During the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s been a surge in biking. It’s a safe way to get to essential jobs or the grocery store, and a fun way to reap the mental and physical health benefits of getting outdoors. Local bike shops across the nation are seeing more and more interest. Cites are responding to advocates’ calls for more outdoor space with dozens of miles of street closures to cars that open up space for people to walk, bike, and roll close to home.
Each May, the American League of Bicyclists celebrates National Bike Month, a month of events dedicated to encouraging people to think beyond biking to work and toward a more holistic approach to incorporating biking into their everyday lives.
This year’s National Bike Month looks different, as so much does. Peoples’ connections to biking have strengthened, whether biking is an important source of solace, an essential form of transportation to get to work or get groceries, or a way to get outdoors with family. In honor of this year’s Bike Month, we asked Sierra Club volunteers and staff across the country an open-ended question:
“What does biking mean to you during the pandemic?”
Here's what they said:
Morgan Ellis, the associate director of the Clean Transportation for All campaign, lives in Chestertown, Maryland:
Morgan: “Why do you like your bike?”
Morgan’s son Ari: “Because I can go fast.”
“Biking is a great way to exercise see our town, and for my son to practice a new skill. COVID-19 has been hard on our family. We are used to having play dates and gathering with friends. My son, age four, needs outdoor time (often with his friends) for mental and physical stimulation. The loss of friend time has been hard.
“While we walk together as a family most days, he prefers the thrill of his bicycle. His eyes fill with pride when he hits his pace. We are grateful that there’s a big parking lot near our house where he can ride around and practice. Even though COVID-19 has been hard for all of us, biking has given us an outlet for exploration and exercise.”
Cynthia Hoyle, a volunteer with the Clean Transportation for All campaign, lives in Urbana, Illinois:
“In addition to being an environmentalist, I have been a bicycling advocate for many years. I honestly think bicycling can help to save the planet by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing our dependence on cars, reducing the need for expanding paved roads, and more. I try to live my values. While we still own and use a car, my favorite vehicle remains my electric-assist cargo bike that I can use to haul lots of stuff.
“During the pandemic we have found our bikes to be the perfect way to get outside, get exercise and fresh air, use curbside pick-up, and spend a little time in nature. We have some favorite routes that take us through parks and the local arboretum. We support our locally owned brewery by cycling over to refill growlers. We bike to pick up our veggies, grown on the local farm, and we use the curbside service to pick up our weekly grocery order from our local co-op.”
Robb Kidd, a conservation program manager with Sierra Club Vermont, lives in Montpelier, Vermont:
“As a long-time biker, I feel that my bike is more than a piece of metal, but a part of my essence and being. For 45 years, being on top of my bike has given me a sense of freedom and independence, and I try to relay that same feeling to my 9-year-old son. A bright side of the COVID-19 crisis has been that I have been able to share extra time with my son and see the freedom he gets to experience on a bike.
"Fortunately, during this crisis, my son has been able to bike the neighborhood making his time away from school enjoyable while still physically distantly connecting with his friends. In addition to that, we have been able to go on numerous family bike rides of 10 plus miles, something that can't be replaced by any Zoom meeting or virtual school lesson.
“But to top that off, having my son's upcoming 10th birthday, I wanted to make sure that he would receive something special, since he will still be distanced from his friends. So I connected with our local bike shop and arranged to purchase a brand-new bike. It's more than a special gift -- it’s also a way to support a local community business in this time of need. To me, a bike is personal freedom, a connection to my son, and a builder of community.”
Ty Gorman, a campaign representative, lives in Roeland Park, Kansas:
“For the last six years, biking has been a commute: riding the same route as quick as I can, flanked by traffic, mentally preparing for, or detoxing from, a day at the office. Just before sheltering in place, I got rid of all my belongings and flew to the middle of the country to begin my new position as Kansas campaign representative.
“Just before Kansas City locked down, I bought a bike so that I could explore my new home between thunderstorms. Almost every afternoon I ride a new path, finding a gravel levee by the Missouri River railway tracks, climbing from the West Bottoms to a blasted trolley tunnel circa 1885, or slaloming back and forth on the eerily empty, wide downtown streets. At sunset, I often climb a lonely hill between interstates to stand beneath a statue of a Sioux on horseback, litter at our feet, looking down at post-industrial Midwestern warehouses and bank towers. It's a reminder of the beauty that's been lost, yet, somehow, there's so much left to protect.”
David Ellenbogen, a volunteer with Vermont Sierra Club, lives in Calais, Vermont:
"There are many reasons I love bicycling: exercise, lowering my carbon footprint, saving time, etc. But... what I probably like best is time travel: At age 62, when I’m on my bike, coasting down a smooth road with light (or no) traffic, at 30 - 45 mph, I feel like I’m 12 again. I love it."
Karlie Durtz, a senior online organizer with the Outdoors for All campaign, lives in Wheat Ridge, Colorado:
“The COVID-19 pandemic has reignited my appreciation for cycling. Bicycles were my primary mode of transportation for 10 years -- they were my way of getting to work and school, my mode of transportation to meet up with friends, and a secondary form of exercising other than my main hobby of running. I didn't own a car until I was 27. When I was first starting my nonprofit career, I volunteered for Bike East Bay in Oakland/Berkeley because I had personally experienced the power of protected bike lanes, bike boulevards, and the importance of cities prioritizing the safety of cyclists.
“Right now, I'm fully appreciating the bike lanes and infrastructure where I now live in Wheat Ridge, CO, right outside of Denver. It's been a freeing feeling being able to bike to local parks and being able to get some fresh air during such a stressful and uncertain time.”