When we
moved to the ACT in February 2014 we were sure that we should bring our bikes
because everywhere we looked, cycling seemed to be the way to get around. Soon
after we settled in, the missus gave up cycling altogether and I was ‘thinking
about it’. Why you ask? Well, all the promotion that
the Visit Canberra office does is true and fact based, there are bike paths,
you can quite literally go anywhere by bike if you have the energy for it and
yes it is fun and a good way to stay in shape, but it is not quite the same
experience as in the Netherlands, so think twice before you decide to bring
your bike to only have it gather dust in your garage or storage space.
Define….
bike path
The Dutch
bike paths are mostly well maintained, connect logically, are separated from
car traffic and generally well lit. In my experience, the most cycle paths that
are not in the city and not around Lake Burley Griffin show strong similarities
to asphalt that just had a squadron of rampaging out of control Abrams tanks do
donuts and burn-outs for 15 minutes before moving on with their business. The terms
gravelly and tire puncture waiting to happen’’ come to mind. Then, remember that
Australia is a really big country and things are far apart and there’s literally
nothing but shrubs, trees and wild life in between. Oh and did I mention that
you’re on the road with the cars with no separation? Try to imagine that on the
A15 going into the Benelux tunnel. Scared yet?
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| Without the tanks, obviously! |
I am NOT
wearing that!
Yes you are.
Unless you want to pay a huge fine, you will wear that helmet and maybe even make
sure your lights work and then you might still consider a reflective vest because
motorists, especially just-out-of-bed-got-my-mind-on-other-things motorists are
not looking out for you and that helmet with adornments, your reflective vest
and blinking light will at least tell the police where your body has landed
after you’ve been hit by someone who should not have gotten a license to begin
with.
And yes, you
look like a dick, but I am sure you’ll appreciate it when you land headfirst
and do not suffer massive brain damage.
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| I am so getting that bottom right one! |
That’s not
an incline, THIS is an incline
I am
fortunate enough to have a very fancy 24 gear bike and while I like to
challenge myself a bit every now and then, cycling in the ACT (or anywhere else
in Oz for that matter) can be a bit of a vertical challenge. They say hill, I
say K2 mountain, nut hey same difference! When you’re used to the Dutch
flatlands, biking the Aussie landscape can be intimidating if not downright
scary. I mean, going up a hill at 7-10% at 10km/hr can easily mean that you’ll
be able to go down that same hill at 65km/hr. I did both and can tell you that
the 65km/hr has my preference. In the ACT you’re either riding up a hill or
going down one, even when you think you’re not. As soon as you find yourself
downshifting a lot, you know you’re in for a treat on the way down.
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| Road outside our house...somewhere in Australia (still outside my house) |
Obstacle
course anyone?
In the
Netherlands, most local governments actually make an effort to sweep the paths
every now and then and community service projects make sure that littering
stays within limits. In the ACT, not so much, but if you are open to new
experiences, there’s a new one every few 100 meters. There’s the always creepy
lonely shoes or toddler flip-flops, paint/oil spills, bricks, sheet metal,
underwear (I kid you not), steel pipes, abandoned cars and parts, various types
of roadkill and for some inexplicable reason a complete bedroom and sofa. Okay,
those where right next to the path but you get the idea. The roadkill situation
is also quite different in the Netherlands and a whole new aromatic experience
when you happen to cycle downwind, but cannot avoid it in time and actually hit
it. Yikes.
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| Oh, okay then.... |
‘Sharing’ the
road
A strange
thing happens to Australians, or maybe just Canberrans, as soon as they enter a
4-wheeled vehicle and close the doors. They become everything an average
Australian is not; rude, impatient, pushy, territorial, unforgiving and a
danger to themselves and others. In the Netherlands I did some pretty stupid
things while riding a bike, including riding into a tree that was just standing
there minding its own tree business but I never felt so unsafe as on the ACT
bike paths.
Despite the ‘share
the road’ campaigns, there must be something highly offensive about a cyclist
having the nerve to actually use that same piece of asphalt. It is a level of
resentment that astounds me. I mean, I get that some people would do well not
to put on riding gear that really leaves nothing to the imagination, but it
seems a bit harsh to push them off the road for just that, I mean, 1 second and
you’re past them.
 |
| Yep, ready to roll |
Mind you, I
drive a car, I pay taxes for that piece of asphalt some claim to have bought
with their yearly rego contribution, I just happen to ride a bike every now and
then. I sometimes wonder if people actually realise you can see them and how
they behave and also if they realise what would happen if they actually hit you
at 50km/hr. Imagine 1,500 kilo’s of steel meeting 15 kg of aluminium and a human
being…If not for the jail time for accidental death, just think about the bill
of getting the dents out of your beloved Ford Falcon, replacing the windshield
and redoing the paint job, that shit’s expensive bro!
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| Chuck, the patron saint of all indignant cyclists |
So why
bother at all then eh?!
There’s
something strangely meditative about powering on with nothing but your own body
doing the work, the smells of a new morning (Is that a dead kangaroo? Yikes!), total
darkness, the stars fading, the sun coming up and the peace and quiet. Also, the
ACT bike paths are pretty much deserted during the day (and at 04:00 in the
morning, but only crazy people cycle then, so best not go then) and really
early in the day you can feel like you’re the last person on the planet. That’s
a bit harder in the Netherlands. Some of the best views of the city and the
land are free to enjoy if you get out there and wake up with the kangaroos.
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| This morning, not too bad huh?! |
Stay safe and for goodness sake, keep to the left!
