In Lincoln County, when you talk about cycling, riding a bicycle for whatever reason, most people you talk too, if they are not cyclists themselves, usually look at you sideways.
Commonly, most folks express concern. They talk about the roads, which admittedly aren’t great, and worry about the traffic, which isn’t that bad, or just as frequently, they immediately start complaining about that last cyclist they saw; the one running a stop sign, or riding on the sidewalk, or generally riding like an idiot.
As often as not though, somewhere in that conversation, even the grumpiest curmudgeon will get a gleam in their eye as they recall some two-wheeled steed from their youth.
There is a reason for that. Cycling is fun. For earth-bound kids, bicycles often offer the first taste of independence; the first means of getting out of the dooryard and into the world beyond.
In America, bicycles have long since been supplanted by cars as the preferred mode of transportation. Accordingly, most young drivers leave two wheels behind when they have a chance to drive something with a motor.
That is too bad because the effect has been to banish bicycles to the realm of childhood and bicycles are not toys for children. They are tools for transportation; the singularly most efficient tool, in fact, ever made for the purpose.
Timed to coincide with the spring push when many seasonal cyclists pull their wheels out of winter storage, May is National Bike Month, featuring National Bike Week, May 11-15, and National Bike to Work Day Friday, May 15.
This is the time when cycling advocates get all excited dreaming of a world in which their passion becomes everybody’s passion. In the next week or so you may see news items on the subject.
These articles or broadcasts will all cite facts and figures talking about how the numbers of bicycle commuters are up; about how effective bicycles are for transportation, recreation, and fighting the modern battle of the bulge.
That is all true, but forget the numbers, which can be encouraging and don’t focus on the risks, which do exist. Dust your bike off, pump up the tires, tighten everything that needs tightening, lube everything that needs lubing, and go.
You don’t need a new, fancy bike; shiny, skin-tight shorts; or some high tech computer gizmo to crunch your numbers for you. It’s a dirty secret, but in fact you don’t even need a helmet, although wearing one does improve your odds of avoiding a traumatic brain injury.
All you need is to take the time for yourself. Forget the hype. Go for a ride. You will be glad you did.
