African Bicycle Ambulance - Sweet!

In many African villages, no access to cars and long distances to hospitals can threaten lives. Enter the bicycle ambulance, pictured below. This sweet ride will carry a patient the distance required without the expense of a car, which could blow the hospital's meagre budget.


From an article about the Bicycling Empowerment Network printed in Bikeradar.com:

In a recent assessment of the link between transport and healthcare, the Bicycling Empowerment Network Namibia (BEN Namibia) found that people living with HIV/AIDS are hit hard by the lack of transport. Patients either miss their treatment because no transport is available, or spend most of their income (up to US$8 per month) on paying for lifts in private vehicles, leaving little money to pay for the food that is an essential part of their treatment. The situation worsens in an emergency, when rural dwellers may pay up to US$66 to reach the nearest hospital.

In order to change this picture, in October 2006, BEN Namibia launched a bicycle ambulance manufacturing plant in Namibia’s capital, Windhoek. Bicycle ambulances are ‘stretchers on wheels’ that attach to normal bicycles and tow a sick person or pregnant woman to a hospital or clinic where no other transport is available. In other African countries where bicycle ambulances are in use, there have been marked declines in infant and maternal mortality rates.

Five fathers to bike 758 miles for Equal Parenting

Five fathers are biking 758 miles with a chase crew from Lansing MI to Washington DC in support of equal parenting. Check it out here.

Cycle into Manhattan - East Coast Greenway

Plans are almost complete for a Bike Path that extends from Westchester Avenue into Manhattan. Imagine biking into Manhattan and not having to fight all those stinky cars sharing the road on one of the bridges! The goal of the entire East Coast Greenway is to create a bike path that goes from Canada all the way to Key West Florida, for bicycles.

From an article in the Journal News:

"Greenway organizers hope to create the trail along the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut and the Hutchinson River Parkway in Westchester, then along Westchester Avenue to downtown White Plains. From there, it would join the Bronx River trail. The trail along the river is mostly complete with about 3 3/4 miles in early planning stages in Mount Vernon, Yonkers and the Scarsdale-Hartsdale area, said Mary Kaye Koch, spokeswoman for the Westchester County Parks Department."

Bicycle Maintenance for Beginners - Video!

Bicycle Anatomy for Beginners from Quickrelease.tv on Vimeo.