An excuse and a reason

Rivendell Bike Works is a bicycle building business, based in California. I'm, basically, madly in love with their bicycle models (pity their are on the pricey side of things), but also they have an approach to riding which is pretty much the one I'm trying to extend through this blog; that bikes are fun, useful, pleasant, and pretty things. They also run their own blog, about a million times better than this one, in which one of the first things to be found is a list of genuine, legitimate reasons not to ride. So I'll uote them below, and add some comments of my own:

• "Too scary. If the roads are narrow and packed with cars and the community isn’t used to or sympathetic with bike commuters, well----it might be a good idea to surround yourself with something other than air." This is the kind of environment I was used to before moving to Finland. Every person out there will have a different fear threshold, but there are areas, like the case mentioned above, or those 3 to 4 lane avenues with cars racing light to light as if their lives depended on it, or intersections known for having a high rate of crashes or accidents around them where common sense would indicate that it'd be better not to ride. As much as I'd love for everyplace, everywhere and at all times to be suitable for safe riding, the reality is that in most places drivers and infrastructure are far from helpful, and I won't be, ore expect anyone to, be a martyr for the cycling cause.
• "Too far. If commuting by bike means losing an extra hour-and-a-half or more of what may be precious family time, then don’t do it. Your green contribution is tiny and immeasurable, but your presence in the morning or evening is felt, absolutely." This guy is American, and as far as I know there having a commute taking over an hour is considered short or reasonable. For me, any commute taking an hour or more is a crime against mental and physical health. In an ideal world, we would all live at walking distance to and from everywhere we'd need to be, but our world is far from perfect and going through a particularly... imperfect period of time (to put it mildly), and our jobs are where they are. If it's about avoiding private cars, try a bus, they are usually quicker, and take the extra time to have a better breakfast, sleep a little longer, or just to be with those that appreciate your company.
• "Bad weather. It increases risk by increasing stopping distance while simultaneously decreasing your visibility and every motorist’s peripheral vision." As with fear, I guess we all have different ideas of what "weather too bad for riding" would mean. For me, rain to an extent, a bit of snow, moderate fog, or moderate cold are not an obstacle. Even when an occasional, heavy storm has caught up with me has not bothered me too much. But, again, common sense: persistent, heavy rain, thick fog (of the kind you barely see the ground you're standing on), heavy snow, or intense cold are situations in which a plan B would be a good idea. (see the soaked to the bone, half frozen and shaky fool pictured to get an idea of what would be poor weather judgement. Hi, by the way.)

• " Errand on the way to work, on the way home, or during the day. Dropping off children at school in another direction? Visiting clients during the day in another city? Things like that." Again this doesn't really apply to me right now (no children, and even if they were, most kids here ride to school), but, again, we have the jobs we have, and if we need to go here and there during the day, bosses tend to be unsympathetic if asked for extra time to do that on a bike...
• "No place to put the bike so it won’t get stolen or wrecked during the day. Not all workplaces are roomy enough for bikes. I know---folders---but folders have their own set of baggage." We all have gotten / will eventually get (delete as appropiate) our bikes stolen at some point, but if it's going to happen ridiculously often (as in more often than three in a lifetime or so), maybe it's time to look for other ways to go to work...

To all that I'd add a final reason. If bicycles are just not your thing, there's no point in trying to persuade you. Sounds obvious? I'll turn it around: I work in two different places; one requires a car, the other can be reached by bike or bus. People know I'd rather avoid car commuting when possible. And I still get endlessly asked why on earth I don't drive the short commute too...

Right, next time we'll be giving reasons to ride, or at least ideas to motivate those in doubt to do so.

Also, here's the original article where this post has taken (stolen?) its shape, by Grant Petersen.