Pressure from family to pack it in - Cycle Commuting ?

[fossyant]

Any of you get it ?

My sister has recently said - "Why don't you stop riding to work, I'd rather have an alive brother than a dead or injured one?" "What ever" was my reply !.

This came out of the very close scrape I had on Tuesday, and also me just behind another cyclist getting hit - the accident was near home, so school friends and my brother saw the ambulance, and I was also spotted by some of the kids going to school - 'that's Anthony isn't it ?' as they drove past.

My wife stopped me in the late 90's when I was left hooked at about 25 mph - I did a very good impression of superman, flew 30-40 feet, and luckily, landed between scaffolding poles outside a chemists, the bike wasn't so lucky, crashing into them writing it off. I suffered some fractures in my hand. That then led to 8 or so years not commuting by bike (I also moved jobs).

Upon getting back into commuting I had warned the wife about the accident possibility, and only just managed 18 months before my 'biggy' that I'm still fighting the legal battle, over 3 years later.

My missus is yet to say anything, but it's causing tension

And you ?

 

[Arjimlad]

My wife appreciates that riding to work gives me great exercise without having to take time away from the family to fit it in.

Without exercise I am prone to getting depressed and overweight, so I am no good to anyone and damaging my health without it.

She also appreciates that I am very careful on the roads. My commute is not on busy roads, which must help. Yesterday whilst driving around Bristol, I saw someone passed extremely close by an ignorant driver in a very small car, I was amazed they were not knocked off.

 

[hotfuzzrj]

My parents often remark nag me about how dangerous it is cycling on the roads, and after my Mum got taken out at a junction by a car turning left across her path, he won't let her cycle on the roads! (I thought my Mum was made of sterner stuff; no one could forbid me doing anything!)
I take comfort in the fact that 80% of my short commute is sparsely used bus lanes, and as a shift worker, the odd times I commute in mean I'm seldom caught in rush hour traffic. My boyfriend is a keen cyclist and having commuted through London for years is used to the reality and the (hopefully not jinxing it for me) relatively low accident rate.
Hope you sort your legal battle out, and can maybe find a lesser used route to allow you to keep cycling *and* placate the fam.

 

[BrumJim]

My Mum, as she is getting older, is getting increasingly convinced that it is unsuitable for a man of my means and position to be cycling into work, and it is high time we became a 2-car family.
I think she lies to her friends about my mode of commuting. Otherwise she wouldn't dare to show her face in polite company.

 

[BSRU]

I get pressure now and again from my better half but it is usually more related to how much time I spend gallivanting around the Wiltshire countryside.
She does not really moan much about the danger as I previously rode around on a 955cc motorbike, so relatively speaking it is alot safer on a bicycle. My main counter argument is that cycle commuting is the only chance I have to exercise and without it I would turn into a very unhealthy overweight coach potato, not good with two young children.

 

[Vikeonabike]

Mrs Vike can't put up with my grumpiness when I'm not exercising.
End of story!

 

[Norm]

Mrs Vike can't put up with my grumpiness when I'm not exercising.
End of story!

Same here. The bike and I get kicked out of the house if I haven't ridden for a few days.

The rest of the family, though, they never expect me home again after a ride.

 

[fossyant]

I'll take up mountain biking more then. Trees and boulders are perfectly safe.

My route is the best I can make it, although I was up early so went the country route which is 20 miles to clear my head. Just checked 19.1 mph average on fixed, and it's lumpy.

 

[SquareDaff]

My wife appreciates that riding to work gives me great exercise without having to take time away from the family to fit it in.

Without exercise I am prone to getting depressed and overweight, so I am no good to anyone and damaging my health without it.

She also appreciates that I am very careful on the roads. My commute is not on busy roads, which must help. Yesterday whilst driving around Bristol, I saw someone passed extremely close by an ignorant driver in a very small car, I was amazed they were not knocked off.

+1 on this. I can fit in cycling within my usual commute and work times. It probably costs about 20 mins in family time when compared to "driving" to work which is what it would take to drive to the gym let alone do any exercise.

It's especially good at this time of the year as the winter blues are lifting and being able to get out in the fresh air really lifts my spirits.

Mrs SD knows there's always a danger but knows I'm always on the look out for numpties on the road. In reality the risks are really quite small and I'm probably safer (in stats terms- not in terms of surviving a hit) then I am in a steel cage!!

 

[400bhp]

The family know me well enough not to question my mode of transport to get to work.

Ask your sister to explain why you shouldn't cycle to work and then pick her argument to pieces. She needs educating.

 

[jonny jeez]

Not from Mrs jeez, but definitely (at first) from my kids and parents. My wife understands that I am a pretty observant road user (boring driver) in town and I have been trained by the best (my father was a police driver at one stage in his career and so taught me a lot).

I've dropped the motorbike twice, once in my own road so there was blood and fuss being created close to home, which did worry the kids and my wife. But I've not had any more pressure to stop. I think, for me its a case of my wife understanding that there is very little else i can do to get to my place of work. train takes upwards of 2 hours, car is the same (sometimes more) so a motorbike/cycle is really the only sensible option.

She does also benefit from some of the by product...I'm in better shape than I was a few years ago and gettin in even better shape daily.

Lastly, we have lost friends who took no risks, lived safe lives and were just "unlucky", so I suspect she lives life a little like me and appreciates that I cold buy the farm just crossing the road...or walking onto a football pitch

 

[fossyant]

The family know me well enough not to question my mode of transport to get to work.

Ask your sister to explain why you shouldn't cycle to work and then pick her argument to pieces. She needs educating.

I just told her to sod off, she expected that answer. 'thought you'd say that".

The commute saves me going out every night for an hour, and it also means I don't have to worry about getting weekend miles in, so again, more time at home.

If I pack in, then the battle is lost. I also benefit from the ride mentally, the 20 miles this morning hasn't half cleared my head. Arguments at 5:30 in the morning over the accident claim legals aren't good. It's just a mess at the moment, the barristers report has missed points, and it's going to be a battle over the permanency of my injuries. Delays, delays and one over optimistic report from a specialist. I'd put more faith in my treating pain specialist and the independent orthopaedic surgeon than an independent pain specialist that has met me for 90 minutes. Argh.

 

[BentMikey]

It's scary for them, sure, but it's more dangerous not to cycle. You're likely to have a shorter life if you don't cycle regularly.

 

[Kiwiavenger]

the wife thinks some of the speeds i hit are silly (only because they are 5-10 MPH faster than on my old hybrid) and refuses to let me drive myself to hospital but otherthan that i have no problems. she doesnt even mind me taking some quite fast back roads (NSL) and only worrys when its icy or wet after my last 2 incidents

my brother now commutes on my old hybrid, my sister rides to school and the wife and mother bith occasionally cycle so none can really complain. i get home the same time as i would driving and get in 20-30 minutes earlier (uphill most of the way home) so its win-win for me and family time! i need to get out on the weekends though to get more miles in.

 

[Hip Priest]

My wife isn't bothered. Her Dad has always cycled so she's used to it. Plus, her Dad is in fine fettle at 65, whereas my sedentary father is obese and riddled with health problems at the same age, God love him.