Email from temp. car-bound

[shootingstar]

I received an email from a good friend elsewhere in Canada. She has been a regular cyclist past 25 yrs. or more. She has been car-free about last 20 yrs. She lives near a subway station and belongs to a car-sharing co-cop. So she rents a car several times per yr. when she needs to transport heavy/bulky stuff. She bike tours for vacations most of the time.

She went to visit and stay with a sister in Calgary this winter. I've had the same experience myself whenever I stay with friends or family living way out on the edge of suburbs, etc. It's actually a strange feeling when one lives a car-free life.

It was also a very car-oriented week. When you don't live by the car for a long time and you suddenly find yourself being driven around everywhere, it gives you a sense of how completely woven into peoples' lives the car has become and how far we have to go and how seemingly impossible it would be to wean ourselves from our car addiction. And my sister's family is unusual in that they decided not to have a second car and so because of where they live, a day can sometimes be a carefully choreographed schedule of pick-ups, drop-offs and drive bys.

[Melalvai]

And my sister's family is unusual in that they decided not to have a second car and so because of where they live, a day can sometimes be a carefully choreographed schedule of pick-ups, drop-offs and drive bys.

This is how I have always lived. I LOVE the freedom the bike gives me. I feel more free with a bike than I ever did even when we had 2 cars. Free from the gas bill, repair, property taxes and insurance, parking permits and fees, speed limits. (Well, I suppose I'm not really free from speed limits, but it is a rare day that I even slightly exceed a speed limit!)

[ginny]

I feel that way when I visit my mom. She lives in So Cal, and I live in Wyoming. Here, I run to the grocery store as infrequently as possible, but it is a whopping 15 blocks from my house and that is about the longest distance one travels in this town. In California, I feel like people spend 80% of their time in the car running around from place to place to get this and do that and it's all so hectic that it's totally exhausting... not fun at all. I would rather have my quiet little bike centric life in the cold northern part of the US

[lph]

Hey, I feel that way if I even have to drive to work one day. I get freaked out by everybody else driving in at the same time, all the stupid stupid stupid time spent stuck in a traffic jam when I could have been whizzing by quietly on the bike path, the hassle of finding a parking spot and parking without hitting something and the realization that I can't choose when to leave unless I want to risk a brain-exploding hour in traffic - I either have to leap from my desk at 2:30 or stay stuck at work until after 5.

And my co-workers consider driving a simple, easy option!

[crazycanuck]

Nice thought but...what does one do if it's 41C outside w very little shade & no wind I plan on biking as much as possible to my new job but since i finish yet again in the middle of the day, i feel it's a wee bit crazy to be riding in that type of heat...

I also would love to be car free but we're mtn bikers & have to drive a good distance to the hills to ride..It's unfair to paint all drivers as bad people. Just because you don't require a car doesn't mean other cyclists might...

[lph]

No-one is saying drivers are bad people? I'm certainly not. Just pointing out some of the incongruities. I probably spelled that wrong. I get told every other day how stressful/dangerous/tiring it must be to bike to work/shopping/around town and how simple it is to use a car instead, while my experience is the exact opposite. Which goes to show how much of it is habit.

[ginny]

we're not bashing drivers. I still have a car. We are merely saying how much more pleasant it is to ride. When I find myself car-bound, I get grumpy. I used to live 37 miles from town and had to commute by car - bummer, but i did it. I just brought my bike with me

BTW, I agree, 41C is WAY too hot to ride through... do your brains turn to scrambled eggs in that heat??

[shootingstar]

CC, methinks the blame is on lack of adequate public transit/rail facilities for more sprawly areas, not on the drivers who may need to drive for certain situations.

I think the original email statement was more a reflection on how difficult it is for many people to leave the comfort of a car or break the routine of being in a car for alot of shorter trips/in good weather ..for even a 2-5 block route to get somewhere.

When I am in a car, which amounts to less than 5-10 different trips annually, I never take it for granted. It feels luxurious and special. And this feeling, should remain so. It IS luxurious and expensive.

By now, I probably sound like I've been living the rainforest jungle, isolated from reality. Or in the Gobi desert with camels.

[blackhillsbiker]

I've gotten so out of the habit of driving. DH works 2 blocks from me. When I am unable to ride my bike, I catch a ride with him. I didn't realize how stressful driving is (for me) until I hadn't done it in a long while. My commute has become downright pleasant. Even on days when I don't want to go to work, I enjoy the getting there. And I don't have to worry about leaving before or after the worst of the traffic. I'm glad we're fortunate enough to have the car. I'm especially glad I'm fortunate enough to have the bikes.

Deb

[bikerHen]

I've gotten so out of the habit of driving. DH works 2 blocks from me. When I am unable to ride my bike, I catch a ride with him. I didn't realize how stressful driving is (for me) until I hadn't done it in a long while. My commute has become downright pleasant. Even on days when I don't want to go to work, I enjoy the getting there. And I don't have to worry about leaving before or after the worst of the traffic. I'm glad we're fortunate enough to have the car. I'm especially glad I'm fortunate enough to have the bikes.

Deb

DH and I also commute on the days I can't ride. My problem with infrequent driving is speed. I feel like I'm really moving at 40-45 mph. My daughter is forever tell me to speed up and stop driving like an old lady. bikerHen

[Melalvai]

DH and I also commute on the days I can't ride. My problem with infrequent driving is speed. I feel like I'm really moving at 40-45 mph. My daughter is forever tell me to speed up and stop driving like an old lady.

Ha ha, my husband tries to beat me to the driver's seat, because it annoys him how slowly I drive. I'm ok on the highway, but on the in town roads I normally bike, I feel really uncomfortable going so "fast"!

[mizzbananie]

Ha ha, my husband tries to beat me to the driver's seat, because it annoys him how slowly I drive. I'm ok on the highway, but on the in town roads I normally bike, I feel really uncomfortable going so "fast"!

i thought i was going crazy.. since i started commuting i feel like when i do drive, i'm going really fast, when in reality i'm going too slow.