When I was a NYC bicycle messenger, relatives, friends and others urged me to get another job. "It's so dangerous!" they exhorted.
I hear that same admonition, sometimes, when people learn that I continue to ride in the Big Apple. A few people I know have told me they used to pedal the pavement of the big city or spin their wheels somewhere else, but they stopped because it was "too dangerous".
Now, I know I have to be vigilant when riding in traffic. And there are other hazards. To me, though, riding in my hometown is no more--and probably much less--perilous than pedaling in other places.
I know. I have ridden in some of those other places. None of them, however, is nearly as hazardous as what these folks traverse every day:
The border area between Sudan and South Sudan is one of the most dangerous places on Earth. The climate, terrain and political situation make for a truly hazardous coffee run, to say the least.
I do not make that last statement lightly. The bicycle traders in the video make two-day trips to get coffee, juice and other items that might not be available in their home villages.
And I used to feel proud of going a few miles along sometimes-potholed roads for bagels!
