The kindness of bikers

I have been thinking lately that my favorite thing about biking is that it opens yourself up to all kinds of new connections with the people around you. Granted, sometimes that can be a little stressful, such as the rare person who feels the need to tell you why they think you're a horrible parent or that you shouldn't be on "their" road. However, the majority of interactions I have while riding are fantastic! Just yesterday, a woman stopped me to ask where I got my Xmas lights on the Mundo. That turned into a discussion about the new homemade Bakfiets they just bought for their baby and all the great Sacramento family bikers she needs to meet. Just a few blocks later, I heard my name and a friend I hadn't seen in ages popped out of her car window to say hello! I love that I can say "thank you" to people on the street who aren't raking their leaves into the bike lane and "go ahead" to the pedestrians in the crosswalk. I politely (usually) remind people to watch out when they swing open their doors or park (car, bike, UPS, et al.) in the middle of the bike lane. It makes my day to hear all the "awesome," "right on," "so cute!" comments that we get every day. During our Xmas tree ride, a spandex'd roadie passed me, turned back in disbelief and with a huge smile said "I would have never thought it was possible!" Just today, I came home to a message on my machine from a guy saying "I'm a biker, too, and I found your wallet in the bike lane on T st." Brilliant! I hadn't even realized it was missing. 

In a car, we're sealed off to the outside world. We've been brainwashed into thinking this is a good thing. Keep all the bad things out, lock your doors, close your windows and turn up the a/c. God forbid you are exposed to the elements! My children ride on the bike feeling like they are in a parade. They smile and wave and interact with everything and everyone they see. They feel connected and in turn, reach out to their community. I try to do the same. Smiling and waving goes a long way to getting the people around you to notice you are a person, too. It's so easy to become an isolated zombie driver. 

Every day, we meet new people and see friendly faces because we are travelling by bike. I love changing people's minds (mine included) about what they think bikes can do and who they think bikers are. In the end, I just love to be reminded that we are all human and we should act that way towards each other. 

My favorite "cyclists"

Another favorite thing about biking is our friendly local bike shop, Practical Cycle. A shop so caring that Tim made sure I brought Jose's Easton in to be fixed after reading about it from my last post. Now, not only is it in tip-top shape, it is also sporting a new set of fenders and a handy kickstand--very practical! Tim found that the reason the chain was skipping so badly was because it was actually bent, probably from the massive crash Jose had last month. Instead of making us buy a new chain (one shop once told me that whenever you buy a new chain, you also need to get a new cassette!), he straightened the original out. He didn't try to sell me more than I needed but made sure we had a safe and working bike. 

We need more folks looking out for one another and I truly believe that one of the easiest ways is to get them all on bikes.