Chris L

Forgive me for sounding cynical, but my experience is that you don't. All you can do is wait for the desire to naturally arise (if this ever happens), and help them out by offering advice or assistance whenever they need/want it. Sure, you can point out actual statistics to confirm that cycling is safer/faster/more efficient in urban areas, but the fact is that most people won't believe you because of the perception of "danger" or "slowness" or anything else. Even if they don't say as much, the look on their face will be inidicative of the fact they're unconvinced. Trying to push the issue will only make them more resistant to it.

Personally, I think you should target the battles you can win. Set an example by doing it yourself, and offer encouragement to those who show a desire to do it. Basically, let people discover it for themselves.

Raiyn

Usually being told to do something at gunpoint is pretty convincing.

Honestly I find that if you live near someone making the tide in a group effort is a good thing. If there's two of you at least the conversation is better.

Raiyn

I agree. You can be boring in the mornings

royalflash

wait till its nice weather and try the old "it`s so nice and sunny we should get outddoors - how about we cycle in just today for a bit of fun"- don`t try and sell it as a lifestyle change involving exercise as people tend to avoid those.

nick burns

You gotta make it look sexy. They use sex to sell everything these days, so it must work pretty well.

Anthony King

Steal their car.

moxfyre

Hehe, I already have my dad's OLD car, I would feel bad about stealing his new one too

genericbikedude

Maybe if all non-car-owning cyclists banded together and formed a secret society...

We could be secret for a few years, have secret handshakes, use our collective connections to get benefits for ourselves (nice chairs at work, rings to operate the soda machine, 912...), gain political influence, etc.

THEN, once we have an awesome secret society, filled ONLY with cyclists who don't own cars, we leak information about our existence. Of course, everything is denied publicly. We hire wackos to write books about us that go way beyond the pale. Accuse us of satanism, mayan calendar mysticism, orgiastic worship of the 13-tooth cog, etc. This will disguise our true nature. People begin to find out about us. But it's still all rumors. People will ask our members, fake-jokingly, "so, I see you on your bike all the time. does that have anything to do with your __________?" (insert here: awesome lovelife, swift and courteous treatment by various bureaucracies, fabulous wealth, great deals you get on everything you buy)."

When they ask us this, we can look at them slyly, and say, "I don't know, I think that I just have good karma from getting rid of my car. Your should try it." Then WINK. If they *DO* get rid of their car, approach them at night while wearing balaclava, black helmet, black bike gear, riding a *silent* black fixed-gear. Make sure they're alone. Invite them into the secret society. Tell them that it does really exist. Make them swear secrecy. If they refuse, shout, or resist, your accomplice in the bushes will shoot them with a tranquilizer dart and then douse them with whiskey.

One by one, our membership will grow. More people will come to associate the car-free lifestyle with wealth, power, luck, and mojo. Global warming will abate, republicans wouldn't be elected, and wars in places like Iraq and Afganistan will end, and not be repeated. American obesity epidemics will be slashed. Cities will not have noise polution. Roadways will be smooth. Rather than having a ghettoized bike lane, we will have ghettoized car routes, with large central parking lots to serve entire neighborhoods. So much space will be freed from our roadways that tree cover will double in most cities.

Life will be good.

moxfyre

I like your vision of utopia, dude. But mostly I'm excited about the nice chair at work. Perhaps there could be free pie for the fixie riders too?

SamHouston

Steal their car?







You have to want to. You can get the idea from a third party telling you about it but to undertake it is a matter between your bike and brain.