Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Circle of Trust


For months now, we've been rattling on about bikes and bike culture here in the Twin Cities. We never quite knew if it was just because we were watching the world from our own little bicycle perch, but it sure seemed like lots more Twin Citizens were hitting the bike trails to train or play or go to work.

Now we have proof that cycling is the new punk rock: Mpls Bike Love is a relatively new online forum that celebrates all things two-wheeled in our fair cities, and it's quickly bridging up to MNSpeak as the area's most active and engaging online community blog.

Even if you're not into fixies and singlespeeds and alleycats, MBL is a good anthropological snapshot of what 20- and 30-something Twin Citizens are up to these days; it's a great place to lurk if you want to watch an honest-to-god, old-fashioned subculture as it emerges and matures.

Plus, they've got a supercool logo that pays homage to our most garish civic symbol, Nicollet Island's Grain Belt billboard. Watch for this symbol in the spokes of bikes around town, and then go online and compliment that cutie on her pink ten-speed, or that hunkahunka on his Italian fixie.

Don't tell them we sent you, though. We don't rate in these rarified circles.

Mpls Bike Love, http://www.mplsbikelove.com