The week’s top bike news from around the world, brought to you every Wednesday.
Local news
Fifty percent of Aussie workers would commute by bike for cash
Bicycle Network has welcomed the support of the Heart Foundation and bike manufacturers and wholesalers for financial incentives for bike riders – a scheme Bicycle Network put forward to Prime Minister Tony Abbott more than a year ago. The heart Foundation and the Cycling Promotion Fund conducted a survey of 2,000 non-riding workers and found that 50% would be likely to travel to work by bike if there were financial incentive to do so, and 80% would support such an incentive, even if they didn’t take up cycling.
Check out Ride On‘s feature, ‘Paid to ride?’, discussing financial incentives for bike commuters here.
Bike police taking questions
If there’s a road rule you’re unsure of, Victoria Police’s State Bicycle Operations Coordinator Sergeant Arty Lavos is taking questions in an online chat session at 12:30pm on Monday, 3 November. Submit your questions ahead of time to @VictoriaPolice using the hashtag #BikeSafetyVic.
Aussie women get active
According to recent findings by Roy Morgan Research, the number of Aussie women participating in sport is on the rise, with jogging, cycling and yoga proving particularly popular. However, the majority of active women still fall in the younger age brackets, with women under 18 being 53% more likely to ride a bike than the average woman. While this isn’t surprising, it is a reminder for the rest of us to continue seeking opportunities to get active.
Hosking signs with Wiggle Honda
After learning her contract would not be renewed with Norwegian-based team Hitec Products, 24-year-old Aussie sprinter Chloe Hosking considered hanging up her helmet for good. “It would be easier to go back to Australia, get a real job and say, ‘well I’ve been to the World Championships, I’ve been to the Commonwealth Games, I’ve been to the Olympics. That’s enough’,” she said. “But when I really thought about it, it isn’t enough.” She’s now secured a contract with UK-based team Wiggle Honda and says she’s hungry for some big wins in 2015: “I’ve been on the podium the last two years and I’m over being a bridesmaid”.
International news
Afghan women reclaim the bike
Here in Australia, we take it for granted that we can just get on our bikes and go, but in Afghanistan a group of women on an early morning training ride attract negative and often dangerous attention. However, the Afghan Women’s Cycling Team are determined to persist with their sport and make it to the 2016 Olympics. According to Shannon Galpin, an American who helps coach the team, it’s not about winning a medal. “These girls are challenging a big taboo in Afghanistan, riding a bicycle,” she said. “Bikes equal freedom of movement and independent travel. They are a cheap and accessible way for women to get to schools and hospitals, and they make it harder for men to attack them.”
‘Smart’ lanes headed for UK?
Glow-in-the-dark road lane markings, developed and recently trialled in the Netherlands, may be on their way to the UK. The solar-charged lane-markings save electricity, and are a simple way to identify both car and bike lanes in low-light and foggy conditions.
Health
Can a good night’s sleep boost your ride?
Cycling Tips’ Matt de Neef speaks with Dr Shona Halson, senior physiologist at the Australian Institute of Sport, to find out how sleep habits affect our performance on the bike.
Video
The Longest Lap
The first ever British Marymoor Crawl was held last weekend as part of the Revolution Series. Originating in the US in 2005, ‘The Longest Lap’ is one of cycling’s more bizarre events and sees cyclists trackstand for up to four minutes before sprinting around a 400 metre track. If riders put a foot down, grab the rail, touch another rider, roll backwards, exit the track or fall off, they are disqualified. It’s quite a spectacle—take a look:
Upcoming events
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