprechaun and a pot of gold, but since it's virtually impossible to get there, only the awfully fast cyclists can actually make it there. Perhaps Lance Armstrong on drugs can, but I doubt this chap made it.

I took the photo above and the one below on 7 January 2013 in Camden/Wexford Street.

Since we already talk about rainbows, you might be looking for gay cyclists in Dublin as well.

Rainbows are visions, but only illusions

The Pinkish Wheel Rider

Cycling in running shoes?

I usually adore cyclists in suit and this guy was no exception. It's hard to pinpoint what made him so likeable. Perhaps it was the white athletic shoes he wore that looked awesome. They really blended in well with the frame. Or maybe the pinkish wheels and the bluish shirt that seemed complementary. Whatever it was, I couldn't take my camera lens out of him till the lights changed.

I took the photo on 26 July 2012 by the Grand Canal/Lesson Street.

The Israeli Artistic Cyclists

Come here!

So it's not a real cyclist in the photograph alright, but nonetheless an interesting figure on a bicycle. Penny Farthing looks cool painted orange with a weirdo trying to catch a butterfly on 'em.

From the Hebrew inscription on statues, you could have inferred that the photo is from Israel. To be more precise, it is from the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv where I happened to visit a wonderful exhibition on Murano glass back in April 2006.

Since we are already focusing on the Israeli art scene, let's talk about another cycling statue. About a hundred kilometre southwards, near a town called Beersheba (or Be'er Sheva), one can find the "Sculpture Trail" in a place called Hatzerim Forest (which, in the middle of the desert, is not quite a forest at all). I was there in January 2006 (on a desert sojourn) and came across another special pair of Penny Farthing, this time with a head of a horse.

With all the horse meat that is being discovered in numerous "beef" products sold across Europe nowadays, this sculpture was most certainly ahead of his time. So next time at the bike shop, make sure your bicycle doesn't contain traces of horse DNA. Wink wink.

This bicycle make contain traces of horse meat

The Key Ringer

Open sesame

It's probably a cliché, but every lock has a key. Thus when we introduced the lock holder, it was pretty straightforward that there's also a cyclist who holds the key. In this case, the cyclist had a key ring clipped onto his jeans.

In fairness, I also used a similar feature when I was eight years of age. I guess some people keep finding it useful and comfortable. In any case, I was personally disgusted by this particular guy. He was one of those cyclists who smoke while cycling, he smelled like an ash tray and looked like a chimney. I said good riddance when the lights changed to green.

I took the photo on 20 October 2012 (exactly five days after I came across the guy with the lock) in Wexford Street (between Camden and Great George's Street). I also took a zoomed out version of the very same cyclist:

Stretching

The Lock Holder

Feelin' safe

The more cyclists are out there, the greater the threat of bicycle theft. And, fortunately, Dublin sees more and more bikes. Therefore, cyclists take things to hand or at least they take a lock in their hand.

I shot the photo in Rathmines on 15 October 2012.

Bardejov Cyclist

On the road

If I'm honest with you, sometimes the cyclist is not the focal point of my photo. So it was interesting to see the well-equipped cyclist above with all these panniers and gizmos, but what struck me most was the magnificent tower and city walls at the background...

I took the photo on 29 July 2008 in Bardejov, a beautiful medieval walled town in north-eastern Slovakia.

Pavement Cyclist (2)

Cycling anywhere

Many cyclists in Dublin disturb other road users by cycling on the pavement (apparently, it's also a policy many Irish councils promote). In past we already supplied an example of teenagers cycling on pavement. They, at least, had an excuse - they join their bicycless friend and they're still in that age that being cool matters most. Our friend above, however, had no excuse. He simply decided to break the law and cycle on the pavement (instead of breaking it by cycling against the traffic). The legs of this kind of people obviously work, so why can't they just get off the bike and walk for a few hundred metres?

Anyhow, the photo is from Camden Street and was taken on 19 January 2013.

The Mouthless Cyclist

Joe, I don't get it

The climate of Dublin is fairly mild, however, some winter days feel really cold. In order to shelter themselves from the bitter cold, some cyclists cover organs that are normally exposed, for example their mouth. The guy above looked like Mort from Bazooka Joe :)

I took the photo on Dame Street on 29 December 2012. And I took another one:

Off we go

The Bike Leaver

Leave my bike alone

As I was strolling around London, I noticed a guy making a delivery on his bike. I liked the way his outfit matched the colours of his bike and bags. Unfortunately, I wasn't quick enough, for by the time I shot the photo, he had already crossed the road, leaving his bicycle for the mercy of fellow Londoners. No one attempted to snatch them though.

The photo was taken when I was walking along Eastcheap Street, between London Bridge and Tower Bridge, not far from The Monument of the great fire. It was the 4th of December 2012.