As you probably know by now, I am an avid bicycle rider. I have given up using my car to use my bike as transportation everywhere around town. For the last ~10 months, the only times that I have ridden in or driven a car have been when I was going out of town, or when I was going somewhere with another individual (no one else wants to bike around town with me for some reason...). Since many people do not understand why someone would want to get rid of the convenience and comfort of a car and replace that with a bicycle, I want to tell you why I ride.
First and foremost, I ride because I greatly enjoy my time on the bike. When I drive, it is just a means to get from point A to B. But when I bike, I actually enjoy going there. I enjoy the feel of the air rushing past me and the texture of the road under my wheels. There is nothing like zipping along at 20mph and leaning deep into a curve on smooth pavement. The handling and responsiveness of the bike does not even compare to a car. Yeah you can go fast in a car, but who cares? You don't need to go fast to get across town. You just have to leave 5 or 10 minutes early and you're good to go.
I also ride to keep in shape. I sit all day at work and school so I don't need to sit in a car to go places. By biking, I am able to maintain a healthy body even in the winter with minimal effort. I don't ride as much in the winter as I do in the nicer months, but commuting is more than enough to keep my muscles toned and the winter weight off (mostly). The daily exercise also keeps me in a better mood. Exercise has been proven to help prevent depression.
An awesome side effect of commuting by bike is that I am not harming the environment by doing so. This isn't my first priority, but it is important to me that I am living better (for the environment).
Biking is also much cheaper than driving in the long run. I never have to worry about rising gas prices! I never need to fill up before going anywhere as I do that anyways! If our foreign oil sources stopped selling to the US like they have before, I wouldn't care one bit. It would actually be kinda funny. I would be just as capable to live my life and get to and from work and school. Also, if I ever lose my job and go completely broke, I can still get around to interviews and such as I don't have to worry about how I'm going to pay for that tank of gas! Now, biking can be more expensive than driving if you keep buying tools and accessories for your bikes (like I do...) but unlike with cars, I have the option to turn it into a ~$0 per year expense.
Lastly, and sometimes most importantly, I absolutely love seeing people's faces when there is an inch of ice on the road and they realize that I can get around town on my bike faster, easier, safer, and warmer than they can!!!
Stay safe & watch out for bikes.
Saturday, May 9, 2009 at 5:40AM 
photo credit: micahcoleman
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