<p>Hey all,</p>
<p>I was wondering what your reasons were for biking/not biking at a residential college. So, do you bike/do you not bike? Why/why not? Does weather factor into your biking ability or does it make you not do it at all? Is not having a bike (like UC Davis) really inconvenient? Had any bad/funny experiences?</p>
<p>I'm curious about your BIKES and your college experience.</p>
<p>Hope this will be insightful/fun to share. Please say your college too :)</p>
<p>All I know is that I got run over by a biker on my way to class once, so I have a deep-seated prejudice against all of their ilk now.</p>
<p>Having a bike at Stanford is practically required. Probably less than 5% don’t have one.</p>
<p>I live about a mile from my campus and walk each day. The roads I go down are crazy busy in the afternoon and drivers tend to be way too aggressive for me to feel safe riding on them each day. One of my friends recently got hit by a car door, and one of the professors I work with was paralyzed from the legs down thanks to a car hitting him while he was riding in to school. :</p>
<p>I don’t bike. Sidewalks/traffic are too busy and I don’t want to have to deal with worrying about theft and weathering.</p>
<p>Buy a cheap crappy bike and a sturdy chain and lock, then no worries.</p>
<p>I started without a bike and ended up buying one a few months in. </p>
<p>It’s been great, because the way things turned out last term, I lived in one corner of campus, had classes in the second corner, had a cappella practice in the third corner, and had my mailbox/the student center in the fourth corner. I didn’t feel like I was 30 seconds away from being late all of the time, and riding a bike is a lot more fun than walking.</p>
<p>It’s funny, though–when I didn’t have a bike, I’d get really annoyed with all of the bikers weaving around me on the sidewalks. Now that I have a bike, the pedestrians annoy the heck out of me (seems like I always get stuck behind five people who decide to walk side by side). :)</p>
<p>I don’t bike because I can’t ride one. If I weren’t so pathetic and could ride one, I wouldn’t at my college. Its snowy for some months, and there are so many hills. Downhill would be fine, but back up? No way. Walking for me. (:</p>
<p>Plus, bikers annoy the heck out of me, both when I’m driving and walking, though I’m sure it would be the other way around if I was biking. But I’m not, so…</p>
<p>I bike because there is no reason not to.</p>
<p>It’s faster than walking
Safer than walking (I mean in terms of avoiding mugging or harassment, not necessarily in terms of traffic, which I don’t actually contend with much, so I can’t speak to that)
Cheaper than a car (and actually faster than that, too, since it’s a pain to deal with traffic and parking on campus)
Easy to secure (U-lock that ****, though)</p>
<p>I can sign up for more classes since I don’t have to worry, “Oh, do I have time to walk between them?”
I can leave my home off campus no more than 10 minutes before class or work or whatever activity and still make it on time, without worrying about parking tickets or having to look like an idiot breaking out into a sprint if I’m late (it’s generally accepted that it’s ok to bike fast, but not run, apparently, haha)
It’s no sweat going to the convenience store, out to eat, whatever; with a bike, everything is around the corner</p>
<p>Just because I have a bike, doesn’t mean I use it all the time - if it’s really cold or wet I might drive or bundle up and walk or take a bus. If I want to wear a dress or skirt, another reason to bus or walk (though I’ve ridden a bike in both, hah). It’s flexible. </p>
<p>That said, I don’t think people feel a huge inconvenience not having one. When I walked, I scheduled my stuff around that and made time for it. It became normal to me. But now that I bike, I’m never going back!</p>
<p>I go to UC Davis and I don’t bike. whoo</p>
<p>Pros:
<p>Cons:
<p>Not riding a bike isn’t as bad as it seems. Both situations have their conveniences and inconveniences, though it is true that if you have a bike, you CAN choose not to use it and just walk (which some people don’t realize for some reason).</p>
<p>I knew some friends that went to UCD and I hear about the bike problems, like getting a speeding ticket or “riding under the influence”. That is some crazy stuff right there.</p>
<p>I go to UC Berkeley, where it’s an extremely hilly medium-sized campus, but I still bike around and recommend it. It just depends on how far away my classes are – if it’s between two ends of campus, I bike, but otherwise, I just lock my bike like I would park a car and walk between buildings that are within a 3min walk of each other.</p>
<p>The idea to biking is to do it safely – on the roads, at 15mph, and outside of the door line. Sure, there may be accidents, but you can have an accident while walking or driving also.</p>
<p>And, of course, there are traffic tickets and “riding under the influence,” but the thing is, a bike is a vehicle. At 15mph, you are almost ten times more dangerous than someone jogging at 5mph. Just be sensible and follow the rules of the road. The DMV handbook, and the stuff that applies to driving, usually apply to bikes also. It is required if you want to truly bike safely.</p>
<p>I have the best solution:</p>
<p>BUY A SCOOTER!</p>
<p>I recommend Xootr scooters. They are designed for adults and commuting around campuses. You can use it to commute to class and fold it in-class under your seat, so it will not be cumbersome.</p>
<p>Don’t be the guy on a scooter.</p>
<p>Thank god there’s “riding under the influence” laws. Most bicyclists already operate in a dangerous manner (running red lights and stop signs, weaving in and out of traffic, etc). A drunk one’s just gonna do even more stupid **** which increases his chance of getting hit by a car. And then of course he’ll turn around and blame it all on the driver even if the driver wasn’t at fault.</p>
<p>^^I agree. I’ve said this before: Scooters are LAME.</p>
<p>Anyone remember when Razor Scooters were all the rage amongst the youth?</p>
<p>^ I found my brother’s Razor Scooter in the garage the other day. I remember how much he bugged my parents for one. He can’t ride it anymore because he is too tall, so he’ll look awkward riding it >.< I don’t believe how popular it was back in the day.</p>
<p>In terms of biking, I want to bring mine to school next semester. Mine will be for weekend use only or any quick trips on campus. Also, I want to ride my bike at the local park. I do need to get a new helmet and a good chained lock though =</p>
<p>I will always own a bike because I’m one of those environmental people that bikes to save the environment. I only drive when it’s so far that I can’t bike there or when there’s no public transportation to get there haha</p>
<p>i heard about this guy on the radio who did this thing where he didn’t use a car for a whole year, not even commuting. The objective is to not step into a car whatsoever. He lived in SF, and he used his bike and bus and that’s it. When he had to attend to his brother’s wedding, he found that the hotel was too far away, so he camped out in the yard behind where the wedding were to take place. There’s a will, there’s a way.</p>