"Why do you ride?"

While loading up the rig for my trip home from church this morning, I was stopped by an older gentleman. I would like to think he was admiring the bike, but I know he was thinking, "What the hell did you do to your bike?" instead.

He eventually asked me, "Why do you ride? Is it money or are you green or what?" I answered something about enjoying it and left it at that. As I rode home, I thought about my terrible answer.

Is it money? Sure, saving money is nice, but am I really saving that much money. I am keeping track of how much money I save at the end of each post. It figures in my car's MPG and how far I go. I plug in $3.00 for a gallon of gas and realize that the amount I save is minimal. As of today, I have saved $6.46. Yeah, that will buy me a... damn... What can I buy for $6.46?

Am I green? Yeah, most people would say that. But at the same time, I am not sure if that is why I ride. It's nice to do something, but the selfish part of me does not really think that is why I do it. So far, I have saved a measly 40.6 pounds of CO2 from going into the atmosphere.

In all honesty, cycling is something I enjoy. I enjoy riding when it is 30 degrees and raining. It's a bit of fun to see what I can really do. I enjoy being outside when many others are wrapped up in their cars. I fondly remember the ride several years where icicles formed on my helmet. It was almost as if I had singlehandedly defeated winter. Here I was, doing a summer activity when it was cold enough to have water freeze on my helmet. I looked at winter and told it that I would not be held hostage by it.

So, Why do I ride? It is a little bit of everything. I do like saving a bit of money. I am doing something good for the environment. Most of all, it is fun. After all, why do something that is not fun?

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