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A reflection on ‘The Bicycle Diaries’ by David Byrne
July 3, 2016
Originally posted on Slowquest in 2011.
David Byrne’s primary mode of city transport during his career as a musician and artist is a bicycle. In a conversational style, Byrne talks about his observations whilst riding his bike.
On a podcast of ’the Bike Show’ on Resonance FM, there was a feature on how when you cycle, your brain is in an alpha-wave state. Your conscious and unconscious minds are slightly better linked and thoughts are more easily able to bubble over from one to the other. I found I had a clarity of thought and more ideas would emerge whilst I was travelling by bicycle.
Tags: Bicycle DiariesDavid BrynePsychogeographyBookBook Review
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16 reasons you might enjoy reading about my Cycle Touring Adventure in Europe - Weave of the Ride
July 2, 2016
Weave of the Ride is a book I wrote about cycling from England to the Caucasus between 2007 and 2008. It is a tale of wanting to make a change and have an adventure. Do you want to read about beautiful but unusual places, unique experiences and freedom and how to discover these things yourself? If so read on about Weave of the Ride.
- It is the story of going from one lifestyle to another. Sometimes it isn’t easy to make a transition in life and you get stuck in a rut. I think it’s good to read a story about having anxiety about life, feeling like there are no options, but following a feeling, process, taking opportunities and making a change. The process of making a change can be really hard. However, in reality it is just a series of small steps, which lead to you in a different path.
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Surly Long Haul Trucker Adventure Touring Bike Review
July 1, 2016
I recently visited Oakham Cycles to test ride the Surly Long Haul Trucker. I wanted to check it out because it is a go-to bike, good value, used and recommended by many for adventure cycle touring. Having always built and ridden my own bikes based on mountain bike frames and with the abundance of specific adventure touring bikes now available I wanted to compare the bike considered to be the benchmark to other bikes I’ve ridden.
Tags: Adventure touring bikeLong haul truckerSurlyReviewBike
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Ways to Make a Protest More Effective
June 30, 2016
Whilst studying at Goldsmiths in 2011 I did a project where I was looking at how protests usually work and thinking about how to make them more effective.
More Noise
Instruments, drums, speaker systems. No pop music is allowed though as pop music is usually made in order to be a commodity and be sold which is not in the spirit of a protest. A protest is more about collective unity and expression, not profit.
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Coast HL27 Headlamp Review for Night Running, Hiking, Mountain Biking with Adjustable Zoom / Dim
June 21, 2016
You might be more likely to find this headlamp in a hardware store than an outdoor shop. However, this lamp ticks many of the boxes in the search for my ideal headlamp. Are you looking for a headlamp for night running, hiking or mountain biking that is good value, rugged and has an adjustable brightness and zoom? The Coast HL27 might be for you.
The Company
Coast started off producing knives for filleting salmon in Portland Oregon. They branched out producing knives for other vocations. In the eighties they moved into producing multitools and is one of the largest producers of multitools. More recently their product line has moved into flashlights and headlamps. They clearly have a long craft heritage and you can read more about their history on their site
Tags: HikingBikingLampLightHeadlampHl27CoastRunningMountain bikingheadlight
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List of adventure, expedition and bike packing bikes 2016
June 1, 2016
I recently came across an excellent resource on cyclingabout.com. It is amazing the level of research that has gone into the list. The number of companies offering bespoke touring bikes is mind boggling. This is why I’ve been through the list and picked out the ones that appeal to me. I’m on the search for a new adventure bike.
I recently tested a Surly Long Haul Trucker. It is a great bike. It made me wish a little that I had gone for an off the peg bike instead of putting together my own, simply because the frame geometry is so planted and that little bit of extra weight makes it flow along.
Tags: Adventure cyclingTrekking bikeExpedition bikeTouring bikeMountain bikingCyclingBike
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Transboundary Mountain Bike Trail in the Caucasus
April 25, 2016
I wrote this doc in 2014 and took it round to a bunch of NGOs in Tbilisi with the aim to getting some assistance to build it. Friend Tom Allen is currently travelling to the Caucasus to create a hiking trail so thought I would put it out there as part of the awareness raising about the benefit of these kinds of projects.
Note that mountain bike trails are generally different from hiking trails. At the least mountain bike trails should be of a rideable gradient (up and down). Of course you can take a mountain bike anywhere and there is now such a thing as bike packing which is mountain biking with frame luggage and not minding hike-a-biking sections but its even more niche.
Tags: TrailMountain biking