Growing up, I lived in a rural area. I was decently car-brained because of it too, but rode bike just about every day until I got my license. 2 years ago I moved to a walkable neighborhood in my city, and started to embrace the idea of walking instead of driving when I didn’t need to. Recently I gave in to my curiosity and downloaded an app for rental bikes/scooters. I forgot how much fun riding bike actually is! My city is also expanding it’s bike lanes all over the place. If it isn’t for work, I’m not driving!
I started biking a few years ago. I was morbidly obese, and walking/jogging overstressed a tendon in my foot, so I switched to biking so that I could keep exercising despite my injury, as it was the only thing that was keeping my stress levels and blood pressure in check. Fast forward a few years, and I’m in the best shape of my life, and I look and feel great. Moreover, I’ve shifted from biking for exercise to integrating biking into my life as transportation. It is my primary mode of transportation now, and I bike about 5K miles per year, more than I drive. I don’t really even see it as exercise, it’s just how I get around. I have a rear rack with a big milk crate basket, and can haul quite a bit, using it for grocery shopping, etc. I’m adding a front rack and basket so that I can use it for Costco runs. I save a ton of money on gas, and it’s generally such a nice experience to ride everywhere. The really cool thing is that bikes are dirt cheap. 90s mountain bikes make great city bikes, as they are super sturdy and with their typical 3x7 drivetrains you can find a gear to easily climb the steepest hills. I bought a sweet 1995 Trek 820 that was practically brand new, having been kicked around someone’s garage for the last 30 years, for only $45, and it still had the nubs on the tires. I’ve since put more than a thousand miles on it. I’ve got two others that I’ve gotten for free, and I’ve seen others for free on craigslist and facebook marketplace. They cranked out these bikes by the millions in the '90s, so they’re readily available. I love biking, and it’s changed my life!
That’s awesome! I’m glad you’re healthy now. I’ll probably be looking to buy a bike soon, but right now I don’t have space for one. I appreciate the advice on what to look for!
Stay with the bike share / rental if you’re not ready to buy a bike.
I relied exclusively on a bike share for seven years and only got a bike recently because the government withdrew a subsidy and the service has declined.
But the concept of just renting the bike as needed and not having to worry much about availability or maintenance and storage, is a really big component of why I used them for so long.
I still use them with some regularity, but not as my main bike like before
if you don’t have space, you can get a Brompton ☞ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brompton_Bicycle
If you haven’t already, I recommend swapping out the knobby tyres for slicks. Much smoother riding.
Not to mention that knobbies wear out quickly on the street. I run Kenda Alphabites, a “dual sport” tire, on bikes that I also ride off road, and have street tires on my main grocery getter.