November Fan Photo Winner

Our November 2015 winner is Miryam from Newbury Park, CA. You can get to know her a little bit better through the Q+A below. Thanks, Miryam!

Each month we will be choosing our favorite Po Campo fan photo to display on the blog. We see all of your beautiful pictures on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook, but if there are photos you’ve taken with your Po Campo bag that you haven’t posted online, feel free to send them our way! You can email your fan photos to photos@pocampo.com or tag your photos with #pocampo for a chance to win a FREE PO CAMPO BAG.

1. Tell us a bit about your hometown. Where do you insist on taking out of town guests?

My house lies in Dos Vientos Ranch, a small suburb adjacent to Newbury Park in Thousand Oaks, California. While California has been experiencing a heart wrenching & historic drought, the #1 place we take our out of town guests is on hiking trails across our home in the Santa Monica mountain trails. Sunset hikes are particularly striking,  and ocean views in "cooler" weather are always a great highlight the day. 

2. Where is your favorite place to take your Po Campo?  

My Po Campo bag is a permanent fixture on my Pedego E-bike rear rack, easily slipping off for shopping, work or home. I love that it's pretty, crazy spacious, rugged, reflective, and light weight. I use my E-bike for commuting a round trip of 23 miles to work, shopping, & group rides. My bag goes every where! 

I must say, the fact that the company was founded & run by women is pridefully important to me as well. 

3.  A favorite tip (or two) about how you incorporate mindfulness and healthy habits into your daily life?

Incorporating mindful & healthy habits into my daily life has been a passion since the very first Earth Day in 1970! Over the years & decades, tailored exercise became a struggle for my joints, and for my work & life schedules, so I evolved into realizing that exercise & fitness is best incorporated into a lifestyle. I got rid of regular TV for on demand viewing instead, so I don't mindlessly channel surf, and I limit screen time to 2 hours per day. I meet up with friends to fish, hike, beach walk, swim or bike, not at restaurants. We virtually never go out to eat, but prepare all our meals from scratch, using non processed organic foods.

I mentally tally up my physical activity to at least 3-5 hours per week! The E-bike has completely changed my life, since it fulfills my dream of commuting by bike to work, so exercise has become a natural life style. I ride year round; I figured if I can ski, I can figure out how to ride in the winter. 

4.  A suggestion for women who are interested in biking but have safety concerns?

Many people, when they find out that I ride 100 miles per week, ask how I am not afraid. I AM afraid. I get it! Same as when I get behind the wheel of a car! The risks are the same. People just become familiar & hopefully adept at driving, and it's the same with a bike. Not only am I an "urban" bike rider, I also ride to work thru Hidden Valley connecting Newbury Park to Westlake Village. Though a visually magnificent ride through oaks, ranches, mountains & meadows, there are no bike lanes or paved shoulders, and at some turns I am against mountainside or sheer drop offs.

I want to make it clear that I am NOT an adrenaline junky! Once I got my E-bike, it took 6 months of regular riding before I got the nerve to ride this mountain road, especially with commuter crazy traffic. I found most important is time & proficiency riding & being familiar with and learning to control your bike. Learn bike & traffic rules, and always follow them. Also, just because you can take certain right of ways does not mean you should!

I do wear a crazy yellow thin windbreaker over any clothing, since on the road I do want to be crazy visible. I love to bike pretty with girlie fashions, but my fashion statements are still beneath this highly reflective sheath. I always have a head light on, and a flashing rear red blinker. Always. I carry spare lights just in case. Going on some group rides is a good idea, since there is a review of road safety & courtesy rules. I do have a rear view mirror, became proficient at using it, but look over my shoulder as well. 

5.  Secrets for managing helmet hair?

Since I'm an urban rider, I always wear a helmet. Initially helmet hair was a pain, & since I ride to work, I did want to overcome this issue. I find pulling my hair back completely & wrapping a thin long  scarf around my hair & face, under my helmet, is very helpful. It keeps my head warmer in the winter & cooler in the summer, and no sweating since better circulation rather than  direct contact with the helmet. I carry a brush in my bag, & use it after taking off helmet. There is also a tiny travel blow drier in my bag just in case I want extra styling once I get to work. 

6.  Favorite biking memory?

My favorite bike memory is EVERY DAY THAT I GET TO RIDE MY BIKE! It turns every day into an adventure. I find that I am always plotting & planning how to incorporate more routine activities & chores with the bike, since it engages with fitness & the outdoors and adventure.

7. If you could be amazing at playing any one instrument, which would you pick?

Musical instrument? Since I love getting outdoors, something I could carry in my bag, like a recorder or harmonica. 

8.  If you could wake up fluent in any language, which would it be?

I am lucky to be fluent in English, which is not my native language, though it is the more universal language. I will get personal and say I would like to become more fluent in Hebrew, since Israel is my birth land and the majority of my family is still there. Plus, Israelis like to laugh and have an amazing sense of humor, especially about themselves, so I would love to be able to engage with that type of humor.