When you bike, it's always sunny!

As everyone knows, Copenhagen is the city of cyclists. Yes but some bad mouthed people pretend that in Denmark it rains all the time ;-) !! Conclusion: in Copenhagen, you have to learn how to bike in the rain ... and wear the appropriate rainwear.
Well think again, it does not rain that much and the city is trying to correct this image, thanks to this billboards campaign!


Translation for the non-Danish speakers "when you bike, it almost never rains!" And the small print adds: "It rains on an average of 4% of journeys by bike home to work" ...

Armed with my journalistic and scientific consciousness, I counted the days where I did get wet during my daily bike commute.
During the month of May, oh so significant because
(1) it's Spring
(2) you find deals on bike in every bike shop, and
(3) the campaign "vi cykler til arbejde " (yourself and all your co-workers have to bike to work during that campaign).....I served as guinea pig.

Here is the result of this highly scientific test:
May 4 evening, rain gear were mandatory.
May 13 morning, I was a little wet, but I avoided to change into rain gear.

Overall, I got wet twice out of the 2 x 17 trips or 5.9%. And I say: What a scam! With the taxes we pay, this campaign doesn't even deliver and keep its promises! ;-)))
Well, seriously it does not rain that often and it's nice to get some air and exercise, so I will not trade my bike for a car ...

Danish winter

Now that spring is finally here, just to remember how cold that bloody winter was, here are a few pictures of the Danish "polar ice"... Indeed the winter was so cold that the Øresund water (only slightly salted) froze along the coast.
For example, in Ålsgårde. Did you notice that you can spot Sweden in the background?

And Kronborg far away...

Even the stones were freezing!

Thanks to Cédric for the pictures!

It's finally Spring!

Finally!
All the signs are here: our neighbour just got a chair out in the garden to have a good taning session...

Bike on ice

A thought for those who face biking every day in that winter weather... Are they "crazy" or simply victims of lack of other means of transportation? Nobody knows. Still, you can see plenty of them on the bike paths, sidewalks or roads.


For the benefit of those daredevils, the Danish cycling federation has published 11 tips for winter biking. Here is a rough translation (and a few comments in brackets):

* Avoid carring baskets or overloaded bags which can make the bike difficult to control. And of course you shouldn't carry anybody in the child seat!
* Good lighting is essential! Even in daylight, it can be difficult to comprehend the path which is essential for safe driving. Think also of installing reflectors to be better seen by others.
* It is better to under-inflate your tires, and the wider your tire is, the better. For ice biking, studded tires are recommended (I really wonder how many cyclists have invested in studded tires ...!)
* Avoid tight and sudden turns. Take large and slow turns, as long as the traffic permits it!
* Grease your chain generously. (Personal observation: if you have a cheap bike (or the kind I imported from France), this is not enough! On mine, the chain is totally rusty and is now quite stiff, especially after a weekend in the snow and salt ...)
* Brake far in advance and carefully! Release the brakes if the wheels start to skid!
* Brake before a turn and release the brake before starting to turn!
* Brake with your rear brake! And pay attention to how the rear wheel skids (is there really a "wrong" way to skid the rear wheel?)
* Check the brake regularly!
* Stay alert to the road that you are following
* Stay calm (this is a universal advice in Denmark, but is it really necessary to remind the Danes, calm in any situation?). It is more important to get to there safely than to arrive there first.

Bonne route! And good luck ...
When in doubt, leave your bike in the garage, but you can expect to find it like that (or worse):

Winter slides

Your skates are rusty? So why not get closer to the ground?
Easy, start by reading your local paper. In it, you can find out where are the slopes closest to your home. For the Danish speaking, you can also visit AOK.


Then you have to choose your ride: old style wood, or modern aerodynamic plastic

Time for ice-skate?

In this period- as almost everywhere in Europe - it is freezing in Denmark ...
The Dares are happy: they can now go out and exercise in the cold: bike in the snow, sledge or even ice-skate on lakes!
Access to the various lakes is regulated: the city council performs depth measurements every day and if the ice is over a certain thickness, the lake can be "officially" opened to the public. Humm that's the theory, as can be seen here on Lake Castle in Hillerød, the skaters are enjoying themselves despite the interdiction sign. Oh là là these Danes, they respect absolutly nothing!


On today's program: ice skating (animal powered or not), hockey, sledding ...





In Copenhagen, the town maintains this page that shows which lakes are allowed (for pictures of Copenhagen lakes, you can check Aimache's page). Most cities (those with a lake of course) offer an equivalent page on their site.
Enjoy!