David Byrne, Biker

Turns out that David Byrne, who long ago left behind Talking Heads for many other artistic pursuits, but I'll always figure his reputation was already secured with Once in a Lifetime and Psycho Killer and Uh, Uh Love Comes to Town and And She Was, and Road to Nowhere and the list goes on for a good while, is a biker. And like most us who ride in NYC has had his share of narrow escapes. But he is also is a designer of bike racks and struck a deal with the city to add to the too small stock of racks in Manhattan with specially designed racks made of the same metal tubing as on all the others. They'll be on the streets for a year and then sold through his gallery. Mudflap Tammy, the truckers' goddess, is at 44th and 7th Ave. I've seen the abstract outside the MOMA and the dog in Greenwich Village and lashed my bike briefly to The Coffee Cup, outside a pastry shop across Amsterdam from St. John the Divine. There are half a dozen or so more. Thanks, David, for bringing a little flair and humor to a scarce necesity, always welcome here and everywhere.