Fietsen - Casual Rides - Ep. 1
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- **The thumbnail photo was taken the next day at night and isn't associated with the ride. I simply forgot to take a picture that day.
It's a bike ride, it's a podcast, its a FietsCast!
The other day I needed to burn off some anxious energy, so I decided to do that with a ride around town. Without planning, I loaded up the camera, put on my mic, and headed out to enjoy the chilly and cloudy weather, while making a video for you all to casually watch in the background.
I didn't do any editing, it's 40ish minutes of real-time riding around the central part of town to show you the daily mid-day happenings and me rambling on about this and that. Again, it's not something you grab popcorn for, but maybe put it on in the background as your scrolling on your phone.
If you enjoy this format, please hit the like button and maybe I'll do more in the future. If it's not so popular, I'll know not to put in the effort. Thanks!
A relaxing video. I enjoy videos taken of cities from this type of perspective. Thank you.
Thank you! If you'd like, tune in for a live stream sometime. It's pretty much the same thing, but live. 🙃
Impressive how you don’t see people walking on the streets, even on places with good sidewalks and places to sit. If it wasn’t for the cars passing by, it could be a ghost town
Thanks for another great video advocating for cycling, pedestrian and disability inclusive infrastructure and pointing out the absurdities! I combed the comments, and maybe I missed it, but...Did anyone else see the car blow the stop sign 🛑 at the end of the video behind Brandon? 😲 Even traffic lights have become scary these days!
I'm only a minute in and I can already say that this kind of video is a fine addition to the channel. I wouldn't feel too locked into a format.
I appreciate that feedback. Thank you.
To me, where you're riding looks like paradise. I'd be grateful to have anything like that sort of infrastructure here.
That weather... chilly but still above freezing and otherwise mild, is really underrated for a pleasant ride.
Indeed it is!
This was great to watch, really enjoyed the dry snark humor. And this video makes me appreciate Carmel a little more, even if it is still insanely car-centered. Before this, my entire knowledge of the city was 10 years ago someone stole my ex's credit card and used it at a Kohl's there. Zero chance I'm ever visiting there in my life, but I'm planning on getting an Urban Arrow here in Germany pretty soon, so if for whatever reason you're ever in the Cologne/Düsseldorf/Essen region, I can try to give you a ride on our bike highway.
Also, 28:58, fun to learn we have the same name!
17:07 Lol, that's shuffleboarding. Very popular on cruise ships but it's rare to see one just out in the open in the middle of town like that.
You are inspiring me! I am currently writing a paper for my class about how cities should prioritize bike and ped infrastructure. They need to invest in this if they want to become more financially, socially, and environmentally sustainable. Keep up the good work!
Also, if anyone knows of any really good peer reviewed sources for winter bike commuting please let me know!
Look up Pekka Tahkola in Oulu Finland. masterclass.city/
@@AmericanFietser Thank you! I will check it out!
Shifter (you tube channel) and Tom Babin’s Frostbike is a book about winter bike commuting
@@Livisliving thanks!!
The game is shuffleboard. At 6'8" and 270, I feel pretty sure I could pilot the UB with you in it, but I don't think I'll come all the way from Washington State to find out. Thanks for the tour of your town. The amount of construction there is mind blowing. Carmel and Yakima, Wa are about the same size but our downtown core is dead in comparison.
No one taller than myself allowed. 😂
I can almost guarantee the damage to the green 'paint' for the bike lanes wasn't caused by bikes.
Love the video! Please keep making more
I'm convinced the Mayor of Carmel has shares in a chair store - every possible kind of chair within a few hundred metres
I love these vids! Will wave and watch later when I am doing the dishes and folding laundry! These videos are perfect for those activities. Kinda like a video podcast.
Looks like not too bad bicycle infrastructure, from a german inner-city pov. But how come there are so few pedestrians and cars to be seen?
Pedestrians in smaller cities are rare. Americans drive everywhere, unfortunately. Also, you saw few cars because I avoid car heavy areas.
I will be honest. Carmel looks like a great place for someone who likes to bike a lot for transportation or basic errands. I live in Northern NJ (close to NYC) and only suburbs where you need a car for most because drivers are D$#ks and it is dangerous. I now want to visit with my wife and get a taste of it. Looks pretty nice there. Thanks for the video.
I still am amazed every time I see Carmel.
We don't have fixit stations at every bike parking in The Netherlands. That's a nice thing.
I think I followed you on Twitter before I got permanently suspended. Rock on, man!
I lived in Carmel 5 or so years ago when I rented a place. If I recall, the parking garages were free. From what I remember it was to help drive (pun intended) traffic to these areas. As more urbanized housing gets built, maybe that will change.
I do think since they have all the free parking garages there is no point in also putting street parking in an otherwise beautiful area.
At 2:30 I see an old red GPO phone box has made over to you in the USA. Increasingly rare over here in the UK and very, very few have phones in them (most ones in public are now book/seed swaps, defibulators , or small local information points)
It's used as a "Little Library" over here where people can give/take books. Sadly, I don't think many utilize it.
I'm in the Netherlands and trust me, I too can still find plenty of reasons to get annoyed by design and cars and the behaviour of drivers. I could think of a bunch of improvements to be made here in my town, which admittedly isn't the most bikeable in the country. I guess it will still take a good few decades for Carmel to become properly orange pulled, from what I'm seeing there, if it at all keeps the momentum it had.
Even though the infrastructure is horribly flawed in CARmel (the street parking on that pretty shopping street killed me, why would you ruin something good you had going?), most cyclists in the US would kill to have that level of quality, including myself. Where I live, cycle tracks look like garbage (with the flimsy, ugly white bollards instead of curb separation or those pretty planters) and are rarely cleaned off debris, and the number of cycle tracks that take you to somewhere you'd want to go you can count on one hand. If you're hating Carmel, always remember that, in the US, it always gets worse
side note: what's the story with those statue guys on that part of the cycle track with the games and stuff?
I've lived in many states across two different countries as well as traveling a lot. I do recognize the good we have, but it's my job as an infrastructure advocate to point out the flaws in design and priority, otherwise many people won't see what needs changing to create proper livable cities.
Well now I’m sad. I was in Indianapolis a few months back for a conference and rented a bike and took a ride to Carmel because of all the good things I’d heard/seen. John Simmerman said he was going to try to get me in touch with you, but I had connection issues and my reply never made it to him. I absolutely would have piloted you around in that Urban Arrow! Next time I guess.
the freaking stopsigns everywhere.... all I can think is "why?"
Americans love to apply car infrastructure logic to non-cars. 🤦♂️
Americans are too stupid to remember more than one sign or rule, so they have to put a stop on and for everything, even roads.
Wow, those parking spots are huge! You could easily park 9 cargo bikes on one.
Does someone go araound and paint the sidewalk stones white or do you have a mine for that nearby?
I couldn't say in regards to the stones.
The Warmonbikes pogies are not available for purchase in USA! Anyone got a recommendation for a good set I could buy? It’s about 20-40 degree Fahrenheit, and I am just cruising/commuting on an urban style ebike.
You can buy them from hollandbikeshop.com
Thank you!
I had to go back in the video and watch again 2 times before I figured out what was strange with the "price winning" parking garage.
It's free??? There was no gate or barrier or anything. I have never seen a multi-level parking garage that does not let you pay money per hour you are there (or where you rent a place, but you still have to do the gate).
All of our parking garages, and there are many, are free. It's ridiculous.
@@AmericanFietser Well, I just did the math for a 19th/early 20th century european style town with 3 or 4 storey buildings.
Comparing to apartments, even taking into account a low rent, that is roughly 1000€ free parking in a public space. For German minimum size parking lot (2,5m+5m). Per year.
I guess for Carmel it would be the same, the area is a lot less dense, but the parking lots seem to be 2 times the size too.
My town has a downtown free parking garage too. Two stories takes up a one block area.
Thanks for another great video. I'm thinking about making similar videos. What is your camera, microphone, and tripod setup?
is that a thin blue line flag at 15:15?
Yes, the owner of this place is apparently a trumper. 🤦♂️
Unfortunately my country repeats USA mistakes of city planning, car infrastructure on the first place, despite the fact that many people don't have a car.
Good things shouldn't bother me. It shouldn't bother me that Carmel freaking Indiana may well be the most bikeable city in the US. It shouldn't bother me.
What pogies did you get? Is it easy to take your hands out quickly?
WOBs and they can be ordered from Hollandbikeshop.com
@@AmericanFietser ta. I'll get some. If winter ever shows up.
Complaining, complaining, you sound almost as a EU citizen
You need street parking, cause..heaven forbit you have to walk 5 steps more than absolutely necessary
😂
You can't walk 5 steps in the winter! Humans don't have 4WD!!
@@steemlenn8797 The homo sapians arrived 250.000 + years ago, the car is 100 years old.
Do you think there were no icy roads during that 249.900 year time span?
This was fantastic video for being uncut. You are way better at this than you think.
I don't mind the complaining especially because you are pointing out what is causing problems. I actually don't understand how such smaller city size of Carmel needs that much parking. If they removed cars from that area heading up to the nice hotel? It would be a very nice district for people to mingle and enjoy.
I hope things get better for Carmel but eventually some of us are going to have to pull a Not Just Bikes and get the hell out of the US and Canada before things get better.
Hello Americanfietser. Love your vlogs. Makes me feel good....i live in Ede the Netherlands. About as big as Carmel. We have only 2 parking garages. If you live in a good place it's hard to appreciate how lucky i am.
Thank you Maarten! I have heard of Ede, but have not been there as of yet. Thank you for taking the time to watch these videos. I'm the person I am today because of the Dutch and the Netherlands.
The cold ghost of good European city planning for* a slowly dieing American middle class: fun.
The next question is how do we make our anti-homeless infrastructure seem more continental, and less "sad".
The infrastructure is so...spotty? I wouldn't say it's bad; where it exists, it seems okay. And then there's just like huge stretches where it looks like it's just...road? No bicycle lanes, narrow sidewalks, pedestrian stop signs (?). There's also a ton of parked cars and not that many people walking around, which is always sad to see.
Of course Carmel is a city for cars, "car" is literally in the name.