World Bicycle Day

Bicycles certainly deserve to have at least one day set aside to honor them.

Admit it though, every time you ride one of your bikes you celebrate the almighty bicycle in some way. Plus, while we are being truthful here, you may as well tell us you have a few bicycles and love them all equally, like children. Although they are likely all aware you ride one way more than the others. 🤔

Speaking of multiple bikes, the “bike boom” of 2020 is continuing into our post-Covid world and hopefully will just continue to boom. Bikes of all types are in high demand, as well as related gear, and difficult to come by according to two bike shops I frequent here in northeast Ohio.

E-bikes are becoming much more popular as well as becoming a bigger part of the market share for bike purchases. For those of us who ride *regular* bikes aka *self-propelled* we know it all too well when a moped-looking bike passes us on the road or trail. Although they are beginning to look more and more like regular bikes so it is getting harder to tell. If you are like me however, when someone zooms past you just assume they must be riding an e-bike to be going that much faster.

The best thing to come out of the e-bike explosion is how they are opening up cycling to a whole new population and consequently increasing the number of people who ride bikes.

More people riding bikes – motor assist or not – makes it safer for all of us on the road. Study after study has shown the more people who ride, the safer conditions are for all. Drivers know to expect encountering cyclists and most adjust accordingly. Here in the east of Cleveland suburb of Chagrin Falls, drivers will avoid driving on Chagrin River Road I am told because of the number of cyclists riding this very popular road. On some early morning rides I have encountered more cyclists than cars and that my cycling, bike worshiping friends, is utopia.

So here is to World Bicycle Day, may every day be a day we appreciate the bicycle.