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Ode to Bicycles

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by Pablo Neruda I was walking down a sizzling road: the sun popped like a field of blazing maize, the earth was hot, an infinite circle with an empty blue sky overhead.

Trip to Dumduma Lake, Sohna, Haryana

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Where There is a Wheel

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Meet the man who quit his job to ride a unicycle across the world.

Bicycles and Cars - Ivan Illich

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The Industrialisation of Traffic: Why Bicycles are Faster than Cars – Ivan Illich The model American male devotes more than 1,600 hours a year to his car. He sits in it while it goes and while it stands idling. He parks it and searches for it. He earns the money to put down on it and to meet the monthly instalments  He works to pay for gasoline, tolls, insurance, taxes, and tickets. He spends four of his sixteen waking hours on the road or gathering his resources for it.

Silence is a Commons - Ivan Illich

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Cycling offers such a contemplative environment, the silence within. Here is a brilliant article by Ivan Illich who argues that silence itself, like so many other Commons, need to be protected, defended. Computers are doing to communication what fences did to pastures and cars did to streets. (Ivan Illich)

She stands there...

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...waiting for me. Does she feel neglected. It's been too cold to ride... and I've been busy. Stay cool girl. You're on my mind.

Shahpurjat, My New Home

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Cycling through the winding labyrinths of this medieval village, Shahpur Jat, perfect for two wheeler, especially cycles.

A Map for Cyclists

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This page is under construction. But it has a lot of potential. It promises to be helpful to cyclists who would like to explore this vast, sprawling city and all  its wonderful places that can be reached on a bike. Here is, for example, routes to the ancient fort of Tughlaqabad in the south-east, Aravali Biodiversity Park and JNU in the south of the city. If you have a passion for making maps, this is your page - or, at least, it could well be soon. I'll be glad to hear from you.

Cycling from Chandigarh to Delhi

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I travel to come down off the feather-bed of civilization – RL Stevenson I do not remember when the thought of an inter-city bicycle ride first occurred to me. A friend came to drop me at the Tribune Circle in Chandigarh. We bade each other goodbye and from then on, I was on my own. I felt energetic and looked forward to the journey. Finally the day had come, I was living my dream. But as soon as I reached the outskirts of the city, doubt started raising its dreadful head.

Cycle Rally to promote Zero-Pollution

A bicycle rally in Delhi to promote the eco-friendly vehicle was organised in New Delhi, one of the most polluted capitals in the world.The 20-km-long rally was organised by the Delhi Cycling Club and a non-government organisation, IDP India.

Rent a Cycle

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Some of the initiatives of DMRC are commendable and we must support them whole heartedly.Commuters can rent a cycle at the Pragati Maidan metro station, IP station and Patel Chowk metro station for Rs 10 for every four hours. To encourage more cyclists to take the Delhi Metro trains from its station, DMRC also inaugurated a cycle stand to accommodate 50 cycles.

Go Easy

the best way to ride in Chandni Chowk and most towns and cities in India and Pakistan.

The ASCII Cyclist

_ .(_)_ /, \ . <_) |\ __/._ .-|/_ ` . ' ( . ) . | . : .d8b-'/ _ \.-./ _ a:f .-.-..-.--.--._ ( ( Y `n ____________'...`__________ '/ '-. . - : : # .v . ----==----- . .'-. ' .-,_.-' ( )_#_/ `-._. - --- -- ._.-' O/ # `/:_ --- - '., .-' "' # ` `=. . - _.-' # `-: . `: ' For more on the works of Andreas Fries take this link .

Bicycle Kingdom

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A news worth taking note of in the Hindu about how bicycles are slowly but surely going out of style in China. It surely makes us sit up and think 'what IS development'. Aren't we moving towards more wastage.

fold and take away

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what more do you want

Who are these flyovers really meant for?

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Delhi's master plan has several masterly strokes and the flyover is a prominent one amongst them. The long journey across could have been pleasurable had these been made with the cyclists in mind. Bicycles are non-pollutants, do not emit smoke, leave no engine oil residue, are safe – cannot kill anybody – do not depend on petrol. A truly green Delhi should strive to reduce wasteful private transport and promote the use of bicycles. It's so simple.

Cycling to Environmental Glory

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By Rahul Banerjee, Indore A bald man in his sixties dressed in spotless white and starched khadi and kurta and pyjama riding a bicycle with a ramrod straight back - that was my first glimpse of Bohreji when I came to stay in the moribund Gramodyog Vidyalaya Ashram in Machla village thirteen kilometers from Indore in 1994. I had just come out of the deep jungles of Jhabua advised by my doctor to take time off from grassroots activism to get rid of the malarial parasites that had made my body their home.

The Great Indian Gas Pipeline

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Sometimes a particular image becomes so ordinary that you stop noticing it; until a set of eyes come along for whom that same image is not so common. Here is a picture by Cheeni I liked very much. An image like this would not have stood out for me, but for its suggestive title. Yes, this is the most reliable, widely used, labour intensive gas pipeline in India.

A pillar to lean on

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You can find a bicycle anywhere. Here is one giving good company to ancient history in the Patna Museum.

Limericks

No reason but a lot of rhyme from the world's most 'undiscovered' site . Enjoy. by Frank Luke (Frank Luke) As a tot, I tooled 'round on a trike; Now grown-up, I can zoom on my bike. Through stalled traffic I zip At a quick speedy clip— Need no gas and I don't have to hike. by Jesse Frankovich This activity's much to my liking, And it's easily better than hiking. I'm employing my feet Yet enjoying a seat As I glide down the street—I am biking. by PGS (Holger Martin) The motorcar built by Carl Benz Once followed the bicycle trends, But mass motorization Led to traffic inflation: Now it's faster by bike, dear old friends! by Robert Holland (Robert Holland) There once was a cyclist victorious, Whose form on a bike was vainglorious; She never changed gear As men dropped to her rear — Her romp made her rump quite notorious. by Bill Middleton (William J. Middleton) Tim thought that his bike had expired. It fell over once more. He inq...