A new cycling season is upon us. Believe it or not, after a long and tiring winter, spring is finally here. It is May, right? May is also National Bike Month! If your favorite bicycle is gathering dust, it’s time to bring it out of hibernation: air up your tires, lube up the chain, and start rebuilding your pedaling muscles for our Lafayette hills.

Why should you ride?

It’s fun. It’s liberating. It’s exercise. It’s good for the economy. You save the planet, one pedal pump after another. You’ll notice things around the town you probably wouldn’t have seen confined in your car. I’ll admit, I’m still a fair-weather rider.

Until about a year ago, when Elly Blue from Taking the Lane visited, I didn’t know much about riding a bicycle for more than just exercise and fun. After Elly’s visit, I felt really empowered to take to the road and, as she would put it, take the lane (back)! I try to use my bicycle as a standard method of transportation during the warmer Indiana months.

So. It’s an exercise, right? Yes! Cycling will burn significantly more calories on your morning commute than you would have burned driving your car. You’ll also be burning last night’s pizza, and not fossil fuels. There are several positive economic and environmental impacts you can make by riding your bike. I won’t try to explain them, as I couldn’t explain it nearly as eloquently as Elly Blue can. If you are interested in the big-picture impact of cycling, I suggest reading Bikenomics.

Taken on the Harrison Bridge