Downshifting and De-Growth how they Relate

Downshifting and De-Growth how they relate

Ian Gregson

You may well be asking yourself what is this de-growth thing ? How does it relate to me ? How can I be a part of this de-growth phenomena ?  The answer lies mainly within the syntax - de-growth applies to a societal concept, whereas downshifting is the practical application of de-growth principles. Looking at Wikipedia - we see the differences between the two are more apparent; de-growth has a more philosophical and academic leaning, whereas downshifting is the day to day reality of de-growth. Downshifting is the practical application "what can we do about it in real terms" within the concept of de-growth. Comparatively, downshifting is to de-growth as unions are to socialism or the G20 is to conservatism.

Six years ago I started my own personal journey of de-growth by selling my car. This marked my first step toward "downshifting" my lifestyle - it was a drastic first step, I had not lived without a car since 1982. Little did I realise at the time I was taking part in a world-wide phenomena now known as "downshifting". Turns out millions of people around the industrialised world were doing the same thing. According to Wikepedia anywhere from 20-25% of the population in the USA, UK and Australia is taking part in some level of downshifting. I continue to hear amazing stories from people who have taken on downshifting as a personal philosophy and have found happiness within its simplicity. Stories from people that work less and therefore require less need to "escape" and take vacations; stories from people that consume less and lead healthier lives, growing their own vegetables and from people that have gotten out of their cars and enjoyed the sunshine, wind, rain and cold weather on their daily commute or trek to the grocery store. One practical consequence of my downshifting is a community garden with 50 plots in a nearby park.

However, over the years I have come across a marked resistance to downshifting from people who would benefit the most from it. I have been called " pretentious", "self-interested", "irresponsible" and "selfish". All from people who cherish the ability to go to work everyday, to drive their car wherever and whenever they feel, to take vacations in distant locations and buy more things than they will ever need in ten lifetimes. My personal choice to downshift was not without consequence. In my own example I alienated my own family members, no longer was I a traditional father figure who provided to four children, I became this bike riding guy who didn't work and earn to his full potential, given his education and skills. This is a tough road to travel, in my heart I know what I am doing has benefits for my children and their children, but this is hard to explain to a teenager who doesn't get the christmas present they want or can't afford the $400 eyeglasses. However, a stronger part of me shrugged this off with the hope that one day my children will recognise what I do and why.

The consumerist lifestyle has its appeals, as does a glass of wine to the dry alcoholic. By our very nature we consume every day, we eat, we drink, we recreate, we use power, it is impossible to avoid consumption. The strength of downshifting comes in the choices we make in what we consume. Consuming locally grown organically produced food is one way to go, if your store does not stock such things, you need to find a store that does. Consuming less food of a higher nutritional value combined with less car use is the equivalent of the group session for the said alcoholic.

Whilst many of us are taking action on a personal level, we are often inspired due to a lack of action from governments at all levels. Our political choice is no more clearly defined than at the voting booth. In political terms the majority of political parties stay well clear of the concepts and notions of de-growth and downshifting; preferring to stay within the traditional political ideologies of economy, taxation, military, education, healthcare etc.. Their root philosophies have changed very little over the decades. The left push for more taxation to benefit social spending, the political right push for cutbacks and benefits to industry - Marx and Engels would still be proud. And whilst the political parties have acquiesced to some degree by shifting to a middle ground philosophy, there is very little evidence of de-growth or downshifting within them. We need to pressure the existing political structures to recognise de-growth as a political reality. For now our level of downshifting is a personal choice. One day in the near future there may come a time when that choice has less freedom and that harsh government regulations to not drive a car become reality. Why wait ? Let's adjust to that lifestyle as we see fit rather than being dictated to.

As we know there has been a societal shift towards "green" values. However, we have seen those values watered down, stolen and modified to suit traditional political and commercial philosophies; hence the proliferation of "green" products, "green" jobs and overly simplified "greenwashing". We have to recognise that greenwashing is now part of our daily lives at all levels and from all angles. We know "greenwashing" works to a significant degree, particularly on tv, where we see ads for the Alberta Tar Sands and BC Salmon Farmers confessing their unique environmental sustainabilities. Greenwashing is dangerous because it confuses those of us who are starting on the road to downshifting. To a significant degree greenwashing says its ok to consume as long as what you consume is "green". Downshifting says otherwise, a green product still takes resources from the Earth, is still dependent on traditional methods of manufacture; downshifting say’s "you don't really need that product". Owning a Toyota Prius might make you feel green, but at the end of the day the vehicle still consumes finite raw material as part of its manufacturing process.

Within the political arena greenwashing is most prevalent. The traditional left has made strong attempts to adopt green-like policies but at the same time has been restrained by their traditional socialist philosophical structure that has little room for "environmentalism" and thus falsely attracting many down-shifters. As with other forms of greenwashing, downshifters should not be fooled by political greenwashing in the same way they are not fooled by the Alberta Tar Sands.

The Green Party whilst incorporating a significant amount of de-growth policy, lost much of its original momentum and inspiration due to the failure of voting reform. The Greens have had to revert to a more centralist approach in order to continue as a political entity. However, the terms de-growth and downshifting are equally scant from Green Party policy.

Vancouver has more than its fair share of downshifters; we simply have not assigned the adjective “downshifting” to what so many of us are doing everyday. The philosophy of de-growth is the next logical step from realistic and applicable green values that have not been not co-opted by a consumer based approach such as socialism or conservatism.

Downshifting is not the total rejection of consumerism, but the adaptation of consumerism to de-grow economies and societies in order that they be sustainable at a rate that increases longevity indefinitely.

International Downshifting Week's Spending Tips:

Making a list of weekly purchases and eliminating non-essential items

Cutting up a credit card

Not buying impulsively for instant gratification

Hand-making items

Donating, recycling or reusing old items

Buying quality secondhand goods

Political necessities in order to facilitate downshifting:

True Tax Shifting - increasing taxes and corresponding decreasing taxes on products and consumables

Co-Op Housing - affordable housing as annual income levels continue to decrease

Removal of gov't subsidies to large corporations

Increase in subsidies to small scale farms within 100kms of large population areas

Critical Mass, De-Growth and Downshifting

It's that time of year again when the sun is out 'til late and the roads are full of cyclists and oh yeah I have a blog that I've not written on for ages !

notice how people are smiling

A number of things of interest -  The Adanac Community Garden that I planned about three years ago has finally come to pass. The ground was broken in February and over the last few weeks with the good weather boxes have been constructed and the plants are in the ground. I was proud to be the first person to put something in the ground - it was an old Bay Tree that my x Heather had carted across the country, funny to have find its final resting spot in ADANAC Community Garden. Check out the garden blog at  or the Facebook group 

It was heart warming and reassuring to see people at work at something that was just an idea that I had in my head; good things can happen if you hold your breath long enough. I had to pass the process on to Angela Kenyon and Nancy McRitchie two fine gals with far more knowledge and patience with the City of Vancouver than I, they got through the red tape and turned it green. As a result we now have one of the largest community gardens in the city, soon to be bearing fruit and an official opening, especially with an election looming in November.

This weekend I recharged my batteries at the 2nd Annual De-Growth conference in Vancouver. I was totally inspired by two presentations this year both presentations were as different from each other as humanly possibly yet still interconnected. The one skype based chat was from sustainable eco chick Tracey Smith who lives in SW England. It was great to hear how just regular folks are making it work in the bread basket of England. Check out Tracey's Page at http://traceysmith.info/


The other presentation was from Nora Bateson daughter of Gregory Bateson, Nora's documentary on her father was personal and profound. Not only did she present a personal account of her father's approach to life she managed to convert some rather abstract concepts in to something everyone could understand. There was one point were Gregory Bateson used a tightrope analogy that hit the nail not only on the head, but down through my spine. Bateson's general concept of inter-connectivity was amazing, I'm sure he'd love the concept of the Critical Mass. Many thanks to Conrad for putting it all together once again.


May's Critical Mass was a fairly low key affair - about 200 riders made it out, a fairly low turn out for May, however one would expect much more for June, July and August. Of course we have the World Naked Bike Ride coming up real soon, I hope to take part this year also. Last year was awesome, much fun and more naked bodies than you could 'er shake a stick at ! Hopefully, it won't be the 10C and rain it was the first time I did the WNBR. Check the WNBR wiki for a location near you

The Vancouver movie and tv industry has practically dried up over the last few weeks. Apparently, Toronto has stolen most of our work. I made a ride out to Nat Bailey Stadium for two days on the USA Network's Psych, which seems to be surviving. So many shows have been cancelled including EndGame, V, CHAOS, and Human Target, we certainly need a more rewarding tax credit system for the shows to come here.

Hellcats Ep21 Land of 1000 Dances

At the moment I have a 1992 Plymouth Acclaim sitting in my parking spot, it's for sale. My g/f Lisa is selling it, she bought something smaller, a Toyota and she has a bike too. After having my son Nick live with me for the past year I thought it would be a good idea to have Lisa move in and of July 1 [Nick moved to Europe for the summer]  Lisa will be here under the same roof and sharing life as we know it. Here's a picture of Lisa and I on the recently cancelled "Hellcats"

Finally, I want to share this video of me riding a fixie through the streets of Neuvo Vallarta on a recent family vacation - the road is bumpy, the bike has no gears or brakes and I'm not wearing my helmet but I seem to be enjoying myself nonetheless.

Commuting as a background performer in Vancouver's TV & Film industry

Human Target @ UBC

Things have been fairly quiet on cycling front over the last few months, however a few issues have surfaced that are worthy of some note.

I've been working in the film industry since August 2009; I originally worked on and off in the industry when other work was short, mainly throughout the 90's. Currently it seems no one is willing to respond to, let alone hire anyone fitting my qualifications, gender or age. However, the BC film industry seems to like me as they hire me back on tv shows on a regular basis. I've been in all the locally shot shows, V, Psych, Human Target, Hellcats, Smallville and two shows that will be airing in the spring CHAOS on Fox and End Game on CTV. I've also worked on a number of feature films including A-Team, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Caesar: Rise of the Apes.

Of course my chosen method of commuting is my bicycle. There were a few fellow background performer commuters over the summer but they seemed to have disappeared, there are a number of crew members who commute on the bike as I always see at least one or two bikes on sets, particularly at the studios. However, for the most part there are very few cycling commuters amongst the many, many background performers in the Greater Vancouver area.

One of the major obstacles to cycling, other than the usual weather or traffic related is the need to carry ones own wardrobe to the location. Vancouver extras are required to provide their own wardrobe for the most part, unless it is a specific role such as a cop or firefighter. Even if you are an FBI agent you need to supply at least three changes of wardrobe, which can pose a problem for any would-be cycling commuter.

On the set of "V"

First of all it is a necessity to have adequate panniers. My MEC panniers are totally waterproof and huge [56l each], more than enough for what I need and if I can get away with just the one I try to. However, keeping my clothing wrinkle free in my panniers has been a challenge. The key is to pack the bag just before you leave and roll the various items together and then at the end of the day takes the clothing out hang it, especially if you are continuity for the next day. On a good day I can pack two jackets, 3 shirts, 1 pair of dress shoes, numerous ties and two pairs of trousers in my panniers. If I am continuity [meaning same character, same day] over several days, all I need to pack is my continuity wardrobe.

Getting to the various locations can also be challenging. I have set up a perimeter of where I can justify a bus-bike commute, based on the bus routes and frequency of the bus and distance to the nearest bus stop etc. I have commuted out to UBC, Park Royal in West Vancouver and eastward to Riverview Hospital. Since most of the locations are in the downtown area of Vancouver, it is just a matter of a 25-40 minute ride in to the city. Even when the weather is foul and it is an early morning call at 6am I can be down to the "circus"[where the crew trucks are] at 1st and Ontario or even Stanley Park reasonable dry and ready for the cameras. I've got my changing in to my wardrobe down to a fine art and can be ready for camera in about 10 minutes. Often a short van trip to the actual location is required and so I end up locking my bike at the circus location. Only once when there was a screw up on Fringe did I needlessly go to a parking lot, then have to hoof it over to the actual location with my bike in a van.

me n ma panniers in action

I have commuted home at 3.30am from a night shoot on Human Target at Park Royal in the rain in the middle of December, heading over the Second Narrows bridge is interesting at that time of night. I have been up at 4am to get to set at 5.30am in Stanley Park for Psych also in the rain; so having the right rain gear is also essential. I recently purchased a Sugoi [Vancouver based company]Hydrolite rain jacket $130  Its an amazing piece of fabric that has kept me totally dry in some pretty nasty conditions. Because it is designed as a shell to go over existing clothing I even managed to fit it over a puffy down jacket and on camera clothes for a short but wet commute down to Bridge Studios, which is 10 minutes away. Initially, I had bought it to cover my existing Sugoi jacket that was getting a little raggedy, but I'm finding it works well just over a fleece vest or top. To complement the jacket I also re-purchased some MEC Cyclone Tights for $69 

Mayor Gregor Robertson

One of the conversations I overheard whilst working on set the other day was how much the city of Vancouver had "wasted" on their cycling infrastructure. As we were working at Hornby and Hastings sitting on a bus with not much else to do except watch people go by, we got in to the conversation about the city had spent $20 million on cycling upgrades only because the mayor was a cyclist. I didn't waste much time in commenting about the billions spent on expanding the Sea to Sky Highway and the current expansion of the Trans Canada Hwy between 200th Street in Langley and the Cassiar tunnel. Turns out the Hornby Bike Lane has been costed out at around $3.2million, the city is spending almost $16 million on left turns on Knight Street in comparison. I take it for granted that a city the size of Vancouver needs a better cycling infrastructure, I often forget there are 1000's of motorists out there that have never been on a bike or a bus and would never contemplate doing to in order to get to work. Vancouver has certainly become more bike friendly since Gregor Robertson became mayor and the province banned the use of cell phones whilst driving. My only concern is that Gregor has supported cyclists too much and has lost a lot of his non-cycling supporters, we'll find out later this year in the Vancouver civic election scheduled for November, I for one would like to see him re-elected, along with Andrea Reimer.

Lastly, I came across a fellow Vancouver cyclists' blog here at Average Joe's Cycling Blog - great fun.

Vancouver Island Circle Route Tour

This is a map of the route we took, except for the Malahat

A few weeks back Andrea and I took a bike tour of southern Vancouver Island. We are fairly new in to our relationship and yet decided it would be a good idea, Andrea didn't hesitate for a minute at the suggestion of the tour and that is always a good sign.

DAY 1

An early morning rise [4am] got us out to pick up Andrea's car mechanic Walter, who was going to work on Andrea's van whilst we were going to be away. We arrived at the ferry terminal with a slight drizzle for the 7am 90 minute trip to Swartz Bay.

Having made this trek previously a few years back I knew of the various places one could get lost, so we made the our first stop at Sidney by the Sea. The rain gained a little in strength as we left Sidney causing us to pull over and put on rain pants. As we got closer to Victoria the rain let up somewhat and by the time we hit the Blankinsop Trestle it was dry and sunny again. We had a short stop over for lunch at hippy-ist cafe in Victoria before making a short trek around the BC legislature and the back over the Johnson St bridge on to the Galloping Goose Trail. Before heading east ward to Sooke we stopped off at the Community Bike shop near the junction of Lochside and Galloping Goose Trails and found a fender for Andrea's front wheel. [I had foolishly left my back fender at home] but could not find one to fit. The Lochside trail had given us a layer of mud already.

Heading out toward Sooke on the gentle slope of the old trail bed was easy enough. However, as I expected I found the going somewhat slow in comparison to the road, but we were in no rush at all. The Galloping Goose Trail winds outs of Victoria and then passes through Colwood and Langford and through some really nice country around Matheson Lake. Around this point the drop off got a little steep, fine for trains in the day but a bit daunting for this cyclist. The GG does take a significantly different route than Hwy 14 or any other road for that matter thus giving us some quiet cycle time.

Coming in to Sooke the trail obviously had lost a few trestles from it railway days. The steep gravel inclines and declines are well marked however, after spending so much time on the flat it was a little too much and I stalled out on the incline and flipped myself over on to my right side. Nothing was broken or even bleeding, but it did remind us of how remote we would be going and not to take chances.

Finally arriving in to Sooke we rejoined the highway for a brief time. The road between Sooke and Victoria is well used by commuters and the road was busy with little or no shoulder, a sharp contrast to the previous hours spent on the Lochside and Galloping Goose trails. A warm bath awaited us at the Welsford B&B and our hosts Gail & Ray  graciously gave us a ride in to town for dinner and we walked our tired bike riding muscles back to the B&B for a good night's sleep.

Total: 66km

DAY 2 Route

DAY 2

Starting out at 9.15am this turned out to be the best weather day of the four days, it also turned out to be the steepest and somewhat unexpectedly so. The trek from Sooke to Jordan River was most pleasant despite being on the highway with little or no shoulder. The only drawback was the first big hill of the trip at Shirley, for some reason this hill just about killed me and Andrea was up at the top waiting for me. I think I had my pacing all wrong or something, my heart felt like it was exploding and my head was all mental. But having my love waiting for me pulling me up the hill was a major plus. The stop at Jordan River was much needed and the juxtaposition of some big guns firing over on the American side was not lost on the otherwise tranquil setting. After climbing out of Jordan River, and regained my hill climbing cadence; Andrea's hill climbing was excellent and I found my spot just ahead of her just perfect physically and mentally.

Jordan River

Some amazing views awaited us giving us a sense of how high was had climbed. As we got further away from Jordan River the country got a little wilder; some of the areas had been logged as far back as 1902 and some as recent as 1980's and a few were planted in 1962 and 1963 and were the same age as Andrea and I; nice to meet trees your own age. The road had been recently paved and was not as rough as expected and the road was pretty well our own after Jordan River, with no logging trucks and just the odd motor cyclist.

From my scans of Google streetview I knew we had at least one steep climb ahead however, it was the second drop and subsequent climb out of a creek that caught us off guard. The road was so steep at this point we had to dismount and push the bikes up the hill, no wonder we had not seen a logging truck all afternoon !!! The weather was at least in our favour and as we had expected we swore at the hill - here it is from google street view. Shortly thereafter we were blessed with recently paved [last few weeks] smooth blacktop all the way in to Port Renfrew. The ride in to Port Renfrew was long and steep and thankfully downhill, made all that much safer with the new surface. We cruised in to Port Renfrew at 5pm.

Port Renfrew has just 300 residents and is the southern gateway to the West Coast Trail. The host of our accommodations Connie turned out to be an above knee amputee just like me. Our spartan hiker hut was adequately comfortable and we dined in fine style across the street at the Coastal Kitchen Cafe. In the evening we walked out on to the pier at the Port Renfrew Hotel and sipped a Bailey's n coffee on the pub deck only to have rats run over our feet, I felt that much closer to mother nature. We did try to rescue a snake from the middle of the road in Port Renfrew but it was too far gone and when we looked for it the next day it had died peacefully at least.

Not to be confused with the
Northern Soul classic

Total: 74kms

DAY 3

We knew day 3 would be the most remote and steepest of our days, turns out we were wrong on both accounts. Based on the premise if logging trucks can navigate it so can we, the hills on day 3 proved to be less challenging than those on day 2.

Given we had a 60km trek we set out a little later at noon after breakfast. The road out of Port Renfrew is pleasant enough, however after a few km the roughness of chip set was irritating to say the least. The drizzle started up as we got closer to the mountains but it stayed light enough to be with out any rain gear.

The logging trucks were heavy and noisy but easily avoided by pulling over out of their way - the drivers seemed courteous enough, slowing to down to pass us. Certainly way more traffic on this road than highway 14. We estimated there was at least a 400 meter climb on this route, which is basically the same as riding up to SFU and down again. The major incline is two switchbacks at around the 20km mark, turned out they were easy enough to climb and once over them there was a narrow climb to the peak and then the start of the descent to Lake Cowichan.

amazing mountain climbing woman

This area has been decimated by clear cutting with little or no replanting, vast areas on the eastern side are just nothing but bush. No doubt this area was in accessible in the past is now open to public viewing, particularly urban cyclists like us who consider clear cutting the blight on the landscape it is. Nonetheless the views of the Robertson Creek valley were marvelous. The descent was long and in some parts resurfaced with what we later found out was a surface from the Lake Cowichan Hwy that had proven nasty for car windshields - always good to recycle !!!

As we approached Mesache Lake the road took a detour due to bridge repair. We did not like the look of the dirt road so we headed over to the bridge anyway and were able to cross the creek without the bridge, saving us some serious detour nastiness with trucks, gravel road and added kms at the end of our day, there are some true benefits to owning a bicycle.

a scene from "The Stand"

On our later than expected 6.45pm arrival at the Lakeshore motel in Lake Cowichan we found our "reservation" had been given to some German tourists. This was initially kind of irritating after such a long ride. Andrea and I had recently watched the episode of Seinfeld with the car reservation scene.

However, our errant hostess graciously found us other accomodation, gave us $20 for our trouble and we talked the new hosts down to $80 for the night. Turns out it was in our favour to be transferred over to Kidd's B&B. Our new host was excellent and their basement suite was luxurious in comparison to our previous night. We made our way in to town for some excellent grub at the D&D Irish Pub irony would have it that we sat next to four German tourists; it was then back to the B&B for a bath a good nights' sleep.

Total: 60km

DAY 4

Our final day on the tour had us starting off with a tasty breakfast hosted by the Kidd's. We had a number of route options for the second half of this day and it was good to get a map with some level of detail to see the best options. By 9am we were back on the road passing through the small town of Lake Cowichan and then on to Cowichan Lake Rd which was suitably scant of automobiles and had a gentle decline towards Duncan. 

finding the road at Kidd's B&B

We saw some beautiful farmland through the Cowichan Valley and as we got closer to Duncan the traffic increased accordingly. Even for urban cyclists that deal with cars all the time, being on the road for two days with out hardly any cars makes for an even more irritating time in a town like Duncan. We decided to take the more westlerly route south towards Mill Bay, turning at Craig Street in Duncan then on to Allenby Rd along the river then on to Koksilah Rd back in to the farm land.

Andrea finds a new friend

Timing was of the essence for this day as we needed to catch two ferries. After taking the scenic route through Cowichan Station, where the only hill climb of the day rose to say hello, we took the Trans Canada Highway from Koksilah Road to Mill Bay. 

After the slow going of the back roads, the Trans Canada was an easy 25k with lots of shoulder and gusty wind assistance from passing vehicles. It was about 230pm by the time we hit the village of Mill Bay. We stopped off for a Chai Latte in the local strip mall only to notice the rain coming across the bay toward us. By the time we got to the 410pm ferry the showers were doing a good impersonation of rain.

The trek from Brentwood Bay to Swartz Bay was the most unpleasant as the rain came down hard and the road seemed never ending. The hill out of Brentwood Bay seemed overly long and the traffic seemed overly eager to knock us off the road, but we eventually made it back to a soggy Swartz Bay by about 615pm to catch the 7pm ferry back to Tsawassen. We had dried off enough on the ferry to pleasantly meet up with Walter the mechanic and head back in to Vancouver to conclude our trip. The rain was coming down hard by this time.

Total: 77km

In conclusion, this was an amazing tour. We saw some wonderfully beautiful things and he feasted on what nature and humans had to offer. The really amazing part was doing it with Andrea, who turns out to be a bit of a mountain goat bike rider and a more amazing person than I had I already thought so highly of. This trip had a real potential of being a breaking point in our relationship, however we were both up for the tour and more importantly both up for the tour together,  the experience has brought us that much more closer together.

Here's to many more kms and adventures on the road together.

See the Facebook photo album and check out the video we made

A CM Virgin No More

I've been doing the Critical Mass for about 5 or 6 years now. I'm not a regular attendee anymore, the novelty has worn off just a tad - but when I meet someone who is interested in taking part, I kinda get inspired all over again.


So it was when I suggested to my g/f Andrea that we take part in the August Mass, one last good weather chance to to take over the streets of downtown Vancouver and take part in one of the world's most successful mass protests.

The August mass generally does not have the bulk of the June or July event; however the mass amassed enough mass to be massive. Our first rendezvous was the Lions Gate Bridge - now a staple of the Critical Mass diet.


Taking over the streets with one's bicycle really is something else - maybe I had forgotten how thrilling this detail could be. Certainly Andrea felt and showed it. Once off the bridge we headed off around Stanley Park along Denman then up the traditional route on Robson. It wasn't until we hit Burrard and Georgia did things start to get messy, but not for long and we then headed down to Hastings and east towards Main St.

At Main we peeled off the mass and headed eastward to home, with a required call in at the International House of Gelato, we arrived back at my house with the light of the waning day still upon us.


It was around this time I suggested to Andrea we take a more serious look at long distance cycling. I had my eyes on completing the southern Vancouver Island Circle route and without hesitation Andrea agreed to give it a go.

Talking about long distance cycling - one of my cycling heroes Ted Shredd turns out to be a friend of Andrea and by some small coincidence had lived a few blocks away from me on Adanac Street. Ted is currently riding from Summerland, BC to Los Angeles CA, a mighty ride if ever there was one. You can see his updates at http://www.funresearcher.com


On Sept 2nd Andrea and I celebrated my 48th birthday in grand style by cycling to the Vancouver Museum for a talk on local organic farming then off to Aphrodite's Restaurant at West 4th and Dunbar to chow down on some locally grown organic grub.




On Monday Sept 13th Andrea and I are heading over to Vancouver Island to complete a four day trek around the bottom end of the island. Our first day we will travel from Swartz Bay to Sooke; Day 2 Sooke to Port Renfrew; Day 3 Port Renfrew to Lake Cowichan; Day 4 Lake Cowichan to Swartz Bay via Mill Bay ferry. This will be the furthest cycling trip for both of us and it will be a blast. You can read more on the Pacific Marine Circle route HERE

Celebrating Five Years of Car Free in Vancouver

Well folks it has now been officially five years since I posted my first blog entry here. It was five years ago I took my tenuous first pedal strokes in to the world of the car-free lifestyle - looking back it all seems kinda fun - well for the most part!


When I first started commuting to work on my bike little did I know it would be the first steps in to a whole new phase of my life. Little did I know where the pedal strokes would take me - Powell River, Vancouver Island, my second marriage ?


To semi-celebrate my five years I took myself and my new g/f Andrea on a bike trek downtown to watch the Celebration of Light. We had a rooftop view of the whole event and took lots of pictures. Andrea is re-introducing herself to her Peugot bike after a layoff of a few years, this was our third ride together. One of our previous rides included a luvly kiss that knocked Andrea off her bike at the crosswalk at Rupert Skytrain. It was kinda funny to see, but poor Andrea's elbow and knee took the brunt of it. Next time she promises to take her foot out of her pedal cage first b 4 any bicycle oriented kissing.



There are certainly pros and cons of living a car free life. Is it any easier than it was five years ago ? Well no it isn't, are we still oriented to the automobile as our main method of transport ? - Well yes we are, even more so I think. Government still see freeway expansion and the subsidisation of the automobile as de facto policy - when we people start to realise the true cost of the automobile ?

Here are five pros of why I still ride:
1. Guilt free commuting - No claustrophobic commuting - seriously bad
2. No clue as to gas prices
3. Awesomely fit body - at least compared to the avg dude my age
4. Appreciation of everything outdoors - weather patterns particularly
5. Reduced my consumption level to bare minimum


Here are five barriers as to why people don't take up the life:
1. Usage of time - readjusting your life to accommodate
2. Safety concerns - even with the cellphone ban - much improved though in Vancouver, not so much in Burnaby
3. Weather - can't do much about this one
4. Social acceptance - still regarded as brave and yet odd
5. Not in good physical condition to begin with


Mid to late spring is the best time to give up your car, you at least have the summer months to get comfortable and buy some decent rain gear that might be on sale.


In a recent post I seemed to be rejecting the car free life and yet a few weeks later I feel more driven and with more purpose to continue it. Maybe something to do with having a hot new g/f who likes to ride :-) It's always fun to share your experiences with someone who appreciates them.


And just so we keep things less than serious here is my main reason for not owning a car - this will never happen to me....

Football, Nakedness and other good times

There are many fine aspects to cycling in an urban environment - passing through neighbourhoods otherwise unseen, the feeling of wind whistling by and of course the 250 other naked people who like to ride their bikes in the buff once a year.

Last weekend I decided to venture out on Saturday to several events, the important thing was to not get them mixed up in any way shape or form.


So it was with the England v USA game for the first round of the World Cup on Saturday morning. My goal was to get to the Blarney Stone is Gastown at around 11am, however I with my England flag trailing behind me I was too late and the Blarney was full. So my next port of call was the Lamplighter around the corner, was just enough room to squeeze me and my flag in at the back. The game was great, the audience was mental and everyone loved my England flag.

The game wrapped up at 1.20pm or so, then it was off to my next event over at Bute and Pacific, the annual World Naked Bike Ride. Started by my good friend Conrad Schmidt the WNBR is now in its 7th year with rides now occurring in 20 countries with 70 cities taking part. Earlier in the day cyclists in London, Edinburgh, Amsterdam, Manchester, San Francisco, New York Canberra, Melbourne and many others had doffed their gear and gone starkers on their local by-way.

My biggest decision of the day was of course should I go the whole way ? The last time I completed the WNBR was in 2008 and it was freezing 10 C and raining, never had I been so cold; but it was still fun, this time it was sunny and warm.


Admittedly, I was a little shy to doff my cycling shorts in front of so many cameras. So after we got started and pulled over we had the opportunity to strip down away from the recording devices, with a deep breath off the shorts came and on the bike I got and yes that was a new feeling right there.


Off we went up Denman, Robson, Burrard Pender, Richards, Georgia, a stop at the Art Gallery, Granville, Granville Island, Burrard bridge and back to where we started 90 minutes earlier. It is a truly amazing sight to see all those naked bodies of all shapes and sizes rolling down the streets, jaws dropped all over the place, some even turned away in shame, some never got off their cell phones.

Then it was back to world of being fully clothed and off to my next event a BBQ for the volunteers and performers of the In The House Festival where my band had played the weekend before. Of course I had to recall my WNBR experiences to them, no one seemed to mind having a recently naked England supporting man in their presence, so after a few veggie buns I headed home for the day.


In checking the mainstream media there was lots of "coverage" of the WNBR, mostly passed off as a bunch of naked nutters protesting once again - but of course there is far more to it than that.


Total round trip approx 31kms