Thanks to you, Mr. Feynman, I have been able to walk through stores with my bike helmet on (with blinkie light on the back helmet, but not turned on), x-large reflective vest that makes me look like a highway worker, backpack on my back, and maybe even one day--my safety glasses, if I don't take them off by habit as soon as my bike is locked.
"What do YOU care what other people think?"
Where would I be if I hadn't read the writings of the late physicist, Richard Feynman? He would say that to his first wife often and she would throw that line back to him, when challenging him with what he thought could be socially embarrassing or harebrained ideas. I never tire of those words of his! They're an inspiration to me. :-)
Recently I acquired a hybrid bicycle from my fil's property which had been sitting in a garage for who knows how long, but it was in pretty good shape. I'd been missing riding a bicycle since we moved to Delaware 13 years ago. Fil and mil strongly discouraged us from bicycling in rural Sussex County because people were not used to bicyclists. And really, there was nowhere to ride because the two lane roads were so narrow. Now there are more bicyclists around, especially near the beaches.
Hubby and I haven't owned a mobile prison (car) since 2003 when we moved upstate from rural Sussex County; my honey has been relying on his bike, and me the bus. I'M quite the expert on public transportation! Throw me in any city, anywhere, and I will find my way around town faster than I ever would by car!
However, when I need to get to work, waiting for a late-running bus can severely raise my tension level, and I don't like that. I can say this much though to those who may be alienated from public transportation: a city bus is obligated to show up, no matter what the weather brings. If your car breaks down--or worse, is involved in a car accident, then what are you left with?? High stress calling work, home, insurance company, towing company, etc. With the bus, the attendant headaches are mainly on the bus people. You know a bus will show up sooner or later...or the powers that be will have to answer to a lot of pissed off people.
Plus, you can get lots of good reading done on the bus. ;-) I've read many a great novel over the years on the public transportation system: War and Peace (2x!), The Iliad, Moby Dick, The Sound and the Fury, and more, plus a lot of non-fiction works. You can't do that driving a car.
Or riding a bike.
But, with riding a bike, you have freedom! Freedom to explore! Exhilaration! An adrenalin rush! The thrill of speed! Freedom to move your legs as you wish--with the satisfaction that you're getting exercise while traveling to where you want to go.
Nothing like fueling a bicycle with your own power and knowing a soldier or a citizen didn't have to die to fuel it.
Freedom also brings with it responsibility: knowing and following traffic rules. And also being well-equipped. We've both done a lot of reading online and with books and a video from the library on effective cycling. We want to be safe and traffic-savvy efficient riders. Nothing less. No one can predict anyone's behavior behind the wheel (I already slipped and fell on the bike in front of a pizza joint right on our Main Street the other day for all to see! ), but it's better to be as prepared as possible.
Lately, I find myself observing bicyclists the same way I observe everyone's posture and gait while they walk (from a massage therapist's viewpoint)! The more familiar I become with traffic rules and good bicycling habits, the more shocked I am with other bicyclists' lack of adherence to simple safety principles--down to the simple things of not even wearing a helmet! I wanna have my brain around for as long as possible and protect it as much as possible!
I'm all set to go, now! I just need my night light for the front of the bike. I've got new tires for pavement riding, a bell, hubby's old bike rack (he got a newer, better one for heavy loads), my crate for a basket, a x-large reflective vest (so I can wear it over winter coats), fenders, blinkie lights for the helmet, safety goggles so insects--and rocks and dirt from cars won't fly into my eyeballs, U-lock and cable...and of course, my snazzy RED helmet. :-)
This is just my third week of urban cycling. I can't say I've ever ridden like this before. Growing up, it was riding in the 'burbs. It was the same when we lived in Goleta, CA (near Santa Barbara), just riding in a residential area to reach the university campus or to the grocery store. The latter involved cutting through a wide swath of a bumpy dirt field, which was great fun! :-D
Now, we live near a university and the main street of the city, which involves quite a bit of traffic: cars, people and other bicyclists that I am not accustomed to yet. I'm getting more comfortable with each ride though.:-)
Hubby did hours of research on bike safety and equipment for my sake and also his. I know he's more worried about me, but I do remember him walking into the store I once worked in and he was scraped up: a lady didn't see where she was going and he flipped over the trunk of her car...and all she gave him was a lousy $20! %-( And the one day he didn't bother with his bike helmet last year was the day some dumb bunny ran right into him because she was busy talking on her cell phone. The police officer didn't have much sympathy for him...maybe because he didn't have his helmet and/or other safety gear on him. I think it's because she put on a good drama act. I wasn't present (thankfully...else my mouth might have gone off), but I know that hubby was visibly annoyed with her hysteria and "current lack of funds". It wasn't even her van that she was driving. We didn't hear anything from her, after promises of sending $$ for bike repairs. She oughta thank her lucky stars that we're not the suing type of people.
We are almost fully equipped for night riding, as soon as we get our flashlights for as our front lights. There is a whole bicycle culture out there that I wasn't aware of! It's really neat reading their websites...they did all the hard work for us already!
I especially admire the bicycle advocates and the women bicyclists who have traveled solo by bicycle in faraway lands--beyond the tourist destinations. Places like Turkey (I love that place!), the "stans" in Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. It all just sounds like a lot of fun to travel by bicycle! But I wouldn't do it until I was an experienced commuter and knew something about bike mechanics.
And from what I've read so far, I think bicycle advocates are very progressive-minded people. Yes, they may still need their cars for work and travel, but cars are not their focus. Bicycling is.
For some food for thought, check out the article, Make Money By Commuting on Your Bicycle.
By walking into the store and looking like a bicycle geek of sorts, I am making a statement to the world: that I'm proud to be a bicyclist and not afraid to look like one either! Bicycling is cool! It brings my honey and me closer together in spirit, helps keep us fit, and helps us not contribute to air pollution.
It's the civilized thing to do.
Besides, I'd rather be SEEN by cars (especially at a busy intersection) than not. Why should I care how I look in the grocery store or anywhere else as long as I'm well- equipped? I do not care what others may think! Why, this morning I wore my safety glasses over my regular glasses! %-D
I intend to be bicycling well into my 100's...! Freedom is very nice thing indeed.
If you have a bicycle in your possession, is it collecting dust? Or are you giving it fresh air? ;-)
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I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind.
--Antoine De Saint-Exupery
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