November 12, 2014

GBC=Giant Bike Chain?

I've written about bike racks before, and a slideshow of those I've encountered on my travels now appears in BTB's sidebar. I got wind (from my father—thanks Dad!) last week of a half-dozen sculptural bike racks recently installed in downtown East Lansing.

Funded—to the tune of $20,000—by the Lansing Economic Area Partnership, the Downtown Development Authority, and the East Lansing Arts Commission, the installation is "part of the city's efforts to bring more art into the everyday life of residents" (according to the State News clipping my dad sent me).

My parents saw the racks being installed and claim that they're more impressive in real life than in the State News' photos. Still, I like what I see. I'd gladly lock my bike to GBC with its 694 pounds of stainless steel, and I applaud the message conveyed by Budget Friendly. My perennially tight hamstrings may not permit me to assume the position, but Bicycle Yoga's interpretation of the standard bike rack geometry makes me smile. As does this quote from Paul Such, the creator of the colorful Circle Back: "We wanted to do a circular thing because bikes have a lots of circular motion going on."

Check out the gallery and, never fear, signage on the sidewalk underneath the racks will inform cyclists of the practical purpose the artwork is intended to serve.

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