onfessions of a Midnight Cyclist

Kai Axel Jansson, OP Contributor

talkie in each cluster of cyclists, so that coordination was never a problem. After a lengthy
pause, we left for Granville Island, where we waited even longer for the pack to reorganize.
became obvious that a large percentage of the Massers wouldn’t make it all the way to Span
Banks. As I learned later, many did turn back and head for home at various points during tl
trip, although most made it more than halfway to our destination.

The night was not simply about reaching a place—it was about having fun. This fact wa
proven by our antics at Granville Island, where as a group we rode maniacally around and
through the parking lots, culminating in one particularly exhilarating ride up and down a tht
story parking garage. There’s something of a forbidden thrill in riding a bicycle at night, esy
cially through dark streets in the city. The possibility of danger is reason enough to go ridin
night, or to avoid doing the same. The element of danger is only lessened, not eliminated,
when several other bicyclists ride alongside you. At one point, much later during the night,
word came via walkie-talkie that one bicyclist had been struck by a car on West 4th.
Fortunately there were no serious injuries, and the cyclist in question joined us during the fi
leg of the trip after exchanging information with the driver.

t the end of July, on the eve of my 32nd birthday, I set out from my home at the foot of By the time we reached Spanish Banks there were only a hardy few of the original grou
naby Mountain for Grandview Park on Commercial Drive in Vancouver, riding my moun- __left. As far as I was concerned, I had accomplished my goal for the night, and I relaxed wit]

bike through the dark, to partake in my first Midnight Mass. everyone else. Until then I had acted as an observer and marginal participant in the group, t

Midnight Mass, despite the Catholic connotation it brings to mind, has nothing to do with I decided it was now time to introduce myself. I chatted with a few people while on the bea
ligion. Essentially it has splintered from the better-known Critical Mass, the monthly gather- _including the main organizer, Simon.
@ of bicyclists in major cities across North America that frustrates commuters on their way While we were talking amongst ourselves, a young woman may or may not have shed he
meetings or sojourning home from work. The difference is that the riders in Midnight clothes right before me and may or may not have gone skinny-dipping with a couple of guy
ass—held on every second Thursday since late 2005—are decidedly of the insomniac type. the water. (I may or may not have done likewise myself.)
I’ve long partaken in the joy that is night riding, but this event was the first time I would It was well past three a.m. by the time I decided to make the long trek back home to
de with others. I quickly noticed that many of the Midnight Massers were of college and uni- Burnaby, and I finally got home at four. The ride back was much spookier than the ride in,
Prsity student age, although there were a few older ones in the crowd. My youthful looks my muscles simply couldn’t get me up the hills, as I had been torn apart earlier in the eveni
elped motivate me, not only to keep up with the rest of them, but to lead the group. On the It was.an invigorating way to spend a birthday.
e of my birthday I had to prove, if only to myself, that I could go the distance. Midnight Mass continues to meet every second Thursday at 11:45 p.m. in Grandview Pa
When I arrived, the group was antsy and there was some debate about where to go. Finally on Commericial Drive. Due to work priorities, I’ve been unable to attend any further Midni
was decided—through the time-honoured and democratic process of screaming, shouting, Masses (including the infamous Midnight Undie ride in August). I will soon join up on anot
d clapping—we would head for Spanish Banks. Somehow, I knew it would be a long night. If you're interested in participating, you can find more information and pictures at

In a burst of excitement the group hurried loudly down 1st Avenue toward Science World. | www.midnight-mass.blogspot.com.
those of us who got there first had to wait for the rest of the group to catch up. The organiz-
of Midnight Mass were definitely prepared, as there was always one person with a walkie- Maybe I’ll see you there.

Science

Matters

David Suzuki,
David Suzuki
Foundation

Recourch. Please’ )

(PS aston i i

ecently, news blogs and newspapers reported that some politicians had cribbed research con- Societies built around the narrow viewpoints of one person are called dictatorships and ten

ted by my foundation and used the information to build their own environmental agendas. to be decidedly backward and not terribly pleasant. And if the notion is that ideas should o
his news sent many a blogger all atwitter. While some of them focused on whether or not be coming from within a particular party — again, nonsense. This kind of partisan mentality
e information had been adequately referenced, others decried this action on, the part of the a form of xenophobia and it kills new ideas. Then again, perhaps that explains the state of
pliticians as proving that they had no ideas of their own, so they had to steal them from oth- Canadian politics.

S. I’ve also been asked if I worry that if one political party “steals” our ideas and runs w.

Allow me to clear something up right now. To all politicians looking for ways to reduce our them, it might be off-putting to the other parties. That is a concern. But we can’t control w
botprint on nature — or, to use politician-speak, create an “environmental platform”: Knock uses our reseatch and nor do we want to. The David Suzuki Foundation is non-partisan. W
ourselves out. Feel free to steal, pilfer, borrow, rent, filch or otherwise take any research my share our research with all political parties and encourage them all to adopt the solutions w
bundation does and put it to good use. bring forward.

This may seem obvious to some, but the whole point of conducting and publishing this Frankly, it’s a tough slog all around. We can have a great idea and support from the vast
Psearch is to get people to actually use it. As public education, it helps raise awareness of envi- majority of the public, but political leaders can turn it down flat because it might cost vote:
bnmental problems. But more important, it provides solutions to those problems. And most an important constituency or because of political lobbying from an industry group. Someti:
f those solutions are best implemented by our political and business leaders, rather than by there doesn’t appear to be any reason why an idea is rejected other than fear of change. Th
bdividuals. can be disheartening, but at least if the information is out there, the public can use it to mz

So if you ask me if it bothers me that politicians are stealing the solutions brought forward changes in their own lives or to ask our leaders to take action.

my foundation, the answer is no. To use a computer term, we consider this information My foundation is just one of dozens of organizations across Canada offering solutions
open source”. It’s a free buffet; please take all you like. The whole reason why we do the the country’s environmental and social problems. Rather than ignoring these solutions beca
psearch is to effect change. If those who have the power to make those solutions happen they don’t come from within a particular party, it is my hope that our political leaders open
tually use that information, so much the better. This is how change happens. their eyes, embrace change, and start taking advantage of all this free advice. That isn’t stea

As for the complaint that using my foundation’s ideas shows that politicians have none of it’s just good leadership.

eit own — nonsense. Since when do great leaders come up with all their ideas on their own?

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