Fixed-Gear Article in the Observer 9th March

i felt better afterwards :-) thanks for listening.

i work in the bullshit industry too

manure?

guano from flying cows

ahhh the elisuve jurno-cow know by the lattin name alicefisherum oftheobserverum

h2o Easy, tiger. The tone of this thread is hilarious, actually, when you take a step back from it - "How dare these journalists write a superficial, generalised, sensationalised piece about fixed wheel bikes - all journalists are lazy lying scum who should kill themselves!"

(I'm a journalist, btw, and I ride a fixed wheel bike. And I used to write about green issues.)

That's good. But you don't give much away as to whether you are lazy, lying scum. ;)

turpe [quote]MrSmith it makes me laugh when the lefty/liberal broadsheets have articles about green this, sustanable that, eco somethingelse and then in the glossy supplement it's full of expensive tat to make your life more meaningful, telling us to buy shit we don't need. why not travel to mongolia to buy a birthing blanket from a native, or perhaps the patio heater disguised as a lifesize replica of Michaelangelo's david is just the thing for your garden? it makes you feel like your life is worthwhile and you get to pollute the atmosphere while you do it.

Funnily enough, I was just listening to the BBC World Service and they spoke to a woman here in SF about the growing trend of 'Eco-Therapists'. They are psychologists that are concerned specifically with middle-class pricks suffering anxiety about not doing enough for the environment.

No, really.
*
'Well, doctor, I just don't feel like I recycle enough plastics and I feel like I should be composting more of my food waste, but I just can't find a compost box to match the finish on my Aga, which only gets used to warm up my gourmet ready meals...'

'There, there, dear - it's ok to feel bad about the environment and talking to me about it is far better than actually inconveniencing your lifestyle by doing a little more. Now, if you can just input your PIN number here...'*

When the BBC guy asked her whether she thought that the idea of 'green guilt' was more than a little pathetic, she audibly shrugged and just said 'Yes, absolutely, but you just can't tell these people'.

Long article about 'Green Worry'.

Also, it's thought in many quarters that recycling is actually counter-productive, as the energy used to sort through the used goods that find their way to recycling centres and actually recycle said goods completely negates the environmental impact (sometimes even having a worse effect) that re-using the natural resources has.

EcoWorld's 'Recycling Myths' article.

'*Jenny *has a therapist who makes her feel better about driving her kids to school in a bloody great 4X4. HARDEN THE FUCK UP, JENNY!'[/quote]

Have you seen this?

South PArk 1002

http://www.southparkzone.com/episodes/1002/Smug-Alert!.html

one of the best sps ever

Alice Fisher is the new Arrospok!

Damn I missed all this, I didn't even get to say the name of the female style writer who works for the observer, lives in london, and is responsible for the article on fixed-wheel bikes. :(

What I wrote to Alice and her editor Lucy on March 9th at 1am:

**Hi Alice and Lucy

I have read the article tonight and it has saddened me. I thought you might want to watch what others have to say about it as it's already been posted on the fgss forum here:

http://www.londonfgss.com/discussion/4895/fixedgear-article-in-the-observer-9th-march/#Item_0

I am disappointed that this is what has been made of our conversations. Clearly I was correct that once again the media has an agenda that has been pushed on to these 'crazy' urban cyclists. I would think that as journalists you would have taken the time to research and change what's necessary once someone has come to you saying that they believe you have gotten your facts wrong, especially before you have gone to print .

Maybe you believe that this is just a quirky, fun piece in a newspaper. However, cycling is one of the most important news items you could cover. It is social, it is economic, it's environmental, and it crosses class, gender, and social roles. It is also extremely political especially currently with Livingstone's new cycling budget. The Observer is important and while you could have done an incredible piece showing an important, happy, healthy young community you have tried to sex it up.

I was very motivated by Alice's positivity towards the article and I am disappointed by the final outcome.

Perhaps The Observer would like to do another piece on cycling. If you researched the international FG community, perhaps you would see the amazing power that youth and "making something cool" has to do good and be pro-active in a real, money-where-your-mouth-is sort of way. I would like to be part of that. But for now, I will be taking the heat for being part of this.

I have explained my discontent below. I don't mean to rant or be picky, but this article could be taken quite badly and the other mistakes just show a lack of fact-checking.

Sincerely,
Roxy Erickson**

by Alice Fisher
Style Correspondent
Riding a bicycle without brakes sounds like a rash move, but a new wave of cyclists is eschewing traditional bikes for a stripped-down machine known as a fixed-gear.
It is one of the most basic machines you can build with two wheels. A fixed-gear bike – or fixie – has no derailleur as it has only one gear, so as long as the wheels turn, so do the pedals. Its rider can’t freewheel and the only way to brake is to stand on the pedals.

**You have made it sound as if all Fixed Gear bikes are "brakeless". The majority are not!!
As I said in my previous email:
Fixed Gear doesn't equal riding brakeless, it's a misnomer. The drive shaft on a fixed gear bike counts for a brake. This is why while it is the law to ride with two working mechanical brakes fixed gear's can be ridden with only one hand brake. Working the drive shaft by providing resistance with your legs is a brake.
Also it is not the majority of fixed riders that "ride brakeless" (meaning a hand brake).

The Observer could have been one of the first papers to actually get this right and not focus on the whole "sexy" brakeless thing (which isn't true!). You had a correction to this 'urban myth' ahead of print and you blatantly ignored it and even wrote back saying that you weren't writing exactly what you had actually written.**

The fixed-gear’s renaissance supposedly stems from West Indian immigrants in New York working as cycle couriers in the Eighties. They had used them at home because they were cheap and easy to maintain, and continued using them in the US. Their popularity spread throughout the courier community, crossing to the UK and other countries.
As the fixie craze has taken off so has the number of new riders who enter ‘alleycats’ – unofficial road races consisting of a series of checkpoints on a set route. Alleycats originated in America and were organised for and by cycle couriers but now inexperienced riders participate. Last Sunday in Chicago, Matthew Manger-Lynch, 29, was killed in a collision with a four-wheel drive vehicle after running a red light. He was competing in an alleycat known as Tour Da Chicago.

**Tour Da Chicago has been going on since at least 1998, it is very organized, down to being listed in Time Out. It is not an alley cat and this is the only fatality in 10 years. You were not clear about the legitimacy of events like this.
Also you seem to say that anyone who joins an alley cat and isn't a courier is an inexperienced rider. A rider wouldn't be allowed to join most alley cats if s/he didn't know the organiser or someone there, and the chance of you being able to join if you are a crap rider is about nil. **

A similar race – the New York Monstertrack, normally the biggest annual alleycat in the US – was scheduled to take place on 8 March, but was cancelled after the Chicago death. These races now take place in British cities and threaten to colour public opinion of the growing urban cyclist subculture. Around 30 cyclists took part in one organised by art students in central London last Thursday which finished with a party at a bar in Hoxton.
Roxy Erickson, 28, who is part of the women-only Trixie Chix collective, said: ‘Media reports don’t show the community spirit or the eco-friendly side of cycling. A working messenger [courier] who got hit by a double-decker bus wouldn’t get as much news space.’

I was actually talking about the commuter cyclist that was killed by a double decker two weeks ago!! Two messengers were hit last week by HGV's. This is probably the most important aspect of the entire article and it was completely screwed up, and on top of that you quoted me (wrong) as saying it.

The strength of the fixed-gear community is demonstrated on the messageboards that are full of updates on the welfare of cyclists injured in accidents, invites to parties and gallery openings as well as alleycats, which are often held to support injured cyclists or promote causes such as the war on drugs.

I don't know anybody who has supported a "war on drugs" since the Reagan administration.

Andy Ellis, 28, who is part of the London Fixed Gear collective

It is called "FIXED GEAR LONDON"

and builds fixies, explained why the bikes were so popular. ‘You can’t get more linked to a bike than on fixed-gear. There are aspects which compare to skateboarding. You enjoy travelling through the city in the same way, but on a fixed-gear, it’s faster and you have more control.’
The fixie’s simplicity and grace appeals to the fashion conscious, many of whom take customisation to extravagant levels, creating bikes with imported track-bike frames and hand-built wheels that cost thousands.
Ellis said: ‘At first it was anything to get them on the road, but I’ve built three bikes for one guy in the last year and every time he comes back he wants something more exclusive.’
The international fixed scene is now getting mainstream attention, including official sponsorship from bike companies. A cyclist known as Superted

Or Super Ted.

– part of the Fixed Gear London collective – is sponsored by cycle brand Charge Bikes. There’s also the Bike Film Festival, now in its fourth year, which showcases films documenting cyclists’ tricks and agility.

It's in it's 8th year. It may be the 4th year in London but you have completely undermined the strength it has shown to endure so long. It is in 17 cities in 8 countries!

The most successful fixed-gear film is Mash SF, which features the Mash SF collective riding in San Francisco. ‘It’s the first big film about fixed-gear trick riding,’ said Laura Fraser, the London producer of the festival and a fixed-gear rider. ‘It’s gone around the world.’

Her name is Laura FLETCHER

Tom Bogdanowicz, of the London Cycling Campaign, the largest urban cycling organisation in the world, says: ‘Fixed is enjoyable and good for fitness, but you have to acquire riding skills. Once mastered, the bikes are good for urban cycling as they make you very aware of the road and you can maintain speed at a level that’s suitable for traffic. They make you think ahead.’ He suggested that anyone wishing to try fixed in London should go to Herne Hill Stadium where low-cost training sessions were on offer.
**
While Tom's quote is probably the best part of the article and I highly recommend people utilising Herne Hill this paragraph is still misleading. Riding a proper track bicycle on a velodrome is completely different to riding fixed through London's streets. It's ridiculous to think of the track as training for the street. **

What Alice wrote back to me:

Hello Roxy

Thanks for your email. I'm really sorry you didn't like the piece that ran
this sunday. Thanks for the two factual corrections - I'll make sure
they're sent to the on-line editor first thing tomorrow morning so the
article on the internet will be correct. I was writing two stories in
tandem on Friday afternoon to very tight deadlines but it's no excuse, just
an explanation.

The feature I filed on Friday was double the length of the printed piece.
It included much more information about the culture around the fixed-gear
scene - what the people are like, why the bikes are so good to ride and
also about the cycling community (you gave me such great quotes on
that...).

As I explained on the phone yesterday before I put you in touch with Lucy,
I don't work on Saturdays and I don't get any say over the edit on the
story. Obviously the editor's decision has to be final, but I was
disappointed by the version that ran. I guess they thought they were
highlighting the most newsworthy points.

I was surprised to see there weren't any of your photos with the piece too

• maybe there was some last-minute change to the running order which meant
  the story was given less room than they originally envisioned for it.
  
  

You were so helpful with this piece and it was fascinating talking to you
about the fixed-gear scene, I'm sorry that that enthusiasm and knowledge
wasn't seen by our readers. If you want to write a response for our letters
page, I'll pass that on to the readers editor and hopefully that will get
published.

Alice

And then again when I asked her permission to include these letters on the forum:

hello Roxy

It's always difficult trying to represent a small group of people's
interests to a mass audience. Things get lost in the translation. Having
weird headlines about crazes put at the top of the piece didn't really help
either,,, I do wish the original, longer piece I'd written had been
printed, though. It had more quotes in it, giving the people I spoke to the
chance to talk for themselves.

Do what you like with the email I don't mind if you post in on a forum - I
wanted you to know that I had no intention of misrepresenting you, that's
what's important to me

The letter would have to be in by Friday, I think. Do think about it -
obviously I can't guarantee it would be published - depends what other
topics come up this week. But hopefully it would be.

Take care

Alice Fisher
Commissioning Editor, The Observer Magazine
Style Correspondent, The Observer

Lucy the Editor for the piece hasn't yet responded.

Why did a style correspondent want to write an article about bikes? Baring that in mind the misrepresentation was destined to happen from the start.

don't trust her...shes EVIL!
....that Alice Fisher seems alright though.

gawd...

i'm quite surprised there hasn't been any Alice fisher impersonators threatening legal action.

She seems like a very nice, sweet lady.

I dunno what it is about the internet that makes people think they can unreservedly say absolutely anything they want.

If you wouldn't say it to her face, then don't write it on this forum. Please.

what a fucking strange thread this has been.

Alice if you are reading this i would like to buy you a drink in the eagle after work on friday

MrSmith

xxx

I'd really be curious to read Alice Fisher's original draft (before her editor got ahold of it) and see how it differs from what The Observer actually printed.

I'm also curious to know whether she came up with the idea for the article herself, or was asked to 'do something on those fixies' by her editor.

It's nice that she's so keen to respond in a proper fashion, rather than just going the Tony Malone route, and that she seems genuinely sorry that both the fixed-wheel scene - and, for that matter, her own words - have been misrepresented so badly, thanks to some over-zealous editing.

Roxy? Could you get a copy of her unabridged article?

finally got around to linking Alice fisher to here from my blog

turpe I'd really be curious to read Alice Fisher's original draft (before her editor got ahold of it) and see how it differs from what The Observer actually printed.

Me too.

eeehhhh [quote]turpe I'd really be curious to read Alice Fisher's original draft (before her editor got ahold of it) and see how it differs from what The Observer actually printed.

Me too.[/quote]

I just couldn't care less anymore...if i ever did..

let's move on people. Alice has probably written about 12 articles since then, and received complaints from hipsters about all of them

good thread. To be honest the article was more than allright to start with. Tynan's spoof has to be one of the funniest things ever though.

ihatelaw one wonders how alice fisher got the job in the first place?

and again it's the use of "craze" that particularly does my nut in. and it seems intuitively retarded to think that it all came from jamaica though if anyone can correct me with hard facts I'll listen

The responses to that blog are hilarious!

At the minute, I'm working in a restaurant with a bunch of lovely, funny people; writing a play; writing bits for Skins; spending any sort of money I earn on food and skinny jeans, and drinking my way to a financially blighted two-month trip to India and Thailand

what an incredibly pretentious, over-privileged little spunk sack.

I didn't fight two conservative terms of office just so these posh little pricks can mince around "writing plays" and buggering off to the subcontinent to smoke pot!

fucker should get a proper job for five minutes, see how he likes shovelling shit, or a paper round.

lpg She seems like a very nice, sweet lady.

I dunno what it is about the internet that makes people think they can unreservedly say absolutely anything they want.

If you wouldn't say it to her face, then don't write it on this forum. Please.
+1!
(Hippy's fat)