I hid it well at the time, but I wasn’t too happy with the way that Bike People post from a week ago just kind of plooped out at the end like that. So imagine my excitement a few days later when I received this email from my amazing friend Tabitha, who kind of studies this stuff. Like, as her life. I know, I know. I’m amazed as well. Tabitha writes:
“…As for a bikes being just a vehicle that doesn’t have to define your whole being/hobby time—yes! A large part of my Div III was also about how bike culture can be constructed as an all-consuming thing, and certain aspects of biking have a fairly high entry cost/time commitment. I feel extra awkward being a person who’s into alternative transportation advocacy and policy, while also never having yet faced a flat tire (in theory I know how I should fix one…Right now I ride the bus to my internship, and when I thought I’d be closer, I felt a tinge of nervousness about rolling my bike in (though my reflective tape job is pretty sweet and all). Realizing the other people…are not all mechanical gurus or snobs, and at least one was older than I am when they started bike-commuting is kind of refreshing too. And not all are secret motorists either (because ultimate irony, EVERY transportation job wants you to have a car).
