When the zombie apocalypse comes, my first thought is going to be to go steal one of the Bay Area Bike Share bikes. \u00a0In a post-apocalyptic landscape, when fuel is no longer to be had (good luck with that Tesla, buddy!), what would you rather have? It doesn\u2019t need fuel, food or a plug, and it beats the hell out of walking.<\/p>\n
The bike I have is pretty shitty. It\u2019s a hybrid, somewhere between road bike and trail bike, and not very good at either. \u00a0It\u2019s got a 21-speed gear system that uses thumb and finger triggers to shift, it\u2019s amazingly uncomfortable to sit on, and its best function is gathering dust in the garage. \u00a0Which is what I asked for, to be honest, but for the last nine years I\u2019ve dreaded biking simply because it was a shitty experience every time. \u00a0Much to my wife\u2019s chagrin.<\/p>\n
And then I experienced the bike share bikes, which despite being very heavy are stable, comfortable to sit on (with step-through frame), easy to operate (seven-speed internally-geared with a twist shifter), and uncomplicated to use. \u00a0And then my wife got her new C7i from Public Bikes (okay, I got it for her birthday) and lo and behold, it wasn\u2019t bad to ride on. \u00a0And that made me rethink things, and then she rode my bike and confirmed that holy shit, that\u2019s a terrible bike, no wonder you hate riding it.<\/p>\n
But I like<\/em> those bike share bikes. \u00a0And then I saw the new creation of Priority Bikes in NYC, a simplified $400 bike with run-flat tires, a belt drive instead of a chain, a 3-speed internal-hub gear systems and coaster brakes like a kid\u2019s bike, a comfortable saddle and upright seating position. \u00a0Basically, it\u2019s the perfect bike for somebody who just wants to ride a bike instead of being A Bike Person. \u00a0And that rang a chord with me, because my whole professional life has been spent working in a computer ecosystem that has its roots in computers for people who didn\u2019t want to be Computer People.<\/p>\n So after a little looking around, we were advised of a sale at Public Bikes on the M7i – a French-style mixte bike suitable for either sex, enough step-through for aging hips and knees, a really comfortable upright riding position, the same 7-speed internal-hub transmission with twist-shift as the share bikes, accessory compatibility with the wife\u2019s bike, and – most intriguing – an easy conversion path in future to an electric-assist bike. I was sold, not least because ten years from now, I might not be able to walk all the way downtown and might appreciate a bit of a bump.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s the approach I take to biking, which seems to be the opposite of most other people in this part of the world. \u00a0To most folks, the bike is part of an alternative to driving. \u00a0You use the bike and transit to replace a car, mostly for commuting. \u00a0I\u2019m going completely in the opposite direction: the bike is a replacement for walking, a force multiplier to get me further than I\u2019m willing to go on shank\u2019s mare. \u00a0I\u2019m not going to battle the crowds on what\u2019s already an overloaded Caltrain system. But what I will consider is that there are destinations that take the better part of an hour to reach on a back-and-forth transit route, too far to practically walk, which are suddenly fifteen minutes away on a bike.<\/p>\n So we\u2019ll see. \u00a0This is a pricey experiment, but one I\u2019m genuinely looking forward to. \u00a0As long as it\u2019s not going to be too hot or humid (serious risk lately with all the monsoon moisture in the air) and not pouring rain (bigger issue in the winter months), this could be fun, and (gasp) I\u2019m actually looking forward to it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When the zombie apocalypse comes, my first thought is going to be to go steal one of the Bay Area Bike Share bikes. \u00a0In a post-apocalyptic landscape, when fuel is no longer to be had (good luck with that Tesla, buddy!), what would you rather have? It doesn\u2019t need fuel, food or a plug, and … <\/p>\n