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03-26-07, 02:41 PM
I had to give up my car-free lifestyle for a couple of weeks. My company sent me to the company hq in California, just outside of Santa Cruz.
Kind of ironic. In car centered Little Rock, I'm car free. In bike friendly Santa Cruz, I'm in a cage.
Pulling out of San Jose airport was kind of strange. I was getting used to the car, I was getting used to steering, and most mindboggling, getting used to the onslaught of visual cues that drivers take for granted. All the situations, and signs came flashing at me. It was a bit disorienting for a little while until my driving reflexes came back to me.
I did look into options to stay on a bike, I found bikes for rent at $50.00 per day. And I found bikes at the Salvation Army for $50.00. Three things kept me from taking the latter choice. My knee could use a little rest, I couldn't figure out how to get a bike into the rental car, and work was hard and long, so I would have had to buy lights etc. So I opted to stay in the cage for the duration.
But I learned a bit. The car did enable me to go visit the beach after work some days. That was a treat. I found that driving in a pushy manner is an adrenaline rush. Do it once, and you want to do it again. I don't think most drivers are sensitive to how addicted they are to this rush.
It was also nice to find a city that was friendly to bicycles. In Little Rock, I have found exactly 1 bike rack in 2 years. In Santa Cruz they are all over. I went to a couple of concerts. Many of the other spectators pedaled to the concert!
Some of the cyclists were okay. Others were crazy. I was reminded how a bicyclist can seem to appear out of nowhere to a motorist. It was great to see such a variety of bikes. Even a Bakfiel that was available for rent.
I did indulge a little. In Sprockets (http://www.sprocketsbikes.com/), I went in searching for info about local bicycle advocacy groups. I found that and got leads to local groups, but I also left with an Avocet saddle (O2 with cromoly rails) that had the width, groove, lack of seams and firmness I had been looking for and Trek Club gloves with gobs of gel padding. Both fit what I had been searching for unsuccessfully for months in Little Rock. They made appropriate souvenirs I thought.
Kind of ironic. In car centered Little Rock, I'm car free. In bike friendly Santa Cruz, I'm in a cage.
Pulling out of San Jose airport was kind of strange. I was getting used to the car, I was getting used to steering, and most mindboggling, getting used to the onslaught of visual cues that drivers take for granted. All the situations, and signs came flashing at me. It was a bit disorienting for a little while until my driving reflexes came back to me.
I did look into options to stay on a bike, I found bikes for rent at $50.00 per day. And I found bikes at the Salvation Army for $50.00. Three things kept me from taking the latter choice. My knee could use a little rest, I couldn't figure out how to get a bike into the rental car, and work was hard and long, so I would have had to buy lights etc. So I opted to stay in the cage for the duration.
But I learned a bit. The car did enable me to go visit the beach after work some days. That was a treat. I found that driving in a pushy manner is an adrenaline rush. Do it once, and you want to do it again. I don't think most drivers are sensitive to how addicted they are to this rush.
It was also nice to find a city that was friendly to bicycles. In Little Rock, I have found exactly 1 bike rack in 2 years. In Santa Cruz they are all over. I went to a couple of concerts. Many of the other spectators pedaled to the concert!
Some of the cyclists were okay. Others were crazy. I was reminded how a bicyclist can seem to appear out of nowhere to a motorist. It was great to see such a variety of bikes. Even a Bakfiel that was available for rent.
I did indulge a little. In Sprockets (http://www.sprocketsbikes.com/), I went in searching for info about local bicycle advocacy groups. I found that and got leads to local groups, but I also left with an Avocet saddle (O2 with cromoly rails) that had the width, groove, lack of seams and firmness I had been looking for and Trek Club gloves with gobs of gel padding. Both fit what I had been searching for unsuccessfully for months in Little Rock. They made appropriate souvenirs I thought.