Bottom line: anytime someone uses the phrase "paradigm shift," they're full of shit.

Arrggh. This particular paradigm shift would only occur for a waterproof Northern Canadian from a small town.

In my town, Houston, as in much of the real world, it is to laugh.

It would take me 20 minutes on a bike just to get to the highway, which highway I, of course, couldn't ride a bike on. And with a gun to my head, I couldn't even begin to tell someone how to get from here to downtown without using a highway. Or how to make such a ride in 100 degree weather, then walk into the office and just get on down to work without offending.

So they're full of shit both for using the phrase "paradigm shift" and for being stupid and self-serving.

Annual federal budget for bicycle trails: $3.5 million.

Annual federal budget for the National and Interstate Highway Systems, which are designed and implemented so as to make it impossible to use a bicycle for ordinary transportation, except maybe if you live in Georgetown, old Seattle, downtown San Francisco or Key West: $30 billion.

disastrously offset by the increase in butt pain in about three days.

One word: recumbent

RECUMBENT FAQ

One of the other engineers I worked with at Rockwell back in the early 80's bought a HyperCycle. Very cool, fast and comfortable. He used it to commute to work.

Get a good spongy seat and a sprung seat post, on a bike with good fat tires. Major comfort increase, there.

I'm not so skeptical. I think more people will use bikes, because of gas prices. Of course for many people using a bike simply isn't an option, for many reasons. Still, bikes will be used more, won't be a huge shift though.
As usual many people will buy bicycles with the idea of using it a lot, and end up not using them much at all.

Reminds me of a great classified ad I once saw for a HealthRider. Something like:

"HealthRider, barely used. Excellent for hanging pants and shirts on."

Okay, bicycle commutes aren't that bad within certain distance ranges. Hell, I used to do a fairly significant cross-town jaunt in the middle of morning rush-hour traffic on busy surface streets in Las Vegas. And you know what - I'd be in the same general traffic-pack for several miles. But that was then, this is now - my current commute distance is outside of anyone whos name doesn't rhyme with Dance Darmstrong. Still, I really liked having bike lanes, and if we can accomodate them within reasonable expense limits, we should.

Crap, I just became another micro-special interest with a pork request.

Nevermind - screw bike riders.

Bicycles are not back.

What the firk! Just buy a 100 mpg motorcycle and hope it never rains or snows where you live.

I once loved going to work on my Honda Goldwing. It was hard on the Armani suits but WTF!

In California you can reliably do it 8 months per year. Just use the (top up) Corvette the other 4 months.

The only problem was I had to pass thru Berkeley 5 days a week.

A Cool and Logical Analysis of the Bicycle Menace

I went through this same hype in the 70's. I'll believe in the great "bicycling commuter" movement when I start picking them out of my car's grill.

The moonbats are nothing if not predictable. Race? It's all about the '40's and '50's. Military? Late '60's through '75. Economics? It's always either the '20's (oppressive greedy bastards drinking the blood of the workers) or the '30's (please tax us more so we can get rich again). Oh, yeah: And the planet is always either warming or cooling, as it always has been, but THIS time it's REALLY all your fault for disrespecting Mother Granola and not living like the Unibomber.

Honestly, I think there is a filing cabinet full of this nonsense somewhere and when the "useful idiots" get through the last drawer they just start again from the top.

Spot on target, VRWC. It really does seem like the moonbats just shuffle the deck most days (if we're lucky) and pick something pretty much at random. Doesn't seem to matter that we've already seen all the cards, or that in any case their entire hand consists of the two of clubs, the six of diamonds, and, well, a couple of queens.

I think if bicycling could be made safer, in particular safer from cars, a lot more people would do it.

Damn, Megan. You beat me to that link.

If those same moonbats weren't so obsessed with "zoning" and "community planning" that virtually dictates a car for the vast majority of people, a bike or modest stroll would be a viable answer for a lot of things.

Their mandated destruction of the semi-chaotic small town format (which worked perfectly fine for oh...several thousand years) is what has permanently welded Americans to their cars.

Oh nooooo - can't have residential units over storefronts - this is a "commercial" zoned area.

Oh nooooo - can't have smaller local schools where kids might actually be able to walk to them. Noooo MUST bus the tykes 20 miles every day.

Effing idiots.

RiverRat is right. Motorcycles are the way to go for fuel efficiency and convenience.

NOT FAIR!!! WAH! WAH!! You beat me to the punch!!! (hehehe!)

I had a draft put together last night that I posted this morning on my blog wherein I said basically the same thing about these bikes being found in a garage the next time it rains or the temps go down. Just like those exercise machines people get at Christmas.

Heads up: a bunch of people are saying the White House Counsel, Harriet Miers, is going to be announced as the President's second SCOTUS nominee @ 0800 EDT.

I think if bicycling could be made safer, in particular safer from cars, a lot more people would do it.

I'm with Village Idiot. I live in Madison, Wisconsin, and even in Liberal Central the main disincentive to biking is the fear that while hugging the bike lane, some idiot driving an SUV while yakking on their cell phone is going to punch my ticket.

Yeah, I really like the idea of riding a bicycle six miles to work in an Oklahoma summer wearing my good work clothes. Or an OK winter with the wind power-blowing down the plains.

Motorcycle, guy.

Let's not forget how divisive bike paths can be. One of those damnable bike paths drove Howard Dean from the Episcopal church. Those bastards!

Riding a recumbent is an even dorkier move than playing D&D.

And I'm a cyclist...

Bicycling is a great alternative to driving to work.... until starts raining in the afternoon.

It's not so hot for going grocery shopping or for running to the dry-cleaners.

It's also not much fun after the sun has been down for a while.

Finally, the last set of snow-tires I got for my bike were just lousy.

I've commuted by bicycle, and you would only do it if you love bicycling and get a kick out of doing something practical with your bike. To stash clothes at work so you can change when you get there, have a way to freshen up if there's no shower, etc. is not something most sane people would do to save a few bucks on gas.
Bicycle trails? Most of them increase gas consumption because they don't go from home to work, or from home to anywhere. You've got to ride on the highway to get to the bike path, ride it for a few miles, then get off it and ride on the streets and roads to get where you need to go. Go to most bike paths and you see parking lots full of cars with bike racks. People drive to the bike path, make a round trip, then drive home.
Bike lanes? Most bike lanes are designed to keep the bikes from scratching the cars. Try riding on a road that has a bike lane on only one side. No one knows what to do at intersections if the bike is westbound in eastbound traffic.
And the poster who mentioned the healthrider ad is spot on. My first brand-name bike was a Raleigh that had only been ridden three times.

I biked exclusively for years as a grad student in Seattle. Only used the car to get out of town on the weekends. Stayed in great shape.

But now, shuttling the kids, taking a briefcase, in a bike-hostile town... it would be tough to do it like that again. Bike paths can help a LOT if done right.

I can't make sense of the zoning comment above. The liberals/progressives *I* know are all over mixed-use zoning, pedestrian-friendly areas, minimize commuting, keep downtowns alive...

I biked exclusively for years as a grad student

Like we didn't already know that.

Personally, I'm thinking when you turn 16 you should sell your bike and buy a car. You can get where you're going faster. Also, mine is cool in the summer, warm in the winter, and it helps rid our planet of those controversial fossil fuels :)

Not one of you losers has mentioned the REAL problem with bikes -- helmets that make the wearer look like a gayzer.

When I was growing up, we didn't need no stinkin' helmets. And I turned out fine.

Doods, someone should tell you, if you wear those helmets along with the spandex shorts, you look like a big fucking geek.

Did I mention I turned out fine?
I did.

Riding a recumbent is an even dorkier move than playing D&D.

In my city it's just too rare to see a bike, cars would be grinding you into the pavement before they saw you. I tried biking to work a few summers ago, 20 miles each way. Day 2 I got clocked by a car (that didn't even slow down). It'd be great if you could do it safely, but it's not worth experiencing the Chris Reeve lifestyle.

Forget the faggy Kerry helmets. Go with an ordinary ProTec or the more stylish Gath Helmet

The Gath's are very popular with skydivers. Those other ones are only popular with...well Kerry types.

You can mount a mini camcorder on the side of the Gath or Protec too...so there will be footage of any splatters.

How can you ride a bicycle anywhere without spilling your drink? Does anyone really think respectable adults will start sipping their Old Forrester through a straw??

Doesn't matter what gas costs. It's never gonna catch on.