Another Great Moment in Cycling

A simple shot. A simple moment captured. A warm day a while back. On the harbour. A Copenhagener doing some laptopping in the cool, autumn Nordic sun, bicycle leaning lazily against a rubbish bin. Another Copenhagener pedals past. Heading somewhere interesting and inspiring, we can hope. At the very least she is heading into the sunlight. Rarely a bad thing.

The Cycle Chic 2009 Calendar

So I figured I'd whip up a Limited Edition Cycle Chic Calendar for 2009. A photographic extravaganza of our cycling life in Copenhagen. Month by month, season by season, you can follow Copenhageners in their endless, rythmic cycle of life.

You'll recognise the photos from the blog, of course, and they are all accompanied by the same kind of pseudo-poetic texts. Not to mention inclusion of selected important events in the life of the city. For example:
February 14 - Charlotte picks up her bike from the shop. New tyres.
March 25 - Mads flirts with Sofie on the bike lane at the red light by The Lakes.
September 8 - Anne-Marie skips classes to squeeze in one last day at the beach.

And so on.

The calender is available for online purchase from Lulu.com. It measures 34.29 cm x 48.25 cm, comes with coil binding and is printed on Gloss White paper (100# weight).

When you click over to Lulu.com you can see a preview of the pages and zoom in and out and stuff. Let it load, sometimes it's slow.

Oh, and I called it a Limited Edition because it only helps you keep track of dates for 12 months from Janauary 2009 to Decemeber 2009. Which, considering the fact that it's been 14 billion years since the Big Bang, is a rather limited amount of time.

Treat yourself, buy it as a Christmas present for someone you fancy or just shrug and not bother and keep visiting the blog each day. Whatever works for you.

The Others & Some Misc Links

Some of my friends and acquaintences are contributing to the social documentary of a cycling life in Copenhagen. I figured I'd showcase some of them today. Above are two shots from Lars, who contributes regularly. I enjoy the contrasts. All of them.


Here's another great contrast in a photo from Lyvemaskine, another Copenhagener. Smart suit and a very, very blue bike.


Here's two brilliant shots from Johan, known as the Diamond Field on Flickr. He's a Swede but that's close enough.

In other, unrelated 'news', I have a new blog that I like. Luxuo - The Luxury Lifestyle Blog.


Nothing to do with cycling, just a gorgeous advert. Sure it's a completely over the top advert for Louis Vuitton, but the cinematography is exquisite.

And this new advert for SAS [Scandinavian Airlines] features a bicycle in New York. It's a Danish actor, Nicolaj Coster Waldau, playing himself. This series is brilliant. It hits the nail on the head for Danes and Scandinavians. Getting to the airport, ready to head home, seeing an SAS plane or even the logo makes you feel like you're halfway home.

Washington Cycle Chic

Derek, in Washington State, USA, is always kind enough to share his photos from BikeRubbish.com with us. After the previous post featuring photos of my Wifealiciousness, it's only appropriate that we feature this photo of Derek's Wifealiciousness - although he's not allowed to use that copyrighted name :-) - entitled "Grocery run with my sweet, sweet wife."

See some of Derek's previous shots on this blog with the 'bikerubbish' tag.

To Københavnere

Wifealiciousnsess and I met up in the city centre the other day for a bit of shopping. Our boy needed a new, stylish winter jacket and I was itching for some shoes and trousers. It started to snow when we were heading home, accompanied by a cold, nasty wind from Norway. Such is life in Copenhagen. If you don't like the weather, wait five minutes. Or just shrug and ride on through it in your 'cycling clothes'.

A little red light moment by Vesterport train station. That would be my rain/snow hat you're seeing there. Wifealiciousness is sporting a woolen hat and scarf she whipped up herself. Not an unsusual thing for a designer and stylist to do.

The title of the blog post is Danish for 'Two Copenhageners'. The word Københavner is frightfully difficult to pronounce but sounds much like 'Koobenhowna'. And that wraps up today's Danish lesson. :-)

Toboggan by Bike

The day after the first snowfall you head invariably to a local park to catch some sliding action. Okay, you do so if you have kids, not if you scored a hot guy/girl the night before in a tequila frenzy and you just woke up in a strange bed with a hangover... then you probably don't head out to catch some sledding. Everything is relative.

But I digress... Not suffering from hangovers, my kids and I went to a local park in the morning. By Long John, of course. Above is Felix after the sledding fact, snacking on a rice cracker. Lulu, bottom right, is already sleeping. Her first meeting with snow, hills and slippery, high speed, plastic contraptions was positive and exhausting.

All manner of slippery devices are transported to hills all over the country by all manner of bikes when the snow falls. Here's a Nihola in action in Frederiksberg Gardens.

And here's Lulu's very first sled ride.

Friday Night Snow Couples

Friday nights are Friday nights, regardless of the weather. And couples, like anyone else, have places to go, things to do, people to see. By bicycle, as a rule. You can ride side by side, if you like, or just hop on the back rack like the girl above.

Copenhagen Snow Chic

The first snowfall of the winter over Copenhagen. It started gently. I was in a café taking a spot of lunch and when the flakes started drifting down the bartender put on Christmas music. So very cosy. The Copenhagener above didn't seem to mind.



It started snowing more as the light faded and Copenhagners sped through it on their way home.


It started to stick in the early evening. The bike lane snowploughs hit the lanes but until there get there, you just muscle on through.


In the centre of the city the snow quickly turned to slush but snow and slush are no good excuse not to take your bike and hit the town on a Friday night.


Copenhagener looking as stylish as ever in the evening. No doubt heading off to meet friends and have a great night.

While others were heading out on the town, I was heading home, knowing all too well that sledding was on the menu for me and the kids in the morning.

Motion Picture Bicycles

Headlights - TV

Here's another music video featuring the bicycle and a healthy portion of Cycle Chic. A group called Headlights with their single 'TV' from their debut album 'Kill Them With Kindness'. Really quite lovely. Cool bike, cool and casual people. Thanks to Colin for the heads up.


And while this is not a music video, it certainly is Brasil Cycle Chic. It's an advert for an auto insurance company who are promoting the bicycle. Nice irony. Makes me long for Brasil and Rio. Beautiful cinematography.


Here's a fun t-shirt design now available in our online boutique. These signs used to be standard in Denmark, featuring a dapper cyclist on a normal bike and complete with a brimmed hat. Let them all know that a stylish cyclist is on the way. There is a gentleman's t-shirt [pictured] and a couple of ladies styles.

Hazy Bikeness

The summer is almost forgotten now with snow drizzling down, the wintery winds blowing and chilly rain washing the light away...
Velomama is working too much work and has crept inside to get all cosy & back into the cyclelicious mood.

So let's be nostalgic, shall we!?


Sometimes Copenhagen's like a dream and you don't want to wake up...




I love this slogan: It's only love give it away...

City Hall Square

A Copenhagener crosses Hans Christian Andersen Boulevard towards the City Hall Square. Hat and heels. Basket and scarf. And everything matches the Copenhagen blue bike lanes.

A Copenhagener pedals his ladyfriend across the same intersection in their Christiania Bike.

Both photos are fine candidates for the Hat theme.

Wallpaper request fulfilled:

A couple of requests for this photo as a wallpaper came in, and here you go. 1600x1200.

Rainy Sunday

Rainy days have established a bridgehead for winter to roll on in. It's good to be prepared for the precipitation.

And here, in the city centre.

There are, of course, other ways to deal with it.

Or just put up your hood and get on with it. It's only water.

For a tongue in cheek rundown of Copenhagen fashion, have a look at this page on the website for the always cool Vice Magazine, giving you the current state of the fashion nation in Copenhagen for 2008.

"People in Denmark like to refer to themselves as “laid-back” and “mellow.” They act like they don’t give a hoot about fashion, or anything else for that matter, but they mix up as many styles as possible in order to acquire absolute nonstyle, and that seems to take a pretty good amount of forethought. Anyway, the desired look is messy, slightly sexy clothes, preferably picked right out of a dirty laundry pile on your floor."

"Last year, everyone burned out on baby fashion (aka new rave), so men and women in Copenhagen are backlashing by getting into lumberjacks, anarchism, and Islam. We hereby predict that those will be the three latent fashion highlights of ’08."

Left to Right - Right to Left Motion

Cycling into a headwind along Copenhagen Harbour.

Hustling across the City Hall Square.

Two speeds in motion. One a bit faster and one considerably more relaxed and practising the Copenhagen Two-Finger Steer.

Cyclistas

Copenhagen winter wear. Below zero with the wind chill, snow on the way this weekend, but goodness me, don't let that stop the cyclistas.


How to wait to cross a zebra crossing in Copenhagen.

Collegiate Cruisers

An American company, The Collegiate Bicycle Company, markets cruisers for that uniquely American, tribal university crowd. You can get bikes branded for your college or your fraternity/sororiety - the latter is a concept that has always escaped me - it's all Greek to me - but at least it always looks like they have fun.

What I like best is their marketing of the products. Collegiate Cycle Chic to the max, dude - pronounced 'dood', bien sûr. Skirts and bikini tops and smiling girls on bikes. It could be any Danish beach in the summer.

The company has plans to start bike share programmes on campuses in the States, which is a brilliant idea. It must be easier to implement them on a university campus than in a bureacratic city council. They exist already but more of them will be brilliant.