travel | Urkai

The Dutch Bicycle Culture

By: Kendra Davidson | Tags: bakfiets, cargobikes, culture, Dutch Bicycles, dutch culture, travel | Comments: 0

The first time we saw the miles of bicycle networks and bicycle traffic in the Netherlands was 9 years ago, with a then 1 year old in a pack on our back. We had decided to backpack for a few months with a toddler, some would think we were insane, but it was a blast. Our first stop was Amsterdam, it was the shortest direct flight from our then home in Vancouver. Vancouver at that time was just going through the beginning of a bicycle revolution, and it was a […]

20

Jan, 2015

Bakfiets Everywhere

By: Kendra Davidson | Tags: bakfiets, bicycles, Holland, Netherlands, travel, urkai | Comments: 0

In our trip to the Netherlands in the fall, we snapped photos of bakfiets everywhere we went as long as we had batteries charged. The bakfiets in their natural habitat, outside and being used:

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Nov, 2014

Getting your bike ready for winter

By: Andrew Bowen | Tags: Azor, Burlington, dutch bike, travel, urkai, Urkai services, winter, Winterizing a bicycle | Comments: 0

Winter is upon us again, but for many of us, we want to push the bike frontier and enjoy the fun and challenges of cycling in the winter. I believe I would be letting both my Azor bike and my wife’s bakfiets.nl cargo bike down if we did not ride them through the winter as they were built for year-round use. The frame has two layers of tough powder coat paint with an anti-rust zinc primer, and almost everything else that is not painted is either stainless steel or aluminum, making it […]

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Nov, 2014

School Drop off – by bike – in the Netherlands

By: Kendra Davidson | Tags: bicycles, commute, Holland, school dropoff, the Netherlands, transportation, travel | Comments: 1

While in the Netherlands, I had the unique opportunity to be invited by another Mum to observe school drop off. I was eager to see and be part of the massive bicycle commute, and see how my usual Canadian school drop off differed from the one my friend does daily. For this short bike ride, I borrowed a bicycle, and off we went at 8:20. I have seen traffic all around the world, but nothing quite like this one. My borrowed bike was a single speed, with rear coaster brakes. My brain, still […]