The car came back at the weekend after a week away, borrowed by the inlaws. I drove it to work today, just as I drove it to work yesterday. The weather is pretty dismal at the moment, freezing rain with strong winds, and so my pedal to work on routes which are quite pleasant for three seasons out of four become something of a grim ordeal. So I drove. No big deal, everybody drives right?
My point, which I’ll get to eventually, is this; If bike freaks like me, proper dyed-in-the-wool, life-long, committed cycling enthusiasts give up when the going gets tough how can we ever hope to persuade the general motoring public to adopt cycling? It’s not like I don’t have all the gear, the right bike(s), waterproofs, lights and all the rest. I’ve got no excuse.
But it gets a bit wearing when you’re struggling into a icy stinging headwind and one vehicle after another comes by too close, too fast, leaving you gasping in a cloud of spray. Drivers look at you as if you are completely mad from the comfort of their warm cocoons. And you wonder why the hell you’re doing it. For the planet? Why? When no one else seems to give a hoot. Answers on a postcard etc..
