thebankman

Two weeks ago, three friends and I went to see a free preview of The Flying Scotsman (boring but it had bikes in it so amusing). Two of the friends, females, took public transportation, one from a few blocks away from the theater and one from cross-town, who we thought wouldn't make it in time but made great time. The other friend, female, drove her car cross-town. I biked there from cross-town.

When we left the theater, the three agreed to carpool, while I huffed it back on the bike. We left at the same time from the theater doors. It was night time, and it had started raining, but the carpool only caught up to me within four blocks of the destination...totally sweet. They had started from the congested downtown and made it to the residential neighborhood in the same time it took me.

It turned out that on the ride home, the friend who was driving commented that I was crazy for riding at night and in the rain, and that it was stupid for me to do it. Crazy like a fox...I saved at least six bucks on parking, no gas used, parked the bike right outside the theater, got there early and had a beer and taco in the neighborhood, and got some exercise. The hidden benefits of biking are clear only to those who participate!

Cheers, Al

acroy

awesome story!
Every time I'm presented with a choice (car or bike) I must admit I'm normally tempted by the car, I guess cause it's the lazy, easy choice.

But I force myself to ride, and every single time, I enjoy the ride and am glad I pedaled it!

maybe one of these days my brain will catch up and equate bike (always equals) fun, instead of bike (might equal, but sounds like a lot of work) fun

gerv 

One thing that keeps me voting for riding a bike versus that other mode of transportation is that the bike is such an elegant solution: fun, good exercise, energy efficient, good for the environment. Have I missed anything? With all that going for it, and a rain jacket, sounds like the right decision.

gwd

You missed money saving, as the original poster mentioned.