by Matt Bird

Created on: May 27, 2009

I'd glad to see this title exists, because frankly, there aren't enough cyclists out there. Even in the summer when you'll see somebody on a bike every couple minutes of so, they're in the vast minority: everybody else is either walking (which is fine), jogging (also fine) or putting about in their cars (not so fine). The world would be a much better place if more of us took to the back of a bike rather than parking ourselves in a car.

Why? Well, I'll tell you why.

1.) Bikes don't pollute. It's difficult to give off dangerous emissions when your vehicle doesn't even have an engine. Bikes are about as clean as they come, and though old bike frames may take up space in waste landfills, their number is nothing compared to what cars do to our environment.

2.) Bikes provide exercise. Boy, do the provide exercise, especially if you have to climb hills. Biking is one of my favorite forms of working out, mainly because it's also practical: while you're doing your workout you can get somewhere in the meantime. It provides results similar to jogging but without the extra wear on your feet and legs, and gets you a lot further in the process.

3.) Bikes are cheap. You can't possibly try and argue with me that a car will cost you less money than a bike, not unless the bike you have your eyes on is made of solid gold and encrusted with diamonds. A good bike will run you a few hundred dollars and, with good care, last you several years: at most you'll have to pay for replacement tires and yearly maintenance. Cars eclipse those costs with a year's worth of fuel alone, especially if you use the car to get anywhere.

4.) Bikes are fast. Sure, they can't match up against cars on a long stretch, but getting to a destination that's reasonably close won't take that much longer on a bike than it will on a car, and you'll definitely go a lot faster than you would on foot. What's more, bikes can go off the beaten path and take shortcuts cars can't hope to use - not to mention there are no traffic jams when you're cycling.

5.) Bikes are fun! I shouldn't have to point this one out, really, but it's true. It's exhilarating to zip down a hill on the back of a well-oiled bike, the wind howling in your ears. Some of my best memories are on bikes, and they still help relieve tension on bad days.

If one fifth of the population of North America suddenly started riding bikes rather than using their cars, I think we'd see a huge difference in society as a whole. The air would be cleaner, people would be fitter and gas prices would drop. And that, my friends, would be a happy world indeed.

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