In December, I embarked on a journey through the Midwest via train to speak to a couple of organizations about the phenomenal bicycle scene in Portland and to check out bicycle culture in other cities. The first place I stopped, after a day and a half on the train, was the twin cities.

The first thing I noticed was the freezing cold. It was –15 degrees windchill with at least eight inches of snow on the ground when I got off the train. And we complain when it is 20 degrees and raining out here…

I’m from Ohio originally, so I’m no stranger to bicycling in snow and cold, but I must have forgotten what it really felt like! I felt like my toes and hands couldn’t possibly get any more frozen without falling off, even under two pairs of socks and gloves. I met a number of Minneapolis/St Paul cyclists that bragged about their 36-mile round-trip commute that they tackle all winter long. Despite the long winters of unhospitable riding weather, Minneapolis has the second largest bicycle mode split in the US (right after Portland.) The Minneapolis Bicycle Messenger Association even has one of the nation’s longest-running and biggest alleycat races on Feb 1st and 2nd called the Stupor Bowl- last year it was –2 degrees when things got kicked off (they’re still registering if you want to prove your toughness.)

I stopped in and met with the Midtown Greenway Coalition, an organization to expand and upkeep the off-road bicycle path in the twin cities known as “The Greenway”. They informed me that The Greenway is often the first thing to get plowed when it snows!

I was recommended to check out the bicycle shop Cars-R-Coffins (you read that right) When I got there, the bicycle rack was halfway covered with tightly packed snow. Walking in (my glasses fogging up coming in from –20 degree windchill, I saw a wall of bicycles, custom bags, a bicycle workspace, bicycle zines and… an espresso machine? Cars-R-Coffins is a full-service bicycle shop AND a full-service sit-down coffee shop. I warmed up my toes with a nice cup of hot coffee after bicycling around town all day and wondered why this hadn’t happened in Portland years ago. I didn’t get a chance to visit the other full-service bike/coffee shop (yes, there’s two), One-on-one Bike Studio , but I definitely will next time I’m in the twin cities.

We have a lot of bicycle/something else combination businesses in Portland: bicycle-powered ice cream trucks, the Little Red Bike Café, and Old Town Computers will pick up and deliver your computer by bicycle. But why do we not have a full-service bicycle shop and full-service coffee shop yet? Get on that, Portland bicyclenterpreneurs.

I think my experience in Minneapolis can be summed up by this quote from the City of Minneapolis webpage on winter bicycle commuting “Our identity is shaped by our weather. Snow and cold temperatures add diversity and beauty to Minneapolis. Riding a bicycle in the winter can be exhilarating and practical.”

I came to speak about what Portland was doing with bicycles, but I found myself endlessly fascinated with the rich bicycle culture in the twin cities, which is definitely shaped by the weather.

Stay tuned to learn about an emergency bicycle funding-saving phone bank to Cincinnati City Council, my presentation to the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments, and Cincinnati's bicycle kegstands.

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