New Orleans Biking Community
 

Biking is alive and well in 'Nawlins! I just returned from a trip to New Orleans and was happy to see dozens and dozens of bikes secured to anything that wouldn't move. I also witnessed tons of riders on their commute, dodging cars and pot holes and other debris. The streets aren't great there and some of the sidewalks are horrible for pedestrians, but it doesn't seem to slow anyone down. I've traveled a fair bit and I can say that New Orleans has some of the busiest streets and sidewalks anywhere.

There were, as expected, a lot of beaters, but I also saw some higher-end bikes such as All City and Surly. Most of the bikes seemed to be geared, but there were plenty of SS and FG also. One fellow cruised past me on a white FG with a very narrow straight bar. He obviously knew his way around, dodging cars and potholes and not missing a beat.

Made me feel good to see so many bikes.

For those who haven't been, New Orleans is a real treat. It wasn't my first visit, and it won't be my last. We always experience the famed "Southern hospitality", and it is clear that the businesses recognize how much tourism means to their city.

“Laissez les bons temps rouler”

Like Tennessee Williams famously said, "America only has three cities: New York, San Francisco, and New Orleans. Everywhere else is Cleveland."

Having grown up in Cleveland there's not much in the statement with which I disagree.

My son went to school, and now lives in NOLA so I'm down there a couple of times/year to visit (and have been doing so regularly since the early 80s-by far my favorite city in the USA). I am always amazed by the number of cyclists I see in the city. You couldn't pay me enough to navigate the potholes on a bike. Riding the levee isn't bad, but gets boring pretty quickly.