Recommendation: Driving a Bike

Some notes on why we decided to swap an old Jetta for a new electric cargo bike, even with kids in the picture.

Pros:

• Bike-riding is incredibly fun, especially in San Francisco’s climate
• I get an hour of exercise every day, just by commuting
• Cheap! No car payments, insurance, parking, repairs, gas, etc.
• I almost never fill a gas tank
• Front and center parking almost anywhere in the city
• Ride right past downtown traffic
• Ride right into and through SF parks
• Ultra carsick kid never pukes while on the bike
• Car-hating baby only sometimes screams while on the bike
• Family bonding activity that feels like (precious) alone time
• Bike takes up a fraction of our tiny garage (leaving room for the disgusting cat litter!)
• Electric-assist biking is still eco-friendly and simulates a “downhill both ways” situation
• Google bike maps and increasing numbers of bike lanes make urban biking actually not that intimidating
• If we could all do it, we could seriously unf*#& the world

Cons:

• “It’s part of it,” they said about the bruises from my first fall
• Fear of the next fall
• Rain jacket/rain pants/rain boots do not keep your face dry
• I must not have the right gear for riding in sub 50 degree weather
• Theft, though I’ve been lucky (and super careful) so far
• That time I managed to lift my 60 lb cargo bike on its side to fit in the BART elevators while juggling a small child — NEVER AGAIN
• Having to spend hundreds of dollars on zipcar just to leave town for the weekend
• I should really know how to patch a tire (or do even basic maintenance) by this point

In case you’re intrigued, here’s what you’d need to give this a shot

Requirements:

• Baseline level of fitness (Remember that you can always walk your bike up hills when you need to. Or call a taxi if your leg muscles give out on you.)
• A bike
• A helmet
• Front and back lights, even cheapo blinkers, required by CA law after dark
• Gloves for sub 65 degree weather (because your hands break the wind)
• Ideally not living at the top of a huge hill (which will suck the fun right out of it)
• Ideally not having to lug your bike up flights of stairs (ditto)
• Ideally somewhere indoors to park your bike at least 90% of the time
• Some wardrobe ingenuity (With some creativity/leggings, you can wear anything but fringed ponchos, pencil skirts, and full flowy dresses. And even those can be worked around. I can’t personally speak to heels though.)