Innovative hauling, without anything special

Once upon a time, I had a friend who lived in New York. We’ll call him Ricardo–which, coincidentally, is his real name:) He had a bike that he rode sometimes, and then it was stolen.

Last summer, Ricardo came to visit Portland. We rode all around the city and out to Oxbow to camp, and we had a grand old time. I don’t know if riding here helped or if he just got all fired up about biking again on his own, but when he went back to New York, he bought another bike.

A few months pass. Ricardo moves to Los Angeles, which I was afraid would mean the end of his biking and the beginning of car culture (such is my perception of LA, perhaps unfairly). BUT! Lo and behold, he’s been biking all over Los Angeles. He hasn’t bought a car. He’s finding bike lanes. He’s making it happen.

But the best thing is that he keeps sending me pictures of all the awesome stuff he’s been doing with his bike. For anyone who doubts the carrying capacity of a modest bicycle, check it out:

kale bike

Okay, so the old panniers-exploding-with-produce trick may not be the most innovative thing ever. But it’s still pretty darn awesome (and very wholesome:)

But how about a back rack full of gardening supplies and new houseplants for his apartment?

garden bike

Or, perhaps, a huge barrel that’s destined to become a garden pond? (Plus some very happy sunflowers and who knows what else inside the barrel.)

pond bike

Or perhaps my favorite, some new furniture?

furniture bike

I love this because he’s not doing anything crazy. He hasn’t required any specific equipment that he didn’t already have on his bike. He’s just getting creative with bungee cords and his back rack to get what he needs back to his home.

This is why I love bicycles:) And why I love Ricardo. Way to make it happen:)

3 Comments:

  1. What kind of bike and rack is that?

  2. It’s an Urban Xpress by KHS and the rack is a Planet Bike Eco Rack. It seems pretty standard, but super handy!

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