Bikes

Image Credit: Ryan Bovy © 2012

This is my roommate with one of his most prized possessions, his bike. He owns three bikes; this, his favorite, is a Raleigh road bike. He could tell you all the awesome features it has, I cannot. To me, a bike is useful for transportation, and maybe some exercise. I have found recently that this is not everybody's opinion.

Many, like my roommate, take great pride in their bicycles. It an underground culture that is catching on. It is difficult for me, an outsider, to put a finger on exactly what motivates someone to spend hundreds of dollars on bike. I can only suspect that it is "cool." People who love their bikes love to talk about their bikes, kind of like bragging parents. In a certain sense, it is quite cute.

Perhaps a great bike can also allow for great adventures. Maybe the motivation for one to spend absurd amounts of money on a bike is to stay connected to (or in hope of) some sort of free-wheeling dream, outside of a corporate lifestyle. As college students, we maintain certain values that are particular to our age category, such as this need to not get incorporated.

In any case, the cycling culture on our campus is hard to miss, and difficult not to ponder about why it is here.