knobster

No, it's not valid. I live 25 miles from work and I commute daily. No, I don't ride 25 miles one way though. I drive 11 miles to a park and ride the remaining miles. Works great. Maybe he could do something similar to make his commute more bearable.

In Absentia

Bull****. Just because you've only had those sorts of experiences with vegetarians or vegans doesn't mean that all (or even most) are like that. I never advertise my vegetarianism, but I still get a lot of **** from many meat eaters when they find out. If anything, meat eaters tend to be worse, because they have the weight of mainstream society behind their dietary choices.

SingingSabre 

What the heck kind of vegetarians are you hanging around? Not all vegetarians/vegans/cyclocommuters/Christians/Jews/Mormons/Republicans/Athiests/Liberals/Democrats/Libertarians/Muslims/straightedge/random minority are militant.

I am of Mexican blood, Jewish heritage, agnostic mindset, cycling transportation, omnivoric habits, and whatever else you want to classify me as. I am loud and outspoken in may of my ways, not militantly so (unless it comes down to whether you should get frequent massage or not)...but you can't judge any other Mexican Jew who doesn't practice a religion, rides a bike, and eats both plants and critters by me.

So don't hold a random subset du jour to some arbitrary ideal.

cradduck

Most of the time I get more questions that general statements of why that person wont ride. I had one person ask how many miles I commute while waiting at a red light one time and then remarked:

"How can you do that? I'm scared I'd be hit by a car!"

maddyfish

Sorry but every one I've run into was downright nasty.

Thomasdregos

That's how my previouis commute went also. I had to drive 17 to bike 12. Before I left that job I was beating traffic to the office!

chephy

Biker or vegetarian?

Gordiep

Everyone on this forum probably feels this way...

cradduck

Difference is that cyclists are still out there doing it. Scared or not. I am not going to tell a person like that any of the stories I have or any of the ones I have read on here...they'd swear off riding a bicycle all together.

FlyingAnchor

I like telling car drivers about the revenge stories I read about here.

I live 22 miles from home and commute by car, but this year/winter through spring I think I will be able to find someone to take my son part way so I can get in some decent riding. I also hope the road will be fixed so a certain pinchpoint will go away.

In my case, there is only one way to work unless I want to go about 100 miles out of the way.

Steven

becnal

Excuses are like armpits. Everyone has a couple and they all stink.

mandovoodoo

Seems like odd attitudes all around. I don't see how others at work or elsewhere have any standing to comment on another's transportation. Fortunately everyone where I work rides and/or kayaks to work. Murphy yesterday drove to work (long way - staying with his mother who needs help), biked to my house, got in his boat, returned to work, then reversed this odd commute in the evening. Interesting!

Cyclaholic

I've run into more than my share of unsolicited-excuse makers. I developed the technique of turning it right around. As soon as they start I get started with... "did you drive in?... wow!, do you drive in every day?... I don't know how you do it, I couldn't do it, I'd be too scared of hitting a pedestrian or a cyclist... what about when its raining? I couldn't do it, I'd too scared of my car rusting.... and when it's hot? aren't you scared of your car overheating?... what if you got a flat tire? wouldn't you have to get out and change it?... I couldn't drive every day, I'd be too scared of turning into a fat lazy couch potato..."

ItsJustMe

Every one *that you know of* that you've run into. There may be many that you talk to regularly that just do their own thing and leave you alone. Obviously there's some automatic bias in your sampling; you are going to notice the ones who are nasty more than the ones who just eat their damn food.

Quickbeam

I get this sort of thing pretty often too. I don't understand why people feel the need to justify the fact that they don't ride their bike to work. But a lot of times when I tell someone that I ride to work they'll say "I would but..." or "I wish I could do that but..." or "I'd love to do that but...", followed be one reason or another that they can't ride. Some people have very legitimate reasons for not being able to commute by bike. On the other hand many of them probably could if they really wanted to. The thing is, they don't need to justify it with me. To be honest I don't really care and I'm tired of hearing why others can't commute by bike.

bikedaddy

Off topic ... but a bike/kayak commute sounds sweet!

Mr. Underbridge

Gee, can't imagine where they'd get that idea. Just think how much worse the average person would feel about cyclists if they actually read A&S.

bike2math

Last year I visited Seattle and spent most mornings at the waterfront watching a handful of people come in off the islands in their kayaks, then the ferry's (sp? sorry) would arrive and offload a peleton of bicycles before starting with the cars. Struck me as some sort of alternative commuter wonderland. I was so jealous.

ItsJustMe

Maybe you should start going up to the person every day and say something like
"Man, I wish I could drive my car to work, but the weather is too nice."

Unfortunately, I can't think of many excuses for not driving. Can anyone help here?

acroy

we're gonna have fun this afternoon. I brought my zip-lock baggie to keep the cell phone and garage door opener dry in the downpour

lil brown bat

Pre-emptive excuse making happens when people feel that what they're doing is somehow subject to criticism -- either that they actually get a lot of criticism, or (as in OP's scenario, as I imagine it) because they're comparing themselves with others and finding themselves wanting. You see this in so many areas, not just biking to work, but any lifestyle choice. In the US we live in a society where we still attach virtue to being physically active, caring about one's health, being somewhat abstemious rather than gluttonous or greedy...but where we also have the option of being sedentary, pork-rind-eating, Walmart-shopping, SUV-driving materialist greedheads. Marketing promotes the latter rather than the former because that's how you sell product, and so that's the way that most people go, but there's still this notion at the back of their minds that that's not a virtuous way to live. So when they encounter someone who is living in a way that they, in the back of their minds, consider more virtuous, they have this defensive reaction of pre-emptive excuse making.

I also find it irritating as all get-out, when I'm implicitly expected to validate these excuses, which basically adds up to saying, "I understand that while I can ride my bike to work, you -- with at least as many resources as I have, and no more challenges or issues -- cannot. The laws of physics, economics and traffic all work differently for you!" Forget that.

bfromcolo

Thats what I do also. I drive to a point 16 miles from work and ride in from there.

I have been nursing a broken toe for the past 3 weeks, but I am ready to resume the ride next week.

I-Like-To-Bike

You must be getting my share, because I have never encountered an "unsolicited-excuse maker" about bicycling.

DataJunkie

Neither have I. Not that I would care if I did. The word ignore comes to mind in relations to this thread.

evblazer

I know I'm an old fat married cyclist but that struck me as an invitation to say.
"Well if you'd like to learn I have an extra bicycle if you want to meet up at the park and we can go for a ride together?"