Cork, Ireland
A bit of an update from TourAbsurd-land… The Cork Cycling Festival has been taking place this week. Since one of Dario's consuming passions is his upcoming website about community-powered bike sharing, we have both been a bit overwhelmed. Dario with programming and hiring graphic designers, module coders, and server security gurus; me with assisting and coordinating his efforts, trying to get out and attend festival events, and also with desperately seeking a new WordPress theme for TourAbsurd.
His website, Secondwheel, is based on the principles of sharing, connection, and bringing more awesome to the world. The tag line is "Community Powered Bikesharing" and works like Couchsurfing for bikes. Not bike rental, like most things called "bikesharing," but actual sharing — for free — to help out travelers, visitors, neighbors, and fellow cyclists.
Sparkle-makin' loveliness at the Bikodecoratorama event.
The mission, besides the sharing of assets and making friends, is to connect cycling groups all over the world to facilitate networking and brainstorming for making the globe a more bike-friendly place. You see, there are lots of cycling groups — community, family, safety, health, eco-travel, and city planning organizations, among others — throughout the world, but they don't always talk with each other. If their efforts could be better coordinated, brilliant ideas will be more easily shared, and an increasingly bike-friendly planet will emerge. …Yes, Dario has his world-changing plans and I have mine.
Voyeur takes in the World Naked Bike Ride, a fringe event of the festival. 'Course, who took the photo? Another voyeur.
Right now the website is in an alpha state. We had both hoped that it would be in a more advanced beta phase in time for the festival, but it was not to be. Still, we are learning valuable lessons about project planning, hiring (and firing), and time management. This is all good stuff to know, since I have a few more world-changing ideas of my own (educators and travelers who like to help kids learn, please contact me if you want to help expand young minds).
If you'd like to help us test the site, either in an alpha or beta state, or contribute your programming, PR/marketing, or design talents, OR get your local cycling community to be one of the early adopters, please contact us here or send an email to contact@secondwheel.org.
You can also go directly to the site, Secondwheel.org, to sign up or stay updated with the blog, the Facebook fan page, or Twitter account.
Whew! I'm wiped out. All this world changing is fun, but I need a vacation. Somewhere with tropical fruit, gorgeous sandy beaches …and bicycle paths. ;)
What are you up to this summer?
Bike sharing sounds like a heck of an idea!
People share their homes, why not bikes.
Hope this catches on everywhere!
Same! The public face of the site isn’t showing much work right now, but we are doing things in the background. So many funding opportunities for green/world-bettering/entrepreneurial types. We’re both very excited to see how this will shape up!
What a wonderful idea. I really hope that this takes off and is successful. Consider us now fans! Pedal power = LOVE IT! Hope we get the chance to meet up :)
Awesome! Will drop you a line about meeting up soon. And thanks for liking the Secondwheel fan page. :D
This is a brilliant idea! I would love to be able to borrow bikes when traveling
Great, Roy! When the website is further along, maybe you can help us spread the word. :D
So great hanging out with you guys the last two days! As I said, I love the idea of SecondWheel – looking forward to it’s progression (and domination) =)
You two are a kick in the pants! Was great going whiskey tasting with you.
I think with blogger power + pedal power we will be unstoppable. Soon the planet will be populated by cyclists — cyclists who share their bikes (and the road — that’s for John) and make the world a better place! ;)
I would love to see the world become a more bike friendly place where both the drivers and bicyclist travel in harmony with one another. Maybe then I’d actually feel okay to ride my bike more on the open road rather than just at parks and trials. But for now, its partially a competition on the roads.
For me summer was spent partially in Asia, now I am going to take time to enjoy nature in the US’s pacific northwest, and then ending summer doing a cross country train journey. Just in time for the doom and gloom of fall and winter. Hopefully, I actually get to do all that I have planned.
I have not yet been to Asia, though there are several countries there on my Must See list! Was in WA and OR last August and got to show Dario how beautiful it was. I am really glad to be traveling and seeing more of the world, but I definitely miss my beautiful apartment on Whidbey Island. I could see Mt. Baker and Mt. Rainier from my deck on a clear day. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! Have tons of fun and keep us posted on your progress. :)