Mark Dieterich

I experience my share of grief with support from companies, but today I had a great experience dealing with Bell.  I've worn out the pads in my Bell Sweep helmet and called their customer support hoping I could purchase a new set.  I was pleasantly surprised when their representative just asked for my home address …

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The Monday, July 30th edition of the USA Today had a front page article on the "complete streets" program.  For those that may not know, "complete streets" is a term used to describe roadways designed to accommodate all types of travel, not just automobiles.  It's great to see this idea make headlines in a major …

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I'm starting to hear talk of bike share programs becoming a reality in the US.  The whole idea is to have various checkout stations around a city, where you can swipe a credit card or pay by phone to rent a bike.  You then return the bike at any other checkout station.  It provides an …

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I happened across an article written by a bicycle commuter in Nevada prior to this years bike to work day, here is the entire article.  I thought it was a simple, yet effective article discussing some of the issues facing cyclists.  I don't think it was overly confrontational and provided some food for thought to …

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I was riding into work this morning and happened to pass a Starbucks parking lot with a Smart Car parked in it.  I stopped to take a quick peek and snapped a couple of pictures.  It looks like a cute and practical little car for a commuter or couple.  The best demonstration was when the …

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I saw a "Share the Road" message on one of those big highway signs yesterday.  The odd part, it was on the highway in a place where cars and bikes would never meet.  I like the fact that they actually had this message being displayed, but question how effective it will actually be.  Now take …

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Since we live on a peninsula, there is a fairly narrow corridor I can ride as I approach my house and I frequently meet up with random cyclists along this part of my commute.  Typically, I'm best matched up with racers who are out for a "day off", they cruising along at a pretty good …

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I saw my fist Townie on the road during my ride home yesterday.  We were passing in opposite directions, so I didn't get a good look, but it was definitely one.  These bikes have been raved about online.  I know Charlotte actually ended up purchasing one a few weeks ago.  Hopefully, she will post some …

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Fisher-Price has recently released a kid's exercise bike to help fight childhood obesity.  Apparently, it's a plastic bike that connects to your television and encourages your kid to pedal along to interact with games.  If this isn't a sad statement about the habits of American's, I'm not sure what would be much stronger.  What ever …

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