Today is Presidents’ Day in the US. Previously, it was celebrated as Washington’s Birthday, which was declared a Federal holiday in 1885.
That was on the eve of America’s first Bicycle Boom. So, as this holiday is today an occasion for sales on bedding, at that time new bike models were rolled out (pun intended).
Four years ago, I wrote a post about it.
When I ride, I feel like I have wings
As I have mentioned in earlier posts, Florida has had, for several years running, the highest--by far--bicycle fatality rate of any US state.
A number of factors contribute to the high body count: a car-centric culture, a lack of consciousness of cyclists among motorists, high rates of alcohol consumption and a lack of shoulders or sidewalks, let alone bike or pedestrian lanes, on most thoroughfares.
One notable exception to the dark side of the Sunshine State is Flagler County. It's the only county in Central Florida (roughly defined as anything within a two-hour drive of Orlando) in which a cyclist wasn't killed in 2018 or 2019.
I can attest that the county is indeed safer for bike-riding than other parts of the state (at least the parts in which I've ridden). In fact, I enjoyed riding there and immediately saw the difference when I crossed into neighboring St.John's or Volusia counties, especially when I neared St. Augustine or Daytona Beach.
You see, the largest city in Flagler is Palm Coast, where my parents lived. I've documented a few of my visits in this blog. There are a number of paths in the city and county, and most of the major roads have, if not actual bike lanes, then wide sidewalks where cycling is permitted. And, I must say, pedestrians, in my experience, were very courteous.
Plus, there just seemed to be more cyclists in Palm Coast and Flagler than in neighboring areas, or even in the areas around Jacksonville, Miami or Fort Lauderdale, where I've also ridden. I don't know whether more people ride because the conditions are favorable, or those conditions exist because of the cyclists.
My mother is gone and I don't know how much longer my father will stay in Palm Coast. At least I have pleasant memories of riding there. Little did I know that I was in an island in a storm of cycling mishaps!
