Photos From the Saddle

“Well, what do you expect… it’s public transportation; you have to deal with the public.”

The nuances of the train are always amusing—cell phones, social circles, seating and car selection, etc. Being a cyclist on the train, you’re in a definite subset of the greater train commuting culture.

For one, you and your bike are an awkward combination that is, at times, difficult to maneuver within the confined space of mass transit… like the guy with the 29er with an xtracycle. When the weather is nice, more bikes end up on the train… leading to situations like the above picture (I won’t go into bike-on-bike etiquette)… which just compounds the maneuverability issue, and, in turn, compounds the separation between cyclist and non-cyclist on the train.

Then there’s the issue of spandex… those that wear full spandex outfits usually have a halo of empty seats around them. Personally, I don’t understand the desire to commute in your full team kit, but hey… to each their own. I prefer the utilitarian approach of loose gear… plus, I’m not racing to work.

Interestingly, there’s very little interaction between cyclists on the train… or at least that’s been my experience. On the rare occasions where I’ve ended up chatting with other cyclists, the conversation almost invariably focuses on the bike. “How do you like that crankset?” or “A single-speed, huh? What about hills?”. Honestly, if I get chatted up, it’s usually by non-cyclists… “Don’t you get cold?!?”, “I could never sit on a seat that small!” or “Are those the pedals that you clip in to? What happens if you fall over?”

The funny thing, however, is that while there may be very little verbal interaction between cyclists on the train, there’s usually a silent assessment that occurs. Since all the bikes are in one spot, and riders usually sit within close proximity of their bikes, it’s pretty easy to notice. It’s the “check out”, if you will, where one will quietly look at the other bikes. On occasion, this process leads to verbal interaction (i.e. “Nice bike” or “How do you like that light?”), but usually it just happens in silence and people get on and off the train without any interaction.

It’s these naunces that amuse me. People are pretty freakin’ entertaining.

Having not commuted by bike, I decided to go for a quick spin after work yesterday. While forcing out a rhythm on a climb, a white truck started coming down the hill. A half-block away, it was steered across the yellow line and directly at me. It straightened out, albeit in the oncoming lane, and revved the engine as it flew by me. The windows were tinted, so I never saw who was driving… but I did have a few choice words for them as they passed.

As I’ve spent more time on the road, I’ve grown more and more convinced that it’s not so much a question of if, but when I will get hit. I don’t want that to be the case, but it’s shit like what happened yesterday that makes me wonder just how wise it is to ride on the roads.

I don’t want to be paranoid about every driver out there. There are far more “good” drivers than “bad”; unfortunately, it’s the ones that could kill me that I’m worried about, and there’s no easy way of telling “them” apart. It’s that “them” thing, too, that bothers me… because once “Us” and “Them” distinctions are made, it gets harder to remember the things that bridge that gap.

I’m sure, too, that most drivers have encountered more than a few “bad” cyclists that either ride in an unsafe manner or behave in a combative manner toward cars. There’s no excuse for bad cycling, either.

Ultimately, I just want there to be understanding between cars (and their drivers) and cyclists… not this sense of distrust and tension.

In other, less dramatic news: at the top of the hill, I was waiting at a stop sign when a guy rode past on a nice bike… I was too busy looking at his bike to notice the incredibly attractive girl on a single-speed a little bit behind him until she’d passed in front of me. Oops.