A Pinoy Biker’s Philippine Rural Adventures

A happy biker will more likely arrive at his destination sooner, safer and saner. So here are 5 more habits that make a biker happy.

6. Share the road. This goes both ways, for the vehicle driver and the biker. No one has the monopoly of this very limited resource and the sooner we all realize that sharing the road is inevitable, the better all of us will be on it. There are several options that are open for the city and the bikers to explore in developing this share the road scheme. Some cities opted to put up bike lanes along existing roads in the hope that bikers would be safer on them. Some bikers have advocated for what they call as ”vehicular cycling”. According to John Forester, a proponent of this advocacy, “cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of vehicles.” Personally, I am more for vehicular cycling, as this doesn’t involve putting up additional infrastructure to accommodate both vehicle drivers and bikers on the road. However, I do realize that education is paramount in this regard. And this is where this option may fail. But the fact remains that we all have to share the road no matter what. Sharing, as in all other material and non-material goods, makes one a happy person. In this case, a happy biker.

7. Be a “biker tourist”. I just got this idea from reading a traveler’s blog called Footsteps. I have been biking to work for more than a year now, and when I am not limited by my physical condition, I also go on out of town trail rides. But these rides can become quite ordinary and uneventful, especially when you have done the same rides for several times already. The idea of being a biker tourist fits perfectly as a remedy in this regard. I have actually done this without realizing it. See my post: Ride to Riverbanks Park. Being a biker tourist lets you see your own town (or some other towns you may wish to visit) in another light. Visiting some never before seen nook and cranny of your town may give you insights in to its history and make you understand why your town is as it is now. Besides, as a biker tourist, you also contribute to your town’s well-being and even economic growth.

8. Be a part of an advocacy group for cycling and clean air. This is actually a shameless plug for the Firefly Brigade. Being part of an advocacy group gives focus on what I can do, not only for the environment but for myself and my country. The Firefly Brigade for example, requires the following from their members:

• An infectious love for cycling
• A spirit of volunteerism
• A strong sense of community
• Positive action for the environment
• Gender-sensitivity and non-discrimination
• Responsible cycling behavior

Now if these qualities don’t make a biker happy, I don’t know what else will.

9. Know the bicycle’s noble history. Bikes came first than cars. In one of her articles debunking bicycle myths, Lauren Cooper says that:

“It was bicycle mechanics (Henry Ford, Wright Bros.) who invented cars and airplanes using advanced bicycle technology. Neither could exist without pneumatic tires, precision bearings, tension-spoked wheels, chain-drive, rolled steel, and other technology invented for bicycles.”

I am happy to note that cars have legacies inherited from bikes. But I am not happy that cars have exploited and converted these as advantages that are being abused. Cars are faster, but given enough time, bikes can also arrive at the same destination as them, and perhaps even at a better condition than a car. Also as quoted above, bike is the most civilized conveyance known to man. Aren’t we all civilized? If we are, then we should be able to appreciate the fact that bicycles on the road are already a part of our daily existence. Gasoline and oil are not renewable sources of energy. They will eventually run out. While the manufacture of bikes largely depends of them too nowadays, there are others that cars cannot use and exploit. I can see bikes way into the next centuries, whereas cars I foresee as non-existent already in the next one.

10. A happy biker prays before a ride. I have posted a “cyclist prayer” composed by Fr. Picx. For me, this prayer summarizes the whole idea of a happy biker. It condenses the thoughts and aspirations of every biker, whether he or she is a weekend warrior, a free rider, a cross country racer, a downhill jumper, or a simple bike to work dude. Each biker has his own aspirations in a particular biking milieu, a racer to win, a jumper to clear the jump, a free rider to land safely in the ground, a biker to work to arrive safely at work and back home, but together all bikers just want to be free to ride anywhere the trail leads them, without pomp or extravagance, without fanfare or even a welcoming crowd. Every biker just want to feel one with the bike and the road, and together ride in to the horizon, not looking back even.

There you are, the ten habits of a happy biker. But it doesn’t mean though that practicing only one or two will not make you happy. Of course not. As a biker, you will be happy just being on the bike without these ten habits I am sure. But try practicing them and perhaps you may just find yourself more energized, more ready to face the non-cycling world, and always on the lookout for more trails to blaze.