It Was Never Just a Bike

This National Bike Month, rediscover the freedom on wheels that’s still waiting.

Photo by Jahanzeb Ahsan on Unsplash with National Bike Month logo overlay

Every May, National Bike Month rolls around with community events like Bike to Work Week and Bike to School Day. These rides and all their local variations trace back to 1956, when the League of American Wheelmen (now the League of American Bicyclists) encouraged more people to get on a bike.

Today, it’s become much more. Beyond the reminder of riding, it reminds us of what cycling once meant to us. For most of us, the bicycle didn’t begin as exercise or transportation. It was pure freedom.

Finding Adventure on my Bike

In the 1960s, my sister and I were just kids on our Huffys. I grew up outside Alliance, Ohio, along a rural, two-lane stretch of US Route 62. The call of the nearby city was hard to resist. Before long, we found ourselves pedaling into city neighborhoods, widening our world with every adventure.

My mother wouldn’t have approved of how far we went if only she knew. Those were the days when being outside was what kids did. We cycled stealthily in the time before video games and mobile phones. The thrill of the ride was pushing beyond the edge of our everyday lives.

Today, that same stretch of US Route 62 is five busy lanes, farms replaced by shops and restaurants. As the city grew, so did I. I traded two wheels for four with a motor and left the bike behind. That first taste of pre-teen independence and discovery never left; it went quiet for a while.

The Bike in the Garage

Like a lot of people, cycling didn’t stay with me through every chapter of life. There were long stretches when my bike hung from the garage ceiling, coming down only for the occasional ride on a beach vacation. That childhood sense of discovery on the bike was yet to be rediscovered.

In 2009, after surviving a heart attack and struggling with obesity, I realized I needed to improve my health. The joy and sense of freedom of those bike rides from my youth spoke to me and urged me to start cycling again. Memories led to a new life direction.

I vividly remember that first time I returned to the saddle. Eight miles on the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in Akron was more than a vacation beach ride. This time, it was everything about the outdoors and the people. People pedaling, walking, running, cycling, and enjoying the freedom of discovery!

It was challenging, rewarding, and relaxing. Something stirred me that I hadn’t felt since the 1960s. A sense of discovery. A sense of possibility. I was hooked.

The Bike Found Its Way Back

That first ride didn’t end when I stepped off the bike. It led to another, and then another, as cycling found its way back into my life.

What started as a step toward better health became rides with friends, followed by a meetup group of casual trail cyclists. Before I knew it, cycling opened a door I never expected: bicycle touring.

My first weeklong tour on the Great Allegheny Passage and the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath was exhilarating and a life-changer. By the end of that week, I understood what had changed inside. Discovering the world by bike was where I belonged. That belonging continues and grows to this day.

Retired, that door opened even wider. I explored more of the United States and Europe by bike, guided by that same curiosity that started decades earlier in Alliance. Cycling wasn’t new; it was simply waiting for my return.

Expanding the Cycling Circle

One of the most meaningful shifts I’ve seen over the years is in who is invited to ride. E-bikes opened the door of discovery wider. The assistance of the e-bike welcomed people who thought their riding days were behind them or who never imagined themselves on a bike at all.

I’ve seen that change personally, and I’ve come to embrace it. E-bikes aren’t diminishing cycling. They’re expanding it by extending the invitation to more people to experience freedom, improved health, and mental well-being through connections to the outdoors.

A child’s first pedal-powered ride is unforgettable; balancing, pushing ahead, and mastering movement become lasting memories. Before using an e-bike, children should experience the benefits of pedaling for themselves. My younger days taught me that.

The Power of Inclusion

These days, what I see is different in the best way. The cycling community has opened its arms wider. More people are showing up with different backgrounds, abilities, and kinds of bikes, reflecting who they are.

Cycling looks a little different for every person who swings a leg over a bike. If you ride a bike, you are a cyclist. Some riders move fast, chasing miles. Others take their time, soaking it all in. Young riders, older riders. People riding solo, and people just enjoying life. What matters is that they’re sharing the same path.

I’ve seen that same spirit across the world, too. In Europe, kids ride to school together, bikes lined up outside the schoolyard like it’s the most natural thing in the world. Because there, it is. Cycling isn’t separate from daily life but is woven into it.

And here at home, I see hope in us moving in that direction. Not fast, but steadily. That is why we must celebrate National Bike Month.

Connecting Across Generations

The most meaningful moments on my bike weren’t about distance or destination. They’ve been about connections. I see connections across ages growing wider, visible, and welcoming in my county.

Through Knox County’s Happy Spokes, part of the Cycling Without Age movement, I’ve seen people who thought cycling days were behind them feel the wind on their faces. You can see the memories return, the spark reignited. Past good times come back on the trishaw, even if it’s just for a ride.

There are moments like the newly launched Bike Bus in Mount Vernon. Kids ride to school with their parents. Neighbors wave and cheer from the sidewalks. It’s nostalgic and joyful, and it bridges generations; that’s new and familiar at the same time.

What the Bike Gave Me

At 72, I can see more clearly what the bike has given me over the years. It’s been one of the most constant threads in my life, even during the years when I wasn’t cycling.

It gave me independence before I understood the word. It gave me direction when I needed it most. It gave me a community when I didn’t know I was looking for one. Maybe most importantly, it gave me a way to keep rediscovering the world and myself, again and again.

The Invitation That Never Expires

This National Bike Month, I’m not just encouraging you to ride. I’m inviting you to remember.

Remember where your first bike took you. Remember how it felt to go just a little farther than you planned. Remember the version of yourself who believed the road ahead was always worth exploring.

That version of you is still there. And the bike? It’s still waiting. Not to take you somewhere entirely new, but to help you rediscover everything that’s been there all along.

Happy National Bike Month.
Tom on the Trails