brianshah.net

 A friend of mine is an assistant manager at a great new convenience store called MoCo Market. What makes it great? It focuses on providing healthy alternatives to people on the go, offers products made either locally, independently, or conscientiously, and promotes alternative transportation: pedestrians and cyclists (it’s hard to believe that walking is actually considered “alternative transporation” when we’ve been doing it since we climbed down from the trees however many millions of years ago).

MoCo Market is also Green Restaurant Certified. This means that MoCo practices environmentally sustainable methods in everything it does, from using energy wisely to reducing waste and clutter, and to providing healthier ingredients in its menu.

(more…)

There’s a group of people that hold a World Naked Bike Ride to protest car and oil use. The ride coordination started in 2004.

Although the sentiment is a good cause (I would like to use alternative methods of transportation, including my bike), I don’t think the means are effective. So here are my problems with the ride:

(more…)

I’m a little late on this one, but there is no evidence that not buying gas for a day would make a huge impact on gas prices. This Cyclelicious article explains where the real impact would be felt: the station owners and employees. Snopes better explains how this scheme would not work. The fact is that there are many factors that go into gas prices. Furthermore, by not buying gas on one day, you would still have to buy gas on the day before or after anyway; you would still buy gas.

A better way to not give into the price of gas is to travel smartly. When traveling by car, try to accomplish several errands in one trip. Better yet, try to avoid driving: walking and bicycling are great ways to get exercise and to avoid using gas at all. Finally, try to use public transportation, which costs less and promotes better use of fuel use.

I especially like bicycling: it’s a great way to exercise and it’s faster than walking. Just follow all traffic laws and learn to share the road with cars.

Like most kids, I grew up riding a bicycle. I was fortunate in a sense, because I had a relatively safe place to ride (that is, I didn’t have to deal with motor vehicle traffic all the time). I stopped riding when I was 18 or 19 for a host of reasons (okay, excuses). When I moved a few years ago, I realized that the city tried to make it a friendly city for bicycles (and at some level, it has done a good job). But it wasn’t until last month that I decided to buy and ride a bicycle again.

As always, I started with the most important questions: why should I get a bicycle, and what kind of riding will I do?

(more…)