This post is part of series written by TreeHugger contributors
about trading in your car for a bike for trips that are two miles or
less in distance. The series is sponsored by the Clif 2-Mile Challenge.
For longer than I care to remember I've been a cycle commuter. For
short to medium distances I can't think of a better way to travel.
I lived on the inner city fringe for roughly 20 years. For half of
that time I didn't own a car. I rode everywhere, for everything. To
work, to play, to study, to lecture, to shop, to eat. I rode to first
dates. I rode to awards ceremonies. I rode to business appointments.
Like any activity undertaken on a constant basis, things will eventually go wrong. I have had my fair share of such 'events.'
Waiting for homewardbound commuter train. Photo: Warren McLaren / inov8
Once when doing a U-turn across the road my bike tyres discovered an
oil slick and shot out from under me. My bicycle and I were soon
sprawled out spreadeagle across the tarmac. That this occurred early
evening on the busiest street in Sydney's central business district
(CBD) may have been why the line of waiting bus commuters looked on with
gaping mouths and faces drawn in disbelief. The odds of being run over
were sky high. Fortunately I subscribe to the notion of "better lucky
than rich."
Another time, sometime after midnight, returning home from visiting a
friend about a business opportunity, my bike wheels decided they and a
pothole were a match made in heaven. And duly embraced. Being
superfluous to this relationship I was unceremoniously discarded. Within
metres of one Sydney's most congested arterial roads. I still bear the
war wounds from where I made unexpected contact with the bitumen. But
I'm of firm belief that had I not been wearing a helmet, road rash scars
would've been the very least of my injuries.
My most recent cycling hiccup was less dramatic but still serves as a
reminder of the challenges of cycle commuting. I simply slept in.
Bike locked outside organic food store. Photo: Warren McLaren / inov8
These days I live not in the city, but the country, and a couple of
days a week I work in an organic wholefood store, about 28km (17.5
miles) from home. It would take roughly 1.5 hours to ride such a
distance, but as a hands-on father of an under one year old child I
don't, alas, have that time free. So I ride to the town's rail station
and catch a lift on the train three stops along, and then ride to work.
The timing of the rail service happens to be perfect and the trains even
have dedicated bike closets to stow my trusty metal steed.
But sleep in, and "perfect" goes right out the window. I awoke at the
precise time I should've been pedaling to the station. Sure, I can
drive, as a fall back, but not when I've allowed my car registration to
lapse--I use my car so irregularly I was pondering if I really needed
it.
So yes, cycle commuting is brilliant. (most of the time)
It keeps you fit. A regular cyclist is considered to have the fitness
level of a non-cyclist 10 years their junior. A US study, looking at
18,000 women over a 15 year period, observed that the women who cycled
for at least two or three hours a week were 46% less likely to gain
weight. And children who 'actively' commute to school have higher levels
of physical activity and improved cardiovascular fitness compared with
children who do not walk or cycle to school.
It saves you money. To keep a compact car like mine on the road,
costs about $800 annually -- just in registration and insurance. That's
without even putting fuel in the tank, servicing, new tyres, freeway
tolls, etc.
And like April noted last week, cycling is real.
You're out there amongst the weather and the immediate surroundings. Be
comparison driving a car is like being at the movies or watching stuff
on TV. A screen separates you from those otherwise visceral sensations
of cold, hot, speed, thrill, etc. There are no seat belts, anti-skid
braking or air bags. You need to be alert, aware, conscious. You need to
be alive.
And we aren't even discussing cycling's environmental benefits.
Bike storage on country commuter train. Photo: Warren McLaren / inov8
Commuting by bike does require two disciplines: Nerve and Time
Management. Nerve because in the event of a bingle a cyclist is never
going to trump a motor vehicle. And time management because to cycle
(and/or use public transport) needs extra planning. It can often take
longer (though more on that next time), so you may have to factor that
into your day. It's not a case of simply jumping in the car and slamming
on the accelerator.
Cycle commuting has much going for it. But we'd be foolish to suggest it can solve every problem. But it comes close.
That day I slept in, I ended up one hour and forty five minutes late
for work, after arranging insurance, etc, for my car. If I'd just ridden
my bike directly to work, I'd have been there in one hour, thirty
minutes. I should've just got on my bike.
And that's what the Clif 2 Mile Challenge is all about. Getting more people on their bikes, improving their well being, and that of their planet. Give it go.
Source: treehugger.com
Related Stories:
Take the Clif 2 Mile Challenge, and Get There by Bike!
