Here's an article I found on EcoWorldly giving reasons as to why bikes are the most popular way to get around in the world today. Some interesting stuff, what are your thoughts?
Yea alright, they are "zero emission" vehicles....but they arent! So much emissions is produced in the manufacture of aluminum and steel in the first place, let alone all of the other parts. Its great that they dont pollute while we "run them" but to make them and maintain then (DOT brake fluid is very toxic) we pollute...well, i guess its still better than cars..
what and there is no pollution produced from the manufacturing of thousands of cars each year. and how there are way more toxic chemicals found on a car like anti-freeze, DOT brake fluid, oil, gasoline, and many more where as a bike has only ONE toxic chemical.
Its stupid to say bikes have no carbon footprint, they do, but what a car generates during production and over its life is no doubt like comparing pluto and the sun in size. Go ride a bike!
am a mechanic and i agree with adrenaline junkie, bikes are harmful and take a toll on our environment, though granted they are less harmful than cars, but they still use DOT fluid, rubber, oil, solvents and MANY other harmful chemicals and materials that are bad for the environment, where do you think your old tubes and tires go? into landfills, with the exception of a VERY FEW bike shops that have the ability to recycle those materials, not to mention the FEW shops that recycle the metal parts such as cables ect. and bike burn through tires and tubes much faster than a car does burn through it tires, Now im all for riding bikes i love bikes, but they are still harmful to the environment and while an excellent alternative to cars the bike industry has a long ways to go to become 'zero waste' and more environmentally friendly
You know that your shoes also generate waste to produce, right? Would you stop walking because of it? There is no such thing as 'zero waste' in any product that we consume.
Also, for those saying that bikes are harmful because of DOT, just remember that there are way more commuting bikes with cantis in circulation than our big-buck-high-end MTB. I believe the above article relates to "useful bikes" as opposed to "useless bikes". Since our MTB are mostly used for recreation, they are definitely "useless bikes" because of the fact that they aren't used to produce anything, except waste. "Useful bikes" have a smaller footprint because they are directly or undirectly use to produce something or to satisfy a basic need. Top that with simpler designs and components and you find yourself with a environmentally negligable way of transport!
agreed ,bikes do have a carbon footprint , but it's a small (very , very small) fraction of the footprint of a sub-sub-compact hybrid car , or a fully electric car for that mater. still the best choice for communting 1 person + 1 cubic meter of luguage. the impact on the heahlt is considerable also. Basicaly, north america as a lot to gain from the use of bikes. thats the political and social reasons , they are what they are and i want to promote them as much as i can!.
but MY first reason to bike ? -shreading down a single track on a gnarly mountain slope in Bromont. -felling the pain/gain from a epic XC ride or enduro race. -cruising whit my daughter in the chariot and my girlfriend. bikes are the most fun you can have playing outside.
Reason 14...."Cyclists breathe in less air pollution"....well, this all depends on where you ride. If you spend most of your time in the countryside, then its probably true. BUT if your main use is commuting through city streets then its the reverse. There are other massive holes in the "17 Reasons" which I won't go into because all in all it's a nice sentiment, and if it helps to encourage more people out of their cars and onto bikes, then mores the better.
i seemed to me that they just said the same 3 or 4 reasons 17 times. not to mention good luck riding to work and being a productive member of socity if you live farther then 2 miles form something. in the midwest its not uncommon to live 80 miles form work.
This article was a good start to something that could be a great read. I agree with the cmfreeride. It really said the same thing a couple of times. Bicycles don't work as well in North America because everything is just to far; Product of the car. This could be easily fixed with smaller communities but who does that now?
I think this story should inspire all of us Mt Bikers to commute. It may not be a perfect artical but It raises very valiad pionts. If you live to far away then drive or take the bus half way and ride the rest. GET INVOLVED! Go to puplic meetings and vioce you opintion on transportation and development. I live in one of the most hilly and rainy cities in the US and 12% of our population commutes by bike year round with more convertes every year. Commuting can serve to make you a much better recreational rider or racer as well. Plus with all the money you save on gas you can take a kick ass bike vacation to your favorite bike park, thats what I do any way.
They dug in and found every last reason i think, kind of a lame read but it gets it all out there. The figures really are astounding if you look at them all, i ride everywhere because its fun, i know its the best way too and that just justifies it more i guess. more people are picking up on it too, which is good.
I think bikes are the worst idea ever, and that we should all buy large gas-guzzling S.U.V's and drive them through delicate ecosystems, until we reach apocalypse
come on guys, we all know bikes are the way forward. simple as that....
oil is running out and we are in a credit crunch.
there will be a new world, and bikes can make it work.
so get on and ride.
period.
lots of luck.
g
umm.. i still commute on my heavy AM bike.. like road rides and everything. its not designed for that, but the more resistance, the fitter i get. i know i look like a fool with boxxer DCs in front and my seat up but do i give a shit? the people who laugh are the losers because they cant handle it. i dont complain.
and i agree, bikes are eco-friendly. you can ride for years and years on a bike until its finally un-ridable. the resources needed to build and maintain a car outweigh bikes by far. everything we produce has waste, including electricity. there are no BETTER human forms of transportation that matches the efficiency of the bike.
It's the same thing here, I commute everyday to work, to the city, whatever. whenever I can, I use the bike..But people keeping asking me when I will take my drivers license( that I have) or when I will buy a car or a motorcycle..
don't forget a lot of SE asian countries populous can't afford cars so they us e bikes as means of transportation, since they're so billions of people it skews this statistic
so poorly written, 17 reasons are too many. These guys are trying to prove a point, and I am totally siding with them. But learn how to write something so it sounds interesting.
So much emissions is produced in the manufacture of aluminum and steel in the first place, let alone all of the other parts. Its great that they dont pollute while we "run them" but to make them and maintain then (DOT brake fluid is very toxic) we pollute...well, i guess its still better than cars..
Also, for those saying that bikes are harmful because of DOT, just remember that there are way more commuting bikes with cantis in circulation than our big-buck-high-end MTB. I believe the above article relates to "useful bikes" as opposed to "useless bikes". Since our MTB are mostly used for recreation, they are definitely "useless bikes" because of the fact that they aren't used to produce anything, except waste. "Useful bikes" have a smaller footprint because they are directly or undirectly use to produce something or to satisfy a basic need. Top that with simpler designs and components and you find yourself with a environmentally negligable way of transport!
still the best choice for communting 1 person + 1 cubic meter of luguage.
the impact on the heahlt is considerable also. Basicaly, north america as a lot to gain from the use of bikes.
thats the political and social reasons , they are what they are and i want to promote them as much as i can!.
but MY first reason to bike ?
-shreading down a single track on a gnarly mountain slope in Bromont.
-felling the pain/gain from a epic XC ride or enduro race.
-cruising whit my daughter in the chariot and my girlfriend.
bikes are the most fun you can have playing outside.
Bicycles don't work as well in North America because everything is just to far; Product of the car. This could be easily fixed with smaller communities but who does that now?
and i agree, bikes are eco-friendly. you can ride for years and years on a bike until its finally un-ridable. the resources needed to build and maintain a car outweigh bikes by far. everything we produce has waste, including electricity. there are no BETTER human forms of transportation that matches the efficiency of the bike.
I can see where he's coming from, even if you can't