Blather on Bicycling

I know we cyclists have always been somewhat of a freak show on the road, but a ride the other day had me getting some extraordinary attention. Perhaps the gas prices have something to do with it. I got a thumbs up from a motorcyclists. I’m not sure what that means but I’ve received several similar signals recently. Later I had a motorcyclists in the oncoming lane on the highway looking at me and applauding (yes, with both hands). Motorcyclists usually tend to be more apt to give a welcoming gesture to us cyclists, probably as a show of respect because we’re out in the wind just like them. Lately, the gestures are the more extreme, like the full-on applause. Gestures like this are hard to understand but this is the interpretation I am going to liberally take, “We’ve been riding around thinking we’re the shiznit with our fuel-efficient bikes but you, my two-wheels friend, have one upped us. Respect.” The hand gesture just substitutes for a pound or bowing down that would take place if we weren’t moving.

Then, there are the cars. There doesn’t seem to be any less of them. They still like to hit the gas pedal right as they pass you to rev their engines and spit out extra fumes in your face. However, one guy was kind enough to give me some extreme gestures the other day. He poked his fat head out of the passenger window of a pickup and shouted excitedly, while giving me a big #1 with his fat middle finger. Again, gestures are often hard to understand but I took this to mean, “I admire your contribution to the environment, and your health.”

So the gas prices have everyone in a tizzy. Lest you applaud me for some noble act of conservation, let me set the record straight. I am not riding my bike for the purpose of saving money. It is more of a time issue. I commuted by bike to work most of the year because I figured the 50-60 minutes (round trip) of sitting in a car could be better spent sitting on my bike. Plus, most of my rides don’t have purpose as transportation. Sight seeing, maybe, but not a means from Point A to Point B, like picking up eggs or milk at the local market. Any fuel savings I made by commuting with my bike has been nullified by the big truck I drive, diesel prices, and the amount of travel I’ve done to races this year (all of which are 3+ hours away).

And while I’m on that point, I don’t do it for the health benefit. What I do is not exactly healthy. Racing has high risk of serious injury from crashes and often results in overuse injuries (e.g. back aches, tendonitis, saddle sores). Plus, it can create a real imbalance in your life whereby you ignore other important areas of wellness such as mental, emotional, and social. I’m certainly trying to improve my fitness and sport performance, but riding the way I do can compromise health.

So, I’m not spending my time lamenting about the price of fuel nor am I on my bike for a specific purpose other than because I really enjoy riding and I want to improve my performance. As I said a long time ago, I’d probably buy just as much fuel if it was $10 a gallon because I’m going to drive when I need to drive. Sitting in a car (a big one) is a comfortable way to travel around fast and carry lots of bikes and junk.