The Chainlink

Winter Bike to Work Rally video

Here's the video from last week's rally.  Nice to meet you, Julie!

 

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=176814

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Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on January 24, 2011 at 4:28pm

Nice!

 

Isn't it nice how the media can twist the knife by manipulating everything someone says and turning it back on them.

 

"Many bikers feel like they are saving money on their commutes but in these cold winter months much of the money saved on gas and transit goes towards gear -to keep warm!"

 

Typical Mass-media spin-doctor FAIL

 

 

Permalink Reply by Holly on January 24, 2011 at 6:36pm

I liked seeing this video--made me wish I commuted downtown for work.

 

I agree, James. I cringed at that line. The reporter seemed to take some weird "I hate to tell you this, but.." kind of pleasure in saying that.

 

Permalink Reply by Joe TV on January 24, 2011 at 10:25pm

Er, is it not true?  And who exactly is the spin doctor behind the college student's piece?  C'mon.  

 

Julie, that was a great soundbyte!  And the person who looked the least comfortable in that cold?  The reporter.  

Permalink Reply by dan brown on January 25, 2011 at 8:51am

wait - Julie : you're not crazy !!! ???

 

nice video.

 

Permalink Reply by Mark on January 25, 2011 at 9:14am
OK, so my response should have been that I am able to invest all of the hundreds of dollars that I have saved by not having to ride the CTA into cool biking accessories and maintenance.  (As my wife reminds me.)
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on January 25, 2011 at 9:34am

Isn't it the whole point to aquire all these cool fashion/clothing/gear accessories over time rather than pumping money down the CTA hole?

 

:-D

 

Mark said:

OK, so my response should have been that I am able to invest all of the hundreds of dollars that I have saved by not having to ride the CTA into cool biking accessories and maintenance.  (As my wife reminds me.)
Permalink Reply by Duppie on January 25, 2011 at 9:53am

If the purpose of Bikewinter is to get more people on bikes during the winter than this video did a great disservice to that cause.

The person in the opening still (with the skin colored full-face mask) looks like a complete freak to me. No normal person is going to see that picture and think: Yeah! Winter biking is something that normal people do. I want to try riding my bike in winter too!

Permalink Reply by Holly on January 25, 2011 at 10:06am

Yep...Joe TV, I ought to cut the student reporter some slack. She looks really cold. It is true. I've invested some money into my hobby/sport/recreational activity.  It's money well spent. 

 

I was delighted when one of my neighbors said to me today, "I like your winter garb" as I pulled into the building. I feel like I look wholly unattractive my usual winter getup. (still figuring it out I guess.) A face mask in that color wouldn't really work for me, then again, anything in that color would make me look like death warmed over...

Permalink Reply by Brian F Morrissey on January 25, 2011 at 10:15am

Of course it is, it's in an investment that pays dividends in the long run.  My winter jacket cost me nearly $200 but I've been using it for 6 years and I'll use it for 6 more, maybe longer.  If I drove every day, that $200 would be gone in a couple of months, maybe less.

 

Comments like this are always disingenuous and reactionary, but it's of course nothing new.  Most Northwestern students aren't paying for their own gas, anyways.


Holly said:

Yep...Joe TV, I ought to cut the student reporter some slack. She looks really cold. It is true. I've invested some money into my hobby/sport/recreational activity.  It's money well spent. 

 

I was delighted when one of my neighbor's said to me today, "I like your winter garb" as I pulled into the building. I feel like I look wholly unattractive my usual winter getup. (still figuring it out I guess.) A face mask in that color wouldn't really work for me, then again, anything in that color would make me look like death warmed over...

Permalink Reply by BalloonBiker on January 25, 2011 at 10:55am

I had posted to the Active Transportation facebook post about how I was also a little alarmed about the "it costs a lot to bike to work."  comment.  I was in the video as well, and they even did a close up of me putting on my yellow gloves.  Those gloves are probably the only cycle specific thing that I was wearing....and they only cost $10 (I did get them on sale).

 

Biking is like most activities...you can do it on a small budget or a large budget.  Anythin you wear can be done that way.  There are some folks who wouldn't be caught dead when not wearing designer clothes and there are others who shop exclusively at WalMart.

 

I think getting the message out that cycling is affordable and accessible would be a good message, both for Bike Winter and for Active Transportation Alliance.

Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on January 25, 2011 at 11:54am

No slack from me.

 

Of the subjects I care about and am knowledgeable in, journalists invarioably get the facts wrong.  I am not  talking just a little bit wrong, but WAY off base and into left field.  Often things are spun so that a certain political agenda is favored regarding some umbrella/meta "moral" being expressed or pushed -usually in such a way as to make people who are interested in that hobby/craft/whatever/political party seem stupid/evil/wasteful/silly or just plain wrong.

 

I can only assume they do this when they are reporting in other subjects which I'm not as knowledgeable about so that I don't catch it.  But I'm pretty sure they are if the ones that I do have some knowledge about is any indication.

 

Reporters suck.  And that includes those whose bias is to the left/right/middle or anywhere off on a tangent to the typical 2D political spectrum. 

 

 


Serge Lubomudrov said:

Cut some slack?
Permalink Reply by Holly on January 25, 2011 at 12:00pm

Cameron's example also fits my belief that there are just some people who seem to really enjoy the "I hate to tell you this, but..."kind of mentality. If you hate to tell me, why bother telling me? Another thing this reporting triggers is that kind of fake support some people like to put out there sometimes. I don't let people like that into my life. It goes like this: 

"Oh, you're biking in the winter this year? Good luck with that!" (And it's said as if it's almost certain that I'm going to need the luck because I probably won't be able to do it.)

 

This writer expresses what it can be like--not always, of course--but certainly sometimes:

http://southernspokes.wordpress.com/2010/12/03/attitudes-and-percep...

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