Bicycle? Why bicycle? Why not just take a car/taxi/bus/train??

By now, you probably read abt me using bicycle quite a bit. But, bicycle?? Come on...isnt bicycles are for the poor who cant affort car or public transport. Isnt taking bicycle look very "siar sui" and ppl may look down on you??

Let me tell you my side of my story. I have been riding bicycle for most of my growing years. I love cycling. I used to cycle a lot when I was young. I still remember, I used to race bicycle with my elder brother, when we were like 8-9yrs old. We used to cycle around the neighborhood, and sometimes even beyond the neighborhood. That continued all the way till our teenage years. We used to go cycling when we had free time. Also, we spent quite a bit time modifying our bicycles.

When I went overseas at the age of 16, I was a newpaper boy, who used bicycle to deliver newspaper every morning. Then in university time, I also cycled quite a bit, but not as much as last time. Then, after graduated and started working (in Penang), I cycled almost every evenings after work. Either cycled to buy my dinner or just for the joy of cycling.

Now, in Singapore, I use the bicycle almost on a daily basis. Most of the time, I used it to send the kids to school, back from school, to Tommy jai's maths & piano classes. Sometimes to the grocery stores, to the kopi tiam to get some meals...

Now, back to the question of why not just drive a car or take taxi/bus/train? For those who dont cycle, or rarely cycle, you just dont understand the joy of riding a bicycle. Riding a bicycle is much more nicer than driving. You can go a lot farther and a lot faster than walking, you can enjoy the scenery along the way. And when u reach your destination, you dont need to find a car park. Just drop it off to the nearest corridor, or entrance or under the tree. When riding, you can go whereever you want to go. You can go places that a car cant. You are not afraid of no parking lot, you are not afraid of traffic jam. Driving a car just wont have this kind of "luxury".

Then how abt taking a taxi or bus? Hey, as I always tell my son, I hate to wait for the bus, especially the Bus 59 that goes to his maths center. Typically, we have to wait for 25mins for one to come. Taxi? After factor in the time to catch for a taxi, and the fares, it is not that much better than biking.

Well, of cos, there are times that driving car is much much better than a bike. Like during raining day, hot day, long distance etc, in the comfort of your car with aircond. Sure, but for most of the days, riding a bike to places that are not too far, is still the best option .

So, that is the practical part. Bottom line is riding a bike is not just fun but....

1. Economical to travel around your neighborhood. You dont need to bother if the petrol price is up or down. You pretty much care less.
2. Consider it as your daily exercise. Think abt it. If you are a working person, how often do you really exercise everyday? Exercise is good for health, and health is very important.
3. Good for the environment. Hey, biking helps to shrink our planet's carbon footprint. No one can complain abt taht.

Of cos, there are many other benefits but having a good health from regular exercise alone is enough for me to continue this habit.

My wife often complains to me of spending so much time on my bike (especially fixing my bike). Hopefully, after reading this she realizes that biking has been part of my life for a long time. Riding is one, fixing the bike to make sure it is in tiptop condition is another.