Freedom

The other day at work I had a phone conversation with a woman about many different topics on cycling. Initially it was just a call for a simple warranty part, but it turned out to be a half hour phone call. Among many other things, we talked about the topic of riding tandems with our significant others, the appeal of old bikes, and our habit of browsing bike shops even when we don’t need anything. However, it came up in the conversation how she couldn’t get her teenage kids out on their bikes even though she and her husband were very active cyclists. We basically shared our disappointment that kids today just don’t have the same relationship with a bike as kids of generations before.

I’ll be the first to say that I – growing up in the generation of TV, Nintendo, and early computers – probably didn’t ride my bike as much as some other kids, but at least I did. I knew someone in college that never even learned how to ride a bike! This was so appalling to me (and as well to others) because learning to ride a bike is a universal rite of passage. You learn to talk, you learn to walk, you learn to drink out of a big cup, and you learn how to ride a bike. (Ok, maybe there are a few others in there.) While as the others only welcome you on your way to adulthood, learning to bike gives you something much more – FREEDOM. For me it was freedom to ride over to my Grandma’s house, jump a dirt pile in the back yard, and do whatever else on two wheels. For others living in a city, it was maybe leaving home on your bike in the morning with some friends, getting into trouble on the other side of town, and biking back home just in time for dinner. With a bike, you could go anywhere and do anything.

That night on the bike ride home, I decided to ride with some of my coworkers toward downtown just to have a bit more of a ride instead of going straight home. Originally I said I would just turn around at the first place the bike path crossed a road, but then I kept going. My turn-around point kept get pushed further and further and eventually I just said, “It’s going to be easier if I just ride downtown and loop back home on another path.” Upon reaching downtown, my coworkers split off to go home and I was left to enjoy my ride. I figured that since I was downtown I could ride through campus and say hello to my wife. Even though we saw each other for just a few minutes it was worth seeing her surprised face. I then journeyed back to the apartment pedaling on bike path or zigzagging my way through suburban streets. It was one of those rides where I got off the bike, walked into the garage, and, having so many different emotions and thoughts in my head, just nodded and said, “Yeah…that was good.”

“Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race.”

- HG Wells