Commuting - The poor, suffering bike commuter.

... or how not to commute.

http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/commute/sufferin.htm

:cry:

ive never understood it. Y does chris l put himself through all that stuff. y doesn't he just buy a car and drive it like everyone else.

I must have missed Brian's point completely, maybe he didn't give it enough of a chance or maybe he didn't have what it takes to evolve into a bicycle commuter.

90 % of all my transportation needs are handled by three bikes, I find it hard to imagine getting around any other way.

Originally posted by threadend
90 % of all my transportation needs are handled by three bikes, I find it hard to imagine getting around any other way.
You mean there are other ways?

Yeah, sometimes I walk :D

Awww, give the poor wimp a break. At least he TRIED commuting. And he did point out (what you all keep saying) the fact that bike paths aren't designed to get you around efficiently. And he learned to plan ahead and not run to the store five times a day in his fossileater.

I think the wise and sagely Homer Simpson has some insight into this situation. When adressing Bart concerning his failed attempt to play the guitar Bart confesses that he wasn't good right away so he quit, imploring Homer not to be mad. Homer responds in his most compassionate tone:
"Of course I'm not mad. If something is hard to do then its not worth doing."

The point... mainly that I like to quote simpsons episodes. Also that while there are things you can do to make commuting easier theres nothing that will make it completely easy. When it rains or theres a 40mph headwinds or its 10 below you really have to love cycling or love clean air or love not being under the thumb of the multination automobile/oil conglomerates. Whatever, you have to love it. This guy obviously doesn't have the love to make it through the unpleasant days... or is just a pansy... sounds like a little of both.

Some people seem to revel in making hard work of cycling. Im just a slacker on a bike. If its hard work or I start to sweat , I change down a gear. If it rains, I put some waterproof shoes on to keep my feet warm and dry.
If I need to refuel Ill take a cream bun and coffee rather than a powerbar and energy drink.
If I need to transport something I put it on the bike rather then carry it myself.

Why does cycling seem to have such a puritan image, like you have to suffer to be a real cyclist.

Well, the author's first mistake was not finding bikeforums.net and figuring out how to avoid all the nastiness that stressed him out on the bike ride.

Originally posted by MichaelW
Some people seem to revel in making hard work of cycling. Im just a slacker on a bike. If its hard work or I start to sweat , I change down a gear. If it rains, I put some waterproof shoes on to keep my feet warm and dry.
If I need to refuel Ill take a cream bun and coffee rather than a powerbar and energy drink.
If I need to transport something I put it on the bike rather then carry it myself.

Why does cycling seem to have such a puritan image, like you have to suffer to be a real cyclist.

This is perhaps the best reply to the topic I've seen yet. I wonder if it's too late to e-mail it to the guy.

Maybe the approach is the problem. Why treat bike-commuting solely as an alternative to car-commuting? In this manner, for a vast majority of people (obviosuly) it won't cut the mustard.

But what if we positioned bike-commuting as an alternative to being a gym rat, as an alternative means to exercise? Then, the comparisons of bike v. car would become secondary, as bike-commuting's value will be compared directly to cardio activities of the gym rats.

Dreamland, huh?

Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
Maybe the approach is the problem. Why treat bike-commuting solely as an alternative to car-commuting? In this manner, for a vast majority of people (obviosuly) it won't cut the mustard.

But what if we positioned bike-commuting as an alternative to being a gym rat, as an alternative means to exercise? Then, the comparisons of bike v. car would become secondary, as bike-commuting's value will be compared directly to cardio activities of the gym rats.

Dreamland, huh?
Mmmm. Very wise. It's all about finding the right buttons to push. Don't change the goal - just change the packaging.

Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
But what if we positioned bike-commuting as an alternative to being a gym rat, as an alternative means to exercise?

I think of bicycling in much more hedonistic terms. If I bike 100km in a given day, I can eat as much as I want. If I bike for transportation, I can go for months without thinking of the 4-letter word "exercise" and still be in good shape. If I bike to my destinations, I can enjoy many different events instead of sitting in a car, blowing an artery because I can't find a parking spot. And then of course, there's the effects of cycling on romance. In the years of cycling that I've done, I know that: it's not possible for you and your partner to have the same sort of arguments while cycling that it's possible to get into when you're both trapped in a car. (If I were a social scientist, I would probably try to investigate how much cars contribute to divorce. There is no romance at all to sitting in a traffic jam in a car with one's partner.)

Hey, I can identify with ol' Bryan. I felt really sorry for myself this morning having to ride my 9 miles to work with a Tropical Storm Bertha looming 50-60 miles away. Poor me. :D