Riding in icy conditions; Memphis aims to be more bike-friendly; a cardboard helmet; and more

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* It’s that time a year when one encounters sub-32 degree weather on the morning commute. While freezing temperatures make for beautiful frosty white landscapes, it can be dangerous for cyclists. BikeRadar features an informative article with tips on how to ride in icy, rainy and windy conditions

* Memphis aims to be a friendlier place for cyclists, the New York Times reports. Memphis, which has long been among the country’s most perilous places for cyclists, has seen  an increase in bike ridership like never before, spurred by a mayor who has worked to change the way residents think about commuting.

* University of Iowa’s bicycle simulator is used to study bike safety for children.  One focus of the bicycling simulator is to compare how kids and adults cross intersections filled with virtual on-coming cars and trucks.

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* Would you trust a helmet made of cardboard? BikeRadar reports that a helmet made of cardboard-like material by a student at the Royal College of Art in London has passed safety tests.

*All year, Atlantic Cities keeps track of emerging trends across the world's major cities, and not every new idea or enthusiasm is worth repeating. Among them are trends like pedestrians fighting bikers and cities focusing on fancy bike lanes. See here, the full listing of urban trends they hope will die in 2013.

*Bikes were a hot topic in 2012. Sightline featured a listing of their most popular articles from 2012 and the clear theme among those articles was “getting around”… by bicycle preferably.  And Co.EXIST also counted the bicycling in general among the top transportation stories of 2012.

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* LeBron James  rides his bicycle to practice instead of driving, the Huffington Post reports.

* Redefining “protected” Grid Chicago looks at CDOT’s new bike lane terminology.

* Portland bike component maker, Chris King, sees made-in-USA demand from overseas, Business Week reports. 

* Seattle’s bike mom, Madi Carlson, blogs about family riding and why it is safe.

*Seattle’s Mayor McGinn calls on Seattle to divest from fossil fuels.

* Cyclists dominated the sporting section of the British New Year Honours list as Bradley Wiggins and Dave Brailsford were knighted and Sarah Storey made a dame for their achievements.