Bike Commuting is Freedom

[madscot13]

Yes, I do love bike riding. it is sort of harder here in DC but I don't have many places to go. My mother is amazed that I haven't begged her for a car yet. I mean my brother got one when he was in high school and my parents had less money back then. Well she is trying to bribe me with a car if I move home (silly them, what I really want is my own house and there is some sort of paradox involved in that). Well I would love to go car free for the next 10 years, but I'm sure something will happen before then.

I can beat most cars on the way to school and I can beat the metro bus on the way home (and that is uphill mind you). I don't think owning a car would save me any time, because then you have to work to keep up with the expenses of owning a car: the monthly payments, insurance, up keep, and GAS! I know for some folks, having a car is a necessity and driving it is a daily necessity. But doesn't that say something about our lives and the way we have designed our cities?

[Geonz]

It occured to me yesterday at the League of Illinois Bicyclists meeting that there are hordes of people who sincerely and honestly don't realize that there are so many positive tradeoffs to cycling that it's the easy choice for many of us. Until you've experienced the payoffs you don't understand. Technotart said it so well!! It's so hard to explain that you're just planning and figuring out *different* things than you would be with the car.
One of the other fellows on the board was on the train with me and bemoaned that he didn't commute more because it took more time to cycle 2 or three miles than to drive. I said "if it were a 7 mile trip you'd find the time to do it in the car - it's worth seeing if you can find that 20 minutes." I mean, it is **possible** that the 20 minutes aren't there - but far more likely that oh, there's still been time for 20 minutes of SOlitaire on the computer. Cycling is much more refreshing than that.
(Speaking for myself, I'm simply more efficient in an exercised mind and body. I don't need as much sleep so I get the time back right away.)

Actually the thing that occurred to me wasn't that there were hordes - I knew that - but that many members of that unenlightened horde were actually passionate about things like the environment and *if they could be enlightened* ...