advocate Noah Budnick.
(Photo: Streetfilms)
David Byrne, NYC resident, former Talking Heads front man and biking’s coolest celebrity endorser/advocate, will be in Portland this summer and he’s got a bike book set to be published in September.
Byrne — a daily bike commuter for 30 years — has made a big name for himself in biking circles for (among other things) his advocacy and involvement in the New York City bike scene. He collaborated with the NYC Dept. of Transportation to design a series of art racks, and in February 2007 Byrne joined carfree advocate Gil Penalosa and staffers from NYC’s Transportation Alternatives for a bike ride that was captured by Streetfilms.
(Photo: DavidByrne.com)
On June 23rd, smack dab in the middle of Portland’s Pedalpalooza bike-fest, Byrne will be in town for a tour stop at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. That news has local bike-funnists scheming about how to wrangle Byrne into enjoying the Pedalpalooza festivities.
Now comes word from PR folks at Viking/Penguin that Byrne has written “Bicycle Diaries”, a new book set to hit stores in September. The book will be, “a travelogue that chronicles Byrne’s journeys in cities around the world from the perspective of a bicycle.” (We’ve got an advance review copy on the way.)
Any David Byrne fans out there?