Roody

I'm wondering who you all think are cool carfree people, whether public figures or somebody you know personally.

Write a short blurb about them, and say what impact they have made on you or on the carfree world. (Or just copy something out of Wikipedia if it's a public figure.)

I guess they don't have to be totally carfree, but they should at least have that carfree/carlight vibe.

wahoonc

No one person in particular. However I find it inspiring to see what I would call ordinary everyday people going about their business on a daily basis and not using a car. Some have been car free their entire lives and live in places like Boston, New York, DC or Chicago. Others live in small towns all over the world. The other group are people that have all of a sudden realized that the car-centric lifestyle is killing them and make the conscious decision to do something about it.

Aaron

Artkansas 

The first person who comes to mind is Bill Cunningham. He's 85, car-free and a successful professional who's been honored by his industry. He doesn't hide his bike in the closet, it's become an icon.

Artkansas 

David Byrne, formerly of the Talking Heads comes to mind second.

Roody

David was my first choice because of his lifelong commitment and the way he integrates cycling into his life, his work, and his art.

From Wikipedia:

Artkansas 

A third one, less well known, is Mark Martin, the founder of BRASS(Baton Rouge Area Safe Streets) in Baton Rouge. A photographic archivist for LSU.

bragi

An inspiration for me is Meyer Hillman, a social scientist and environmental activist in the UK. He's never had a car, and, even though he's a bit aged now, gets around everywhere in his home country and elsewhere by bicycle and public transportation. I'm also a fan of Bill Cunningham. I've admired David Byrne for other reasons, but his bicycle stance is less impressive to me, mostly because he's so puffed up about it. And ILTB impresses me, too, even though he's not car-free and is a troll on this forum in his worst moments. He's not a wuss on a bike, though, and has done some very impressive commutes in difficult conditions, and you have to respect that.

Closer to home, I have... no one who actually inspires me. My closest friends still think I'm eccentric for not driving. Some of my co-workers have joined me in bicycle commuting, but still own and use cars on weekends (which, for families, is totally rational in the US in my opinion).

Maybe I need to make a renewed effort to connect to the local bicycle community. I tried a few years ago with the Cascade Bicycle Club, but was put off, because it seemed to me at the time that it was either club racer types, which is obviously another mind-set altogether from utility riding, or totally political types, people who would all drive cars to meetings about advocating for more bicycle infrastructure.

Artkansas 

Been there, done that. But the important thing is to be there. Demonstrate what a car-free life is like. It takes time, but they'll start to pick up on it. Become President.
When I arrived in Little Rock, the bicycle advocacy was focused on making better tourist facilities like the Big Dam Bridge. I rolled my eyes but chipped in to lend my support. But now, the bridges are all done and more focus is on fixing the streets. The politicians are more behind it because the Big Dam Bridge proved that bicycles bring money into the area.

cycleobsidian

I love this guy. I hope that I am like him at 85....agile, smart, productive.

Oh. And Ralph Nader. He is car free too. What an inspiration.

Rowan

Just about every French person who lives in a small village in the French countryside who has been through World War II and has lived their life walking or riding a bicycle. Every time I have been to villages like that in France and seen a little old lady or gentleman riding their bike, I am full of admiration.

B. Carfree

This schism between utility/commute cycling and and performance riding is a sad development of the past couple decades. There was a time when we were all one and the same and it was a rare racer who didn't do a fair amount of utility riding.

Ekdog

By "puffed up" do you mean he's arrogant? I've never met the man, but he certainly doesn't come off that way in Bicycle Diaries. Is there anything he has done or said, specifically, that makes you say this about him?

Machka 

Four Women ... four strong, adventurous, intelligent, beautiful, well-travelled, and interesting women.

I met all four through cycling forums, and have met, and cycled with, three of the four in person.

All four have posted on Bike Forums at one time or another, although not in this sub-forum.

2 are American (east coast), 1 is Canadian (Alberta), and 1 is French (Paris).

They are all car-free and have been for some time ... but they don't talk about it. They just are car free.

What they talk about is their latest randonneuring event ... their multi-month tours around Europe and elsewhere ... that they've signed up to do some racing this year.

And they talk about their lives ... music, cats, house renovations, books, jobs, travel ...

They are all inspirational for many reasons ... but one of the many inspirational things is how they all live full, interesting, exciting, and varied lives while being car free.

Artkansas 

Any names or links so we can find out more about them?

Walter S

Myself perhaps. I've had a huge impact on my life. More than any person alive really. And I inspire myself and impress myself every day with my dedication to being car free.

And to think, I might never have done this. But I did and I keep at it.

Keep fun and cop whatever attitude keeps you riding!

phoebeisis

Geeez
There are plenty of PO FOLKS in the USA that don't have a car.
You must mean affluent folks who make a big deal about not having a car-despite being able to afford one
I wonder how they travel-for whatever business they are in?
Bike?
Probably most of these folks you have mentioned has crossed the Atlantic ?
Did they sail across?

Sixty Fiver

I am inspired by ordinary people like many people here and those I know personally.

My friend has bi-polar disorder and for the past several decades has done all his travelling by bike, builds bikes for those who are less fortunate, and gives 100% of who and what he is when he is able to.

I plan to gift him my extrabike if he wants it... he wants to start a small delivery service for low income folks who can't get out.

lakhotason

Just about any homeless bike guy. Collecting cans in the morning and getting drunk in the afternoon.

ro-monster

When I was about 12 years old, my father, who often gave rides to hitchhikers and sometimes invited them to our house for dinner, brought home an old African-American gentleman who was riding his bike across the country to California, where he had relatives. I think he had started his trip somewhere in the midwest, but I can't recall exactly where. We lived just outside of Denver, so he had already ridden a long way. He had literally nothing except an old bike and the clothing he was wearing.

After dinner he played the piano for us. He had made a living playing in nightclubs in the days when they were still segregated, and played very well. In the morning my father drove him and his bike over the Rocky Mountains (a round trip of about 6 hours by car) and gave him a warm coat and gloves. I don't think this man had ever seen the Rockies, and didn't realize he would have had to cross 12,000-foot passes in sub-freezing temperatures. I sometimes wonder what became of him, and hope he made it to California safely.

Even as a kid, I marveled at his courage in simply going out with nothing, although I don't think I could do that myself. I would at least have to carry some shelter and insulation, and a means to boil water.

Pistard

My grandfather, never owned a car, was a house painter, riding that bike one handed in his 60's with a ladder over the shoulder and some tools in the panniers , Strasbourg, France.

Roody

Geeez...instead of getting all poopy and condescending, give us an example of a "PO FOLK" with an inspirational story?

Like "Granddad" Eure, who founded and ran the Kid's Repair Program after retiring as an auto worker for GM. Kids partner 1:1 with volunteer adult mentors to earn a bike that they repaired themselves. Granddad stressed that bikes were fun for kids, but also reliable transportation. And he noticed that there were thousands of abandoned bikes all over the city, discarded only because nobody knew how to make the simple repairs that the bikes needed. Kids who completed the classes not only got the bike with helmet and lock, but a certificate and a nice graduation party.

One thing I like about Granddad is that he thinks the experience should benefit the adult volunteer as well as the kids. Early volunteers were mostly laid-off auto workers who had good benefits but problems with boredom and lack of meaning. Some volunteers were homeless people. They earned a bike of their own by completing the repair class before working with the kids. Another cool thing was that the kids themselves could take an advanced class, then come back to work with younger kids.

Granddad is about 90 now. I work with his son, who said he is definitely starting to slow down.

https://www.tncp.net/Articles/tabid/1...5/Default.aspx

Machka 

Since they don't post in this subforum ... I'd rather maintain their privacy.

phoebeisis

grand dad sounds just perfect-
He might be car free now-but I kinda doubt he is anti car-and doubt he was car free during most of his adult life.
He is pro bike without being anti car
Many of you-and your heroes-are anti car-
Anti car folks never get anything done when they petition various politicians
Even if they attempt to hide their car hate-the politicians are able to read them in a millisecond-"crank"-and politely write them off.

Roody

You don't know me. This is just a figment of your angry imagination. Do you have anything to offer that's positive and on-topic?

Roody

@phoebeisis Here's an example of an inspirational "pro-sustainability" politician. Enrique Penalosa was mayor of Bogota. He noticed that hundreds of children in his city were being injured and killed by cars. At the same time he could see that "PO FOLKS" (who couldn't afford cars) lacked access to jobs and education opportunities. He revolutionized public transit in Bogota, and has gone on to work for better urban planning and sustainable transit all over the world.

Anti-car? Maybe, but more pro-sustainability and pro-social justice.
Bitter and ineffective? Absolutely not.

"An advanced city is not one where even the poor use cars, but rather one where even the rich use public transport..."
---Enrique Peņalosa.

https://new.ted.com/talks/enrique_pen...racy_in_action