On a bicycle: everything you need to know to be a cyclist for the 2020s
Cyclist taking a new cycle path on May 6, 2020 in Lyon, France.
Robert DEYRAIL / GAMMA-RAPHO
Text by: Olivier Favier
10 mins
The strikes of last winter and the pandemic have upset the relationship of the French to the bicycle.
On certain Parisian axes, the number of cyclists doubled between January 2019 and January 2020, and spectacular increases were also noted from the end of the first confinement.
And this phenomenon is not limited to France.
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To avoid the promiscuity of public transport, and to enjoy a moment in the open air without a mask, many inhabitants of the big cities have preferred the bicycle, with or without electric assistance.
Last summer, the little queen also delighted the hearts of holidaymakers who, restrictions oblige, favored nearby destinations.
Once again, the confinement experience has undoubtedly contributed greatly to this enthusiasm for outdoor physical activities.
What will it be in the long term?
It is of course too early to measure the exact extent of a tidal wave whose existence is evident everywhere in Europe, and no longer only in a few pioneer countries.
Between new practices and resurgences of old cycling traditions, here is a short glossary - in no alphabetical order - before you get back in the saddle.
Cycling
This anagram of revolution is also a portmanteau - made from the words bicycle and revolution -: it could not be better to say that there are always several possible paths when you get on a bicycle.
It is also the name of an international movement born at the height of the automobile reign on April 22, 1972 in the form of a demonstration - called "
critical mass
" - of 5,000 cyclists against a motorway project on the banks of the Seine. in Paris.
Two years later, André Dupont, alias Aguigui Mouna, presented himself as a non-candidate in the presidential elections.
Its slogan: “
I am a cyclodidact, cycling is underway.
"
►
To read also: In France the bicycle is revolutionizing
During the 2000s, collectives and associations bearing the name Vélorution appeared in Paris and in the region.
The Vélorution movement is now present in around thirty cities in France as well as in Brussels and Geneva.
The slogan of the Paris-Île-de-France group, never lacking in language creativity, is a good summary of the program: “One solution is cycling.
"
VAE (electrically assisted bicycle)
Advocates of degrowth sometimes call it the “nuclear bike” and criticize both the source of its energy supply, the incomplete recycling of its batteries and the “extractivism” at work for the supply of its components, in particular lithium, which from Tibet to Chile, does not only make people happy.
However, many municipalities, Paris in the lead, have bet on electricity to bring new audiences to the bicycle and finance the purchase of VAE.
The assistance of the bike is limited to 25 km / h and only works as long as you pedal.
These two characteristics distinguish it from the electric moped, for which the wearing of a helmet is compulsory and which must be ensured.
Recumbent bike - extended bike - cargo bike - fixie
The first, which allows you to adopt a less aggressive posture for the pelvis and perineum, is reserved for cycle touring.
The second, also called
long-tail
, has an elongated luggage rack to accommodate one or more baby seats - models that we see circulating shortly before 8:30 a.m. or after 4:45 p.m. on weekdays.
The third allows the transport of goods and was first designed for delivery people.
In Paris, it is also the subject of financial assistance, with or without electrical assistance.
Finally, the fixie, or fixed-gear bicycle is not - it is an urban legend - an urban bicycle.
It's a backpedal track bike, which needs a second brake - this isn't always the case - before going on the road and is (much) more dangerous than a normal bike.
Backpedal braking tends to cause the rear wheel to “skid”, which can surprise other users and cause a fall.
The accelerations on the flat are exhilarating but risky, the joints and the musculature provide sudden and violent efforts which, in the long run, can generate fatigue and injuries.
Its enthusiasts praise its low cost and the low maintenance it requires.
Do not slip a mini-U - an anti-theft device - in the back pocket of your jeans to play the New York deliveryman: the pocket will tear very quickly and you risk a lot in the event of a fall.
MTB - VTC - VPS - Gravel bike
The mass production of mountain bikes, also called mountain bikes by contagion of English
mountain bike
, began in the late 1970s. Mountain biking became very popular during the 1980s. sometimes extreme sports - downhill, enduro, freeride, cross-country ... - mountain biking continues to appeal to young and old alike looking to get off the beaten track.
Sometimes full suspension, with very short developments to face the surprises of the terrain, mountain biking has inspired other more versatile vehicles such as the VTC - mountain bike, which has partly replaced the old "hikers" for cycle tourists - , the bicycle with oversized tires or
fatbike
- a bicycle at ease on snow and sand with the false air of a moped, the
gravel bike
- a road bicycle with large tires very popular in recent years among those who like to join sport and vacation.
Folding bike
The history of the folding or foldable bicycle - which folds up using hinges - dates back to the end of the 19th century and saw its first mass application with the “pliante Gérard”, presented at the Salon du Cycle in 1894, and sold. to equip the infantrymen of the French, Belgian or Russian armies.
The benchmark today is British, with the Brompton brand, whose unique model has continued to develop and improve since its creation by Andrew Ritchie.
Very compact and light, with small 16-inch wheels, the Brompton remains an artisanal product and an investment and is competing with the more accessible Dahon - with 20-inch wheels and central folding - and its multiple avatars.
There are also folding large-wheel bikes, like those made by the American Montague, and collapsible bikes, like the luxury Moulton hikers, also British.
Folding bicycles have been on the rise in recent years to the point that they were added in 2020 to the list of bicycles benefiting from mobility aid in Île-de-France.
They are the kings of intermodality.
Intermodality
For travelers as for goods, for commuting or intercontinental travel, carriers are increasingly using intermodality.
Daily travelers, especially in large cities, sometimes combine the bicycle - folding - or the scooter with the train, bus, metro, RER or tram, whether on regular trips or as an alternative in case of bad weather.
On the rail network side, the TERs accept bicycles free of charge, subject to availability - without reservation - the Transiliens also, except during peak hours.
TGV Inoui, Ouigo and Intercity have specific regulations, including additional costs and / or space limits and / or a transport bag.
► Also to listen: The vélotaf? I'm doing it this year
The velotaf first appeals to all those who do not necessarily have time slots to grant to physical activity between professional and family life.
But it is above all a means of avoiding, when possible, the promiscuity of public transport and the difficulties of parking your car.
Marginal a few years ago - 2% of home-work trips in France in 2015 -, of all the uses of the bicycle, it is the one that has developed the most during the strikes and the pandemic.
Will the French keep this good habit for the environment and for their health?
Green lanes
They are the royal road of the cyclist - and of the pedestrian, who is the user in equal share -, they often recycle abandoned routes - towpaths and unfortunately also, the old daily railway lines.
Combined with shared but signposted lanes, they sometimes turn into cycle routes.
In 2012, EuroVelo 1 was born, making it possible to relay the North Cape in Norway to Caminha in Portugal.
11,500 kilometers long, it is still today the longest of the 19 European cycle routes.
Cycle paths - cycle lanes
The former are pavements entirely reserved for cyclists, the latter a reserved lane delimited by road markings.
Unless otherwise indicated (obligatory cycle track or lane), their use is no longer binding since 1998, even if many motorists ignore it or pretend to ignore it.
The construction of temporary cycle paths began in mid-April in Paris, bringing the network from around ten kilometers to around 150 kilometers in six months.
Bicycle tourism
Paul de Vivie (1853-1930), known as Vélocio
, is the founding father of cycle tourism.
We owe him the generalization of the derailleur with speed changes - which he recommended in cycling races to fight against doping!
- and the seven commandments of Vélocio, including abstaining from cigarettes and alcoholic drinks during any excursion.
Vegetarian and fervent defender of Esperanto, Paul de Vivie died in Saint-Étienne at the age of 74, hit by a tram.
Every year in June, an amateur hill climb is organized between Saint-Étienne and the Col de la République in his homage: it is Vélocio day.
Self-repair workshop
For those who want to combine cycling and DIY, they have multiplied all over France.
People come there to exchange, repair, improve or even assemble their bikes.
In the great tradition of popular education, we acquire autonomy and we also include reflections on gender.
Many workshops offer single-sex sessions for women, trans and non-binary people.
Hasta la Velorución, siempre!
Our selection of archives on the subject
To listen :
→ Why the bike is leading the race
→ Cycling in the Netherlands, Switzerland and Ireland
→ Congo: the bicycle, an essential means of work for the women of Makoua
→ West Bank: cycling as a political act
→ How to ride a bicycle in town a sporting activity?
→ A summer on the bike
→
Cycling
trips: a story of the little queen
→ Saint-Étienne, the French cycling capital
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