biking – Jonathan Frei

The home stretch

Jonathan Frei — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 12:18:53 +0000

Cyborg Enhancements: Wheels and Pedals

Jonathan Frei — Mon, 24 Aug 2015 02:43:03 +0000

The best technologies are the ones that enhance your natural abilities rather than replace them. These are the innovations that have historically had the biggest impact on what humanity can accomplish, and this is the factor to watch for when deciding what emerging technologies to get excited about. Sep Kamvar, writing about the power efficiencies of a human brain and body vs. that of a super computer, points out how energy efficient a car is compared to a person on a bike.

A midsized car gets a little over half a mile per kilocalorie of energy. A human walking gets 10 miles per kilocalorie. Even if we exclude the cost of the car, the cost of the road, and the cost of the infrastructure we build for fueling, walking is still 20 times as efficient as driving.

There does exist a vehicle that is more efficient than a human walking: a human on a bicycle. A human on a bicycle gets 25 miles per kilocalorie, the equivalent of 750 miles per gallon. Like my fictitious Jeopardy software, the bicycle is a light-touch technology, that extends the human’s natural ability for mobility rather than replacing it.

I knew there was a reason biking feels so good. It is an efficient tool that greatly enhances my natural ability to get around.

Jonathan Frei — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 19:19:00 +0000

Yes. Please.

Superpedestrian – The Copenhagen Wheel

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

Jonathan Frei — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 15:24:00 +0000

‘This one runs on fat & saves you money’ by Peter Drew of Adelaide (photo by carltonreid).

I previously posted this image more than three years ago, shortly after I started commuting to work by bike. It represents one of the many reasons I ride to work, which I will continue to do for the foreseeable future.

Jonathan Frei — Sat, 31 Aug 2013 01:35:46 +0000

Glow bike

This isn’t the right bike for my current riding habits, but it would be very cool to zip around town on one of these at night. The Pure Fix Glow Bike has a clean simple look to it during the day, but lights up with an alien-green glow in the dark.

The bike is coated with a solar-activated paint that absorbs sunlight during the day and glows at night. They say an hour of sunlight will give an hour of glow, so you’d have to park it in the sun during the day if you’re planning a night ride.

It’s probably not important to have the whole bike light up. You could probably find glow paint you could use on an existing bike frame to achieve a similar effect.

Jonathan Frei — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 14:50:00 +0000

(via Pearls Before Swine Comic Strip, January 13, 2013 on GoComics.com)

Turkeys in Hot Pursuit

Jonathan Frei — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 15:07:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cb4VYv8JTBQ

This is the first time I’ve been chased by wild turkeys on the way to work. Their pursuit concerned me at first, especially since my people had just finished massacring and eating their people, but early in the chase it became clear they were friendly, playful even.

Now I know where the term ‘Turkey Trot’ comes from.

Jonathan Frei — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:47:59 +0000

Benefits of riding a bike

I only care about a few of these benefits. Guess which ones.

Jonathan Frei — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 23:06:15 +0000

The Florida rainy season is back again. That means there’s going to be more days where I look like this biker.

(via Dahab Underwater Ride « Cairo Cyclists Club)

Jonathan Frei — Tue, 29 May 2012 21:55:11 +0000

I can bike anywhere.

explore-blog:

Mapping America’s bike lanes.