01.11. 07 kulturnatib

Cycle Klaus

Last Christmas, Santa Claus didn’t arrive borne in a sled by a fleet of reindeers as we always expect him to. In fact, he didn’t arrive at all. But – and this is what we really care about – his gifts did, right on the dot on Christmas day. Packed – not wrapped, I’m sorry to say for those who are hung up on Christmas wrapping – in a 40 foot container van.

Also, he has slimmed down considerably, shaved off his snow white beard, gained a few inches in height and generally grew healthy and fit as you would expect of somebody who exercises regularly, like chew up a couple of kilometers on the bicycle.

Then, he no longer goes by the name Santa. What kind of sissy name is Santa anyway? His name now is Herr Doctor Norbert Reiss.

He is a dentist in Germany who, when he is not attending to matters oral, can be found atop the saddle of his bicycle, a mountain-off road model since 4 years ago when he started on this passion with a typical German single-mindedness usually useful only for the exercise of world domination.

At the other more tropical half of the globe another German was following his own passion that, in that half of the globe, is also identified as being some kind of Santa Claus though taken more seriously and is more known by the name of Boddhissatva; A person who postpones his or her attainment of Buddahood or enlightenment in order that others can attain theirs.

Funk Jens is the earthly name of this Boddhissatva and his passion goes by the name of the Bike4U foundation. The aim of this foundation is to make bicycling a serious commuting option for the local population especially for those whose flesh and spirit are still ideal for this option – the young.

In a recent trip to Germany Funk Jens met Dr. Reiss. This was a case of a friend knowing a friend who knew yet another. Jens tells Dr. Reiss his passion and was asked to write about it for a local paper. Two papers it turned out.

Before you could say Ja doch! Dr. Reiss was busy collecting used bicycles. And, before long he, and some volunteers, had collected some 100 bicycles -- enough to fill a 40 foot container van -- from the community including from some Germany-based Pinays, whose other bikes are now Beemers, Benzes and other low-end vehicles.

Meanwhile, here, Funk was busy getting the foundation ready for the arrival of the bicycles: they smoothed out the kinks in the procedure for access, prepared the application forms and made sure that the donated bikes arrive and are distributed without the hitches and hassles such cargo has been known to have endured or are very likely to endure.

Following the wisdom of charity beginning at home, the foundation had decided that the Faxite Omnis, would get priority access. This is the bicycle organization of the students of the Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise Institute (CITE), where Funk is the Information Technology consultant in charge of IT curriculum development with the German technical assistance organization DED. The foundation, incidentally, is also mostly based in CITE. At least, for now.

This donation program is also open for others, of course, says Funk. But, as of this writing, only one non-CITE student has submitted his application. He is a 15-year old who is also a triathlete, but who doesn’t own a bicycle.

At the end of this January the foundation is looking to sponsoring a fun-ride in the city for those who will have been awarded their bicycles and those who support the foundation who will be asked to make a donation in cash or kind, bicycle parts or accessories.

Will Dr. Reiss be joining the fun ride? This is a good question for Funk who, I guess, will just be too happy for Dr. Reiss to continue to be what he has proved to be good at: Being Cycle Klaus.