Paris: The Mark of the Veliber

Velib rolled out almost two weeks ago and the Paris genies who set up the citywide bicycle program are probably cartwheeling merrily around their offices – what they’ve done is great!

People are riding around everywhere at every hour and they all look really happy.  (Except maybe the 18-year-old student I saw who got a ticket for going up a one-way street the wrong way and couldn’t cry her way out it.  Tears usually work here, but this poor kid had the bad luck to run into a cop who was completely unmoved by them.)

And all the bikers have The Mark of the Veliber, even if some of them are oblivious to it.

You know how you can tell surfers by their hair?  Skateboarders by their chains?  Dancers by their turned-out toes?  Well, new as Velibers are to the sport, they’ve got their give-away too.

Here I am showing my mark of the Veliber to David Lebovitz (thanks for the picture, David):

Can you see how grimy my palm is?  I’ve taken six Velib bikes and six times I’ve ended up grubby.  I think it comes from unlatching the bike. Or maybe it happens when I adjust the height of the seat, which I always have to do – who knew that I was so short or that the Parisians were so tall?  Whatever it is, it’s messy!

Given that the program’s inventors seem to have thought of almost everything, I’m sure they’ll think of something nifty to clean-up this problem.  I’m hoping for a (stylish) Purell dispenser at every station.

Comments

[david]

You're welcome...and thanks for the sweet reward from blé sucré!

[Kelly-Jane]

Bikes are just a bit grubby I guess!