Machetes, Chickens, and Bike Checks
 |
 It is hard to tell where the chicken coop ends and the bike shop starts. |
Barra de Potosi is a small Mexican fishing village tucked into a nook where an expansive lagoon meets the Pacific Ocean. As with any area dependent on the commerce generated by fishing, there have been years of financial struggle for the people who live there. The Red Cross rebuilt the village after a Tsunami all but wiped it out in 1985. Since then, the community has proven resilient against international developers, global warming, pollution and many other threats to their way of life.
While cars and trucks are seen on the narrow dirt roads of the village, the majority of Barra de Potosi's residents prefer bikes as a vehicle. Surprisingly, in a place where there is so much need, and people have so little, there is no bike theft. Bikes are hardly ever locked up and, instead, are amicably shared – practices that have developed organically into a bike co-op of sorts. These rides are not chosen by discipline, size or fit, only for the purpose of getting where you need to go. It is common to see adults commuting on children's bikes and kids pedalling by on frames so big for them that they cannot sit on the seats. Most impressive are the customizations that are designed by purpose. Plastic milk crates are commonly attached for carrying supplies and wares, drop bars are turned upright for a more 'comfortable' ride and homemade holsters attach machetes to the frame (or donkey).
In this modern-day meets rural village where hydro is hijacked to power televisions inside homes constructed with palm fronds, bikes are used for their most simplified intention; transportation. More than anything else, riding builds their community. Greetings are regularly exchanged as people commute to work, drop their children off at school and run errands. It takes only a day or two of being a part of this kind of gridlock traffic before you feel like one of the locals and an extension of their society; it takes even less time to be humbled by this village's appreciation for the simplicity of bikes.
 |
| 'The bun guy' rides countless kilometres each day selling his fresh buns until he runs out. The machete provides some safety when carrying cash on the backroads. |
 |
| Some of the fisherman ride to their boats, usually heading out at the break of dawn and sometimes fishing overnight to provide the freshest catch to the restaurants each day. |
 |
| This bike was bequeathed to Jesus by his jefe (boss) and friend, he has ridden it every day since he got it. |
 |
| Antonio hauls buckets of dirt to the Noni plantation on his BMX ride. |
 |
| 'Mono' or 'Monkey', got his nickname for scaling the palm trees barefoot to harvest coconuts. |
 |
| Ricardo is very proud of his near perfect condition pink bike. |
 |
| The local arcade and tienda are home to this boy and his jacked up handlebars. |
 |
| When you are sharing one bike with all your siblings things like size and colour are not considered. |
 |
| This women bikes to her job at a local hotel every day, roughly 10km each way. |
 |
| This adorable woman shows property for sale at the edge of the village; business is slow, but she has one of the more prestigious jobs available. |
 |
| Size does not matter when it comes to the necessity of transportation. |
 |
| What is better than a bike? A donkey. Obviously. |
 |
| The only bike that was locked up, maybe the owners is not a local. |
 |
| This guy was going somewhere, but luckily paused just long enough for a photo. |
 |
| Recently transplanted from Los Angeles this kid is adjusting to a new world with less pavement, less emissions and less traffic. |
 |
| Nothing completes this man's day like a smoke and ride around the village. |
 |
| These two proved that you don't need a tandem to ride together. |
 |
| A couple that rides together. . . |
 |
| This fellow paused for a photo on his way to an early morning a hair cut. |
 |
| Lizette took a loan of $300 from her employers to buy her bike. It is one of the most expensive and newest bikes in the village and she still has no concerns about theft. |
 |
| Hauling bait from the lagoon for the fisherman is this boy's way of supporting the main village industry. A coop is in place to help support all the families involved. |
 |
| The humid and salty air ravage the bike frames and with little ability to battle the damage the bikes are simply ridden until they will no longer go. |
Author Info:
Member since May 10, 2007
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
Personally i would like something small, to a small community where I would be assured (as much as possible) that my (our) donations were going directly to the patrons.
makes you wonder, with changing global economy and natural disasters / global warming perhaps it won't be too many years before many of us in the Western World find ourselves in a similar situation and would be happy to own any bicycle for transportation
an article like this, certainly puts things in perspective, compared to my customers bleating about "issues" with their £10,000 carbon fibre Di2 road bike with ZIPP wheels
Another small portion of the population (which I include myself) uses XC bikes or hybrids to go to work, college, etc.. These people choose to use a bike as transportation leaving the car at home. Our only problem is the theft of bikes, which is very common here.
It is nice to live in a city where the majority of the population ride bikes, either through necessity or simply by choice.
Sorry for my poor english! =)
Mas a maioria das pessoas já ve a bike como estilo de vida, aqui onde eu trabalho, conheço várias pessoas que possuem carros do ano, mas utilizam apenas para passeios em familia aos finais de semana ou para viajar, e a bike é a parceira do dia a dia. O resultado disso vc sente no ar, muito mais puro para respirar, apesar da grande quantidade de carros que ainda circulam pela cidade. Joinville também é a cidade brasileira que mais possui ciclofaixas/ciclovias, e se tudo continuar melhorando por aqui, logo será um paraizo para ciclistas, pois aqui na região tem várias trilhas de XC e DH.
And I have to beg them to go ride !
Its time to share!
www.worldbicyclerelief.org
Thanks to help sharing different bike cultures!