Breakfast specials for bicyclists this week in Somerville

[ron_newman]

Several Somerville coffee shops and restaurants are offering breakfast specials for bicyclists this week. Please show your helmet at these times and locations

Comments

[dogoncouch]

So you can't get in on any of this stuff if you don't wear a helmet?

[ron_newman]

I believe the helmet is their way of telling that you are a bicyclist.

[dogoncouch]

Hehehe. I should just walk everywhere this week, and bring a bike helmet for the free shit.

[rosiewoodboat]

...or waste everyone's time with these antics, especially that of the kind folks that are volunteering for Bike Week. Yeah, that's charming.

[ron_newman]

Exactly. These businesses (and others in Cambridge and elsewhere) are trying to help out the bicycling community. If you want to be a jerk, please stay away from them this week.

[turil]

I'm not a jerk, but I think the helmet thing is actually creating more problems than it's worth. If you want to promote biking, promote biking. If you want to promote helmets, promote helmets. But trying to promote biking by requiring helmets is illogical.

It would be far simpler and more in line with the goal of promoting biking if these places to just give out the free goodies to anyone who says "I biked today!" Sure there might be some folks who didn't actually bike, but at least they are being learning that biking is popular and something that society supports, which is worth the 50¢ or so per person that it is probably costing these places in materials an labor. (Plus they can deduct the donation on their taxes.)

I mean, I like wearing a helmet and all, but I'd rather see people associating biking and Bike Week with positive messages rather than elitist messages of discrimination. Know what I mean?

[turil]

My stuffed gorilla (who rides on my trailer) always wears a helmet, even when I'm not biking or wearing a helmet. So she could get the free breakfast snacks at least...

[turil]

Better yet, put your bike on a car and drive the car around while wearing your helmet, of course. Then park a block or so away from the place, take the bike off the car, and walk it the rest of the way!

Seriously, if it were helmet week, I could understand, but for bike week, it would make a lot more sense to reward everyone who actually biked, or would bike if it didn't seem so dangerous out there (helmet or no).

I know that they are trying, and that's cool. It's just too bad that they are missing a really great opportunity to do something far more effective...

[ron_newman]

The cafes want to know that you biked to them, but they don't want you to bring your bike into the cafe. So, that's where "show your helmet" comes from.