What is the proper way to wear a helmet?
Asked by
Anonymous
On your head. Ideally not backwards, and with the strap buckled and touching the underside of your chin.
A card for the Centennial State
Check out that cold activated label! Blue means it’s cold as the rockies.
[I haven’t been announcing these lately, but I’ve decided that such a bikey new state deserved its own post.]
Colorado is one of my favorite non-New England states, and I’m proud to announce that they now have their own version of the Bicyclist’s Accident Report. Hooray!
They put me on television
My favorite part is when Emily Rooney says that what I do is horrible (@6:12).
In all seriousness, it was really cool of WGBH to ask me to come on and join in the conversation, and I’d like to thank the producers of Greater Boston for the opportunity. I’m always happy to talk about biking, and how we can make it even better.
-JZ
Becoming a statistic
We’ve all probably heard about the importance of getting a police report after a crash, but it doesn’t always seem worth the trouble. Why bother if you weren’t even hurt? Getting hit by a car is just about the worst thing there is, so it’s understandable that you’d just want to go on with your life and not get the police involved.
But there’s one very important reason why you should always file a police report after any crash: data.
Guest post: Bikes & Birds!
Male and female Eastern Bluebirds, looking adorable (photo by Stu Watson)
The following is a guest post from my dear friend, the esteemed naturalist Stuart Watson. He’s the author of regarding nature, an excellent blog that chronicles his adventures in the Massachusetts woods (you should follow him on twitter).
Stu and I have been friends since the 7th grade, which explains why he was able to rope me into bird watching with him at 7:00 AM on a Saturday. It’s for a good cause—supporting a local conservation group—so I suppose I can’t complain too much…
Anyway, I hope to see you there!
Yours,
Josh
How long is the logo going to be all black?
Asked by
Anonymous
I’m not sure. Maybe when I feel like things are “back to normal”? Or maybe when I don’t get totally freaked out whenever I hear sirens. That could be a while, though.
Freedom.
Just when we thought it was over
The craziness of the past 12 hours is hard to imagine. I stayed up listening to the police scanner and reading twitter till 5:00 AM.
My apartment is right on Mass Ave, overlooking the intersection at Main Street. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the area, it’s about three blocks from where MIT Police Officer Sean Collier was fatally shot last night. I pass by the spot twice daily on my commute.
It was hard enough to digest that tragic piece of news, but things quickly got crazier, somehow, as the night progressed. Grenades? IEDs? A prolonged firefight with police in a familiar residential neighborhood? I feel like I’m living in some alternate reality. None of this seems real.
And now, waking up to find that the entire city and surrounding towns have been shut down? How does this keep happening?
I don’t really know what else there is to say. I feel empty and disconnected. There’s only one thing that we can do in this moment, and that’s wait. If the city wasn’t locked down, I’d go for a bike ride to clear my head. Why did it have to be so goddamn beautiful out today?
Hope everyone is staying safe out there.
Yours,
Josh
A tragedy in Boston
I don’t really know what to write here. It’s 4:00 PM and I’m sitting in my office, trying to figure out how to get back home to Cambridge. This has been a terrible day.
Riding the marathon route last night was one of the best times I’ve had in recent memory. It was one of those perfect memories that you can carry with you as an example of the best of times. There was so much excitement, so much hope for what this sort of event could mean. Can you believe how many people there are? Look at all these bikes! We all looked forward to the possibilities of next year’s ride.
Now, the memory of last night’s ride has been poisoned. It has been consumed by this horrible, ugly event. My legs are still sore, but there’s a new pain now, an aching in the pit of my stomach.
My thoughts go out to the friends and families of those affected by today’s tragedy. Please stay safe out there.
Yours,
Josh
