The point is that ordinary commuter cycling in normal weather on flat, clean roads is a lot less dangerous than standing around while people throw bricks at your head.
And there's a health tradeoff between the exercise benefits of physical activity and the risk of injury. Convincing people that cycling is so dangerous (like people throwing bricks at your head) that you need to wear some goofy-looking, uncomfortable contraption dissuades them from getting the exercise and the fun of cycling around their neighborhood.
When the mundane task of cycling is seen as some risk activity, there is something wrong. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that the health benefits of regular cycling far outweighs the relative risk of cycling, even in places that is hostile to bikes.
Because rain, snow, heat, lack of fitness, security, amongst other reasons.
Cycling is my most common mode of transportation these days. I love it. But I also know it's not going to be practical primary means of transport for a huge slice of the population. And the "danger from cars" ranks pretty low in my list of reasons.
The bicycle crowd feels unsafe too. The physical risks of cycling are almost entirely due to cars. Even in icy, slippery conditions, a bicycle accident poses almost no risk of dismemberment or death, except when there are cars involved.
For millions of people, cycling is a cheap, convenient, healthy and fun way to get around. This is particularly true since e-bikes became widely available. There is no way to get these riders back into cars. But almost nowhere in the US is there enough biking infrastructure to make them truly safe and separated from car traffic. This lack of infrastructure is why they can come off as a nuisance to drivers and pedestrians.
I'm sorry you feel pressured by cycling advocates to change your lifestyle. Maybe that is not the best way for them to advocate for change.
The point being that there are people out there who might be provoked, but as you observe it certainly isn't the norm. It isn't as prevalent as comments here would suggest. Bicycling is safe, despite all of the alarmism. Hope this helps.
Interesting take but while there is some argument to be made for being outside... Cycling outside is not always better for you. Many people live in urban areas where cycling outside is dangerous and objectively worse for you due to fumes from cars.
I've lived in rural areas where biking outside was great and in cities where biking was prioritized but I've also lived in many places where biking outside put myself at a much higher risk of being injured than biking inside. Especially at night after work which is when many exercise.
You seem to have ignored the main point of the OP you're responding to.
It is not SAFE to be on a bike on a public road. Do you read the news and notice how almost every week you hear of a bicyclist being hit and/or killed?
I for one do not ride my bike to school because I do not feel SAFE, no matter if I wear a helmet, pads and armor.
I found that most of the people doing this are not daily cyclists but the "weekend warriors" or "fair-weather" cyclists. As a cyclist, I've had a lot of close calls with people who simply don't know what the fuck they're doing and it's obvious. Things like:
1. In an urban area, you can't go against traffic but they think it's "safer," much like driving an SUV must be "safer."
2. My personal "favorite," the issue you brought up, people riding on the sidewalk... it's safer to ride in the street for everyone. Riding on the sidewalk endangers pedestrians, yourself, and cars since they won't see at all you when they're turning... but people still do it because it "feels safer."
Part of the problem is I think we probably have zero efforts to inform the public how to ride safely... I imagine most people think a helmet is the only thing they'll need: "Oh shit, beebs, I got my HELLMET and spandex on let's ride til we die."
That's simply not true. Cycling in many European countries is no more dangerous than being an occupant in a motor vehicle and a significant proportion of cyclist injuries and deaths are caused by motor vehicles.
Proper cycling and walking infrastructure combined with a reduction of car usage in cities makes cycling an extremely safe activity. In addition the extra health benefits from physical exercise more than offsets any increase in risk from a collision at a societal level.
As for cyling not being usable in many weather conditions - perhaps in extreme winters, but in London there're very few days in the year, if any, that I can't happily ride the 22km round trip to work and back.
In countries where people bike a lot, biking isn't treated as an inherently risky behavior. Instead, it's more akin to how we treat walking or driving a car, which we feel comfortable doing without helmets even if they would save lives on occasion. This alternative attitude to biking risk encourages more people to bike, which makes it safer for everyone as drivers become more accustomed to seeing and watching out for bikers. Keep in mind, most people don't die from accidents, they die from disease. Riding 20 miles a week on a bike cuts your chance of heart disease in half. Given that heart disease is our biggest killer in the US, we'd do well to stop treating biking as a risky behavior and instead encourage people to bike whether they choose to wear a helmet or not.
It's important that cities build great biking infrastructure to alleviate this problem.
At the same time, this is used by a lot of people as an excuse to not get a bike. In fact, it's not that dangerous as you make it out to be as is proven by statistics I guess (didn't look them up)
Bikes cycle as part of traffic because it far safer, and substantially reduces the chances of them being hit and seriously injured.
If you think cycling in manner to improves your safety as a cyclist is inconsiderate. Then how do you suggest they cycle if they don’t want to be hit by a car?
And there's a health tradeoff between the exercise benefits of physical activity and the risk of injury. Convincing people that cycling is so dangerous (like people throwing bricks at your head) that you need to wear some goofy-looking, uncomfortable contraption dissuades them from getting the exercise and the fun of cycling around their neighborhood.
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