I just posted a new video that's a bit different. It's the first of a series that I'm calling Shifter Big Stories. The goal here is to create bigger, deeper and more meaningful stories about the most important issues around urban cycling and bike commuting. The first is about health and wellness, because it impacts all of us. But I'll be rolling out more of them throughout the summer, so please let me know what you think of the format, and of the series.
And a big thanks to Riese & Muller, who sponsored this series this year. They make amazing bikes, and agreed to support the channel without any influence over the content, which I appreciate. They are a great friend of the channel.
Do you have any practical advice for keeping your bike out of the bike shop and on the road? I'm not necessarily seeking a how-to guide on changing a flat tire and that sort of thing. Rather, I'm looking for some tips to keep a bike running smoothly without a lot of effort. Any advice you'd like to share with fellow bike-lovers that might be included in a future video?
Hey German speakers out there: What do you think of this comment about the linguistic use of “cyclists” and “drivers”? Does this ring true to you? This is from my latest video about the problems of cycling in German cities https://youtu.be/AjTx2ALomfc?si=rWG_d...
New York, Zagreb, Porto Alegre, Bogota, Bratislava, Dallas, Mexico, Trondheim, Seattle, Tel Aviv — these are just some of the cities that have been submitted to the Shifter Global Cike Culture Index so far. If you don't see your city on the list, there's one more week before submissions close. The last day is Friday, Oct. 6. The more cities we have, the more fun it will be to compare their cultures of cycling. I'm so grateful to all of you who have taken the time to submit so far, and I can't wait to dive into the data and share it with you.
Hey everyone. My latest video explains a project I need your help with! I want to compare the culture of cycling in cities all over the world, but I need people from all over the world to share. If you're interested in taking part, please check out the video. If we get enough people participating, I think it will be fascinating to see the similarities and differences. And a big thanks to @Twowheelgear for offering up a great prize for one participant to win.
Full transparency: I posted a Short today offering some more context about my carbon emission reductions from bike commuting, but I made an error in the video. And since saying "mega tonnes" instead of "metric tonnes" is kind of l like saying "as big as a blue whale" when you mean to say "as big as a sardine," I decided to remove the video. I'll fix it up and repost it soon.
This is a really interesting video that illustrates both the opportunity and challenges of location-tracking devices to deal with bike theft. It also illustrates the need for a more societal approach to really stopping the problem that I've been talking about in this playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
This contest by my bag and pannier sponsor @Twowheelgear generated some pretty great tips for bike commuters. Check out the video, and scroll through comments for some good ideas on how to make your bike commute a little easier (and consider subscribing to them as well — they're awesome people who make great products).
I've been blown away at the response to my last video in which I asked for your ideas in redesigning a public street — hundreds of creative, cool and thoughtful ideas have poured in. So many that, if I have any hope of having enough time to actually look at each of them, I need to cut off submissions soon. So I'm giving you one more day to get your designs in. So if you've been on the fence about submitting, now is the time — the form will stop taking new submissions by the end of the day on April 9.
Then, I can't wait to share with you some of these designs in a future video, so stay tuned!
Details are in the description of the video below.
Check out this German late-night comedy parody video questioning car-dominance — my favourite line "why does the bike lane just end here?" 🤣. Can you imagine the late-night comedians in the U.S. taking this perspective?
Thanks to Shifter viewer @jojodoid31 for sharing it (if you don't speak German, make sure to turn on captions and then select auto-translate).
Shifter: A channel about urban cycling, bike commuting and the ways we get around our cities with author, journalist and creator Tom Babin. Interested in working with me? Get more info here: shifter.info/about/