Bicycle and mechanics

Cycling in the city

I adopted the bicycle as my main mean of transportation when I moved to Grenoble. I have come to think it is the best one when living in a city, here are a few reasons why:

  • Fast and convenient – no endless search for a parking spot, no traffic jams, no waiting 20 minutes for the tram at off-peak hours, …

  • My favorite way to unwind after work.

  • I can look after and repair my bike myself.

  • Environment friendly.

  • Economical – no extra insurance, no gas, …

And when it comes to inconveniences like rain, quite common where I currently live (Gothenburg, Sweden), or snow, I have become an adept of the Scandinavian saying

Det finns inget dåligt väder, bara dåliga kläder.

There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes.

However, in the case of cycling, it needs to be extended beyond clothing to include cycling equipment such as suitable tires.

My mountainbike in the snow

Bike kitchens

One thing I like about (non-electrical) bikes is the possibility to repair them oneself. I find it really satisfying to be able to diagnose and fix myself most issues I have with my bikes. A great place to learn bicycle mechanics is a Bike Kitchen, that is a Do-It-Yourself bicyle workshop where one has access to tools, second-hand spare parts and help from volunteers. Bike kitchens come with a large variety of structures and operating models (exclusively volunteer-run or with few employees, membership mandatory or not to access the workshop, … ) but they have the common goals of promoting bike riding, reusing and recycling old bikes and teaching bicycle mechanics.

I have been a volunteer in two of them:

and this is where I learned almost everything I know about bicycle mechanics.

What I like about bike kitchens:

  • Learning more about bicycle mechanics,

  • Helping others,

  • Sharing my knowledge and enpowering people,

  • Meeting and exchanging with people from various cultures and social backgrounds,

  • The conviviality with the other volunteers, e.g. shared meals, evening hangouts, …

Some external resources about bike kitchens:

Traveling

I have also discovered long distance cycling, which is a way of traveling during the holidays that I enjoy.

  • Châlons sur Sâone - Tours (6 days, ~ 600 km, summer 2019), in France, partly along the Loire river, with this bike:

    My travel bike with luggage

  • Gothenburg - Helsinborg following Kattegattleden (3 days and half, ~ 400 km, summer 2020), along the west coast of Sweden, with this bike (picture taken during the trip with the luggage on):

    My mountainbike with luggage

  • Dalslandsleden (3 days, ~ 360 km, summer 2022), starting from Vänersborg, in the region west of lake Vänern (biggest Swedish lake)

  • Around lake Vättern (2nd biggest Swedish lake), starting from Jönköping (3 days and half, ~ 430 km, summer 2023)