The Bike to Work Book is to be co-published in November by Quickrelease.tv of the UK and of the US. Reid said: “The media message ‘Save gas, go by bike’ is a huge opportunity for the bicycle business. But reaching bike-to-work wannabes is tough. Newbie cycle commuters don’t hang out in bike places. We plan to get the Bike to Work Book in front of this new audience through an online and offline PR campaign. With gas at $5 a gallon, it’s pushing on an open door, the mainstream media is now very open to the bike commute message.“The Bike to Work Book is a print title but it’s also leveraging the internet to reach a larger audience than possible through traditional book publishing. The print version will be available on Amazon.com and other booksellers from mid-November but the book will also be available as a paid-for rich-media e-book and there will be a free, cut-down version of the book available as a PDF, sent via iTunes. The e-formats will be available earlier than the printed book.
The health and economic benefits of cycling are flagged on the book's back cover. Tour de France commentator Phil Liggett said: 'This book could save you $3500 a year. And you'll be lighter and stronger into the bargain.' Transport psychologist Dr Ian Walker of the University of Bath said: 'Cycling is an important life expectancy predictor. Because it becomes part of your daily routine, cycling to work helps you live longer. This book could be the most important you ever read.'
The Bike to Work Book is being promoted via a website and a podcast.
The first show was recorded on Thursday and featured Reid and Grahl talking with two of Europe's top bike bloggers. Mikael Colville-Andersen produces the Copenhagen Cycle Chic blog and Copenhagenize.com, while Mark Woudenberg produces Amsterdamize.com.
Colville-Andersen and Woudenberg have co-written a chapter in the Bike to Work Book: 'The Future is Already Here', a description of what US and UK cities can look forward to when they embrace bicycling."In the US cycle use is just one percent of all journeys," said Grahl. "In Denmark and the Netherlands it's at least 30 percent. It was inspiring to talk to these guys and just amazing to find out that the 30 percent figure is considered too low by Copenhagen and Amsterdam. The goal is 50 percent. I can't imagine that ever happening in the US but remember that John Burke of Trek said last year that if the number of bicycle trips in the US grew from 1 percent to just 5 percent it would result in a $6.2bn industry becoming a $31bn industry."
