Through rain, snow, ice, and gnarly crashes, a contingent of Garfield students and teachers persevere, united under a common mission: biking to school. Only a small minority choose this mode of transportation — national studies show that only one percent of students consistently bike to school, and even fewer adults bike to work.
Alan Kahn, an English Literature teacher at Garfield, chooses to bike to school because it’s a convenient way to get a workout in, and because it prepares him psychologically for the school day. “There’s a whole connection between physical activity and anti-depression on an emotional level, and also on a cognitive level it’s super helpful for me,” Kahn explained. Seán Kelleher, Junior, agreed: “It’s easier to focus in first period … I’m more awake.”
Mr. Z, a 9th-grade Literature and Journalism teacher at Garfield, has been biking to school for 20 years. They extolled the freedom of their commute, “What I like about biking is that all of the movement is under my own power… It feels so much more free to me. I have more agency and I really just like the pace of it.”
Garfield’s bike commuters seemed unbothered by Seattle’s weather. “I don’t really mind the rain that much,” Kelleher said. Junior, Kairo Zimmerman-Goad, expressed the same sentiment, “Weather-wise, I typically always find a way to bike.”
Z explained the hazards presented by cars on the road. “If a person doesn’t use their signal, and they turn right just as you’re coming along and cut you off, that can be dangerous. But, generally, you have to really respect cars because you’re not going to win against a car.” Kahn described his wariness of the “occasional close brush, where somebody’s passenger side mirror comes within inches of me as they’re passing by.”
According to Kelleher, many places around Seattle lack bike-centered design, making commuting risky. “It can be dangerous. There’s intersections like Yesler [Avenue] where it’s not really safe, and there’s intersections with no light and no stop sign, where you’re just waiting and hoping that the cars will stop for you,” Kelleher explained.
Each interviewee had experienced at least one crash, yet they all chose to continue biking to school. Ironically, biking helped Kahn recover from a previous bike injury. “I had an accident and broke my hip … and the physical therapist told me ‘You need to keep moving. In order to keep the joint healthy and healing right, you need to use it, and it should be low impact, like biking.’ I’ve discovered that if I drive a lot my hip aches, so biking was definitely the best thing for me,” Kahn said.
With sunnier skies and Bike to School Month on the horizon, it’s the perfect time to experiment with a new commuting style. Zimmerman-Goad encouraged others to take up biking to school. “Just try it! It’s fun unless you live like ten miles away. Then it’s going to suck.” Kelleher agreed, “Unless you live really far away or really close by, it’s not that hard. You can make it up a hill. You can put your bike on the bus … it’s definitely possible for everybody.”
