At the Beach

Denmark's beaches are full of bikes and Copenhagen is no exception. Still a little too cold for going into the water. But summer spirits are already high. Above; relaxed riding with Screaming Yellow Jersey and Orange Sneakers. Below; The Sea Breeze breathes buoyancy into her hair.




Sand Coloured from cap to heels to match.



Happy Cycling!

Cycling Without Age

Today I'm going to dedicate the day to a start-up organisation called Cycling Without Age because I think there's nothing cooler than seeing citizens continuing to cycle right through to their senior years. CWA's mission is to extend the cycling life of every senior resident by setting up rickshaw-cycling-tour schemes in nursing homes across Denmark and hopefully abroad too.

It's a pretty simple idea, CWA links each senior resident up with a willing chauffeur from its online platform of volunteers and off they go in their allocated Christania bikes. They can choose to go in small groups or go solo, however, it's up to the passenger to decide which direction to take!


Here's Thorkild and his neighbour on the way to the beach. What better way to enjoy the beautiful weather?

Anyone interested can volunteer and by doing so they can get a bit of exercise whilst putting a smile on someone else's face!


CWA is a great example of health promotion and not just because the volunteers get their fair deal of exercise, it's especially beneficial for the passengers too. Senior residents who usually spend their days indoors are offered a great multi-stimulatory experience just by being exposed to the fresh outdoors and re-engaging in their local communities.


Chilling out by the beach near Charlottelund. CWA's cycling tours are also a great way for senior residents to get out of their homes and meet new people. Volunteers soon transition from being a stranger to someone with a familiar name.


Age really is just a number and shouldn't dictate your social life. CWA's initiative is innovative in that way as it attracts people from a range of ages and all walks of life.

CWA welcomes anyone to cycle along the main tours, particularly senior citizens who are still living independently. Cycling in a group gives them that extra reassurance as well as generally just being a bit more fun!

So who says that cycling should end the day you move into a nursing home? Well, Cycling Without Age certainly doesn't think so.

Over and Out!

K.E.G. x

Copenhagen Summertime

Some of you may have noticed that Mikael hasn't been the one posting the last few blog entries. Because the lucky dog is on holiday in Croatia.  So, while he's gone, we're taking advantage of Copenhagen's own little seaside escape. 

The beach is close, but not central to the city, so bicycles (and the metro) are the most popular way to get there.

Beachside bars with signs that read 'open when the sun is shining', vendors selling fresh green peas and ripe cherries, and gently rotating wind mills create a pretty warm landscape to complement the city's otherwise Nordic Cool attitude. Not bad Copenhagen, not bad at all.

Cycle Chic Super Cargo Dads

It's quiet in Copenhagen at the moment, during the three weeks of summer holidays. The numbers of bicycle users heading to and from work are still mind-blowing to visitors but it is clear to those of us that live here that most of the nation are holidaying at home, in their summer houses or off travelling.


Cargo bikes and Copenhagen are like a hand and a glove. With 40,000 cargo bikes in the city you're certain to see them everywhere. In the summer holidays the pace slows. Kids don't have to be transported off to kindergarten or school but cargo bikes still fulfill an important role. There are still beaches or museums to be visited, playgrounds to be explored.

Denmark is one of the countries in the world with the greatest level of gender equality. It's not just in business or politics - out of the eight polictical parties, four have female leaders, including the Prime Minister - but in everyday life. A simple phrase from other societies like "soccer mom", for example, seems rather odd and archaeic. We're just soccer parents.

We hear, however, the same thing from cargo bike brands and bike shops. When a young family is discussing getting a cargo bike, it tends to be the mother who calls the shots regarding brand, accessories, etc. Nevertheless, the bike becomes The Family Bike when it rolls out of the shop, as you can see in this article. Superdads just getting on with it. Rolling kids around the city.

Given our involvement in the European Cyclelogistics project, we have cargo bikes on the brain at the moment here at our offices. So here goes.


At left: Here are my kids napping on the way home from the beach on our Bullitt.
At right: My boy and two friends on our old Longjohn.






Christiania Bikes in action.







Nihola Bikes do their thang.


In Ljubljana and Montreal, too.




Bullitts from Larry vs Harry.


A no-name brand at left and an Winther Kangaroo at right. The flag reads "Go, Mum!" and they were riding alongside his wife as she ran the Copenhagen Marathon.

The iconic Triobike.


Bakfiets from the Netherlands.

Sorte Jernhest (means Black Iron Horse). The one on the right is available for residents to borrow from various locations around the city.

Then again... kids are doin' it for themselves.

Vitória Cycle Chic - Brazil

I went to fantasyland. On a trip to Brazil for Cycle Chic/Copenhagenize work last month, I was invited to the city of Vitoria for a visit. I accepted happily and booked my flight from Sao Paulo. It was only once I arrived that I realised that I had no idea where on the planet I was. I hadn't looked at a map to see where Vitoria was located. I just bought the ticket and arrived there.

It was a strange sensation not knowing where I was. After having travelled the world for so many years, it felt odd. I still don't know if I was north or south of Rio de Janeiro. But it didn't matter. It was actually quite cool arriving in this beautiful city on the sea named Victory.

It was Dora, from Vitoria Cycle Chic, who invited me. She is one of the many passionate individuals in our Cycle Chic Republic who are using our Cycle Chic trademark to promote cycling positively.

Dora is a bicycle stylist. Her company - Bike Caverna - restores and redesigns vintage bicycles - and Brazil is a country with A LOT of vintage bicycles.

I was given this lovely bicycle to use while in Vitoria. And there were many more of her creations on our Cycle Chic bike ride on the Sunday:

And of course there was a bicycle ride. That is one thing we at the Cycle Chic Republic love to do.


It's a beautiful little city. Located on an island facing the Atlantic. Calm and cool and oh so Brazilian. A little pearl of a place that foreign visitors rarely experience.



It was a dreamy two days in Vitoria. Good friends, good food and lots of citizen cycling around.



Like many of my Brazilian friends, Dora uses her allocated parking spot at her flat for intelligent transport storage.



I have discovered Fantasyland. It left an indelible impression on me.









Sigh.