As you can tell, I’m a big fan of cycling. I’m starting to incorporate it into my commute to work. Take longer weekend rides. Last night I even tried to get the 12-year-old more into it. We rode for about 6 miles on the river trail, at night. She seemed to have a good time. She also reminded me of something. I tend to ride with speed or distance as a goal. How fast can I do so many miles? How far can I go? Can I get past this next group in the next 100 yards?
As we rode along she kept speeding up and then coasting. I told her, “slow and steady wins the race,” but she kept doing it. Finally, I asked why she was riding like that and she said, “’cause it’s fun.” Duh. She was just enjoying the cruising in the dark. Coasting along at a speed unattainable on foot, smooth and dream-like. Duh. I’m an idiot. I’m glad I have a 12-year-old around to remind me sometimes to just have fun.
What does this have to do with cycling advocacy? Well, I’d like her to have places to ride as she gets older. I would like her to feel safe on the streets on her bike. I want her to have what I had as a kid. So let’s look at cycling advocacy from the top. I guess that would be our current President. He rides (at least mountain bikes). He seems to like to ride at his ranch in Crawford, TX. I wish I had a ranch with mountain biking trails. That would be nice. Even if I cleaned out all the “brush” on my property I’d be lucky to get in 100 feet of trail. When he is on the road or off the ranch he is completely surrounded by secret service people. Can’t get much safer than that on the street. I wonder what that feels like. Here is a photo of POTUS with Lance Armstrong in Crawford. I like the people I ride with but just once …..
…that would be so cool!
Anyway, it seems that Barak Obama has made a promise. He doesn’t make a lot of those, he seems to be more of a big picture guy. So I’m particularly happy about this one:
“Barack Obama, in a private 20-minute meeting with members of the Bikes Belong board of directors, told them if he were elected president he would increase funding for cycling and pedestrian projects. And the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee also said he would support Safe Routes to Schools programs.”
Pretty cool huh? You can find more on this story at: Bicycling Retailer and Industry News.
One Response
That’s cool. I’d like to see even more politically connected local people come out in favor of alternative transportation. Not just the little stuff-I mean serious pushes for public transportation and public advocacy for cycling and pedestrians that comes from the top instead of from the bottom. Good article.