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No bike duty

Almost all of the bicycles sold in the UK are manufactured abroad and are subject to a 14% import duty, which is in stark contrast to the majority of electronics goods shipped in. So, is the government saying it would like more couch potatoes than active cyclists? - If you agree that this is a bit bonkers go the the No.10 website and ask Gordon to kick off his new job with a positive move to scrap this duty. There is a petition here at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/No-Bicycle-Duty/ - honestly, it took me less than 37 seconds to add my name and send back the confirmation email. Do it and tell everyone else to do this too.

wii posted

So, i thought i'd try and do a little post using the wii. It seems to be going ok. The keyboard is a bit tricky but it works. In fact there's something to be said for checking your e-mail using a tv in your living room.

So, still early days with the wii, but love playing the sports games, and cultivating Mii's. Bug me if you want my code.

*actually, now I'm editing it with the mac, because there were loads of spelling mistakes and strange errors. mmm.

New London 2012 logo

Quite a brave ol' logo for London 2012 Olympics - there's a branding video where you can watch it coming together, zooming across the london skyline, bouncing through the athletes bodies, lighting up everything sporty. I tell you, I think its fantastic, but come the Olympics themselves, we'll be bloody sick of it. I can see what's going on - vibrant, modern, kinetic, buzzy, exciting - and I have to say its quite a departure from the usual Olympic logos and I'm quite glad there isn't a character, a cheeky lion say, or a face created from the rings...hang on, maybe it is a character in itself, fizzing with energy, ready to go at the sound of the gun. I think it was created by Wolff Olins, the same people behind 3 and orange. Lets see what the designerati think, I predict they'll hate it and then get onboard the bandwagon once it gains popularity. I'll tune into Radio 5 tomorrow to hear people complain that its a waste of money. Can't wait.

*UPDATE 07.06.07

I can't quite believe the reactions - its a couple of days later and it seems the logo is meeting with universal disapproval. There are a legion of posts discussing the logo and how much people hate it - everything from it looking like a bad eighties soft-rock video to looking like Simpson's characters. I'm in the process of designing a logo for a music organisation and to be honest, its not a good time for these sorts of things, believe me when I say it will be restrained. At least its got everyone talking about design then, although Seb Coe must be wishing he'd gone for the fluffy lion with a ribbon leaping over the olympic rings.

age of the bicycle

What a fun little video, made by London Transport - it really does the business. I think London might actually be starting to be a little bit more bike friendly. After July 7th bombings the number of bicycles in London ballooned, my friend Andy said that there were a couple of days when some bike shops were short on stock.

Perhaps this is the opportunity to talk about Matt Seaton who writes a column in the guardian and who wrote one of the finest books about cycling I've ever read, called The Escape Artist, a superb book, an autobiography of a cyclist. Its a moving book, dealing in parts with the death of his partner, the writer Ruth Picardie. a recommended read.