| Sep. 22nd, 2009 @ 09:31 am Nirvana on a Schwinn |
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I thought I’d actually write about bicycle commuting for a bit, rather than just grinning like an idiot while I pedal down the road, and assuming everyone gets the message.
When I moved to Portland, I wanted desperately to become a part of the biking community. Couldn’t have been easier. I got on my 15-year old mountain bike, and I rode. The city is ready--and moving further all the time towards being a safe, not bike-friendly so much as bike-salivating city. Sure, there is LOTS of work to do to make it safer and easier, but trust me– it’s glorious here.
But this is not about Portland—though the infrastructure unquestionably helped me get started—it’s about the ACT of bicycling.
From my own window on the world, it seems I got to a certain age, or found myself with certain responsibilities or alternatives, and the idea of biking became a very rare thing I might do on a weekend or vacation. It seemed to require a lot of planning or preparation or some sort of something I didn’t have the time for. Biking as a means of getting around was just not really on the radar. How glad I am I put it there.
Bicycling is one of the most freeing ways to move through life. On the bike, your only responsibility is staying upright. Everything else must and does fall away. I love the wind in my face and the quiet click of the gears, the hum of my wheels spinning beneath me. I feel enormous accomplishment at the end of every ride, having propelled MYSELF with no motor, no exhaust, no box around my experience. And yes, I do usually grin like an idiot. After all, the whole thing does kinda makes me feel like I’m 10-years old.
On mornings when I commute to the office by bike, I am at peace as I sit down for a day at the computer. My body will have plenty of time to recover from its morning’s exercise, my blood is filled with oxygen, and my eyes are filled with sights I never seem to notice in my car, or even on the bus or train. Most days, I’ve greeted a dozen or so people during my ride, chatted with other bikers, smiled at walkers. People I don’t know have been part of my day, and I of theirs. I roll my bike with me into my office building. I eagerly anticipate the ride home at night, usually before I’ve gotten off the bike for the morning. Simple. Perfect.
For many, many people, this love letter to bicycling could sound deeply condescending, insulting. Bicycling for many is not a pleasant option, it is their only option. For a growing number of people in today’s economy, a bus pass is too pricey and a car is out of the question. For some, even acquiring a bike is an impossible task. I recognize I am blessed to have such choices. To bike or to drive? It’s a champagne problem, as they say.
Besides the joy, I bike because I want to lessen my impact on my planet. Whatever you believe is bringing on the changes, the environment is in flux. I’d rather spend my time left outside the car whenever I can, to exist on a planet where the air is clean, the plants are green, and the earth is rich. I’d like to leave all our kids the cleanest, greenest, richest planet I can. For me to feel the way I feel after I commute by bike, this is no hardship. I am lucky. I wanna share.
Living and commuting in Los Angeles for more than 20 years, I got used to the car just like so many others. But, LA is a also a town with packed commuter trains, and busses that roll down Wilshire with people 6 deep standing on the front steps. There are a lot of people in that city that have to get around. What LA – a town perpetually temperate and disproportionately flat—does not have much of, is bicyclists. Fortunately, there are people out there trying to change that. For safety’s sake, though, a bunch of them are on the sidewalks. Heads up!
Yes, I still bust out the tremendous metal box to get both myself and my kid around to most places. We aren’t close to much, besides a park – to which we walk. I’m working on my cycling strength to eventually pull the kid behind me for further and further distances. When she’s older, she’ll be pedaling next to me. Slowly, steadily, my objective is to pare our car days down to the absolute minimum. Simple enough goal, right?
So that’s where I am today. Bicycling feeds me in so many, substantive ways. I’m having a blast. I’m exercising my body. I’m feeling free and unfettered. I’m modeling for my kid a behavior that I personally think will be a big part of her future. I’m saving money. I’m saving gas. I’m accomplishing something tangible in my highly virtual world. I’m not contributing to noise or air pollution. I’m connecting with people. I’m experiencing the natural climate. And unlike when I drive, the time spent on my bike is one in which I am mindful of each moment. My head is clear, but also fully awake, alert, alive. I’m in the world.
Honestly, it WAS hard for me- initially - to pry myself out of the bucket seat and into the saddle. How would I figure out my route? How hard would it be? What would I wear? Exactly how much would I need a shower!? What did I need to buy? How could I be safe? How often could I do this? Those are questions only you can answer. Trust me, it's worth a try.
If you’re interested in giving bike commuting a go, look for resources in your city like these:
http://bikeportland.org/
Tell Google Maps that you’d use a “bike there” feature on their page.
http://googlemapsbikethere.org/about/ |
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