22 January 2008
The beauty of balance
Posted by todd under: Words from cycling sages .
“What keeps a bicycle or any other single track vehicle going without falling over is the inertia of its moving mass. Rolling a narrow hoop will show that it is an unstable balance: once the thing starts to lean either left or right, it will just go down further and further until it hits the ground. That’s because the mass is no longer supported vertically in line with the force. Try it with a bicycle wheel if you like. If the bike’s front wheel could not be steered and the rider couldn’t move sideways, he’d come down the same way very soon.”
– Rob Van der Plaas, The Bicycle Touring Manual
In fact, I almost ALWAYS wear one (while riding a bike anyway). (On the other hand, if YOU don't want to wear a helmet, I have no problem with it.) I don't remember what happened on this particular day. Fortunately for all of us it makes for a less-nerdly picture. My exceptionally talented professional photographer friend Charles Bertram took this photo.
I asked my 6-year-old son, Caleb, an avid bicyclist and artist, to draw a bike for me. I think he did a great job!
