Monday, May 14, 2012 By Lucy Wu
A row of bikes stands proud at the bike rack. Many students ride to school daily, in fact, May 9th was Bike to School Day. - Lucy Wu
The month of May is a time to celebrate not only the arrival
of summer, May Day, and Memorial Day, but also the adventurous ride that is
National Bike Month.
“[I use my bike to]
travel, because my mom is not at home when I need her,” junior Taiga Yamaguchi
said.
Bikes are a good alternative to those who cannot drive or
choose not to drive but still need to travel. But why bikes? Aren’t those so
nineteenth century? While bikes are not the ideal form of transportation to far
away destinations unless the willing are absolutely dedicated to going the
distance, bikes are a pretty efficients means of transportation when paired
with good planning and public transportation so that communities can become a
little more environmentally friendly. According to bikeleague.org, the number
of bikers has increased ninety five percent in Bike Friendly Communities.
“Bikes have two wheels; wheels are round; pizzas are round.
I ride bikes to get pizza,” said junior Stanley Han.
The League of American Bicyclists has updated its website to
accommodate the month of May and offers advice, encouragement, and alerts for
bicyclists and any who hope to revolutionize traveling green and being helpful
to the environment at the same time. Bike to Work Week, an event that began in
Europe, is May 14-18. North American cities have taken it up as a tradition as
well in order to promote conservation of fuel, reduction of noise, and healthy
alternatives to sitting for hours in traffic.
“[Biking] saves money on gas, and is good exercise. It’s
faster in traffic too. The best part is going fast down a hill though,” junior
Ryan Collier said.
Biking can be just for fun at times as well. The forerunners
to the modern bicycle was created in 1817 in Paris according to
sciencetech.technomuses.ca and have since gained popularity as an extreme sport
and as a form of good exercise. The stationary bike at the gym is there for a
reason after all.
“I ride bikes just for entertainment. It’s a chance to go
outside for some fresh air.” freshman Ashima Katakwar said.