Carbon Trace

Elisa Crouch and Ken Leiser, columnists for the St. Lous Post-Dispatch, take a quick look at bicycle commuting in winter for their Along for the Ride column. The headline writer apparently thought the whole thing added up to crazy.

I have two problems with columns such as this:

1. It makes cycling appear much harder than it actually is — even in harsh conditions.

(Yes, I’ve written about the cold weather and choosing to ride in a car instead of bike to work. I prefer to bike. I prefer not to accept a ride to work (I never drive myself to work because I do not have a parking sticker). But I’m not commuting alone. My 14-year-old daughter and I go to school together. I prefer not to turn her off to cycling by insisting she ride when the temperatures dip into the teens (she’s generally OK with it down to about the low 20s). She has not grown up in a society with a cycling tradition. Like so many Americans, she could simply give it up about the time she graduates from college. I’d like to prevent that from happening. But there may be nothing I can do except lead by example.)

2. There are as many reasons to ride as there are riders. If some cyclists feel macho riding in cold weather, well, that’s great. Knock yourself out. I suspect, however, that these guys were quoted in such a way (i.e. an editoral choice) to represent a stereotype in the American car culture. I mean, who else but “crazy” macho types would ride in the winter fercrissakes?

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