I Want to Ride My Bicycle

I wanted to ride my bicycle…but I couldn’t. After my old Schwinn finally pedaled its last mile, I had been looking at getting a replacement that was just right to fill that void. After doing a lot of research and looking around the area and the internet, I wanted to share some thoughts and resources on bikes; since I did the work I might as well write a blog post about it, right?

Why a bike?

“Why not just drive instead of having to pedal your way?” some might ask. Sure, you could do that, but with gas prices being what they are, it’s obvious that biking instead is going to save you money. Less gas equals more green for your wallet and also it’s green for the environment. Win-win for you and Mother Earth.

Biking is a fun way to get out in nature while getting some exercise! There are many trails to ride or you can potentially off-road it if you have a mountain bike, or thicker tires to handle the terrain.

It can be a way to socialize – you can ride with other people or join a bike club/advocacy group, such as local groups like Chippewa Off Road Bike Association (CORBA) or the EC Velo Club. If you get a tandem bicycle, you can get exercise while biking with someone (provided you trust them to actually pedal and not make you do all the work).

What kind of bike to get?

Once you have decided you need a bike in your life, you have to figure out what type of bike to get, keeping in mind the utility you need and the aesthetics you desire. I am not going to even try to make an exhaustive list of bike types since there are many variations, but some of the main types you might find are:

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If you’re curious about which bike I decided to purchase, it’s this little beauty. We ordered it online and assembled it ourselves; putting it together was a fun adventure in itself, complete with the pride of having built something functional and awesome!