💾 Archived View for jsreed5.org › log › 2023 › 202308 › 20230805-cycling.gmi captured on 2023-09-08 at 16:17:16. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
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I purchased a bicycle in 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and a time when most gyms and swimming pools in my area were closed. Though I had Ring Fit Adventure and a Pump It Up arcade machine at home, I get cabin fever very quickly, and I needed something to do outside the house.
As the region began to reopen in 2022, I found myself cycling less and less. This was primarily because I could satisfy my itch to go outside in other ways, but as I began cycling regularly before then, I found that it wasn't easy to use my bike as anything other than a dedicated exercise machine.
By and large, the American Midwest is not a bicycle-friendly place. The major city centers have plenty of bike racks and cycling lanes, but many suburbs still don't, and small rural communities have no cycling infrastructure at all. Urban sprawl is a major problem in the region, meaning that destinations of interest can all be (and often are) several miles apart from each other. Some areas are downright hostile to cyclists, with narrow roads, regulations against using footpaths, and aggressive drivers.
All this, combined with the fact that I live in of the rural communities that have no bicycle facilities, means that I currently have almost no reason to go cycling unless it's a dedicated exercise activity.
Despite these setbacks, I'm still trying to cycle more often these days: at least once a week. My stay-at-home job means that for the majority of daylight hours five days a week, I never leave my house. When we do go out, it's often to other friends' houses or on shopping trips, over ninety percent of which happens indoors. I need more sun exposure in my life, and cycling is a good way to do that. It also burns calories, makes me feel good about exerting myself, and gets me out of the monotony of my home office.
We also recently discovered a small grocery store a few blocks down from us. I'd like to get into the habit of grabbing my bicycle and heading there whenever we want a snack or a few small ingredients, rather than dragging out our car and wasting gas for a thirty-second trip.
My bicycle is a Specialized Sirrus 2, a hybrid bike that compromises between road and off-road cycling. Unfortunately I've come to learn that this means the worst of both worlds: the bike isn't light or aerodynamic enough to make road cycling very easy, but it isn't robust enough to handle dirt and gravel very well--ironic for a bicycle from a company called "Specialized". One day I'd like to have multiple bicycles, one for each purpose.
Are there any others who live in the American Midwest and go cycling? What kind of cycling do you do, and what bicycle(s) do you have? Do you find them particularly useful, beyond the enjoyment you get from them? I'd love to hear about it.
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[Last updated: 2023-08-05]