Cycling And….

 It occurs to me now that most, if not all, of my rides fall into one (or more) of these categories: the “pure,” “purpose-driven” and “integrative.”

The “pure” include training rides,those early-morning spins I’ve done lately and any other ride I’ve taken for its own sake.  “Purpose-driven” rides are commutes, errands and any other ride that involves a specific destination and task.

“Integrative” rides incorporate some other activity with cycling. When riding near home, or spending a few days in Paris, Rome or some other city, the ride can turn into a tour of architectural, historical or other monuments.* Or, in the country, my ride might be paired with hiking, camping or some other activity.

For Jeffrey Reed of suburban Buffalo, New York, that pursuit is “birding**.” I have never been a “birder,” though I have been paying more attention to our aleatory allies lately, possibly as a result of spending time in the Botanical Gardens.

Cute! Hooded Warbler . Photo by Jeffrey Reed

There is one more important difference, however, between my experience and Mr. Reed’s of integrating cycling with another activity. Because I am a lifelong cyclist, I usually am bringing the other endeavor—whether it has to do with nature, culture or something else—into my riding. Jeffrey, on the other hand, got on the saddle after decades away from it.

He decided on a hybrid-type bike.  While “serious” cyclists might turn up their noses at such machines (and, worse, those who ride them), they make sense for people like Reed—especially since, as he explains, most of his riding is on trails and gravel paths in local state forests and parks. Oh, and from what I gather, he’s not doing any of the “technical,” let alone gonzo, stuff I did during my mountain-biking days.

He says he doesn’t ride where there’s traffic, except on park roads where it’s minimal, because he has “no interest in becoming a hood ornament.” It will be interesting to see whether his cycling expands beyond his current self-imposed boundaries, understandable as they may be for someone who is returning to cycling—as a means to another pursuit.

*—There was an organization that conducted rides into ethnic enclaves of New York City and sampled its food. I took one of their rides—on the front of a tandem with a blind rider behind me.

**—I assume it’s what we called “bird watching “ in my day—just as I guess “thrifting” is the same (save for the prices) as shopping in thrift stores. 

Did She Make Citibike More Expensive?

 The goal of reducing motor vehicle traffic in New York City—if indeed there ever was such a goal (or, more precisely, if city officials were serious about it)—seems increasingly distant.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Governor Kathy Hochul halted congestion pricing, which would have taken effect this month.

I favor such a plan in principle. To be fair, however, I can understand the objections of contractors and other small business owners in the outer boroughs and suburbs who must bring large, heavy equipment into Manhattan every day. For them, and others, mass transportation, cycling or walking are not mere inconveniences: they are not feasible.

As a result of the Governor’s order, some mass transportation improvements (or catching up on deferred maintenance), which would have been funded by charging drivers $15 to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street, have been cancelled or deferred.

I have not heard of any cancellations or deferrals to bicycle infrastructure projects. I have to wonder, however, whether Citibike’s second price increase this year—20 percent—on eBike rentals is an indirect result of Hochul putting the kibosh on congestion pricing.

The money raised would have gone to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state agency in charge of New York City’s subways and buses, some of its bridges and tunnels and suburban commuter bus and rail lines (including Metro North and the Long Island Rail Road). While Citibike doesn’t receive funds from the MTA —ironically, the bike-share program is run by the ride-share company Lyft—it is affected by street and driving conditions. For one thing, Citibike has its own fleet of vehicles to service the program. One of the reasons Citibike gave for its price increases is vehicle and insurance costs that are higher than anticipated—no doubt, at least in part, because of traffic congestion. Another is battery swapping on its eBikes:  the program doesn’t have enough charging or swapping stations. (Problems in creating them are one reason why Tesla ended battery-swapping.)

Happy (?) Fourth

 This morning I pedaled out to City Island on Tosca, my Mercian fixie.  Although humid, the air pleasantly balanced early summer with early morning: just enough warmth with just enough briskness.

We had our Pride festivities, and the end of Pride Month, on Sunday.  Still, I was surprised, as I have been during my most recent rides to the Island, at how many rainbow flags I saw draped from window sills and door frames, fluttering ever so lightly in the sea breeze.

Riding back along the Pelham Parkway path, I had a terrifying thought:  This might be the last Fourth of July I see those flags—or that the Stars and Stripes has any meaning, if it still does.

When people wished me “Happy Fourth,” I felt almost sick—and not because it’s my birthday and I’m another year older.  Rather, I am scared because of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Monday.  It says that the President cannot be held criminally accountable for “official” acts while in office.

Photo by Craig Hudson for the Washington Post 

So what constitutes an “official” act? Is it anything the President says it is? 

Some—including Justice Sonia Sotomayor in her dissent—have pointed out that Trump, if elected, could actually carry out his boast/threat to send Navy Seal Team 6 to assassinate his political rivals. He could, therefore, foment violence that would make January 6, 2021 look like a summer fair.

I have two very personal reasons to fear Trump becoming, in essence, Louis XIV. During his reign, haters of all kinds were emboldened to carry out their hatred on anyone they see as a “threat,” including transgender people. The violence has continued and probably intensify as Trump and his allies repeal laws and policies that aim to bring about equality—and pass new legislation to make life more difficult, even impossible, for us.

Oh, and don’t forget that he hates bicycles and cyclists. Would he target us directly or use fossil fuel companies by giving them tax breaks and allowing “eminent domain” so they could tear up bike lanes and other infrastructure to, say, build more pipelines?

I hope that I won’t have to feel so anxious next Fourth. In other words, I am hoping this country is still the country I was taught to believe it is—if indeed it still is, or ever was, that country.