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| gotta luv Canada |
We're just back from a trip to Seattle and Vancouver (hence the dubiously bilingual title). In Vancouver I went for a stroll along the waterfront at False Creek and saw this sign. A day later I rented a bike and rode past it, so I used both sides as directed.
The title refers to a book that Susan bought me recently called "Just Ride", in which the author is quite unkind to weekend road-racers like me (and the Mules?). Amongst many bike myths he attempts to debunk concerns helmet use. His idea is that wearing a helmet doesn't make you much safer but makes you think you're doing something dangerous. I've heard this argument a few times recently, and helmet opponents usually invoke Amsterdam as an example, where tens of thousands of people ride their bikes daily and almost no-one wears a helmet. So in the Just Ride spirit I planned to ride bare-headed in Vancouver, until the bike shop guy told me it was against the law.
The water front along False Creek and English Bay is just beautiful, and I had beautiful weather for my ride, too - sunny, clear and just a little cool. I followed a well-laid out bike trail all the way to Stanley Park, then rode some trails in the park until I hit a hill too steep for my liking (this wasn't meant to be a Mules slog, just a gentle cruise!) and turned around.
I got a bit crossed up in the one-way circuit around Stanley Park, so I decided to ride back on the street. From what we had seen, Vancouver was very bike-friendly, and I thought it would be fun to try some urban riding.
This area of Vancouver seems to change character with every block! I went from low-end commercial to beautiful, leafy residential to high-end commercial very quickly and was soon back at the bike shop. Great restaurants too...
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