Fear and Loathing with bikerboy!

January 25, 2006 in Living in America, Unrestrained Rants | Permalink

The Surgeon General recommends about 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity each day in addition to one’s regular daily activities. And it is not since “SuperSize Me” (incredible movie!) that the US is aware of its citizens lacking health. HealthierUS rates obesity as an epidemic in the United States and counts physical fitness as one of the keys to a healthier life.

Now, the bicycle is a rather old fashioned, yet versatile exercise machine. In whatever way one uses it, be it for the daily ride to work, crusing through the country side, or for mile-eating workouts, it improves the overall fitness already after a few months regular use while going easy on the joints. That’s fantastic, isn’t it? In my humble opinion, it is one of the best choices for getting some regular physical acitivity!

Of course, everyone admits that riding a bike can be a fairly dangerous activity. Either there are cars or there are pedestrians, usually it is both of them closing on the bicyclist. Furthermore, the average pedalist is not an angle on two wheels, ignoring traffic rules and signs as he sees fit while being riding incredible fast. Statistics indicate that a bike rider has one accident about every 1000km. That is certainly not encouraging…

But accidents aren’t what concerns me most right now. It is more the fact that biking round here is considered sort of an excentric indulgence. Especially now, when temperatures are close to the freezing point and rain or even snow can be expected from time to time, a bike on the road seems to be an insult or a provocation for some of my fellow American car drivers.

So far, I have been honked at, I have been yelled at. People have made funny remarks about my bike while standing side by side at a traffic light, and I see their curious and suspicious looks when they pull up next to me. Once, a pick up truck who felt slowed down by me, cut in front of me to give me a nice spray of water from his wheels. This doesn’t beat the best two fear and loathing moments I had so far, though:

  • Out of a passing car, a kiddo started spraying Silly String at me. She was a poor aim, though, and didn’t hit me.
  • Yesterday, a (drunken?) kid started yelling at me, callingme “bikerboy”…..

    • My certainly appropriate answer? I started cursing and swearing in German. It is always a good choice to blow off the steam right when it starts building up….

    Always Yours, bikerboy