Why Two Wheels Are Better Than Four

            We are finally into the time of year when I am confident that I won’t see any snow for a while, and that means that I can use my preferred means of transportation, the bicycle. What began as a lame attempt to impress some girl has developed into something that I really enjoy. Unless I have a really good reason to not to, I ride my bike whenever I go out now (which admittedly isn’t super often), and my internal combustion based transportation can often go weeks without being used. I think I forgot something when I turned 16 that I knew when I was 10, and it was how stupendous riding a bike is.

            There are a lot of reasons that I like riding my bike. First, is that it’s just fun. I guess it’s probably the same reason that some people like motorcycles; wind in your face, the sense of speed, and simplicity, but bikes always have one thing that motorcycles don’t. I can ride through sprinklers, and that’s one of the best things in the world. Another positive aspect is the pure physicality of bike riding. Needing to work harder to go faster and lean into turns make moving from Point A to Point B more interesting and engaging. When I get home I am generally breathing heavy, and that just add more of a feeling of accomplishment to an arrival. Also, riding my bike gives me a good mental break. The need to pay attention to traffic and the physical effort are great for focusing my mind. My short ride home from work is all that I need to completely forget anything stressful that happened that day. Nature is more accessible on my bike. I can hear birds, smell lilacs, and chase a squirrel up a tree if I want. Not so much a motivation but a bonus to riding my bike is that I get to roll up my right pant leg in what seems like some obscure fashion move. This is functionally so my pants don’t get caught in the bike chain, but I like to sport it all day, so if you see this catching on I totally started it (this will never catch on). Factors that don’t really influence me are environmental impacts or fuel prices. Those costs wouldn’t keep me from riding my bike if I still had to pay them or even had to pay more. I do feel pretty superior when I’m on my bike though. This is mostly because I behave like I’m above the law as far as traffic is concerned. I weave between road and sidewalk at will, ride through roads closed for construction, jump curbs, and cross through private property whenever it’s convenient. I assume all the privileges of a pedestrian while behaving as a vehicle when it suits me. I pretty much act like the king of the road.

            I do live in a pretty convenient place for bike riding. Nothing is very far away in town and there are an abundance of bike paths and sidewalks to use. A half mile ride to work is short by any standard. Here is a picture of my route:

Somebody was working on private projects at work

I’ve noted elevations to point out one prohibitive factor to biking is that Pierre isn’t exactly level. A town on the river generally means that the farther you get from the water the higher up you go. Over roughly 3,000’ to get home there is a vertical rise of over 75’, most of which happens in one hill. The hill labeled in the center of the route rises over 43’ and averages a slope of about 7%, which is decent. Assuming me and my bike weigh a combined 200 lbs, that means it takes 8,600 ft-lbs (roughly 2.8 nutritional calories, which sounds way less impressive) for me to get up the hill as purely as an increase in potential energy (see, physics can apply to everyday situations). I timed the ride at 3 minutes 45 seconds, so I average about 9 mph. The most difficult destination to reach in town would have to be the mall (for when I want to get hassled by the over helpful employees of Radio Shack). It’s about 9,600’ horizontal feet to the mall, and it is at an elevation of roughly 1763.84’ about sea level. That’s a vertical difference of over 250’ from my house, but I actually have to pass through a low point to get there. After the first 1,000’ traveled the elevation is only 1488.43’ so then I have to make up 275’ over the remaining 8,600’ for an average slope of 3.2%. That doesn’t sound too bad, but the slope isn’t constant and is probably better than 8% for extended stretches. I definitely get some use out of my low gears by the end of the ride is all I’m saying. Thus ends the asinine technical section of this post (FYI, a percent slope is just the vertical distance over the horizontal distance multiplied by 100).

The hill home in all its epic glory

            There are a few aspects about riding a bike that aren’t ideal. Danger is an big aspect of riding in traffic. I’m harder to see than a car and I’m not really protected if someone runs into me (I don’t even wear a helmet). A bike is very limited in how fast it can go or how much it can carry. I will struggle just to do 30 mph going downhill if there is even a bit of a headwind, and can’t even approach a car's ability to do 75 mph over a period of hours for long trips. My bike has saddle bags so it can carry everything I need to go fishing on the river, but it can’t handle a load of groceries or something like furniture. In winter a bike is not very practical for a few reasons. The main reason is that it can’t handle snow with any sort of proficiency. The factor that actually makes me pack my bike away for about five months of the year is the fact that it’s dark when I go to work, and riding in twilight seems like a really good way to get run over. I also get flat tires much more commonly on my bike. When I first started riding I struggled to go a full week without a flat. I now have puncture resistant and self-sealing tubes in my tires so I haven’t had any problems recently. I never did find the puncture vine that had been troubling me last year so I could have more flat tires later in the season.

The Wheels

            In the end I think my bike has more of an impact on me as a means of transportation because I have more of an impact on it. I actually matter when I ride my bike. My abilities have an impact, I have to pay more attention, and I have more freedom to do what I want. It boils down to a technological augmentation of my own body, but one that I can park when I don't need it, and I really like that.