I don’t really know where to begin.

I’ve read the orders, watched the press briefings, and dove into articles about this virus. After a ride outside mid-March, I stopped taking my bike out. We couldn’t pass people with a minimum of six feet between us, especially with the number of people outside. I held my breath any time I was remotely near someone. I saw people without helmets, dogs off leashes, retro bikes that looked like they hadn’t been serviced in over a decade.

I took the stricter and more conservative approach thinking that’s what most cyclists (who are as obsessed about their health as I am) would do. That is riding on my trainer, specifically riding on my smart trainer with Zwift. Inside. I realize this is a privilege some people don’t have. 

I also know how fucking fantastic it is to ride outside. There’s no better feeling.

This is what concerns me, dude.

Yes, the Colorado State Government totally said, “It is physically and mentally healthy to be outdoors.” But I think this exception has been exploited. Look at the numbers of people and cars lined up to go take a walk on trails, the cyclists riding by in a peloton, the mountain bikers driving to trailheads outside their city. With so many people congregating in the same spots, it negates the goal of socially distancing and why the stay-at-home order was even issued.

The website also says, “All people in Colorado must follow the letter and the spirit of these orders. Do not try to bend the rules or find loopholes. It’s up to us all to keep people safe and build up our health care system so we can treat people who are sick and save lives.” People will find any loophole that will serve them.

I could pull up Strava right now and find a group of people who rode their bikes together. As a cyclist, I know it’s not natural to stay 2 bike lengths away from my riding buddy. I’ve heard accounts of friends seeing other friends holding the wheel in front of them. That’s usually less than a foot away from the bike in front of you.

When this order is made to keep people safe, not to kill your sub-par racing performance, I wonder why I continue to see cyclists just not giving a fuck. I heard that there’s a grey area between the rules, which is to say, what’s being published between different governing bodies.

While the State of Colorado states this about socializing outdoors:

“It is best to socialize only with your household members, but physical activity promotes health and well-being. If you are doing outdoor activities with people outside your household, limit group size and make sure there is at least 6 feet of physical distance between all people at all times.

People should not gather in any outdoor space where they cannot maintain 6 feet of physician distance from one another.  That includes pavilions, areas that offer shelter, or other outdoors areas that invite people to congregate and groups and do not allow for 6 feet of physical distance.”

Bicycle Colorado says this:

  • First and foremost: if you think you’ve been exposed, self-quarantine. Including being outdoors. Do not ride outside. 
  • Maintain a minimum of six feet of distance when riding around others.
    • Do not go for group rides with people who live outside of your household. Only ride with people you are already staying at home with and, when passing someone else on the road or trail, leave as much space as you can to ensure you are adhering to social distancing best practices. 
  • If you are going for a bike ride, ride from your place of residence.
  • Do not put your bike on your car or leave your community to ride.
  • Wear a mask or a buff while riding to protect yourself and others, regardless of your age and health.
  • Practice good hand hygiene at all times.
  • Get your sleep! Your immune system is stronger when you practice healthy sleep habits. Roshon recommends 8-9 hours.
  • Eat healthily. Now is not the time to fast; fasting hinders your immune system. 
  • Exercise!
    • But keep in mind that it’s important not to overdo it. When you push yourself too hard, you can limit your immune system’s response to a virus.  
  • Do not spit or snot-rocket on rides or around other people walking or biking. Carrying a kerchief or bandana in your pocket is a good alternative that will mitigate the risk of any spread. 
  • If you’re in a shelter-in-place or stay-at-home area that prohibits you from riding your bike, it’s important to heed those rules and stay home. Don’t put yourself or your loved ones at risk because you want to go for a ride. 
  • Finally, don’t ride risky. This is an especially bad time to be in a bike crash. You don’t want to go to the hospital right now, and doctors don’t want to see you unless they need to, so taking reasonable precautions while riding is especially important right now.

These are vastly different orders, which is why there are people deciding to take the “in-between” approach that will work for them. This means riding in small groups of people that they don’t live with. It means doing century rides outside of their jurisdiction. This is driving to trailheads to get some mountain biking in. And then, of course, posting it to Strava so everyone else can see how inconsiderate they are with some cute title.

So then I wanted to know why these cyclists continued to ride outside their community, in groups, without face masks, and couldn’t just jump on the trainer. Like, it isn’t hard to stay home (unless there are bigger issues at home, which is an entirely different blog post). I found five theories:

Theory #1:

Optimistic Bias: When someone underestimates their risk of succumbing to a threat. In our situation, some of these cyclists assume they won’t get Coronavirus. I remember thinking I was safe when we were still learning about this virus, back when it was only bad for older adults. But then the patients kept getting younger and younger and then I realized I wasn’t immune.

Being unrealistically optimistic may mean not taking precautions to protect yourself from threats. This is one reason why we see cyclists riding in groups, outside their communities, without masks. They don’t think they’ll contract the virus or if they do, they falsely believe it’s something akin to the flu.

Theory #2:

Ignorance: People like me have been obsessing over the information to ensure we’re making informed and safe decisions about our health and the health of our communities. Other people aren’t. This could be because they are limiting their news sources and are told misinformation. For example, Trump called this a “hoax” at the beginning. 

They also may simply not read the news and therefore, do not know enough information to make smart decisions. These cyclists are outside, also potentially riding in groups and not realizing the risk they’ve put themselves and others in.

Theory #3:

Selfish: The Atlantic said, “ Going out for trivial reasons imposes a real risk on those who will likely die if they contract the disease.” For people who are more likely to survive it but could pass this to someone who is more unlikely to survive it, it is in pure selfishness that they choose to continue to live life as status quo.

These are the cyclists who have been told by their friends and teammates to not ride in groups, to stay within their community (or the fuck home), to not publicize their law-breaking (yes, the stay-at-home order is a law and when you don’t’ follow it, yes, you’re breaking it.) on Strava or social media, but they do it anyway. They’re the ones who arrogantly say “If it’s my time to go then so be it.”

Theory #4:

Distant Suffering: This is the theory that we’re less likely to help when the issue is distant and we can’t see it right before our eyes. The Atlantic uses Peter Singer’s thought experiment and I’ll adjust it for cyclists:

Imagine you were cycling and saw a cyclist crash right in front of you. You’d likely feel you should help them even if that meant you got blood on your kit and thereby ruining it. Most of us would recognize this moral obligation to help someone.

Now imagine there was a cyclist across the world in danger and you could help them by donating the same amount of money it’d cost to replace that kit? Peter Singer argued that the same moral obligation would be there and the small cost would be the same, but we feel less compelled to do anything.

It’s the same idea right now with the virus. When cyclists aren’t seeing the death and overflowing hospitals, there’s less of an obligation to do the right thing. When they don’t stay home, they don’t see the impact of their decisions.

Theory #5:

Accustomed Actions: This is the theory that we are accustomed to certain actions from a moral point of view. We all know guns are lethal. We all know riding bikes with friends is fun as hell. If you were handed a gun and told to point it to your friend, you’d likely freak out. It’s because we’ve been taught that the ramifications of holding a gun to someone’s face could result in their death.

On the other hand, we’ve grown up thinking that meeting a friend for a bike ride is morally okay. Because these actions are accustomed, they’re still seen as benign. Our moral compass hasn’t caught up to today’s world where our contact with another person could lead to one of our deaths. I like how the Atlantic put it: “All of us are having trouble adjusting to a world in which leaving our own house for frivolous reasons carries the risk of manslaughter.”

What’s scary is that we (doctors, scientists, the CDC, WHO) don’t know a ton about this virus so we don’t know if it’ll kill us personally. We’re hearing about a lot of people getting gravely ill and dying. I personally don’t know anyone who has it or has had it. I feel like it’s a matter of time before I contract it though. 

I’ve been asking myself for weeks why others’ disregard for the community and their families bothers me so much. The United States, as predicted, has the highest number of COVID-19 cases at 639,664. This thing is bigger than you and me. It’s about protecting everyone. I don’t want to see people I love die from this because there aren’t enough hospital beds. This happened in Italy where they had to choose who lived and who died.

Maybe I’m so bothered because I wish I was ignorant as them. That I was jaunting about on bike rides with friends and not on my trainer every day. Maybe it’s because I see the numbers and realize that they could potentially kill their friends and families. Maybe I’m too emotionally invested in these particular people and wish they’d do better.

I think about the fact that more races will be canceled when people are still out there riding around with their buddies. Our Governor is watching the “Curve” and his goal is for that curve to go down. The stay-at-home order is supposed to be lifted April 26th but it won’t be the same as it was before we had the stay-at-home order sanctioned. Life will look a lot different.

Maybe it’s the fact that it’s not that difficult to stay home because group riding and trails can wait. I realize that outdoor bike riding will come again and that keeps me at ease. I realize people need other people but you can call or FaceTime without having to meet up for a bike ride.

Maybe it’s because I’m taking it seriously and I’m also taking offense that they don’t. And I have to remember it’s not a personal affront against me when these people go out. They likely have the information and they aren’t thinking about how it impacts others, especially me. It’s frustrating knowing there’s absolutely nothing I can personally do to stop their behavior and perhaps that’s what bothers me so much – having no control.

As a control freak, maybe that’s it. I want to force these people off their bikes and on to their couch and I know I can’t. I want to put the economy back to where it was. I want people to have their jobs back. I want to go outside and ride my bike without a mask or holding my breath. There are so many things out of my control and it’s hard to deal with.

Maybe this is an existential conversation with those people about their underlying values and belief systems which is difficult to change. One conversation with me will not change the way they think about the world. 

All I can do is my part and I have to remember that I’m doing the best I can and maybe these cyclists who are out there with their friends, without masks, riding outside their communities are doing the best they can with what they have as bonkers as that may be.

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