Product Description

In an era of steep gas prices, snarled traffic, catastrophic climate change, and a yearning for a higher quality of life, interest in bike-friendly public policies is surging nationwide. A surprising array of political organizations, visionary politicians, and colorful individuals powers this movement and a growing number of bike enthusiasts are taking to the streets. From the night rides of Critical Mass to the dumpster-diving Rat Patrol, this book shows the eccentric side of the bicycling universe even as it illustrates the mainstream efforts of politicians like U.S. Representative Jim Oberstar and plain folks like Biker Mama Jane Healy. Dedicated to the idea that biking is an ongoing act of nondestructive living, Pedal Power shows why the dominance of the automobile is yesterday s idea and edges us closer to a more democratic, multimodal transportation system so essential in the age of global warming. The bike, regarded as irrelevant to the 20th century, is making a comeback in the 21st. Pedal Power takes us there and suggests that the most compelling thing about riding is that it changes the way people experience the world and, therefore, the way they think.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #376203 in Books
• Published on: 2008-01-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 248 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781594514630
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
From improving air quality, overcoming social isolation, reducing carbon emissions, improving fitness . . . the bicycle solves more problems than any other technology I know. Harry Wray has the story right and tells it well. _Pedal Power_ is a book for cyclists, moms, dads, policy wonks, and everyone who wants to solve many problems while creating none. --David Orr, Oberlin College

Pedal Power is an uplifting read that tells the stories of people, organizations, and a movement whose time is rapidly approaching. When the aberrations of the automobile age have passed, we will wonder how we ever lost the common humanity, simplicity and love of life embodied in the heroes so delightfully profiled in Harry Wray's insightful book. Thank you, Harry Wray, for telling the stories of unsung but true American heroes who gently challenge conventional wisdom and eschew cultural norms. --Andy Clarke, League of American Bicyclists

What an original and refreshing book! Wray deftly interweaves his own and others' experiences as bicycling enthusiasts with insights from political philosophy and American socio-political history to generate a compelling account of what bicycling can mean for America's future. --Elaine B. Sharp, University of Kansas

About the Author
J. Harry Wray is a bike enthusiast and Professor of Political Science at DePaul University in Chicago, one of the bike-friendliest cities in the nation. He received his B.A. from Whittier College and his Ph.D. from the University of North CarolinaChapel Hill, where the country roads sparked his interest in biking. Now he teaches courses in which students bike through every side of the city of Chicagofrom the South Side to the lakesideand shows them how politics, economics, and the environment combine to affect culture and be affected by it. Wrays previous books include Sense and Non-Sense: American Culture and Politics (2000), and, with Robert D. Holsworth, American Politics and Everyday Life (1986).

Customer Reviews

Dr. Wray: a treasure to thousands of DePaul students
For those of us lucky enough to have been one of Harry Wray's students, this new book is enthusiastically welcomed, if not overdue. Wray's insight, wit and humor always shine through in his writing. My only complaint is that the American public is not exposed to more of his writing. He is truly one of the most articulate and colorful social commentators of our time. As a political science professor at DePaul, Dr. Wray and his Discover Chicago: Biking & Politics class (all on bikes of course) are a common sight in the Windy City. For anyone interested in American culture, transportation politics and the environment, among other topics, this is a must own. Oh yeah....bike enthusiasts will also be pleased.

An inspiring journey
Pedal Power just took me on a fascinating and uplifting journey into the future. J. Harry Wray shows us that dramatic social change can begin with a simple and enjoyable addition to our everyday lives. Improving the wellbeing of your family, enriching community life, reducing global warming, meeting the ChiTown Cruisers--it's all here in this remarkable book.

inspiring
This book is a delight to read, not only for the subject of bicycling, but the big picture view of how it integrates into our hope for the future. Anyone who bikes can relate to Wray's perspective of how cycling engages civility and a potential paradigm shift. From the descriptions of individual, group and government involvement, and the inspiring stories he shared, one could have hope that the bicycle is indeed a viable tool for reshaping our culture. The book is full of examples to be replicated and developed for communities across the US. I'm buying copies for my city council and the traffic engineering department, plus friends and family.