Why I Ride

Posted on April 23, 2010 by Dave Feucht

This is a kind of complicated question that incorporates my personal beliefs, my personal sense of enjoyment, some factors about the city I live in, etc.

The simplest answer is, I like doing it.

If you want more details, here we go:

I have a thing for old mechanical objects (like egg beaters and crank-juicers – and of course, bicycles).

I feel in control and aware of my surroundings on a bicycle.

I like expending enough energy that my body and mind wake up.

I like living within distances that I can easily pedal or walk.

I like hearing, smelling, seeing and feeling everything I ride past.

I like going a bit faster than walking, but not so fast as to miss hearing, smelling, seeing and feeling everything I ride past.

I like challenging my level of comfort – not in an athletic hero sense or a self-punishment sense, but just simply realizing that I can put up with being wet and cold sometimes and it’s not a big deal.

I like getting enough physical activity that I don’t have to be super careful about what I eat (in terms of caloric content and whatnot, I am careful about what I eat in a quality/balance sense), and I feel like my body is in good shape.

I like the more detailed sense of the city that cycling provides me with.

I like how riding a bike makes the city feel smaller, more accessible.

I like how riding on cold or rainy days makes my coffee taste 30 times better.

I like how riding on hot days makes a shower and a cold glass of water at home feel like heaven.

I like that I’m highly unlikely to ever kill someone with my vehicle.

I like that my riding might inspire others to try it as well (because they might enjoy it as well).

I like that being on a bicycle makes it easier to interact with the environment, other people, etc.

I like that by being on a bicycle, I make the city just a little quieter and less congested (as opposed to if I were driving).

I like the feeling of self-sufficiency, being able to move myself around where I need to go.

I like the simplicity and practicality of using a bicycle to move around – just hop on and go.

edit –

I like that a bike provides me with more flexibility and mobility than driving or riding the bus.

I ride to counter the fearmongering surrounding cycling, and the idea that things as they are must stay as they are.

Why do you all ride?

Hi!

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  • David

    I like the excercise.
    I'm saving money.
    I'm not polluting.
    I feel like I'm part of the city.
    Driving a car stresses me out.

    It's fun.

  • emeraldsedai

    Everything you said, plus:

    I ride because on my bike I feel young and weightless; whereas on the bus I feel old and useless.

    I ride because it's faster than the bus.

    I continue to ride, every day, because it makes me more part of the solution than part of the problem.

  • portlandize.com

    Yeah, being faster and more convenient than the bus is a big one for me too.

  • somervillain

    wow, i can't add much to that list, other than i enjoy the feeling of experiencing the elements. i get a cheesy grin on my face when it begins to pour in the middle of a ride.

  • portlandize.com

    yeah, me too! – that is, unless it's 35 degrees out and windy. then the rain isn't quite so welcome, but otherwise :)

  • jj

    'cos i don't get as stressed out when my kids are talking to me/each other/otherwise being distracting if i'm on the bike instead of driving a car in traffic.

  • portlandize.com

    Yeah, I believe it. I think we underestimate how much of our mental faculties it really takes to drive a car safely in traffic at 30-40mph (or greater). When you're really trying to concentrate like that and something distracts you, it's much more disconcerting and grating on the nerves than it might otherwise be.

    I just generally feel much less stressed riding a bike than driving, distractions or no.

  • Bill E

    Thanks for asking! Apart from the purely practical,

    when I ride my bike I FEEL like the functioning part of the earth that I am, not a disconnected cell, I am caressing her surface instead of destroying it, flowing through the air, feeling the rain, and smelling the smells.

    Plus, after cycling for decades, through the "lean" times, meeting people and being part of this supernova of a bike movement feels like a big, warm, fuzzy group hug.

  • portlandize.com

    I agree – I love the community that cycling promotes, both globally and locally, and besides simply the community of people interested in bicycling, it helps to foster local community in general by encouraging people to simply be out in the public space together, both by being out on bicycles, and also by making streets safer for everyone to be in.

  • MamaVee

    ( what jj said as well)

    And b/c I'm almost 38, a mom of two young kids and when I am on the bike (with or without them) I feel like I am 11 years old.

  • portlandize.com

    Yeah, riding can have a very youth-inducing feel to it :)

    A guy who often sees me ride up to work in the morning once told me "it's like you get your nice Sunday ride every day!"

    I really feel like that most of the time – my mornings and afternoons are spent calmly and casually pedaling around, enjoying the scenery or just having fun. Just like when you were a kid :)

  • Alicia

    Riding wakes me up in the morning.
    Plus, my bicycle saddle is more comfortable than my couch or office chair. :)
    Excellent post.

  • brett

    You really nailed 'em all, but since you asked…
    * for health: mine, my community's and the planet's .
    * love the feeling of mild exercise (I'm a slow biker) and just the feeling of motion, so much more evident than when in a car.
    * saving money
    * convenience of my mostly short rides: just get on and go, rarely have trouble finding a parking place, etc.
    * contributing to my city by reducing car traffic, pollution, global warming etc
    * feel more connected to my city and the people in it — people often ask for directions etc

    and all the others named in the original post and comments above.
    It helps to live in a city that has character and that's compact, safe/easy to ride, has maintained some of its historical buildings, etc. Makes the ride fun.

  • adam

    I ride everyday because of all that you mentioned, and, because I visited Amsterdam in my 20's (when driving was still very much on my mind). I was completely blown away. From then on I have yearned to recreate that kind of urban, cosmopolitan experience wherever I live.

  • Ken Bareilles

    Greetings all,
    I'm stoked to find this blog. My wife, kids 2,4, and I are moving to Portland. Does anyone know the rough time it takes to bike commute from around the Mt Scott Community Center to the City Center? Also, I'm assuming it is easy in this town to park a bike downtown, get a shower, etc. Is that a reasonable assumption?

  • portlandize.com

    @Ken: I'm not sure how long it would take to bike from Mt. Scott to the city center – I would estimate a little over an hour, maybe, but I'm not really sure. It is reasonable to assume you should have no problem getting parking downtown, a shower probably just depends on your destination, but more and more places are starting to offer showers for employees, etc.

    Welcome to town, hope you enjoy it!

  • Richard

    Hey, fantastic blog! Too bad we don't have something like this for Madison….

    I agree with all these reasons, and can add one. I have plantar fasciitis–a chronic inflammation of the ligament that runs from heel to toe–which makes walking feel like I have a blowtorch pointed at my heel much of the time. But pedaling doesn't affect it at all. (The ironic thing is that I acquired said affliction while walking extensively because someone had stolen my bike!)

  • Melanie

    I don't think I could come up with that many reasons, but after reading them I totally agree. I love my bike. Riding makes me feel so free.

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  • Anonymous

    Feel worthwhile to be alive…

  • portlandize.com

    @Alicia: yeah, my bike seat is just about the most comfortable thing I sit on all day too :D

    @Brett: It does help a lot to live in a city that has retained much of it's pre-auto-boom structure, both because it's more compact, and many of the buildings are left from pre-1900, or at least pre-1950.

    @adam: I believe that would be quite a shock, arriving in Amsterdam. I've never been, but hopefully this year we are going to make it for a visit. Expect plenty of photos if we do :)

    @Richard: It's great to hear about bicycles being able to give mobility to people who have limited mobility otherwise, thanks for your comment, and happy cycling!

    @Melanie: agreed, I feel like I can go anywhere in the city on a bike – not so with a car. The possibilities are endless!

  • portlandize.com

    @Anonymous: the wind in my hair does that for me too – makes me glad to be alive.

  • Anonymous

    I ride because I'm lazy !
    (people driving car cannot understand, but that's true)

  • Simply Bike

    Beautiful post! I couldn't express those sentiments any better than you just did.

    I ride for all of those reasons and because riding a bike really makes me feel like my 10 year old self again, who would hop on her bike and ride to school, wind blowing in her hair and a smile on her face. :)

    S.