Friding is one of those ideas that strikes you with the force of a revelation: Riding. On a Friday. “The best day, the best way.” Couldn’t be simpler.
It’s not formal, it’s not planned, it’s just giving people permission. Once a week, take your bike.
And yet, as its inventors Nick McFarlane and Greg Wood say in a great article in today’s Herald, it’s extremely powerful too: “Our plan is to change the world one Friday at a time.”
Greg gave us the downlow at the recent Pecha Kucha bike night, including this perfect image that captures the moment when the Sisyphus effect gives way to the snowball effect.
And since today is the day before Friday, and spring is in the air, we thought to ourselves… why not give people a nudge to give it a try?
So we’re issuing a Friding challenge.
Tomorrow, we’re inviting Aucklanders to try it out. “Go Friding” – to work, to school, to the shops, to anywhere. If you’re social media savvy, take a photo of you or your view, hashtag #Friding and #BikeAKL – and send it to Instagram, or Twitter, or Facebook. But mainly, just jump on a bike for a change.
How to get ready for Friding:
1. Check your bike – pump up your tires, charge up your lights (sunset is at 5.51pm), etc.
2. Pack a spare shirt, if you think you might need a fresh one at your destination; or plan regular clothes and go at your own pace.
3. Plan your route – Google maps is surprisingly good for this. Take the fast way there, and the long way home, whatever appeals.
4. Round up some company – Friding is even more fun with a friend.
5. Wipe that grin off your face. Actually, don’t.
Because honestly, look: this is tomorrow’s forecast for Auckland, via the Herald.
And this is you, tomorrow.
**Breaking news: the lovely bikes-and-coffee joint Blend is offering a Friding special of $2 coffees to anyone who arrives on a bike tomorrow – if you’re passing their new premises at the top of Mt Eden Rd, pop in and say hello!**
PS here’s Greg’s great Pecha Kucha talk about how Friding came about…
