Designing Bicycles & Urban Lifestyles

How to design a lifestyle? from Bicycle Innovation Lab on Vimeo.

It's hardly a secret that Cycle Chic® is run by Copenhagenize Consulting, the mobility consultancy that works with cities around the world in becoming more bicycle friendly. While this blog came first, it is now an extension of our work in promoting cycling around the world.

I'll be speaking here in Copenhagen - at the Danish Architecture Center - on October 30th, 2012, together with designer Jens Martin Skibsted from KiBiSi. It's a part of the lecture series from Bicycle Innovation Lab - Denmark's cultural centre for cycling that we co-founded last year.

Jens Martin will be talking about bicycle design - based on his work with Biomega. I'll be talking about designing streets instead of engineering them. Designing lifestyle is the theme.

The film, above, is a teaser for the event.

The lectures are free and they will be in English, so feel free to come on down if you're in Copenhagen.

Rio Cycle Chic Bike Ride

When I was in Rio de Janeiro last week I was picked up by bicycle at the airport and rode all the way into town on bike lanes. THAT is a sign of a cool city.

The next day my friends put on a fantastic Cycle Chic bike ride to celebrate the launch of Rio de Janeiro Cycle Chic. A 12 hour affair starting at five in the afternoon, we were around forty or so people at the peak. We rode along the bike lanes parallel to the iconic LeBlon, Ipanema and Copacabana beaches before heading around the bay to the monument commemorating the founder of the city where I gave a short speech about Cycle Chic and what it is all about and what it can achieve. After beers - and wonderful snacks provided by the bicycle-oriented La Biciclette Bakery in Rio - we moved on to various bars and nightclubs. A cracking event true to the Cycle Chic spirit. Rio is ready for Cycle Chic.

Here are some beautiful photos from the ride from our photographer, as posted on Sydney Cycle Chic.

We'll be posting some more shots from the city quicksmart.

Sandy Toes

Boy, do I ever miss Barcelona. Riding around on the Cycle Chic bicycle, down to the beach, on to a café.

Fortunately, I'll be speaking in Brazil on Saturday, in Sao Paulo. Followed by a great party in Rio de Janeiro next week. So I'll get my fix of barefooted bicycle riding with sandy toes. Which is tough this summer here in Copenhagen.

Here's a few other barefoot bicycle shots:

Montreal J'♥ - and Ottawa, too

Montreal here I come.

I'll be visiting Montreal this coming week as a guest of Vélo Quebec. First thing on the agenda is my talk at Auditorium de la Grande Bibliothèque on Wednesday, June 1st where I'll present my template for how cities can promote cycling effectively, postively and with concrete results.

Here are the details, also available on Vélo Quebec's website:
Mercredi 1er juin, 10 h 30 — entrée libre
Wednesday, June 1st, 10:30 - free entry
Address: 475, boulevard de Maisonneuve Est

The rest of the week is chock full of Bike Week events, including Cycle Chic events like a photo shoot, a press conference for the launch of Montreal Cycle Chic and participating in the bike rides Le Tour la Nuit and Le Tour de l’île de Montréal.

OTTAWA
Although on Friday, June 3rd, I'll be in Ottawa to give my talk. This time the hosts are Cycling Vision in Ottawa and I'm looking forward to it, too.

Here are the details about the Ottawa leg:
Friday, June 3, Noon
Address: Cartier Place Hotel, 180 Cooper St (east of Elgin)

Looking forward to meeting readers of both Cycle Chic and Copenhagenize.com in both cities!

Cycle Chic Goes to Helsinki!

Mikael will be in Helsinki this weekend to give his Four Goals for Promoting Urban Cycling talk at the Megapolis 2024 festival. Which will be cool.

BUT... there will also be a Cycle Chic get together this Friday and Mikael will be on hand to take some Cycle Chic Helsinki photos! Check out the Facebook event here.

Cycle Chic Interview

On my recent visit to Melbourne for the State of Design Festival, the good people from Inframe.tv shoved me into a chair at Denmark House and engaged me in a chat about Cycle Chic. The origins and the philosophy and all that.

French Bicycle Advocate Cycle Chic

Last week, as mentioned, I was in La Rochelle, France attending a national bicycle conference as a speaker.

On one of the days we all went for a bike ride around the city, ending up at city hall. These photos are a good indication of what passionate French bicycle advocates look like.

Skirts and heels.

Dapper in the evening.

Poise and casual elegance.

If it's role models we're looking for in order to promote urban cycling as a normal, accepted and respected transport form, this bunch are leading the way.

Cycle Chic & Copenhagenize Goes to New York

Photo © Copenhagen Cycle Chic / Theis Mortensen

Cycle Chic rolls into New York on Sunday in the guise of... well... me. I'll be speaking at two venues in the city, so if you're around...

On Monday, 28 September 2009, Transportation Alternatives and the Consulate General of Denmark are co-hosting a lecture at City Bakery from 6-9 PM for members of TA. For more information and to RSVP, check out TA's website right here.

I've decided that I need to abbreviate the titles of some of these lectures. Apparently I'll be speaking about:
The Behavioral Challenges of Marketing Bicycle Culture: Making Bicycles an Equal Partner in Traffic

On Tuesday, 29 September 2009, I'll be speaking at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. (I'm not the only one who need title abbreviation :-)) It takes place from 1:00PM - 2:30PM at Room 114, Avery Hall. Here it's my Marketing Bicycle Culture lecture.

The shot above is of the Danish singer Ane Trolle in New York City. Cool girl on a cool bike. Ane sings in Ja' Confetti and she has feat. on Trentemøller tracks, too.

So... tell me New Yorkers. Where to go? What to see? I've been to the city many, many times, but where am I likely to catch the most bicycle traffic? What bicycle related stuff should I see? Where's the best sandwiches/beer/etc?

Czech Cycle Chic in Pardubice

I arrived at Prague Airport and was whisked away down motorways and country roads for an hour and a half. I saw one cyclist on the route.

Then, suddenly, we rolled across the town limits of Pardubice, and it was almost like coming home.

Bicycles, bicycles, bicycles. The town of about 90,000 is the cycling capital of the Czech Republic and it shows. 18% of all trips to work or school are by bike and the vast majority of the people on bikes were just regular citizens pedalling about on, for the most part, vintage bikes like the girl in the photo above. It was brilliant.

The occasion of my visit was two-fold. Firstly, I was invited to give my lecture at City Hall about Marketing Bicycle Culture. The Danish ambassador was on hand to say a few words.

Secondly, there in a street exhibition of 30 of my photos along the main stretch of town. 30 photos of a Copenhagen bicycle life. I can't tell you how fun it was to see the photos out in the open like that. In a gallery is lovely, but on the streets is somehow cooler and more appropriate. Images from one urban landscape transplanted into another.



The lecture was, by all accounts, well-recieved and it was wonderful to meet so many Pardubicians of all ages and to discuss how the city can take their bicycle infrastructure to the next level.

I was whisked away to Prague, where I had other business the next day and I'll write about that shortly.

Czech This Out

If any of you are in the neighbourhood of Pardubice, in the Czech Republic, on the 16th of September, I'll be speaking about Copenhagen's bicycle culture there. In addition, a series of my photographs will adorn the lampposts of the city throughout European Mobility Week.