If you’re an Explore magazine reader, you’ve probably already read the Spring issue and Colin’s article on Common-Sense Cycling.  As you may have guessed we’re cycling advocates, not only as a great way to get around but also as a way of staying fit.

As Colin notes, there is only one country in the world where people are getting skinnier, and it’s the Netherlands.  Now he’s not saying cycling is the cause but it is one of the world’s cycling hotspots with a quarter of the population using bikes to get to work.  Compare that to Canada, where only a paltry 1.3% pedal to their job.

There are reasons why cycling is so embraced by the Dutch and a lot of it has to do with having the appropriate infrastructure and removing obstacles to cycling, which can include wearing a helmet.  It’s an interesting debate and he looks at research which offers valuable insights into how our communities can be made more bike friendly and why we should care about that.