Fortheloveof

Howwouldyouliketoget732milespergallonof gasfromyourcar?WhatifItoldyouanefficient form ofpersonaltransportationexistsanditistheequivalent ofgettingthiskindofmileage?Itdoes existanditiscalledabicycle.

WRITER:RICHARDT.BOSSHARDT,M.D.,FACS // PHOTOGRAPHER:FREDLOPEZ

Ihave been riding bicycles since I was a kid. My best Christmas gift ever was a black English racer bike that I received when I was 11 years old. It was a thing of beauty, and I rode it to school and all over my neighborhood. I rode a 10-speed Raleigh Grand Prix all through college and did not own a car until I started medical school. One of my most memorable vacations was a month long bicycling trip through Germany and Switzerland in 1971.

After medical school, I put my bike away. Years went by before I got back on. It was Lance Armstrong that got me back on a bike. Yes, that Armstrong — the one who finally fessed up to doping after winning seven Tour de France competitions. Despite the sad spectacle of Lance’s fall from grace, he inspired a generation of riders to get back on their bicycles, including me.

Karl von Drais, a German baron, invented the bicycle in 1817. The original bicycle was a wooden contraption with two wheels and no pedals. The “rider” straddled the bike and moved forward by pushing with his feet on the ground. Pedals soon followed and improved things a bit, but wood bikes with wood wheels were very uncomfortable. In fact, some early bikes were nicknamed “boneshakers.”

In 1887, an Irish veterinarian invented and patented an inflatable pneumatic tire for his son’s tricycle. His name was John Dunlop of Dunlop Tires fame, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The evolution of the bicycle has paralleled evolution in all other forms of transportation. From wood to steel to aluminum to titanium and, finally, to carbon fiber, the trend has called for lighter, stronger, faster, and more comfortable bikes. Gearing has resulted in bikes with up to 21 gears and, most recently, electronic shifting. There are cruisers for tooling around the beach or around town; commuter bikes for urban use; BMX bikes for racing; mountain bikes for off road; and the greyhounds of the bike world, time trial and road bikes, which are used in triathlons and road races and are capable of speeds up to 40 miles per hour on flat roads.

The benefits of bicycling are legion. As exercise, it is something just about anyone can do. It is true that once you have learned to ride a bike, you never forget. Steady cycling burns about 300 calories per hour. If you cycle for 30 minutes per day and do nothing else, you will burn 11 pounds of fat in one year. Cycling builds aerobic fitness and increases lean muscle mass. It is much easier on the body than running.

You don’t have to buy a carbon fiber Tour de France Rocket edition for $7,000 or more. Depending on what you wish to do, excellent new bikes are available for under $100. Internet auction sites such as eBay are full of great bargains on used bikes. The least expensive of the current generation of bicycles is still far better than bikes made a couple of generations ago.

Florida has awesome back roads where you can ride with little to no traffic. Lake County alone has endless great rides where you will feel you are really in the country. Check with your local bicycle shop about group rides in your area. Bicycle riders tend to be very congenial and group rides can be fun.

Don’t want to ride on the road? Then spend a little less on your bike and purchase a trainer that converts your bicycle into a stationary bike. Put a good movie on the television and ride away. With a trainer you have the option of taking the bike for a spin outside now and then, which you do not have if you buy a normal stationary bike.

As to saving energy, this requires changing your mindset so your first thought when you need to run an errand or go somewhere is not to hop in the car. Many people drive to a gym regularly. Imagine if you rode your bicycle instead. Do this once or twice a week and your savings in gas and energy will gradually build up. It may not sound like much. One or two people doing this won’t put a dent in our energy demands. But just imagine if a few million people started riding bicycles regularly. Now, that would have some impact. The Florida heat makes commuting to work a challenge, but if you have access to a shower at, or near, work, this might be feasible and you will reap multiple benefits.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention one last thing — bicycling is a blast! Hopping on a bike takes most of us back to our childhood and to a time when riding a bike was the most freedom we knew. The world looks different from the seat of a bike. You go slower and see more of the scenery than you do from a car. And you feel much more a part of the environment.

Support Cycling

Many organizations are working to stimulate the growth of cycling and lobby for more bike trails, dedicated bike lanes on roads, and awareness of cyclists. Several even promote cycling as an alternative form of transportation and as a great source of activity to help reverse decades of decline in overall health in the U.S. The most notable nationwide organizations include the following:

The Rails To Trails Conservancy

(www.railstotrails.org) is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit dedicated to establishing a network of bike trails in the U.S. from old railroad lines.

People For Bikes

(www.peopleforbikes.org) is another nonprofit whose goal is to accumulate one million signatures from people committed to supporting cycling in this country so that legislators will take action to promote cycling in the U.S.

America Bikes

(www.americabikes.org) lobbies Congress to pass more laws and allot funds to encourage bicycling in the U.S.