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I’ve often thought that the thing that intrigues me most about cycling is its dual personality. It’s gobs of fun to ride around (fly around really) on quiet roads with girlfriends, going nowhere and seeing, hearing, and smelling everything around.
But it’s one of the few sports I can think of that can immediately translate into practical transportation. Sure we could walk or run everywhere, but probably not all the time, and probably not fast enough to cover the distances most of us need to cover. On my bike, I get to work every day, I zip over to Target to fill a prescription, I tool down to the library to grab a book. If I was able to haul my teenage daughter around with my bike, I’d do that too.
I ran across an article by Rick Crawford over on Velonews.com that says it so much more succinctly than I can. How often do we think about our sport/outdoor time as energy wasteful? All those BTUs we’re churning out just evaporating into the atmosphere instead of powering our TV or computer? Of course, everything in life can’t be perfectly utilitarian and thrifty! We all need our fun and relaxation. But if you could catch the energy you’ll pour into your next triathlon or skiing trip and run your washing machine for a month, wouldn’t you? All that fun and a lower electric bill to boot.
I’ll let you know when I figure out a way to sell some of my cycling wattage back to the power grid!
