'Welcome to the glorious world of cycling!'

THIS WAS AN EMAIL I RECEIVED FROM A CONTACT I MET THROUGH THIS PROJECT I THOUGHT PEOPLE WOULD BE INTERESTED IN HIS TAKE ON CYCLING.

Welcome to the glorious world of cycling! Your blog looks interesting.
It's a different angle on riding. There's heaps of stuff online about
biking in Sydney, if you know where to look. The best place to start
is Cheeky Transport. It's my local bike shop. They have a decent
website with heaps of links: information on cool bikes, bike routes,
bike culture. Also it's worth looking at Bicycle NSW's website.

When I was a youngster I rode all the time. My dad has been cycling
all his life and it was only natural his sons (I have two brothers)
ride with him. Every school holidays from about the time I was 6 we
would drive to the country then ride from town to town. Cycling is in
my blood. After a few years off the saddle, I've built myself a bike
(I love it more than my girlfriend sometimes) and it's the only
way I get around.

You're comment that bikes are a sensory experience is totally right.
Who wants to commute inside a climate controlled bubble when you can
feel the world whistling by your ears. When you drive you're basically
just sitting on a motorised couch. You feel alive when you ride. Plus
once you get your fitness up you can get where you're going faster
than cars.

The problem with ridding in Sydney is the bike paths are shit.
They go for a few hundred meters then stop. You're left to work out how to get
to the next section of safe path. This generally involves getting
on a main road; with all the danger that involves. The SBS show 'Cycling
Central' did a report on commuting in Sydney. They produced a statistic (you'll have to verify it) stating Sydney has the lowest kms of bike paths in the country. Having lived in Melbourne I can tell you this fact rings true. Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra and Melbourne all have comprehensive, city wide routes for recreational and commuting cyclists.

Because it's difficult to ride in, Sydney doesn't have much of a bike
culture. This means drivers have NO RESPECT for cyclists AT ALL. It's
fucked trying to ride on dangerous roads when you know some jerk who's
just parked his car might swing his door open right in front of you.
You're on edge all the time. You have to ride aggressively so at least
drivers know you're on the road. This leads to animosity (as
demonstrated by a report on A Current Affair recently) that could be
solved by laying some pain on the edge of few roads: problem solved.

Anyway, that's my rant on cycling. Hopefully it will give you a few
ideas. Don't hesitate to get back in touch if you have any further
questions. As you can probably tell I love cycling and I love talking
about it.

I'll be checking your blog.

See you on the road,