Sunday, January 26, 2014

Boston Globe Biking in Place

Is that why I'm getting nowhere with this blog?

"This is as close to a high-end dance club as exercise can get —at the heart of the spinning craze is the number of people who are willing to pay $20 an hour or more for a specialized workout….

I would have to give up buying Globes for a whole week.

--more--"

It's a “cult,”  all right.

But they are still peddling the agenda, folks:

"Welcoming the winter cycle; Rugged riders undeterred by season’s harsh turns" by Callum Borchers |  Globe Staff, January 24, 2014

Even with single-digit temperatures and icy streets, a hardy corps of local cyclists maintain a postal worker’s dedication to their routes:

They didn't see or hear the frostbite warnings?

Hubway, the bike-sharing service, has decided to keep its racks of rentable bicycles running during the winter in Cambridge this year and has seen a jump in those two-wheeled winter warriors, but urban biking does present risks, especially in Boston with its narrow streets and aggressive drivers. In 2012, five cyclists were killed in accidents — though none in winter….

That's because most people are not stupid enough to bike during winter, but if you want to take your life in your hands over there be my guest.

The risks increase during winter, when black ice threatens to transform every turn into an uncontrolled slide and snow banks make bike lanes narrower than usual, pushing riders closer to passing automobiles….

What’s worse, some cyclists admit they are less likely to wear helmets during winter because they often don warm hats instead.

So why bother?

Why am I bothering with this?

*****************

Not surprisingly Boston’s technology community seems particularly enamored of riding during winter, if only because it gives biking aficionados a whole new set of toys to try….

Often, “‘crazy’” Michael Taylor, president of Forum Biopharma Advisors in Lexington, would have to shower and change into new clothes before starting work.

I did that during the 1990s when I was buying into the global-warming $cam big-time.

“It’s a problem to be solved: How do I stay upright and warm and get to work?” Taylor said. “And I think that appeals to people in tech. There’s kind of an engineering challenge to it.”

For others, biking through a New England winter is a point of pride, or a way to ward off holiday weight gain….

Whatever the reason, the most committed bike commuters scoff when friends see a frigid forecast — such as the one for Friday when the wind-chill is supposed to make it feel like 9 below in the morning — and question whether they’ll keep cycling.

“People are like, ‘You’re seriously going to ride in this kind of weather?’” Greg Ralich said. “And I’m like, ‘Yeah. No problem.’” 

Oooooo-kay!

--more--"

Ready to “bike 14 miles?” 

Meanwhile, the company contracted to supply the program is bankrupt. 

Time for me to bike on over and get a Boston Sunday Globe -- or not.