Ahh...Summertime

So we're into June now and the weather here in Victoria has been beautiful.

It was "Bike to Work" week last week and it was dry every single day... a rarity for the event. I tried my best to rally the troops in the hopes that I could get more than just myself biking to work. I'm pleased to say that of the whopping 6 people that I had on my team, 4 of us rode every day. The other 2 just couldn't get themselves on their bikes for some reason or another. That's okay though, because that just meant more treats for the rest of us.

Speaking of biking, this brings me to my next topic...biking without a helmet. I've lived (and biked) in Victoria for 22 years now and I've worn a helmet while biking everytime. It's the law, but it's also smart. I've had a few wipe-outs/crashes during the last couple of years and I've hit my head each time, and let me tell you...I was very grateful to be wearing my helmet. I constantly see cyclists riding without helmets and I just don't get it. Oh sure, maybe they've got it hanging from the handlebars, but that's not going to help anything. I don't know why I let it bother me so much. Really, these people are obviously already stupid, so I guess there's no reason to protect their brains. Quite frankly, I think the world could do with fewer stupid people, so we may as well just let them carry on. Maybe they'll get what's coming to them, maybe not.

To continue with the "stupid people" theme, there are also those idiots that are out there riding their motorbikes without proper gear. At the very least, people should be wearing jeans, a leather or ballistic nylon jacket, helmet and gloves. Helmets are mandatory in BC and I think "full face" ones are mandatory here in Victoria. Boots are also a good idea. Summer weather always brings out the idiot riders. You know the ones...guys (and girls) wearing shorts, t-shirts and sandals. I always shake my head at them and wonder how they could possibly be so stupid and careless. I've ridden motorbikes since I was 24, so I do actually know what I'm talking about. I've taken a bit of a break from riding, since we don't have a bike anymore, but all the time when I was riding, I was very adamant about proper riding gear. Granted, for the first few years, I didn't have any riding pants, so I wore jeans. I always had my legs fully covered and over the years I acquired proper riding pants. Anyone who says that it's too hot in the summertime to wear proper riding gear is full of poop (I don't use swear words, deal with it). I rode through Death Valley one year in the middle of July during the middle of the day...it was 130 degrees in the shade, and I had my full leathers on. I can just imagine the sunburn I would have gotten if I was just wearing shorts and a t-shirt; never mind the road rash if I had crashed. And then there's the heat that's coming off the bike as well. The riding pants help insulate against that too.

I suppose stupid people will continue to be stupid and as long as they're not causing harm to anyone else, we can just let them be. Like Forrest Gump's mom said, "Stupid is as stupid does".