Bikester Magazine EN Summer 2021

THE BICYCLE AS A
PACKHORSE
For its myriad benefits, one inescapable fact
about the bicycle is that it limits what you
can carry; unlike with a car, you can‘t throw
everything on the back seat or in the boot.
This means you have to rely on your own
strength to get stuff from A to B (and C!) –
unless, that is, you use an e-bike. But for most
cyclists, it seems packing light is only a small
price to pay for the advantages the bicycle
affords.
You may wonder how a paramedic and
photographer manage to cart around their
stuff on a bike, but both cope fine without
resorting to a cargo bike. Tom carries
diagnostic equipment and can take blood
and other samples. Yet he doesn‘t have any
problems carrying everything in a pair of
yellow panniers and a handlebar bag. This
makes him a sort of ‘mobile doctor‘s practice’,
and he brings with him a lot of the equipment
you‘d see at your local doctor‘s surgery. On the
other hand, Mirko carries everything on his
back, with his backpack often weighing up
to 20 kg. The weight of his bag depends very
much on the type of photography he‘s into.
For a lot of interior photography, he can get
away with just a camera and a tripod; portrait
photography requires more equipment.
FAR MORE THAN A TO B
© MARTIN OHLIGER
Using a bicycle also has benefits that go far
beyond providing transportation. Mirko and
Christiane both incorporate their bikes into
their jobs. Kroko, Christiane‘s hand puppet,
rides in her bicycle basket. The children wait
eagerly at the window to see the pair arrive
and Christiane includes the bicycle in her
stories, promoting cycling as healthy and
environmentally friendly. For Mirko, the bike
provides inspiration and variety. He‘s even
used it to spice up boring locations and as an
accessory for portraits.
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