St, Francis of Assisi once stated "It is no use walking everywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching." Perhaps in today's rush-hour world, St. Francis would advise "It is no use bicycling everywhere to preach unless our bicycling is our preaching." Bicyclists actually enjoy much cleaner air surrounded by cars than the cars' drivers who endure a long menu of insidious, colorless fumes the California Air Resources Board (CARB) reports are trapped inside every car. The CARB study was called "indoor car air" and observes what no one wants to notice, that the tailpipe of the car in front of you is outputting right to your car's air intake. Car ads invariably show solitary autos on open roads, free of traffic. Get real! Biking is an acquired taste. It takes time to get used to how much fun it is; how much safer it can be to be doing 10 mph in fresh air rather than zero mpg in gridlock fumes. It takes some time to recognize how well biking can actually work -- and to rebuild the stamina and strength your body has lost to remote controls, computer mice and the brake and accelerator pedals. Most bike trips I make take about as much time as most folks have to allow for finding parking after driving to their destination.
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By James DMake-it-home-safe MANTRA: When dealing with traffic, it's better to be patient than to become a patient; AND - A Sailboat is to a Polluting Cruise Ship what a bicycle is to a smokin' Hummer. I know bikes are beautiful but I’M not backing off until bikes are bountiful and bikers have greater strength in numbers. CategoriesArchives
February 2016
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