My Biggest Obstacle to Bike Commuting
Posted April 25, 2011 by Will Boyd
I've bike commuted at differing levels of intesity over the past few years. For some periods of time, I biked everywhere I went. Other times, I'd find myself driving places where riding my bike would've been easy to do. Thinking about this made me wonder what the difference was?
When I first started bike commuting, I figured the things that would prevent me from bike commuting more would be obstacles like weather, hills, temperature, vehicle traffic, my fitness level, etc. I'm sure a lot of people interested in bike commuting feel the same way. However, after commuting by bicycle for several years, I've realized that none of these obstacles have every really stood in my way.
It didn't take long to realize that weather is really not a big deal. If you dress properly, rain or cold or heat doesn't damper your commuting experience very much at all.
As for hills, there's no denying that I still don't zip up hills like a human-growth-hormone-fueled Tour de France racer. However, I've learned that climbing hills on my bike not only helps me to lose my gut, but actually feels really good to have done.
Traffic, too, has not been an issue for me. It's amazing what a little common sense and staying alert can do for your safety. In fact, I'm probably a lot better cyclist than I am a driver. It's also a powerful realization that, should I ever feel like I'm in danger, I can always stop and head to the sidewalk or wherever. While I've never done this, the understanding that I'm in control of my situation has helped me to realize that bicycling is as safe as any form of transportation.
Finally, my fitness level has proved to be no obstacle at all. I'm certainly not in the best shape of my life. I'm overweight and trending upward, I have high blood pressure, and my cardio vascular fitness level is not so great. To be honest, though, there hasn't been anywhere I haven't been able to go by bike. For a time, I worked in a town 20 miles away and bike commuted 2-3 times per week. I've ridden to baseball games, the symphony, job interviews, church, parties, and more. Never once have I arrived beaten down and exhausted. Wanna know why? Because I can ride at my own speed. There is no law of bike commuting that states you have to haul tail wherever you go. If you feel like it, you can walk up hills, coast down hills, or simply take it easy. In fact, a lot of times, taking it easy is quite enjoyable. There's a reason that kids ride bicycles...it's fun.
So, if these obstacles have never stood in my way of bike commuting, what has? In short, my bike commuting enemy is loss of momentum. As long as I'm riding my bike regularly, everything is fine. As soon as I take a few days off and drive a few places, I start to get a bit lazy. The more time I spend away from the bike, the harder it is to get back on it. Recently, I've completely overcome this momentum problem by selling my only vehicle. It's amazing how little you drive a car when...you don't have a car.
But, I realize that most folks aren't in a position to do this. However, they, too, might need to maintain momentum when it comes to bike commuting. So, I wanted to take a second to share the one tip that has been the most helpful to me in maintaining momentum. That tip is organization.
The economics of bike commuting is like anything else...the easier it is to do, the more you will do it. A while back I started looking at the things that I could control that make bike commuting less easy. What I found was that when it becomes a bit of pain to gather up or access my bike commuting essentials, I am way more likely to quickly decide not to bike commute. In other words, if I can't find my rain jacket or my helmet seems to be hiding or my blinky light is out of batteries, I quickly start looking for an alternate mode of transportation. So, to tackle this problem, I created a space in my tiny garage dedicated to bike commuting. With a simple trip, on my bike, to the local home improvement store, I got a simple, narrow shelving system and a couple of bike hooks and created a space where my bikes and bike commuting accessories can live the clutter-free, always-accessible life. See the photo below for an annotated photo.
Having the things that make my bike commutes easier always available and ready to go has made a huge difference in my bike commuting consistency. It has also greatly improved my garage space. It's certainly not the sexiest tip in the world, but I think you'll be amazed at how much better your bike commuting experience will be if your bike commuting gear is organized and easily accessible.
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Comments:
Your story is really inspiring. I’m 19, and I also ride my bike wherever I go, because I live with my parents and have no need for a car. However, I have one concern with being carless when I have my own place and my own responsibilities. How you handle big loads (like groceries, or large objects)?
By Brandt Absolu on Apr 27, 2011
Thanks for the comment, Brandt.
For the most part, I haven’t been hampered at all by not having a car…and I’m used to having a Yukon. My rack and a good set of panniers has been able to haul everything from groceries for my wife and I by the week-load to 30lb bags of dog food. I live in Seattle, which is a hilly place. I’ve surprised myself with just how much I can do with no need for a car.
When the rare exception does pop up, we are lucky to have Zip Car here in Seattle. I’ve also rented a car from the normal rental places for a day. It turns out to be way cheaper to rent a car once a month to run all of my car errands than to pay for gas, insurance, upkeep, etc., on a vehicle.
Here’s a couple of pics of my bike loaded down.
Hauling Dog Food
A full week of groceries
I’ll definitely cover cargo biking and hauling loads when I get the show cranked up.
By Will Boyd on Apr 27, 2011
So far I’ve been using my bike for all my errands except for hauling 4 5-gallon bottles every month or so (which really isn’t necessary, but I do it for my parents). Although I don’t need it yet, I have definitely considered renting a car rather than owning one, and now I’m more sure than ever that I’ll take that route.
By Brandt Absolu on Apr 27, 2011
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