Kipchoge Spencer.
What work do you do?
I'm president of Xtracycle Inc. and cofounder of Worldbike. I'm also lead singer of the Ginger Ninjas.
What does your organization do?
Xtracycle invented and makes car-trip-replacing, life-enhancing, sport-utility bicycles, long bikes, and the FreeRadical Hitchless Trailer -- for toting your kids to school, loading up with groceries, or making an off-road camping trip to the hills. Acts like a bike but works like a truck.
Testing the Bigga Boda bicycle in Kenya.
Photo: Ed Lucero.
We started the Worldbike nonprofit to reach the people who most need but can least afford a utilitarian bike. We're currently working in Kenya, modifying existing bicycles with a locally produced version of our cargo extension. By documenting the increased earning power and improved quality of life of Kenyans with simple load-carrying bikes, we plan to make the case for major investment in this simple technology all around the developing world.
What, in a perfect world, would constitute "mission accomplished"?
Mission accomplished is when mass pop culture realizes riding your bike to work is the coolest way to get there. The next step in this mission will be me giving Cameron Diaz a ride to the Oscars on the back of my bike and passing Leo in his Prius, stuck in traffic behind a fustercluck of limos.
What do you really do, on a day-to-day basis?
Write songs, ride my bike, talk to distributors, and scheme new ways to introduce a new category of transportation to a populace that's just on the cusp of realizing it needs it. Right now I'm working on a music video for our single "Dick Cheney" and fund-raising for our next expedition: My band has plans to tour through Mexico by bicycle, carrying our equipment on back and making a film about our attempts to organize a Latin American transportation summit.
What long and winding road led you to your current position?
In high school, I made funny speeches about not using so many napkins at lunch. "Just use your shirt sleeve," I said.
In college, I knew I wanted to do something big for the world, but what? I wrote my thesis about Stanford University's voracious energy appetite and its green, cost-saving cure.
I went to work for Rocky Mountain Institute, entranced by its hopeful, non-confrontational message of have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too abundance. At first skeptical of their close workings with nasty corporations, I eventually realized that a for-profit company could be one of the most effective instruments for affecting the world.
I called up a college buddy to see how his work with bikes was going. He invited me to join him in marketing the new product he had designed in school, the Xtracycle, and I did.
Who's the biggest pain in the ass you have to deal with?
Bike-shop owners who won't step out of the narrow American mind-set of "bicycle as toy" to put energy toward championing the bicycle as a liberating, peerless transportation tool.
Where were you born? Where do you live now?
Born in Eugene, Ore., I currently live in a teensy little town called North San Juan, in the Sierra foothills of Northern California.
Who is your environmental hero?
Whoever inspires optimism at any given moment. Past heroes of the day include: Amory and Hunter Lovins, for pointing out that environmentalism doesn't have to be ideological (read: right-wingers can play, too); Dana Meadows, peerless environmental columnist; Paul Hawken, for inspiring businesspeople to rethink the purpose and potential of their work; and Hayduke and all the other fearless activists who are willing to sit, strike, chain-up, tie-down, throw pies, and otherwise disobey in defense of Mother Earth.
What's your environmental vice?
Air travel.
How do you get around?
Being a whitewater kayaker, touring musician, agitated social entrepreneur, and traveling salesman -- and living 20 steep miles from town -- I have plenty of reasons to own and use an automobile. And yet, car ownership felt so inconsistent with my work and values that I wanted to try doing without.
Photo: iStockphoto.
Working on an MTV reality show about my attempts to lead a sustainable lifestyle this past summer, I finally got the courage to sell my car. The prospect of doing it in front of millions of impressionable kids put me over the edge.
Now I have three sport-utility bicycles. And for motorized cultural expeditions and band travels, we have a 1974 midsized sport-utility school bus named Millie the Millennium Van. We converted her to run on straight vegetable oil several years ago, and she also runs on biodiesel. I have come to think of SVO as actually meaning "sometimes vegetable oil," since it so far hasn't proved to be the most reliable fuel choice out there, despite all its other lovely attributes ... meaning Millie also runs on petro-diesel.
What are you reading these days?
McDonough's Cradle to Cradle, John Hersey's A Single Pebble, Byron Katie's Loving What Is, Bob Dylan's new autobiography, Ode Magazine.
I try to read every Daily Grist, though I sheepishly admit to a mass purge of more than 50 in a recent inbox massacre.
What's your favorite place or ecosystem?
Way down in the crack at Deer Creek in the Grand Canyon.
What's one thing the environmental movement is doing badly, and how could it be done better?
We're too scared to throw out the bathwater and the baby -- too eager to replace consumption with green consumption, as if Hummers are the problem and the Prius is the cure.
Who was your favorite musical artist when you were 18? How about now?
Then: Creedence, Jimmy Cliff, Beatles, Bob Marley. Now: Manu Chao, Spearhead, Be Good Tanyas. And, of course, the Ginger Ninjas.
What's your favorite TV show?
I think current television is so integral a part of the Wheel of Destruction and breeding the culture of insatiable desire that this question should not be asked in this forum. It's like asking: What's your favorite exploitative big-box retailer? Your favorite SUV for short trips? And in so doing, inadvertently using environmental activists to legitimize the very behavior that we think might not be good for the world.
If you could have every InterActivist reader do one thing, what would it be?
Read/listen to my spoken-word poem "How Much" and then order the CD, burn it, and send it to friends. For the time-challenged, skip the poem and just move close enough to your job so that you can ride your bike to work.
Kipchoge Spencer, president of Xtracycle.
Keepin' It Wheel
As a bicycle commuter, how do you balance the joy and euphoria of an excellent ride with the inevitable rage from being abused by idiot drivers? -- Todd Holland, Amherst, Mass.
First of all, I'm lucky to have an off-road commute that doesn't involve direct contact with motor-vehicle operators. Second, there aren't nearly enough mean idiot drivers to ever override the joy and euphoria. Third, I try to use such exchanges as a means of transcending the emotional response of rage. In the meantime, there's always the trusty finger.
Does not having a car prevent you from participating in certain activities, such as late-night visits or travel to places off the beaten path? I've always believed that carlessness is a decision that has to go along with the development of a lifestyle that supports that carlessness. How have you gone about creating that lifestyle? -- Forrest Fleischman, Eugene, Ore.
I started by choosing to live within biking distance of my work. I see this as a crucial eco-lifestyle choice that has its own rewards, whether or not you're car-free. I also live close to my favorite food store and to several friends. The most efficient kind of transportation is already being where you want to go.
I love riding at night and find that the energy always wells up to support late-night bike trips. I do occasionally miss out on opportunities. I'm testing out the Stokemonkey human-electric hybrid Xtracycle for long, hard, in-a-hurry trips.
I have friends with cars, and I can borrow or rent one if need be. I might even help start a local car-share someday. I do depend more on other people who are going my way. Being car-free doesn't mean never using or riding in a car. It means being free of the temptation to drive frivolously, free of the payments, and free of the energetic burden that full participation in the oil economy brings. I've written more about selling my car in my blog.
What is the most radical thing you've ever seen while commuting by bike? -- Christopher Ryan, Boulder, Colo.
I saw a 6-foot rattlesnake with a freshly smooshed head. I put it in my bag, and we ate it for dinner.
How do we transform the bike industry into a utilitarian, eco-based industry, rather than a narcissism factory? -- Christopher Ryan, Boulder, Colo.
For better or worse, the narcissism is part of our culture. I believe in co-opting it for our own ends. This means selling the image that riding your bike to work is hip and that doing it will give you the sexiest butt in the office. Industries are transformed by disruptive small companies with better ideas. Start one or find one that needs you.
My husband and I live in Iowa, where we get snow and ice in the winter, high humidity in the summer, and winds just about any time. We live seven miles from town -- some gravel road, some hills. We're in our 60s and fairly fit, but not spring chickens anymore. We'd both like to help the environment by reducing our gas consumption, but we're concerned about safety on the road, e.g., visibility, good handling, and braking. Would you recommend a sport-utility bike for us, and if so, what brand? -- Carole Connet, Fairfield, Iowa
I'd recommend an SUB to almost anyone who wants to reduce gas consumption, for the simple reason that you'll be able to make a lot more trips without a car if you can carry stuff easily. It's especially suited to riding on snow, ice, and gravel, because the long wheelbase makes it so stable and less prone to fishtailing. Many riders in the Midwest use studded tires in the winter. Your local bike shop should have some comfy, reflective clothing to keep you visible, warm, and dry. And there are lots of lights to aid visibility, too, from regular blinking LEDs to hyper-groovy neon tubes made by my friend MC Fossil Fool. As for bike choice, I usually like to find out more about the kind of riding you have in mind, your experience, and what you imagine carrying before making a recommendation, though from what you've said so far the Marin Novato SUB with some fat tires could be a good choice. Feel free to email or call.
I'm also a kayaker and have a hard time justifying the burning of fossil fuels to get myself to the put-ins and take-outs of rivers. Do you use your bike and trailer to haul your boat? -- Angela Mallard, Telluride, Colo.
No trailer, just a mountain bike Xtracycle with the appropriate kayak-hauling accessories. My partner Ross and I are in the middle of making a film about so-called "Slow Boating." The feeling of getting to the river by your own power -- outside in the world rather than cooped up in the cage -- seems to make every river trip the trip of a lifetime.
How worried should I be about inhaling diesel fumes while biking? Is it a big enough concern that I should be going out of my way to bike on a less congested street? -- Neil B., Pittsburgh, Pa.
I would go out of my way just to avoid the congestion and have a more peaceful ride to work. I hate the smell of diesel exhaust and would seek to avoid it, too. It is likely bad for you, though maybe even worse for the drivers who breathe it right in the middle of the roadway where it's most concentrated.
Groups like the Sierra Club, PIRG, and Conservation Northwest compromise with big business over and over again. I think it's time to start demanding total protection for our public lands, and not just the rocks, peaks, and ice that we've defended so strongly in the past with efforts like the roadless rule. Isn't it time to say zero cut and set a standard that can actually be enforced? What do you think? -- Jay Kaye, Seattle, Wash.
Isn't it time for who? I think we each need to do the work that draws us and feels effective. Sounds like you're not feeling like compromise is all that, so you should put your energy toward demanding total protection. Anything less would feel like a sellout, right? My current interest lies in finding common ground and working it boldly. I think there's a place for every kind of activism. Just don't compromise in being true to your heart.
Would your organization be able and willing to donate some bicycles to a small, low-budget environmental canvass crew or a group of dedicated activists who would love to go gas-free but can't afford to? -- Joshua Knapp, Seattle, Wash.
We do sometimes make donations to causes we believe in, though usually we encourage people to raise the money to purchase our bikes, since we're still small. Feel free to email me with more details.
How about marketing a longbike (Bigga Boda) frame model here in the U.S. as well, using disc brakes and high-quality frame materials? What about a recumbent design? An LED headlight/down-low light accessory package powered by a very low-drag, modern dyno-hub or solar? Or solarized rear platform? -- JD Hohmann, Bexley, Ohio
We will likely have a high-quality, uni-frame longbike by the end of this year. People have added the Xtracycle FreeRadical Hitchless Trailer to recumbents with success. These LEDs are battery-free, as are these. And yes, people do put solar panels on their Xtracycles occasionally, primarily to charge battery-driven geekery on long trips.
Where I live, in winter it snows almost every other day and temperatures can drop to 30 below. I have a friend who has a jogger's baby carriage that can convert to skis in winter and includes a plastic bubble over it to keep the baby warm. Why can't we have a winter bike like that for us Northeasterners? -- Priscilla Rhodes, Bethlehem, N.H.
Such bicycles exist. In fact, it seems that every kind of bicycle imaginable exists! Pre-1900, there were two U.S. Patent offices: one for bicycles and one for everything else. I guess bikes were mainstream back then. I personally like bundling up and heading into the elements.
I've always wanted to join the bicycle-riding movement, but for the life of me I can't figure out how I can bike around, especially in summer, and still "stay fresh." Any advice? -- Dror Etzion, Barcelona, Spain
Get an Xtracycle so you can carry a change of clothes or two with you. Ask your employer to provide showering facilities.
Do you use electrical energy to amplify your music? Why not switch to human-powered acoustic? -- Hans Noeldner, Oregon, Wis.
I love to play unplugged, especially around the campfire, but I also like to play for large crowds. I'm no purist. I try to focus my energies -- and especially my sacrifices -- for optimal impact. My amp uses 250 watts at peak output. That's (at most) one kilowatt-hour of energy for a four-hour gig. A 35-mpg car uses 1 kWh of energy to drive one mile! By avoiding a round-trip, cross-country airplane ride, I could use the "saved" energy to power my amp for about five years, continuously. That's a lot of rock. I don't advocate a complete return to aboriginal existence, just a wise shift to appropriate-scale technologies and uses. I consider amplified music to be appropriate and sustainably powerable.
What will you be doing in 10, 20, and 30 years, when old activists like me are out of the picture and depending on your cohort to carry the torch? -- Michael Kinsley, Snowmass, Colo.
Out of the picture? You'll finally be getting old enough to have some real clout!
Where did your name come from? I'll bet five dollars that your parents were hippies. -- Angela Mallard, Telluride, Colo.
My hip, pie-loving parents named me after Kenyan track star Kipchoge Keino.
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