Do you want to get in some good cardio exercise without going nowhere fast on a treadmill or hurting your aching knees? Do you want to see more of your region in the fresh air, not from behind the window in a car? Get on your bikes and ride!
May is National Bike Month, and this week, May 16 – 22, is National Bike to Work Week. Promoted by the League of American Bicyclists and celebrated in communities from coast to coast, the celebrations were established in 1956 to showcase the many benefits of bicycling – and encourage more folks to giving biking a try.
Did you know that 40% of all trips in the U.S. are less than two miles, making bicycling a feasible and fun way to get around?
I’m lucky in the fact that where my partner and I live now, we only need one car, and my bicycle is my first vehicle. I love it, especially this time of year, with all the flowers starting to bloom. Having the opportunity to smell them as I pedal by is worth the few extra minutes it takes me to run errands (and I get to burn calories doing it!).
But maybe you haven’t ridden a bike in years. Maybe you don’t even have a bike handy. That’s okay. We can help you find the right ride for you. BikeRadar, the self-proclaimed authority on bikes and cycling gear, has experts testing all types of bikes, parts, clothing and accessories, from road and mountain to commuting and time trialing. They have a post dedicated to finding which bicycle type is best for you in 2022 on their website. Broadly speaking, bike types include road bikes (the sleek, lightweight frames you’ll often see very long distance riders using, all while dressed in neon-colored gear); mountain bikes (obviously, much sturdier, designed to handle much more rugged terrain); hybrid bikes (the offspring of their rugged/distance forebears); and cruisers (or city bikes – usually with just one gear, a wide seat and a basket or two attached). A lot of what you want depends on where you’ll be riding, so take that into consideration before investing. A quality new bike is not cheap – but the purchase can be worth it, in that it can save you money on gas (and health-wise, perhaps in medical bills down the road).
Of course, if you want something between a regular bike and a motorcycle, there’s always ebikes, with small electric motors. You pedal, you cruise and you get where you’re going fast. However, a word of warning: Take your time getting used to them. Their speed can surprise you!
