Since I'm here for almost a month, I decided it was time to ride O`ahu in earnest, something I've feared (or been too lazy to do), coming up with a bevy of excuses to rationalize not riding here. The first of which is the ridiculous fee for traveling with a bicycle. The recently started Facebook group, United Airlines is Ridiculous to Charge $175 Each Way to Travel With a Bike says it all. As a corporate partner of USA Cycling, it's a hypocritical move baring its shameless PR efforts. Unfortunately, I'm flying United.
Well, for $350 I'll just rent one. There aren't many places to rent a ride here, The Bike Shop seems to be the only act in town and rentals are a reasonable $200 a week for a Specialized Allez Sport with your choice of pedals. I found a nearby shop started by Brazilian triathlete, Raul "Boca" Torres, who came to compete in the Ironman and never left. You can get a road bike with a road-kit; tube, CO2, and multi-tool for $150 a week with your choice of pedals. The bikes are a little beat up, but I suppose so is mine.
Of course there's also a matter of dealing Hawaii motorists. People in Hawaii think of the bicycle as something for kids, motorists think of them as something in their way. Most of them have probably never ridden a bike or haven't ridden one since they were kids. You only ride a bicycle if you're a triathlete in training, or if you can't afford a car. As such, the bikes available on craigslist are either carbon-fiber race machines or Christmas presents come bum-beaters replete with DIY racks for your recyclables. Like most cultures that don't recognize the bicycle as a legitimate form of transportation (read: The United States of America), motorists tend to lack the sensitivity and patience to deal with cyclists unless they are behind or under them.
Finally, the infrastructure for bicycles is woefully missing. The system of bike lanes are sparse and have more gaps than a hockey players grill. There are no signs for cyclists, or for motorists to be aware of them, and many of the bike lanes require that you RIDE ON THE SIDEWALK.
But enough with the excuses. I went to Boca Hawaii and got a 2006 Trek 1000. It's a little long in tooth, but it'll do, and for a $150 a week, I can get it for two weeks and still be spending less than bringing my own (mostly I won't be giving United any more cash for their hypocrisy). I decided that I'd start by trying to ride back to my parents house in Aiea. I studied the routes on the Hawaii Bicycle League website, and asked questions at the shop, but no matter which way you slice it, you have to deal with this:
Four lanes of traffic merging three major arteries with no shoulder. To understand the true gravity of this merge you should also realize that driving in Hawaii is also a circus, specifically the part with clowns. To that end I decided that I'd try to make my crossing during non-commute hours and it wasn't actually terrible. After a few miles ON THE SIDEWALK, I finally reached the last of the scariest parts of the ride, crossing four lanes to make a left to get to the water-side bike path. From there it was smooth sailing past the park with City and County workers smoking pakalolo in their trucks marked with the state seal, a camp of homeless people with more stuff than me, and finally a moderate 700 ft. climb up to the house.
All in all it wasn't all that bad, I was pleasantly surprised by the motorists who, for the most part, gave me a comfortable berth as they passed, didn't cut me off, and never a single honk, finger, or angry word. It was a stark contrast to the entitled bmw/audi drivers and the half-blind, deaf, and dumb, cabbies who couldn't find their way out of a plastic bag in SF. My ride totaled a short 15 miles, but all in all wasn't as bad as I had manufactured it to be.
Tomorrow I will attempt to go ride Tantalus/Round Top Drive and back a ride I've long wanted to do. Looks like riding my home town isn't so bad after all.
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