Tom Holub

@bike-lab.org

400 Followers 503 Following

@oaklandbikelab elsewhere. Bicyclist, unicyclist, mobility justice advocate. Generally unpopular opinions about urbanism, often including data. Skepticism is my beat. https://bike-lab.org/ https://bayareabikerides.net/ https://totallydoable.com/

In an urban alley, two laughing people on bicycles ride towards each other with lances made of pool noodles. A crowd watches in the background.
At an urban park, a woman sits cross-legged on the bottom step of an amphitheater, facing three people who are turning to face the crowd.
At night on the East Bay shoreline, the lights of San Francisco and the Oakland Bay Bridge can be seen in the background. In the foreground are a number of bicycles, including one pulling a lighted trailer with a sound system; it is labeled as "Booty."
Five people ride stationary bikes with "Rock the Bike" logos. The middle bike has a blender attached to the front wheel. Two of the riders are holding plastic cups with smoothies.
Under a pop-up tent, a mechanic works on a bicycle up on a stand. Three people, possibly Latino teenagers, watch as he spins the rear wheel. In the background, more people can be seen working on bikes.
A mountain unicyclist rides through a redwood forest on a course with a tall berm. The unicyclist is speed-blurred as he rides high on the berm.
A shuttered one-story building, perhaps formerly a school or group home, in a Google Street View image labeled as "Merrydale Road". It is painted white, with plywood covering some of the doors.
A smiling unicyclist wearing a red winter jacket and red sunglasses rides down a snowy trail. The trail surface is mostly snow with some slush. The terrain is very rocky; behind him, two rock outcroppings mostly fade into the snow and mist. Only scrub foliage is visible under the snow.
An overview map of the Bay Area, with the county extent of Alameda County highlighted.
The New Yorker Magazine cover, dated Mar 29, 1976. The image is a famous cartoon by Saul Steinberg, "View of the World from 9th Avenue", which depicts a highly detailed perspective streetscape looking from western Manhattan to the Hudson River, then a formless rectangle for the rest of America with a few labels (such as "Jersey", "Chicago", "Los Angeles"), followed by a strip labeled "Pacific Ocean", and small hills on the opposite shore labeled "China", "Japan", and "Russia".
A map of Washington D.C. showing neighborhood change between 2017 and 2023 in the Anacostia neighborhood south of the Anacostia River. The census tracts to the northeast, near Capitol Hill, have had little change; the substantial change, up to a loss of 16.6%, is in the southwestern part of the neighborhood, near the bridge to Alexandria, Virginia
At a BART station platform,two bicycles lean against a wall. A smiling woman in a gold jacket holds up a blue and gold flag attached to one of the bikes. The flag depicts a bear riding a bicycle towing a trailer with the script California logo of the California Golden Bears.
A desert landscape. In the foreground is an apparently dead juniper bush; other juniper bushes dot a red rock bowl. A small depression holds water reflecting the blue sky. On the far horizon, mountains with some snow are seen.
A cartoon of Homer Simpson holding up a jeans jacket with "DISCO STU" in rhinestones on the back. Marge looks at it skeptically.
Screenshot of an opinion piece headline: "Opinion, Emily Hoeven. Zohran Mamdani and Daniel Lurie couldn't be more different, but they share what Democrats lack"
A brass plaque with a picture of the U.S. Capitol. It reads, "On behalf of a grateful Congress, this plaque honors the extraordinary individuals who bravely protected and defending this symbol of democracy on January 6, 2021. Their heroism will never be forgotten."
A product image of a classic white refrigerator with a top freezer.
A group of people stand on a stage in front of a lake, and a sign reading "NO TROOPS IN OAKLAND." The podium has a sign reading "YES ON PROP 50". The speaker is a black woman looking at her notes. On the left, someone in a black shirt facing the crowd raises a fist. Next to that is a smiling person in a pink skirt and jacket with a yellow shirt and a sun hat, holding a sign that looks like a NO PARKING sign but reads NO KING. A person in a black tshirt crosses his arms. Up on the stage, a person in a yellow top appears to be MC'ing the vent. On the right of the podium is an ASL interpreter moving his hands. Several other people stand in a cluster on the right of the image.
Screenshot of an Instagram notifications panel, showing a number of different people (names redacted), liking apparently multiple different posts, but with no information about which posts they are.
An apparent city park at night, with a grassy field lit by pathway lights. A large group of people with decorated bicycles are standing around the perimiter. Someone appears to be fixing a flat on the right side of the image.
A screenshot of Google Maps from an unnamed location. A blue line representing directions enters along the waterfront from the north and turns to the east, apparently uphill. A number of points of interest are highlighted, including "Lavender Bakery & Cafe", "Sprouts Farmer's Market", "La Marcha Tapas Bar," "Waterside Workshops (recently viewed)", "Green Living Builders, LLC", and "The Sperm Bank of California."
Black and white image of a storefront. A 1940s-era car is parked in front. The store has a sign, "GROCERY WANTO: Fruits and vegetables". In front of the windows, in bold capital letters, is a new sign reading "I AM AN AMERICAN." (A famous image from Dorothea Lange).
A selfie of a smiling man in front of an abstract modernist sculpture, curves and swoops painted in green. Students of early funk will recognize it as the sculpture the band posed on on the cover of Sly and the Family Stone’s “Dance to the Music”
A map of the San Francisco Bay Area, with many routes displayed, stretching from Petaluma in the north to San Jose in the south. The highest density is in the East Bay near Berkeley.
A moon seen at night through altocumulus clouds shines over a group of people standing with bicycles. Many of the bikes have bright wheel lights in different colors. There are several trees within the group; the area looks like a park of some kind.
Two cyclists ride in a crosswalk in an industrial area. One is gesturing with her right hand, apparently at a car to her right. Both are looking to the right; other cars are turning right from the facing street.
Retweet from Emily Mills: "Same address as Grow SF and Neighbors for A Better San Francisco and Govern for California. (Seems like Nielsen Merksamer is a go to for some people.)" Retweeting Oaklanders Against Loren Taylor for Mayor: "New astroturf group just launched. “Black Action Alliance” which claims to be Black Oaklanders but they have a San Rafael address." Screenshot of web site reading "Black Action Alliance, About Us" Black Action Alliance 2350 Kerner Blvd. Suite 250 San Rafael, CA 94901
In the foreground, a political lawn sign reading "Loren Taylor for Oakland Mayor: Solutions over Slogans". In the background, a front yard area covered by astroturf.
Two bicyclists in yellow windbreakers ride towards the camera, on a wide road near a beach. They appear to be relaxed because no cars are allowed. The day is cloudy but they are smiling.
Screenshot from Facebook, reading "You received a post mention. Use the Messenger mobile app to see it."
Picture of a crowd in a parking lot at night; at the center of the image is a custom wooden bike trailer holding a sound system lit with blue and yellow LED strips and disco lights. In the background are a number of people in costumes standing talking to each other, along with bicycles, one decorated with bright turquoise lights.
A large excavator is scraping dirt from a steep hillside, adjacent to a house perched on the hillside. It appears to be a project to construct a new house. The dirt and rocks are all shades of brown, with a large boulder sitting in the foreground to the left of the image, opposite the excavator. The hillside the excavator is scraping at is displaying layers of rock, probably sedimentary, several inches thick.
Screenshot of email subject line, reading: "Manny's: Exciting Programming Plans, Mass Deportation, Mayor Lurie's Inauguration"
An event flyer titled "Ride 4 Mayor!", 12/9/24. Rideout from Rich City Gallery 4PM. Cycling adocate and Rich City homie will be installed as new Mayor of Albany! The image is a duotone picture of a man wearing a helmet and a mask, along with a camera chest strap, standing behind a custom bike with "Rich City Rides" stickers on the top and down tubes.
A narrow wooden bridge crosses a gorge with autumnal trees. The bridge appears to have been constructed recently; it has high railings with six safety cables strung along its length. The bridge is wide enough for one bicyclist but probably not two. On the far side it appears the trail turns; a wooden fence can be seen in front of the roof of a house.
Screenshot of a Twitter post showing a residential lot with three modern 1BR units with garages. Kind of crammed onto a lot next to two traditional residential homes. The text reads: Matt Baran @mattbaran There are properties in Oakland, Berkeley and Emeryville that will support densities at 2 and 3x what they supported earlier this year. Basis at ~800K Rehab at ~200K New units at ~600k x2 Soft at ~100K All in ~2.3MM Sale on new/rehabbed units at ~1.3MM each, total ~3.9MM
A phone screenshot from whatbeatsrock.com reads, "United States imperialism does not beat the international court of justice. The International Court of Justice tries to hold imperial powers accountable, not the other way around."
A screenshot of whatbeatsrock.com. It reads, "White nationalism does not beat Feminist critical theory. Feminist critical theory dismantles oppressive ideologies, including white nationalism. It's like trying to put out a fire with gasoline.
A BART informational display, showing OAK/Berryessa coming in 17 minutes.
Freddie Mercury in a yellow leather jacket, white pants with a red stripe, and white Addidas sneakers with black stripes, singing with his right arm upraised in a fist. The image is shot from his left; in front of him and to his right you can see a huge crowd, many with upraised arms. The image is likely from the Wembley Stadium Live Aid concert.
Scatter graph with trend line describing SARS-COV-2 Contentrations in San Francisco (Southeast). Large spikes are seen around August 01, 21 and Feb 01, 22. Much smaller rises (less than 20% of the two big spikes) are seen in Feb 23 and Feb 24, with another small rise at the far side of the chart)
A wide panorama of a redwood forest floor. Photo taken standing on a narrow trail which can be seen at the left and right of the image. Directly in the middle is a decaying deadfall tree stump. A small creek runs right to left, and a wooden bridge over the creek can be seen far right. Redwood sorrel covers the hillside on the other side of the creek.
Chart showing trends in Google search terms from 2007-2019, with two series, titled Douchebag and Fixie. The correlation is very strong, with Fixie having a seasonal component but the overall trend lines being very similar, starting low in 2007 and peaking in 2012 before tailing off.
Screenshot of a Bluesky post from Al Yankovic. "Full disclosure: Everything I've ever posted on BlueSky has been Al-generated content". Given the sans-serif font, the reader can't distinguish between "AI" and "Al"
A double row of police in riot gear line a closed street at night, in front of Bongo Burger. In the background are rows of stacked shipping containers lit by bright lights.