Posted by Founder, Bicycling Monterey
Voices of People Who Bike, Part 2: Encouragement, support, barriers, bullying
Bicycling Monterey’s spring 2023 questionnaire posed 40 questions, and we invited everyone to respond to only a couple questions or to as many as they wished. We’re highlighting responses in a series of posts; this is the second. (For Part 1, “Who bikes, why, and memories,” click here; for Part 3, “Including, inviting, drivers, and inspiring places,” click here; and for Part 4, “Infrastructure, Socials, Community, and More,” click here.
Your own comments, or questions, are also welcome anytime.
In this post, hear responses to six questions:
If you don’t bike every day or many times a week, what are the biggest barriers to your riding a bicycle more often?
Has anyone who bikes a lot helped you feel encouraged about your own ability to bike more?
Has anyone, whether or not they bike a lot themselves, been encouraging and supportive of your interest in biking? If so, how?
Has anyone given you practical bicycling education (e.g., about bicycle maintenance, route tips, riding skills, bike laws, or other)? And if so, what did you find most valuable?
Some people have been bullied or verbally harassed while biking, e.g., for body size (“Keep pedaling, fatty!” or “You go, guy!”), race or ethnicity (“Bike in your own hood!”), type of bicycle (“Look at that beater!”). Has this ever happened to you? If so, did it discourage you from biking?
Sometimes children and teens (as well as adults) don’t bike because they’re concerned about being bothered by street harassment and other bullying. Is your child or teen (or are you) worried that might happen while biking — or has it already happened to you or someone you know?
Has anyone who bikes a lot helped you feel encouraged about your own ability to bike more?
Yes, many friends in Santa Cruz, CA that ride.
—Michael, Santa Cruz, CA, age 54
Yes, Grandpa.
—Epic, California, age 12
Someone taught me to fix a bike from scratch, which was difficult.
—Patrick, Monterey, age 43
Yes, a friend who rode with me noticed a noise on my bike and asked her husband to fix it, which he did.
— Frances, rural U.S., age 59
Inside the all-ages gated community where we live, we have bike racks all over, as a lot of people bicycle here, including those who are seniors. Many people bike to get around, and many home rentals include a bicycle. My good friend who moved to Fort Myers has the use of a tricycle, her main mode of transportation. She has no car and rides 2-1/2 miles to the grocery store, etc. The trikes are really popular here, and most have baskets on them for carrying things. Many have cupholders and cell phone holders; they have them all decked out! She put a flag on hers to be more visible. Many people do put flags on their trikes. Often you’ll see people with their dog riding with them too. I very rarely see anyone wearing a helmet, although we have one friend, an avid cyclist, Jim, who does wear a helmet. Currently I bike mostly in Sanibel, where you can rent a bicycle for just $8 for 2-3 hours. If I didn’t already own a golf cart, I would buy a bike to get around my home community too.
—Cammie, Fort Myers, Florida, age 71
Below, Cammie cruising a Sanibel beach by bicycle.
Because Mom talks a lot about biking and bikes herself, it does keep biking at the forefront of my mind. I feel if I were to start biking more again, my mom would be the place I’d turn for resources. Another resource I’d turn to would be All Bodies on Bikes, a resource for people with larger bodies who bike.
—Sierra, Connecticut, age 34
Bicycling Monterey.
—EJ, country, Illinois, age 60
My little brother, not quite five, is really good at riding bikes. And he can go faster than anyone in my whole house!
—Skyla, Florida, age 12
When I first moved to California, I found myself commuting by bike more and wanted to try road riding. A couple of coworkers and friends started doing beer rides – we’d pick a location near a brewery, plot a bike route, and then have beer afterwards. When I met my now partner, she was riding endurance events. She encouraged me to extend my range and ride longer distances as well.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
Yeah! Gabe is super encouraging. I wasn’t much of a biker before I met him, and he’s been great. He helped me pick out this really pretty bike, and encouraged me to explore more on a bike.
—Hannah, Santa Barbara, CA, age 28
Yes, several co-workers bike for fitness and leisure. I’m encouraged by the enthusiasm they share when we talk about biking.
—Norm, Pacific Grove, CA, age 48
If you don’t bike every day or many times a week, what are the biggest barriers to your riding a bicycle more often?
Commuting over the Hill [over Highway 17] for work.
—Michael, Santa Cruz, CA, age 54
School, too tired.
—Epic, California, age 12
Unsafe infrastructure, and distance to destination.
— Frances, rural U.S., age 59
I don’t own a bike! I rent one to ride, mostly in Sanibel.
—Cammie, Fort Myers, Florida, age 71
Infrastructure is a barrier! I live on a very busy road, which is a problem. I would have to put my bike in my car and drive somewhere else to bike. There are some bike paths not far from me, but the route to reach them isn’t safe. Currently I don’t own a bike. I live in an upstairs apartment and don’t have a place to store one. Maybe I’d buy a bike if I had a house with a garage for bike storage. I also have some physical imitations that keep me from enjoying biking right now.
—Sierra, Connecticut, age 34
Busy country road with no shoulders.
—Gregg, countryside rural, U.S., age 72
Free time.
—EJ, country, Illinois, age 60
It gets really hot here, and I don’t ride my bike on hot days. You get too sweaty!
—Skyla, Florida, age 12
We bike pretty much every day, but there are some situations where I wish we could bike:
a) When traveling with a kid. Bike share systems in some cities make it easier for adults to ride but don’t help much if you have a kid with you.
b) When infrastructure feels unsafe. My partner and I feel pretty comfortable on lots of different roads, but we have a lower risk threshold when riding with our kid.
c) Distance – if something’s more than 10 miles away, we’d be more likely to find another way to get there
d) Cargo – we have a trailer, but in some rare cases it’s not big enough to carry what we need.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
Definitely the need for more bike lanes. On some roads the traffic is just too fast to bike those roads without better safety, like wider bike lanes.
—Rae, Monterey, CA, age 40
There aren’t many barriers to riding, except it’s not really nice to bike on a day when there are a lot of cars around! Also, I need a new bike. My bike is pretty old, and the tire pops every few months. I might get a job this summer and get a new bike.
—Frederic, Pacific Grove, CA, age 15
Finding the time and actually committing to biking more. I don’t have any real barriers that prevent me from biking more.
—Norm, Pacific Grove, CA, age 48
For me, it’s just making the time to do it. That’s really what it is.
—Hannah, Santa Barbara, CA, age 28
One thing that can be challenging: We’re super fortunate that we can put our bikes on a rack and bring them up here, but it would be great if you could ride a high quality bike wherever you go. I don’t know if there are financial barriers or if there are just barriers in my head to doing that, but it would be great to know that anywhere you go you can hop on a rental bike or a bikeshare bike that’s not just a clunky bike—like some of those Citi bikes that you see in cities aren’t necessarily great bikes. When I go places, I want to be on a bike that is mechanically sound and pretty efficient and all those things. So in terms of outside of Santa Barbara, which is where I live, that can be a barrier. In Santa Barbara there aren’t that many barriers to biking for me.
—Gabe, Santa Barbara, CA, age 27
Has anyone, whether or not they bike a lot themselves, been encouraging and supportive of your interest in biking? If so, how?
Yes, Ecology Action in Santa Cruz.
—Michael, Santa Cruz, CA, age 54
Yes, a couple who were members of a road riding club were kind and encouraging. They went with me on social rides where there wasn’t any pressure to keep up with fast riders on expensive bicycles.
—Frances, rural U.S., age 59
My sister, including witnessing her bike advocacy, which has been a friendly reminder of the value of bicycling. Also, my friends Dave and Marilyn who bike. Self-motivation for health and well being too.
—EJ, country, Illinois, age 60
Yes, usually it’s other people who bike. I appreciate invitations to ride bikes together as I am hoping to do more recreational riding to build up my fitness.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
Not that I can think of.
—Frederic, Pacific Grove, CA, age 15
Yes. My co-workers have encouraged and invited me to bike with them.
—Norm, Pacific Grove, CA, age 48
Has anyone given you practical bicycling education (e.g., about bicycle maintenance, route tips, riding skills, bike laws, or other)? And if so, what did you find most valuable?
Yes, and it was Rules of The Road — how to anticipate a driver’s ability to NOT SEE YOU.
—Michael, Santa Cruz, CA, age 54
Yes, Grandpa did all that for off-road biking.
—Epic, California, age 12
Except for someone who taught me to fix a bike from scratch, I haven’t had any other bicycling education, just learned stuff on my own.
—Patrick, Monterey, age 43
I’d like to say yes, but when I asked for help learning how to change a tire, I was told to look it up on YouTube. Watching a video can be helpful, but some of us do better with hands-on instruction.
—Frances, rural U.S., age 59
Just my mom, generally speaking. Being more aware of local laws and different things to be aware of in your area.
—Sierra, Connecticut, age 34
My dad will help me and my siblings, like saying, “Be careful doing this or this.” Or like if our chain comes off, Dad will help us put the chain back on.
—Skyla, Florida, age 12
My dear dad taught me about bicycle safety, and my mom always reminded me about bike safety too. The Illinois Rules of the Road for bicycles were educational too. Dad also taught me about bicycle maintenance. Dad was always good about preventive maintenance!
—EJ, country, Illinois, age 60
Definitely, and I think most recently from people on Mastodon. I’m trying to find a way to increase the range of our e-bike, and was looking into solar options. It looks like it’ll be difficult to implement, but I appreciate the feedback about successful examples and challenges.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
I have had some people, a couple of my friends, who’ve taught me wheeling. I’ve been trying to learn to wheely lately—like a trick, where you pedal into it and your bike lifts up, “popping a wheely.” I’ve also learned bike skills like stopping so cars can get by.
—Frederic, Pacific Grove, CA, age 15
Gabe for sure. He’s super safe. I try to just in general never assume I have the right of way, just for the same reason I don’t like biking on a road as much, sharing the road with cars. Because you are in charge of the bike but you never know what someone in a car is going to do, or is paying attention to, or not. I like to err on the side of caution, so I like car-free trails.
—Hannah, Santa Barbara, CA, age 28
Some people have been bullied or verbally harassed while biking, e.g., for body size (“Keep pedaling, fatty!” or “You go, guy!”), race or ethnicity (“Bike in your own hood!”), type of bicycle (“Look at that beater!”). Has this ever happened to you? If so, did it discourage you from biking?
Yes, at one time, a female reached out of her car’s passenger window to slap my ass. The car got dangerously close to me as I sensed it approaching to find her halfway out of the car. I was not discouraged from biking, just better aware of crazy drivers.
—Michael, Santa Cruz, CA, age 54
Yes, and the last time was in Pacific Grove.
—Patrick, Monterey, age 43
Yes, more than once. One example: I was on a downtown Main Street, sitting on a bench with my bicycle parked nearby, when two men in business suits pointed at my bike and started laughing and making fun of it (they didn’t know the bike’s owner was sitting right there). Another example: I was on a group ride and about to take an alternate route for a small section, which avoided a steep hill. A young bike shop employee on the ride pressured me to take the hill instead. I am sorry I didn’t ignore him, because he was really just bullying me, laughing that the steep hill was more of an effort for me than for him. It was discouraging yes, but it didn’t stop me from biking. It just made me want to avoid riding with bike snobs!
—Frances, rural U.S., age 59
No.
—Gregg, countryside rural, U.S., age 72
I have been harassed, but I don’t think this happened to me because of body shape or race or ethnicity.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
Not so much, no.
—Rae, Monterey, CA, age 40
Not a lot, but here’s the most striking memory that pops into my head. At my previous home, part of my commute was on a trail to get from one road point to another road point. And I was coming home after dark, and I had a pretty high-beam light on, just for safety. And someone got mad about the light in their face and tried to push me over as I passed them. Fortunately they didn’t get a good hand on me so I was able to stabilize and made it past them. It was a pedestrian walking their dog, and I think they were just startled and got frustrated. That’s the worst that happened to me.
—Gabe, Santa Barbara, CA age 27
Sometimes children and teens (as well as adults) don’t bike because they’re concerned about being bothered by street harassment and other bullying. Is your child or teen (or are you) worried that might happen while biking — or has it already happened to you or someone you know?
That doesn’t happen on mountain bike trails or with family.
—Epic, California, age 12
Yes, as a 22-year-old, I was harassed on a street while biking, by some young men in a car. They may have thought the things they were yelling were flattering, but it was disturbing. It was many years ago, but the fact that I still remember it shows how street harassment leaves a mark on one’s psyche.
—Frances, rural U.S., age 59
Of the many worries, we are fortunate to not expect this type of harassment.
—Phil, Oakland, CA, age 42
Luckily, no.
—Frederic, Pacific Grove, CA, age 15
Thank you to all the people above for sharing their experiences!
If you have questions about any topics in this post, or about other topics, feel free to contact Bicycling Monterey anytime.
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This post was published on 11 July 2023. One or more changes last made to this post on 2 July 2024.
