So why DO you cycle?

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
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richardyorkshire
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by richardyorkshire »

Because I enjoy it. After a couple of years cycling I'm looking a lot trimmer. I've had no illness, nor any niggles or aches during that time. And I feel great. Anyone who does regular exercise knows that they feel great as a consequence. I cycle for reasons of pure, selfish, hedonism.
Wisest is he who knows that he knows nothing.
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[XAP]Bob
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Cheaper, healthier and more consistent commutes.

I also never see a car driver smile, even in a soft top - always grumpy about the car in front of them.
All the cyclists I see on my route are generally cheery.

I now don't ask this question - I ask why should I drive? That's the question that has to have an answer before the car* comes out...

Bob

* Yes - we still have one car, but a wife with a badly broken arm and a 10 mo old don't really lend themselves to cycling - they do tend to walk into town most of the time, but that car comes in handy.
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
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meic
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by meic »

So I can eat more 8)
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[XAP]Bob
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by [XAP]Bob »

meic wrote:So I can eat more 8)


Oh yes - That's a good point - a kilo of chocolate a day never goes amiss ;)
I need ~1200 calories more that I would if I drove ;)
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
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jan19
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by jan19 »

I thought of another reason this morning as I cycled in - you actually talk to people! Not a long conversation, but a nod, smile and a "good morning". I have four "regulars" on my way in - 2 dog walkers, another lady cyclist and an older lady who power-walks through the private estate.

I saw the dog walkers this morning, and agreed with one that it wasn't a particularly nice morning. When I'm in the car I don't communicate with anyone.

Jan
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robwa10
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by robwa10 »

Because it's what separates us from the animals...well all except the bears.
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Just Rob please.
stoobs
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by stoobs »

Freedom

Oh, and the more I cycle, the more I can eat with impunity :D
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Velocio
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by Velocio »

...I cycle for 3 main reasons ...to cummute ...to shop ...and my favourite ...to tour

I am now 52 and do not drive. If I want to get somewhere too far to cycle I go by train ...and often take the cycle on a train. I have a lifelong love affair with both trains and cycles ...though I have only seriously been cycling since 1991

Why do I cycle? Putting it another way ...what do I love about cycling?

...the freedom ...the exercise ...the fresh air ...the vistas ...the open road ...cycling on the 'right' side of the road in France ...knowing that I got atop a hill by my own efforts ...enjoying the downhill 'woosh' afterwards ...feeling the sun on my face ...or on my back ...and the wind in my gills ...learning the mechanics of a bicycle and its maintenance ...discovering or mapping new routes ...sharing my love of cycling with others...

:)
...ever cycle ...ever CTC
Jimmy The Hand
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by Jimmy The Hand »

Because it's the only way I get to spend some time with the other half!!!!!!
byegad
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by byegad »

I, like most people have a number of reasons to ride, here are some:-

I suffer from anxiety and depression, getting out on my trike does wonders for me.

I enjoy the countryside and fresh ait.

I'm fitter than I have ever been since I was 30 yrs old, I'm nearly double that now!

I meet some great people riding my trikes.

THIS!

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"I thought of that while riding my bike." -Albert Einstein, on the Theory of Relativity

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eileithyia
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by eileithyia »

..for afternoons like today, glorious autumn sunshine, very little wind, beautiful trees, a weasel running across the road, jays flying over head
the light across Rivie resr., was magical. And after feeling totally cream crackered on yesterday's ride, today I felt fit and as though I could take on the world.

(Indeed one lad did try to take me on, he didn't last for long teh heh heh)
I stand and rejoice everytime I see a woman ride by on a wheel the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood. HG Wells
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paulah
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by paulah »

eileithyia wrote:.. (Indeed one lad did try to take me on, he didn't last for long teh heh heh)


The other week I joined a road and there were a couple of teenagers on the other side on bmxs.* "Let's race her", I heard one of them say and by the time I got to my turning I had declared myself the winner. Ten minutes later I was on an estate where a 2 or 3 boys who are convninced by folder is an electric bike... "Let's race the electric bike", I heard. No it's just leg powered but it still goes quite fast... :D

Much more fun than driving home.


* health and safety information - they were on the pavement but there wasn't anyone else around, if there had been I wouldn't have joined in
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reohn2
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by reohn2 »

Rythm,seeing the world at a slower pace which can make riding a medition,I once read an article by a well known chair maker who maintained that work rate shouldn't be done faster than the heart rate,when you think about it cycling is the same,in fact its an impossiblity :) I also like the unexpected social meetings with others along the way,which can be just a wave to a curious child in a pram or full blown political disscusion with an old chap sitting on a bench.
The bike itself I find a constant source of pleasure (maintaining,cleaning etc).
The tandem is the top of the tree though,I find it (them)a beautiful way to travel.
I also find I have a certain satisfaction when passing four wheeled traffic in town and city centres,its not quite smug but it could be if I let it.
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"All we are not stares back at what we are"
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grognut
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by grognut »

I cycle:
Because it's great.
It gives me exercise.
I loose weight. Down to 14.5st now. Dieting as well though.
My commute is only a few minutes longer than a car and if I use a motorcycle quicker by the time I've put my gear on.
I'ts freedom. I find driving a car is like being in a train ie on rails.
I don't get headaches. Sitting on a office gives me a headache.
You see and feel the environment. Hopefully not the road surface.
You can stop an enjoy the view almost anywhere.

Cheers
Cove Scout
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Re: So why DO you cycle?

Post by Cove Scout »

I just love the independence it gives me. I do not need your petrol Mr Oilman, I have my own legs for propulsion. If I were closer to work I would run so I would not even need a bike but that extra bit of speed is very useful. It is also good when I get some shopping. I can load more into my panniers than I can comfortably carry on my back. Yes independence is the key to it.
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