General Cycling Discussion - Going 1 week without a car, anybody else up for the challenge?

I've been commuting by bike quite a bit but find myself slipping and using my car for errands that can be done by bike. After reading some posts about people getting rid of their cars, I've decided to go without my car for a week to see how it goes. Wish me luck and I'll keep you posted.
Anybody else up for joining in the challenge?
:)

:thumbup: Go for 2 or 3 weeks than you will be hooked on commuting.:thumbup:

Havent driven my car since October.


please, please dont ask me to give up my motorcycle! :)

Haven't owned a car since 1997.

28 and never driven...no interest either...no need to join...

But good luck :) It is worthwhile.

Call me a weenie, but I don't think I could make it 40 miles(one way) to work and back every day on my bike. :eek: It's a great idea, just too bad I live so far from work. Some of us "country" folks could not get by in life without a car. :(

39... no license, no car, not really interested [except for getting to races]...

lets see I have owned my truck for 3 years haven't even driven it in almost 2 months and before that sometime in the mid 80's was the last time I owned a vehicle. I am considering losing the truck but it does get me to some nice riding areas that I would not otherwise be able to do.

:D I RIDE TO WORK ALMOST EVERY DAY !

Let me choose the week(s) and I would reply "No problem"!

I commute by bike unless I decide to walk to the office. Even when I visit shops, I will do that by bike if the distance is reasonable. I also shop by bike, which is easy to do since I have touring panniers and a child trailer.

So why the car? I sometimes wonder. Last week, however, I used it 3 times to visit far-away shops (driving 300 km per day each time) and this weekend, I'll use it to drive the entire family for the long weekend (another 400 km). In spite of that, my total mileage this year was 6000 km.

I don't think I'll become totally carfree; however, my next car will likely be through time-sharing.

Regards,

I haven't driven a car since January. I ride to work every day. But I was wondering, does it count if my wife drives her car and I happen to be in it occasionally?

no car for 15 years now, and still going strong.....

i haven't owned a car in over 2 years now - sold mine in April 2001. and including 3 moves i've driven about 20 times in the last 2 years. i also belong to car-sharing but i have only used it twice.

although i do ride with people about twice a month to go to the mountains for mountain biking or skiing (particularly for races it's hard to ride there or take the train b/c you have to be there SO early) -- although i usually ride right from my door for about 1/2 of my recreational rides and use the train for the other 40% (yes, i'm in the mountains pretty much every day i'm not working!!!)


I haven't driven a car since January. I ride to work every day. But I was wondering, does it count if my wife drives her car and I happen to be in it occasionally?

well, i am again single, but for 1 1/2 of the 2 years i've been car-free here i had a relatively car-dependent girlfriend so about 1/2 of the time we did stuff together we would drive (i would ride in her car)... and she would drive me to the grocery store for shopping (her idea always). now that i have no opportunity to drive to the store i get by just fine riding the bike... but yeah, i used to wonder whether it "counted" --- on one hand i wasn't biking. on the other hand she would have driven just as much w/o me so in that sense it didn't count (contribution to traffic and pollution). whatever, do what you like and occaisonally riding with your wife surely won't kill you.

i drive a sports car! i drive it to the corner store! somtimes i sit and just rev it for fun! It was exspensive boy and let me tell you tanks to mr w bush gas was exspensive too 1.01 a liter here in whistler but i still drove and i still drive not going to stop somtimes i put my bike on my rack and drive to the trail, diving is fun, biking is cool to but why give up driving man, going fast is so cool! dont give up your cars, do you realise how hard it is to drive with all those bikes on the road what are you guys thinking! you want to commute? i will drive you to work! as long as you dont mind living in whistler and driving in a gas guzzaling sports car!

what on the....? are you nuts auger?

I have never driven a car, only going to get a license so I can drive my parents runabout Diesel to events etc.

Brendon

Originally posted by NZLcyclist
what on the....? are you nuts auger?

Not nuts, just trolling.

On the topic of the thread, I've so far gone 26.5 years without a car. I wonder if I'll be able to survive the next week for the challenge. :D

Originally posted by steversk
I've been commuting by bike quite a bit but find myself slipping and using my car for errands that can be done by bike.
Good for you.

I do my shopping for the family by car. Don't have strength or time otherwise.

But I use my legs 6 days a week, usually.

Confusious say: "Way to man's heart, through his legs."

Wow! You guys are inspirational. My wife has agreed to go on errands with me on her bike but she can't commute for her job.
I can sympathize with the troller, I too have a sports car that's fun to drive but there's nothing that can be compared to the feeling one gets after arriving home from work after commuting by bike.

i can go a week w/o a car... But i like to drive.. I like to drive... I like to ride....

Ok.. I'm up to the challenge.

Originally posted by auger
i drive a sports car! i drive it to the corner store! somtimes i sit and just rev it for fun! It was exspensive boy and let me tell you tanks to mr w bush gas was exspensive too 1.01 a liter here in whistler but i still drove and i still drive not going to stop somtimes i put my bike on my rack and drive to the trail, diving is fun, biking is cool to but why give up driving man, going fast is so cool! dont give up your cars, do you realise how hard it is to drive with all those bikes on the road what are you guys thinking! you want to commute? i will drive you to work! as long as you dont mind living in whistler and driving in a gas guzzaling sports car!

Rough translation for those of us using English to communicate:

I drive a sports car.

I drive it to the corner store.

Somtimes I sit and just rev it for fun.

It was exspensive, boy, and let me tell you that thanks to Mr George W Bush, gas was expensive too.

It was $1.01 a liter here in Whistler but I still drove and I still drive.

I'm not going to stop.

Sometimes I put my bike on my rack and drive to the trail.

Driving is fun.

Biking is cool too but why give up driving, man?

Going fast is so cool.

Don't give up your cars.

Do you realise how hard it is to drive with all those bikes on the road?

What are you guys thinking?

Do you want to commute?

I will drive you to work as long as you dont mind living in Whistler and driving in a gas guzzling sports car.



Even in English it doesn't make a lot of sense does it?

lol

Dont think i could do it. I love my old binders to much. im getting back into biking for a couple reasons
1) to loose weight as im a fat arse. I havent been on a trust worthy scale for a while but the one at work put me at 320 but it only goes in 10 lb increments so i weight the same with all the junk i carry at work as i did with out so im guessing im about 315. ( i need to get in shape before my boy gets big enough to call me out, got a few years yet but no since waiting till the last minute)
2) to save some money on gas so i can use my gas guzzling binder to take the family camping and the to infrequent trips to Randalf off road park. as much as i like to bike i love to 4x4. and i wont try it on a bike motorized or not id kill myself. off road i need 4 wheels.
once we get alot of bills payed up i want to find another scout with a 4 banger and fix it up. not as bad on gas and still alot of fun off road. but i still enjoy a nice cruize on the bike sometime every thing just goes to fast a pace. nice to just kick back and enjoy.

I'd love to get rid of the car, but I need it occasionally to take our dogs to the vet and the doggy day care. Also the once a month or so to get their big 30 lb. bag of dog food which doesn't seem to fit well on my bike rack.

Good luck, though, steversk- It really makes you feel good to be totally self and bike sufficient even if it's not 100% of the time...

Originally posted by velocipedio
39... no license, no car, not really interested [except for getting to races]...
Must be nice to be single...

:D Ok, ok, I'm swimming upstream, here...

;)

i have given up the car as of yseterday. backed the jeep into a massive pole at idling speed..it was hidden in my blind spot as i left the parking lot. 1600$ damage, so no point driving anymore since i know no matter how hard i try to drive good ill always f*** up eventually...cant afford to pay it off as i am only 17 w/ a part time job so its a big waste. anyway, gonna get my road bike soon and then things will be way easier.

doin about 20 km's daily on a beater hybrid with weak brakes, old tyres, too long chain, worn down cogs, and gears that dont work well..

given up the car forever...gonna be regretting this in -40 heart of winter.

Originally posted by Pete Clark
Must be nice to be single...

It is. :D

I live to far from work to commute 100 percent. Would like to. Think my top commute time would be 1.5 hours to consider doing it every day, since I work 12.5 hour shifts.
Make that 45 minute commute, the car could sit in mothballs. I usually do my errands by bike as much as possible.
Since my recent accident riding in the rain- not sure what I think of that. Traction. But I live in an area where it only rains no more than usually, oh -15 days a year.

Originally posted by cyclezealot
But I live in an area where it only rains no more than usually, oh -15 days a year.

Okay, okay just rub it in why don't you :D

Up here if you don't ride in the rain that means you can only ride the 15 days it doesn't rain :p

Well, so far so good...we did take the 4Runner tonight to take the boat out, but I can't really pull the boat with the bike. :-)
cyclezealot, your post for some reason reminded me of one thing that keeps me from completely giving up the car...pager. For my job, I'm required to carry pager usually once a month. I can't be away from a computer for that long while I ride in...oh well, I've got to support my bike habit, somehow!
We're doing a road race tomorrow so that will count as another day without the car. :)

Stervesk.. I was once lucky enough to cycle into the cyclists made famous by "Bicycling's" story about the cyclist in training for US Olympics. This rider is from LA area. Was riding home after crossing the US with a trailer attached to his mountain bike.
He claimed he had 1,000 pounds upon the trailer. Recall like 2-3 bikes atop trailer for spares.
Is your boat heavier than 1,000 pounds.? Can't imagine bike brakes, braking 1,000 pounds coming down a mountain.. It was in "Bicycling" magazine also.
When I saw him in Temecula he was changing bikes, because his bike had another cracked frame. Seems the bikes were Cannondales.

geez, a whole week. How are you all going to manage?

Good idea. Not only for you, but for for the environment of your city too.

I can not join, as I am car-free for some time already.

I would advise to read the Commuting section of the BF. There is also very good material at Ken Kiefer's site.

its a challenge "Extra ordinaire!", but, gash, i dont think i can manage with all the grocery bags.

i personally do my groceries once a week.

oh well. . . am up to the challenge. .

Last September, my darling daughter took my car to Virginia to school, so I have been car-less for the last 10 months. It hasn't been bad at all. I've put over 500 miles on my bike over routes I would have taken in my car. When I'm in a real pinch, I drive my wife to work and take her car, but this hasn't happened more than a half dozen times. If I ever get my car back (she's coming home in early June), I think I'll leave it parked most of the time and continue riding my bike to the bank, the store, post office, etc. I look on it as a civic duty -- no polution, no dependence on foreign oil, no taking up parking spaces, etc. As a matter of fact, I can make it downtown to the bank faster on my bike than in a car. I just ride up to the bank door and walk in. The bank parking lot is a block away.

Last summer, I went two weeks without the car. I don't try to set a record this year but I seldom use it in the summer, only for long distance when I need to go fast, when I need to carry my heavy photo equipment and when I have to move it because street cleaning. I have to do the latter once a week so there's no way I can go more than a week without using the car otherwise I'll get a ticket. :crash: ... but I guess that doesn't count, does it?

I may be up for one week both carless and bikeless. I don't know if I can survive.