Move by bike: Can it be a new trend?

October 5, 2009 · Posted by in Bikes, G.I.Y. 

I will admit that when I moved back to Boulder from Brooklyn, I did not move in a particularly green way.

No, I loaded my stuff into somebody else’s 53-foot truck (along with the belongings of many other people — I don’t have that much stuff), and it was driven here to Boulder. Then I got on a plane and flew here.

That’s why, on this fine #ecomonday, I feel like a green wuss; I didn’t move by bike. Dan at Community Cycles wants it to catch on in Boulder, and the lead story on the Camera’s local page features this big photo of some Boulderites lugging an apartment’s worth of stuff from Boulder to Gunbarrel (seven miles):

Jon Abbott leads the procession during Sundays seven-mile move from his old apartment to a new one using only bicycles. Photo by Jonathan Castner.

Jon Abbott leads the procession during Sunday's seven-mile move from his old apartment to a new one using only bicycles. Photo by Jonathan Castner.

That’s right: they moved by bike. That’s a pretty awesome degree of self-sufficiency. More details and tips on doing it yourself after the jump.

The point made is that in places like Boulder, where people rent smallish apartments and semi-frequently move short distances to other apartments (lookin’ at you, New York, Portland, Austin and other compact renting cities), if you get enough folks together, you can skip the truck. And we all hate renting moving trucks. Especially in New York.

Here’s some footage of some Portland green badassery:

MORE MOVE-BY-BIKE CRAZIES

Here are photos from another move-by-bike that looks like a ton of fun. And video from a move-by-bike in Ames, Iowa. (Both of those sound a little flatter than Boulder, right?) And a move-by-bike on TreeHugger!

HOW TO MOVE BY BIKE

Move by bike -- in cold weather! Flickr user dontbecreepy

Move by bike -- in cold weather! Flickr user dontbecreepy

How the heck do you move by bike?

There are some great tips over at shift2bikes, including:

  1. Tell EVERYBODY you’re going to do it. Not just your friends. Get the local bike freaks involved.
  2. Be so prepared that if somebody shows up with a bike and a trailer, you can get them loaded up and on their way in a matter of minutes.
  3. Provide food at the beginning and end.
  4. Plan out your route meticulously to avoid nasty traffic and unnecessary slopes.
  5. Be prepared with tarps and things in case of rain or snow!
  6. Have a backup plan in case it doesn’t work at all — maybe you can finish the job with one trip in a car with a big trunk.
  7. Tell EVERYBODY that you did it! Post photos, videos, etc. — inspire somebody!

Read more at shift2bikes — and get jealous of the level of organization already in place in Portland.

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9 Responses to “Move by bike: Can it be a new trend?”

  1. Nikon Coolpix S230 10MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom and 3 inch Touch Panel LCD (Warm Silver) | Digital camera reviews,best digital cameras,New digital cameras,cheap digital cameras,digital slr camera reviews on October 5th, 2009 9:00 am

    [...] Move by bike: Can it be a new trend? on the Camera’s local page features this big photo of some Boulderites lugging an apartment’s worth of stuff [...]

  2. Streetsblog San Francisco » Today’s Headlines on October 5th, 2009 9:49 am

    [...] Moving by Bicycle the New Green Trend? (Big Green Boulder, via [...]

  3. Move by bike: Can it be a new trend? | BigGreenBoulder Boulder, CO … | Moving Trucks on October 5th, 2009 3:33 pm

    [...] post: Move by bike: Can it be a new trend? | BigGreenBoulder Boulder, CO … Posted in Moving Trucks | Tags: all-hate, austin, compact, compact-renting, enough-folks, [...]

  4. Crazy for climate change! (AKA people doing really weird things) | Current_Green on October 6th, 2009 12:08 pm

    [...] I went to Twitter for some inspiration…and @DaveBurdick pointed me to this awesome (and crazy) trend of people moving (their houses) via bike. [...]

  5. Moving? Do It On Your Bike. : Chelsea Green on October 7th, 2009 8:47 pm

    [...] friend Dave Burdick over at Big Green Boulder points us toward an exciting new trend developing there: moving by bicycle. Crazy, you say? Well, [...]

  6. Eco-friendly hauling « plum bananas on July 27th, 2010 6:50 am

    [...] All I can do is show people what’s possible. In more progressive areas, like Boulder, CO., moving by bike is becoming more common. By “moving” I mean transferring all one’s possessions [...]

  7. Eco-friendly hauling | GCDSJ.COM on August 9th, 2010 10:33 am

    [...] All I can do is show people what’s possible. In more progressive areas, like Boulder, CO., moving by bike is becoming more common. By “moving” I mean transferring all one’s possessions [...]

  8. Moving by Bike | Car-Free Couple on July 13th, 2011 12:57 am

    [...] by bike seems to be a growing phenomenon, and is quite feasible in a compact area like Berkeley. Would you consider moving by bike?? This [...]

  9. A greener move | Her Green Life on June 21st, 2012 5:21 am

    [...] bikes on the trunk rack), I didn’t bike at all on moving day.  I certainly didn’t move by bicycle (while I think this is a cool idea, it was never in the game plan for [...]