It is with great pleasure and joy that I write to you today. The festivities of Bike Week are coming to a close here at Hummingbird Wholesale, but the season of bicycling is still just beginning!
When we ask people why they do not bike to work regularly, we get many great responses. Topping the list is a perceived lack of safety, "bad" weather (rain, snow, heat, wind), time & distance (logistics), the idea of arriving sweaty and messy, fashion dorkiness, and a few others. When we ask the folks who bicycle regularly why they do it, we also get some powerful answers. They list improved fitness (strength, cardio, weight loss), money savings, no sitting in traffic or parking challenges, and improved environmental impact.
And with those answers, there is a missing element. If you could add one thing to the equation everything could change. And without that one thing, life is very ho-hum. That thing is joy.
With joy, life is better.
 joy  [ joi ]
noun
- the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation:
She felt the joy of seeing her son's success. - a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated:
Her prose style is pure joy. - the expression or display of glad feeling; festive gaiety.
- a state of happiness or felicity.
Bicycling is simple, poetic, elegant in its efficiency, and exhilarating. The ease at which my bike and I glide along - silently. The feeling of freedom fills me. The thrill of descending through turns. The accomplishment when my power takes me to the top of the climb. These things give me joy.
Over my time in the workforce, I've driven to work, walked, and biked. Arriving by bike consistently leaves me energized for work and motivated with a spring in my step, more so than other modes of transportation. I believe the joy I find in cycling makes that difference.
There are all kinds of good reasons not to do things in life, but once joy enters the scene, almost anything seems easy!
Written by Paul Adkins, Marketing and Brand Coordinator at Hummingbird Wholesale. With a passion for biking he rides his bike to work everyday. Emma Sackinger, Hummingbird's Production Manager, pictured with Paul on bikes commuting over Dilliard Rd. hill first thing in the morning.