Biking Anxiety

So is it really just like riding a bicycle ... will it really come back to me that easily? Well, yes and no. Since Japan is such a bike-oriented country, I did my duty and practiced my skills on a lovely bike purchased for a whopping $15 at DI. I rode around the neighborhood with relative ease (I say "relative" because that bike seat was horribly uncomfortable!). I was a bit shaky at first, but was feeling comfortable enough ... or so I thought.

Hopping onto a bike in Japan and wending my way through the streets was a whole new sort of fear for me! My "practice" was clearly not enough to prepare me for the narrow, crowded roads. I stumbled through that first trip on the bike, but I was so shaky that I was certain I would hit someone or something! Then, to make matters worse, I was walking home one afternoon that first week and witnessed a man on his bike collide with a car ... don't know who hit who and the man was fine, but that, coupled with emotional jet-lag, made me decide I was not going to be a bicyclist on this trip. Maybe a bit inconvenient, but actually hoofing it has turned out to be far better exercise!! I guess Grandpa May (who owned a bike shop for many, many years) is probably shaking his head at me. Oh well...

So these bikes are not mountain or street racing bikes. These are very utilitarian urban bikes used in nearly every way a car is used back in the states. Baskets on both the front and back of the bikes are often loaded down with all sorts of bags -- groceries, backpacks, musical instruments and of course children. Baby on Board has all new meaning when you see young mothers riding bikes that are loaded with children ... and I mean loaded! A woman could actually carry up to four children on her bike ... maybe even more ... with one in the front basket/seat, one strapped to her chest or sitting just behind the handlebars, one on her back and then one in the basket/seat on back. She is her own mini-van! I am completely impressed! And they make it look so easy, too, weaving in and out of traffic.