I Love Riding in the City

NAME: Jim V
LOCATION: Baltimore, MD
OCCUPATION: Teacher

Where do you live and what’s it like riding in your city?
Baltimore is not the best city for riding, but it’s a pretty great place to live so the trade off is worth it. The public transportation system here isn’t really that good so riding is the better option. Luckily, there are a few routes out of the city where you can just get on the road and go for hours.

What’s been your favorite city to ride in, and why?
It’s a toss up between Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Hanga Roa, Easter Island. Toronto is just an amazing city. It’s really bike friendly and every time I go there, I fantasize about moving there. Pittsburgh, because it’s where I grew up. I’ll never forget being 14 and hammering up every hill I could on a 10 speed from Sears pretending I was Greg Lemond. I know there are plenty of places with bigger hills, but I’ve never lived in any of them. Easter Island is totally isolated and most of the roads are deeply rutted and extremely muddy and you suffer through these peanut butter mud patches, but every time you arrive to another set of Moai (the big stone heads) it’s totally incredible. A lot of people will go over the whole island via bus. If you do that, you can see most of the island in a day. Riding lets you space it out and digest everything you’re seeing.

Why do you love riding in the city?
Because I like living in the city and riding is the best way to get around.

Or just say whatever you want…
My wife and friends make fun of me because when I have to drive in the city, I automatically take the same route I take when riding. While it might be the fastest way on a bike, it’s usually not in a car.