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Italy 2013: More of Rome

Ryan and I are preparing to leave Rome for Milan in our Hertz rental car (it is a massive Nissan EV200 van). We also added the Glass and Tires coverage (we like to insure ourselves to the max), the NeverLost GPS (it is a new TomTom model and a road trip lifesaver) and a Hertz Mobile Wifi package. Yes, we have a unlimited 3G 21.6Mbps daily with a Huawei 3G wifi router that can be shared with more than one device. It saved us the trouble of getting prepaid simcards for both our phones and we now have internet in the vehicle and everywhere else.

In fact, I am typing and uploading this on the highway now. Don't worry, Ryan is driving, not me.

But before leaving for Milan, I thought I'd share some more thoughts and photos on Rome.

After a day of riding around Rome, I have come to develop a strong sense of survival. The drivers mostly treat traffic lights and traffic rules like opinions and the pedestrians are the same.

You know why no one walks and uses smartphones on the streets of Rome? They have all been run over by Roman cars and scooters already. As a friend said, there are only two kinds of pedestrians in Rome: the Quick and the Dead.

The driving here is best described in Hokkien terms as Boh Hew and Gar Gar Lai.

We prepared our Moulton and Bike Friday bicycles in the room and rode out in the slight drizzle. No one seemed to be affected by the rain, gamely queuing to get into attractions like Vatican City.

From what I can surmise, Rome's economy is driven mainly by Bangladeshis selling souvenirs and ponchos/umbrellas when it rains. The hardworking fellows were everywhere, peddling their wares to all and sundry. One fellow I saw offered to shield an irate elderly gentleman with his huge umbrella while trying to persuade him to buy one of his fine mini-umbrellas.

People here smoke a lot. Shopkeepers smoke, young people smoke, and even the cops nonchalantly light up on duty.

Still, despite the smoking and the chaos, it is a beautiful city full of old buildings and history, and streets made of cobblestones that can throw you and your bicycle into the air if you are not careful.

We spent quite a bit of time walking too, to soak in the sights, the sounds and sometimes, the smells. We decided to try the subway here, to get to the Colosseum. You pay a flat rate of €1,50 for a ticket to take the subway in one direction for up to 100 minutes. The turnstiles don't take the ticket back when you exit so I am not sure how this is enforced. Maybe there are random inspections.

You can also pay €6 for an all-day subway pass.

This is the obligatory photo of the Colosseum, or Colosseo, as the Italians call it. Carved on some of the walls nearby, I saw a few maps that showed the extent of the Roman Empire. The Romans certainly owned quite a bit of Europe back in the day.

The neighboring area around the Colosseo is quite pleasant to walk around. We walked into a coffee place and when the barista asked if we were taking away or having here, and we said, having here (it was raining outside).

We should have suspected something when the waiter offered us the cafe wifi password without us asking. "The service very good hor?" we told each other.

Then our coffees came. "The caffè latte very nice to drink hor?" we said, impressed by the taste and the service.

Our lattes cost us €18 total. That's almost S$30. Ouch.

I will leave you with something I read in a travel forum as I was searching for hotels to book:

HEAVEN is:
Where the mechanics are German
the policemen are English
the cooks are French
the lovers are Italian
and everything is run by the Swiss.

HELL is:
Where the mechanics are French
the policemen are German
the cooks are English
the lovers are Swiss
and everything is run by the Italians.

Safe Cycling with mrbrown: Please Don't Squeeze!

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/Ww4tLi

It is tempting but cyclists, please don't squeeze! The final video in the Safe Cycling series.

Safe Cycling with mrbrown: Taking the Lane

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/WgFoT4

When should cyclists "take the lane"?

Safe Cycling with mrbrown: Taxis and Buses

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/13TeKo5

Watch out for taxis and buses when cycling on the roads!

Safe Cycling with mrbrown: Riding too close to the left

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/YqDpKL

You may think you're supposed to cycle as left of the road as possible. You are mistaken.

Safe Cycling with mrbrown: Dooring

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/130sBUD

Dooring is one of the most common causes of cyclist crashes. Learn how you can avoid getting doored.

Chionging our way through KL at OCBC Cycle Malaysia 2013

Ryan and I were in KL over the weekend to ride at OCBC Cycle Malaysia, the second year this event has been held in Malaysia.

We brought along two foldies, a pink Moulton TSR and a white Tyrell fx, with super-comfy Rido saddles, kindly sponsored by onesport for our 48km Challenge ride. We also shot some video with our sponsored Looxcie HD cameras. I will share that in a later post.

We were joined by bloggers like @Sivasothi a.k.a. Otterman who blogs at Cycling in Singapore, Kevin a.k.a. @BrainOpera and other media friends like Shawn and Adrian.

We spent Saturday watching the races like the Men’s Open and Masters’ Criteriums, where the pros showed us how fast they can ride.

In the photo below is the lead dancer of a group that did a dance number just before the Men's Open Criterium.

Ryan muttered to me just before the pre-race dance began, "They'd better not be doing Gangnam Style…" and just as he finished that sentence, the overplayed music of Psy kicked in. It was like a pre-Criterium war dance of joy.

As for this next photo, I have no idea how it got into my camera. I think her role was to pass the prizes and the starting airhorn to the VIPs.

On Sunday morning, we woke up at 4am and met at 5.45am at our hotel lobby for the short ride to the starting point at KLCC.

Yes, FOUR. A. M.

That is the time I usually go to SLEEP but I was a good boy and slept early on Saturday night.

Kevin was there with his Pugsley and its giant tires (it drew a LOT of attention). That's Shawn Chung behind Kevin, who rides like the wind (he overtook us on his third lap while Ryan and I were at our second of four laps around KLCC).

Siva was there with more lights on his bike than a Christmas tree. He is a kindred spirit because I love lights too. Siva took a photo of me adjusting my timing chip on my Moulton.

When all of us were assembled, we rode to join the riders at KLCC and found ourselves in front of the second wave. I have no idea how we ended up there but Kevin has a photo of us poised to go.

I looked like i was high on cough mixture in that photo.

[Photo courtesy of Julian]

Ryan and I fell behind, to the back of the pack very quickly but we knew our own pace. We were to do four laps around Suria KLCC, a total of 48km.

Once we started riding, we realized how many slopes there were in the route. Good grief, some of these inclines went on forever. But once you reached the top, bombing downhill was fast and fun. We also got to see the potholed streets of KL, and it took some maneuvering to avoid them.

Kevin has a photo of the road marshal who bravely stood for an hour warning cyclists to slow down before a dangerous sinkhole.

There were some riders who overestimated themselves and pengsan-ed by the second lap. There were a few who buanged but no one was seriously hurt, I think. Some rode too fast over humps or huge cracks on the road, and blew their skinny racing tires out, requiring a tube change by the road.

What was amazing was that the organizers managed to close so many roads in the heart of KL for those few hours on Sunday morning. Although that did not stop one or two stubborn Malaysian cars and motorbikes from trying to break into the closed roads filled with us cyclists. They got a lot of "Oi!" and shouts of "Idiot!" from all of us.

While others were trying to beat their personal times, Ryan and I had but one goal: to finish our 48km Challenge in time for breakfast back at the hotel. You can tell we have our priorities straight. And in case you are wondering, we did make it in time for the buffet. It was a fun weekend indeed.

USA 2012: Riding Chicago

Chicago is such a marked contrast from Ann Arbor. This is the Big City personified, with high rise buildings everywhere, and old buildings standing next to the swanky new ones.

When I got here, the temperature was 24°C, a little unusual for this time of year. I even complained that I didn't get to wear my warm clothing. Me and my big mouth because the next evening, it plunged to 7°C with rain and winds. And it's the wind that gets you, cutting into you like a blade. I understood finally why they call Chicago the Windy City.

I love the old buildings here, like The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago.

I also made my pilgrimage to the Vivian Maier exhibition at the Chicago History Museum. She is one of my favourite street photographers, and she captured people and the cityscape in her photographs, most of it in Chicago.

And of course, I found a little time to cycle my Bike Friday Tikit in Chicago. One fine afternoon, after lunch, I rode along the 18-mile-long Lakefront Trail that hugs the coast of Lake Michigan.

From my hotel, a short ride on the street took me to this funky tunnel to the trail.

Then it was just 18 miles (or 29km) of sweet bike path with a most gorgeous view.

At the south end of the Lakefront Trail is Navy Pier, a major tourist attraction.

At the north end of the trail, there are other parks, small harbors and scattered sculptures.

I cycled with my jacket, gloves and wooly hat, and found it warm enough for riding in 10°C temperatures. You generate heat once you ride a little harder.

By the time I headed back to the hotel, I could see the blinking lights of other riders, making their way home by bike as the sun set. I wish I had more than two days here to explore more of the Windy City. I shan't wish for cold winds next time though.

USA 2012: Riding around Ann Arbor, Michigan

I had great time speaking to the Singaporeans in Ann Arbor, Michigan. There were many students and some working adults.

I also met some married couples with babies. They got do national duty leh!

I think we brought the warm weather to Ann Arbor. It's supposed to be 6-9°C in the day here but it has been 24°C for the last two days. I just needed to wear just my t-shirt (and pants lah) to cycle my Bike Friday Tikit (thanks My Bike Shop!)

Zingerman's was one of the first stops we made. They make the awesomest sandwiches. I had the corned beef Reuben. Yum.

Ann Arbor is lovely in the fall. The colours are everywhere and the university town has a laid back character that I totally enjoyed.

I spent most of my time riding around the Huron River. It has a lovely bikeway and you can even canoe on the river. I rode as far north as Barton Pond, and also rode past Argos Cascade, Bandemer Park, and the Cedar Bend Nature Area in the south.

It was a lovely ride and I am glad I brought the bicycle along.

In other news, I am ensuring that I am properly moisturized while I am here in the US. But trust my wife to give me a body lotion that has "jojoba and shea butter" for my trip. I smell womanly now. And yummy too.

Taipei 2012: mrbrown cycles Taipei (video)

My buddy/cameraman, Ryan, and I went to Taipei in September (read the blog posts here, here and here), and we rode the bikeways there with our folding bicycles (Bike Friday Tikit and Tern Link P9 kindly sponsored by My Bike Shop).

Let us take you on a little tour!

Youtube link: http://mrbrwn.co/Wp21nD

Taipei 2012: Riding the Danshui River Bikeway (淡水腳踏車道)

We didn't get enough of Taipei's bikeways so we decided to ride westward on the Danshui River Bikeway (淡水腳踏車道), also known as the Tamsui Bikeway. This was way more challenging because there was a hill in our planned route.

We rode our Tern Link P9 and Bike Friday Tikit folding bicycles provided by My Bike Shop along the Danshui River Bikeway, which is not as pretty as the Keelung River one, but still very functional to ride on. The weather today was hot, and the sun was going to make us tanned hunks (or more like Bak Kua). We made sure to drink lots of water to avoid heat exhaustion.

We had a cold Chin Chow drink at the street of 景文街 (Jingmei St) where the 景美夜市 (night market) is. It was a much needed stop.

After we rode past the Taipei Zoo and Maokong Gondola (貓空纜車), we finally reached our biggest challenge: going up Fudekeng hill (福德坑復育園區, Fudekeng Repopulation Park). We tried riding for a while but eventually had to push our bikes up.

It was doubly hard because we made a wrong turn somewhere and bombed downhill only to realise we made a mistake, and had to push our bikes uphill twice.

There are two major things on the hill. The refuse collection services and cemeteries. Not exactly very lovely things to look. There were sculptures in the park and when we got to the top, the view was surprisingly awesome.

It was definitely worth the effort.

We then went downhill (the most fun part) towards 中華科技大學 (China University of Science and Technology) and cycled towards the Keelung River Bikeway that would take us home.

By the time we got back to the hotel, we had ridden more than six hours and my face was salty. But it was a fun and rewarding day. I spent a long time taking my shower (to get clean lah).

Here is map of the route we took on our Second Day of Riding:

Cycling For Everyone by the Dutch Cycling Embassy

Cycling For Everyone from Dutch Cycling Embassy on Vimeo.

Lovely video on everyday cycling, by the Dutch Cycling Embassy, via Streetsblog.

mrbrown rides his bicycle to eat fishball mee

I made another cycling video with the GoPro HD video camera and this time, I went from office to Kembangan, to eat fishball noodles, and along the way, I saw a very odd car.

Then I made my way through Siglap estate back to Katong, to my fave bicycle shop to get my bicycle serviced. All in all, a nice ride today.

This time, I aimed the camera higher as requested by many (sorry for making you guys puke the last time) and the view was nicer, I thought.

Ride safe and keep the rubber side down!

Ride of Silence 2011

Tomorrow, Saturday the 21st of May, is Ride of Silence again.

The ride, in honor of those who have been injured or killed while cycling on public roadways, will begin at Marina Bay Sands Promenade and it will be a 20km loop.

Registration is at 8am, and ride begins at 10am. Helmets are mandatory.

Details at the Ride of Silence, Singapore site.

This year, I lost a good cycling buddy, Paul Lim, who was killed when a drunk driver hit the lorry he was hitching a ride on. The impact was so great, the lorry tipped over.

Paul was on his way to Desaru to ride his Moulton folding bicycle when this accident happened. He is survived by his widow Sandra and two sons, 12 and 14. Donations to his family are welcome.

You can read more about the tragedy at the My Bike Shop Blog.

We will miss riding with you, Paul.

New ride: Raleigh MV-7

I suddenly realised I haven't written about riding for a while. Riding my bicycles to work and most places has become such a daily routine for me that it is something I take for granted.

As an update, I have since given one of my mountain bikes away, sold the Dahon Curve to a friend, and bought this Raleigh MV-7 Mini-velo (mini-bike). It doesn't fold but it has 20-inch wheels and an entry-level 7-speed Shimano drivetrain. Not an expensive bicycle but very fun and functional to ride.

I added some bits I had left over, like a brown Brooks B-17 Special saddle and Dia-Compe brake levers, and also bought a cheap inverted handlebar, smaller Tekto brakes, and 1-inch-wide Maxxis Overdrive Elite tires. Not a very expensive makeover as well.

My daily ride is still my Dahon Mu P24 folding bicycle, my workhorse. But it is nice to have a little variety in life.

While looking at mini-velos, I also happened to stumble upon my own site while browsing one of my favourite bicycle sites, Cycle Chic™ from Copenhagen. My site was on the list of Cycle Chic™ Suggests. I am most honoured.

Cycle Chic™ is still one of the leading sites that promote Style Over Speed, a philosophy of riding that I most agree with. I visit the site just to see beautifully dressed people riding their bicycles, instead of the usual sports-and-lycra photos.

You can go on and on about the hot and rainy weather, the road conditions and the inconvenience of riding in Singapore but you won't convince me. I've been doing this for almost four years now and enjoying every minute of it. Every time the COE goes up, or the ERP charges increase, I just laugh it off. Every time the public transport system strains harder under the increased population load, I give thanks for my two wheels getting me where I need to go with minimal fuss.

Yes, I get some exercise too. But that's not my main reason to keep riding. I do it because it still is a lot of fun. Nothing beats the feeling of the cool night air, right after it has rained, wrapping itself around your face as you drive your bicycle at a leisurely pace.

I will leave you with this article from Grist.com, entitled "How bicycling will save the economy (if we let it)". While it is based on the US economy, the lessons there also apply for Singapore.

Ride of Silence 2010: a video

A touching video done by Singapore Bulldog Cyclists, for this year's Ride of Silence, a silent slow-paced ride in honour of those who have been injured or killed while cycling on public roadways.

Some of our fallen comrades we remember this year: Ben Mok and Evelyn Toh.

The Ride of Silence

"Tonight we number many but ride as one
In honor of those not with us, friends, mothers, fathers, sisters, sons
With helmets on tight and heads down low,
We ride in silence, cautious and slow
The wheels start spinning in the lead pack
But tonight we ride and no one attacks
The dark sunglasses cover our tears
Remembering those we held so dear
Tonight’s ride is to make others aware
The road is there for all to share
To those not with us or by our side,
May God be your partner on your final ride"

- Mugai

Ben Mok, Pedal On

A memorial website has been set up for Benjamin Mok at www.benmokpedalon.com.

As a responsible and safe cyclist, Ben would’ve appealed for calm in light of the situation. Fellow cyclists who wish to show their support for Ben are advised to attend the funeral mass with their cycling helmets instead. Please be appropriately dressed for church.

Benjamin, a.k.a ~ben who wrote at pedaldamnit.blogspot.com, was one of two cyclists knocked down by a suspected drink driver, along Clementi Road, towards Upper Bukit Timah Road, on Sunday, 21st March 2010 at 2125 hours. Ben passed away on Wednesday 24th March 2010 at 0614 hours at NUH. (Read news report here.)

Jim Burlant once said, "Cycling is like church. Many attend, but few understand.". Ben understood it totally.

The funeral mass will be held on the 27th March 2010, Saturday, 3pm at:
The Church of St Mary of the Angels
La Verna Room
5 Bukit Batok East Avenue 2, Singapore 659918

Cremation is scheduled for 1630 hrs at:
Mandai Crematorium & Columbarium
300, Mandai Road, Singapore 779393
Hall 3

Insing column: mrbrown and the bicycle ride

Latest weekly Insing column is "mrbrown and the bicycle ride"

Excerpt:

It is 4am. My iPhone is ringing like an air raid siren, trying to wake me up. I try to ignore it a little longer. I don't usually wake up this early. I usually sleep at this hour. But I have a bicycle event to attend and need to get there by 5.30am before the flag-off.

Yes, I was one of the 9,000 cycling at OCBC Cycle on Sunday.

I was doing the 40km Challenge on my folding bicycle named Sasha, a Dahon Mu P24.

I decided to grab some food at Suriya's Curry House, a 24-hour prata place near my home. Breakfast was a lovely Maggi Mee Goreng washed down with some Teh Oh Ice Limau. I read some cyclists saying on their blogs that their preparations for the ride included carbo-loading. I reckoned Maggi Mee Goreng was "carbo" enough.

The only preparations I did before the day itself was to make sure my bicycle was working (rear brakes needed to be replaced), that I had clean underwear, and the batteries in my lights were charged. (cont'd)

Up very early for a bicycle ride

Woke up at 4am this morning for my 40km event at OCBC Cycle. It is not a pretty hour for a night bird like me but hey, it's once a year. I am riding with my Dahon folding bike buddies, just taking it easy because we are not Lance-Armstrong-wannabes.

Riding a small wheeled bike attracts a lot of attention when most of the bikes there were road bikes. One gentleman said to me "You are riding that? Respect, man!". I smiled and said thanks, and told him it really wasn't so bad since I had 24 gears, optimized for my bike, to play with. 

A little video from Ride of Silence 2009, Singapore

We rode the streets, clad in white, red and white lights blinking, to honor the cycling dead and injured. It was a overwhelming response of more than 400 cyclists on a weeknight. Here's a little video of the evening.