Spent the last two weeks in Germany and thereabout. Visited several cities and made some observations.

Bicycles are everywhere. Bicycle racks everywhere. Lots of dedicated bike paths and bike lanes. Everybody it seems walks or rides a bike to get to work at least in part or to shop or just simply to move from place A to place B to place C. But that is where the similarity to cycling in North America ends.

There were absolutely no sport bikes, that being racing bikes, hybrids or MTB/ATB. Every bicycle had lights powered by either a generator or a battery pack. Every bike had fenders. Every bike had a rack or racks and a basket.

Nobody wore a helmet. Nobody wore cycling specific clothing. Instead they cycled in their working cloths be that a suit and tie or coveralls or business casual or casual. There was no lycra. I saw no MAMILS and in fact saw no sporting cyclist or anybody in team "kit" type clothing. They wore no special shoes and I saw no clip-in shoes or cages on the pedals. All bikes were 30mm tires or larger on 700c wheels.

Bikes, well, they were either heavy aluminum double down tube step through frames or a variety of mixte like designs. Most were ridden hard and while it appeared some were taken care of it was clear that cycling there was strictly transportation and not a sport or a hobby/love. I did see some older English "racer" types, IGH diamond frame bikes, not common but not unusual.

So, since I saw no sport cycling, well, in the bike "shops" what was in there? Well, commuter type bikes already rigged out with lights and racks just as I had seen all over the streets. I saw no sporting bicycles at all in any of the three shops I visited. The entire inventory was commuter/transportation cycling oriented.

Okay, so the people. I saw all ages, all types from kids to old women. I saw very, very few helmets. Hardly any at all. I did see a lot of people smoking while cycling. I saw a lot of people walk/push the bikes up hill and coast down, especially the older women when the bikes were laden with shopping items.

Clothing, again, no cycling clothing. I did see some women wearing leggings and skirts. I did see guys wearing some sort of trouser like legging as well but they were NOT, WERE NOT, cycling cloths and there were people wearing those with or without a bicycle. European men in particular, of all ages, contrary to their North American brethren, wear much tighter fitting clothing. The clothing is tailored if it is a suit and the jeans, when there are jeans, are skinny or very slim cut. Shirts are slim cut and ties are everywhere as are suits which are also cut slim to hug the body. And they are riding bicycles in that attire. No spandex.

Okay, so did I see any messenger bags? Nope. Either the things being carried like a brief case go on the rear rack or basket or the items purchased in basket. I saw few real panniers and I saw no messenger bags. But I did see a lot of men, mostly younger men and women too, using a back pack.

There is no pretense that the cycling I saw was for fitness or fun or recreation. These people use the bicycle as a transportation tool.

And I am serious, every bicycle I saw was fitted with fenders and lights and a sounding device and racks and baskets.

I saw no CF bikes at all.

This is what I saw in four German states in five major German cities and several smaller cities and two Dutch cities.

And, while on the subject, I saw much fewer obese people than in North America. However, I would not say the fitness level was any better, just not as fat. Just because one is skinny does not mean they are physically fit as they cycled by smoking a cigarette. It is not about fitness, it is about getting from here to there.

J