How many riders subscribe to the unwritten rule “when the sun goes down, the bicycle goes away”.
I did — until recently.
I became a night-time biker a few months ago when I started teaching a class that ended at 8:30pm. After class, it was ride home as the only option.
The ride from school to home turned into an absolute pleasure. First, there is almost no traffic at 8:30pm and second, the absolute peace as you quietly glide through neighborhoods and dark streets is amazing. The first night, the moon was full, the lake I ride around was perfectly calm and it was just cold enough for a light jacket.
The perfect end to any day.
My only other experience with nighttime rides was when we were living in Vermont. We were on our way home in a car, it was the end of summer, there was a full moon and we were just starting up Terrible Mountain (no kidding … that’s what it’s called and if you have ever biked it, you know why).
Far ahead of us, we saw a pair of blinking red tail lights and as we got closer, the lights turned into two cyclists out for a long nighttime climb. At the time we saw them, I thought they were nuts. But now I understand. There’s an appeal to a quiet nighttime ride.
I am not sure that my rides will ever match a full moon climb up Terrible Mountain, but I’ll take a calm city commute at night as a good substitute!
Haven’t tried an after sundown ride yet? I really suggest that you do.
After all…. every ride is a good ride!
Remember (or take my word for it) the “nature walk” that you used to take in elementary school? It was supposed to help you connect and appreciate nature.
I supposed that they still do formal nature walks today but I’m not sure.
I ran into someone this week who is teaching a college level extension course on Global Warming. He related to me how he was having a problem getting the students to have and appreciate some connection to the earth. Things like global warming and rising ocean levels are important, he said, but from a student’s point of view, they are having a hard time bringing these concepts down to something that effects them every day — something that is “in their face” so to speak.
His reasoning (which I believe is sound) for pursuing this matter is his belief that if we first grow to appreciate nature and creation and don’t take it for granted, the act of caring for it will follow. The opposite is also true — we tend to ignore that which we don’t care about. The challenge that this teacher is having is how to get his students to be appreciative; especially in a world where they have lived most of their lives disconnected from the land and nature itself. Read the rest of this entry »
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under the sun (Ecclesiastes 3:1 — and ‘Turn Turn Turn’ by the Byrds’
One thing about rapid transit — it make you slow down.
Among the things I am learning about living without a car is that it takes a lot more planning and a lot more time to get from place to place. A no car life that uses public transportation to get from place to means that you… Read the rest of this entry »
One thing about commuting on a bike. There’s a lot of other people doing the same thing. I have been a regular bicycle commuter for about a month now and I am starting to recognize other people who are out at the same time I am. I have no idea who these people are, I only know them by some unique characteristic that they have.
Dobie Lady – young, she always wears a hat and big sunglasses. She is training a doberman to walk with her without a leash. She has a fannie pack that is filled with dog treats. She stops, the dog stops and sits and she give him a treat. Never any expression as we pass. All business. Gotta get the dog trained. Dog’s gonna get fat from all the treats. Read the rest of this entry »
This whole crazy idea came from our ongoing adventure in reducing our environmental footprint. This time, we were going to concentrate on the cars. See, like most American families, we own two cars. The question I had is did we really need two cars or could we get by with one? It seemed like a good idea — at least to try.
And truthfully, I couldn’t find a reason not to embark on this project. I could, however, find a lot of reasons to give it a try. For example:
- Spring and summer and fall weather in Wisconsin is ideal.
- The city I live in (Madison) is really and truly a bicycle friendly city. Lots of bike paths and lots of other people commuting to and from their jobs on bikes.
- One of my jobs is 5 or so miles away and is reachable by bike path. No busy streets to content with. The days that I work in my other job, I work with my wife so we commute together.
- I had a bike (actually I have two) that was perfect for commuting. Lightweight, not too fancy, pretty basic and comfortable
- I didn’t have to carry a computer or other heavy items. Most days, everything I needed I could fit in a fanny pack or in a backpack.
- Gas prices were going through the roof and I am too cheap to waste money.
So, why not. Besides, I figured that I could always fall back on my car if I needed to — say if the weather turned nasty or if I needed to carry something big to work.
How many riders subscribe to the unwritten rule “when the sun goes down, the bicycle goes away”.