An Open Letter to the Cycling Industry
Dear cycling industry,
This is a letter to you. You are not as sustainable as you a) could be, b) should be, and c) think you are. Just because bikes are your business, your carbon footprint is still pretty large, but it doesn’t have to be.
In my short time working in a bike shop I’ve glimpsed the behind the scenes world of the industry. While the cycling industry is so multifaceted, from racer bros to mess-life to the common commuter, there is one this that we all have in common, we just want to ride our bikes. What does riding bikes do for us? It’s an escape, it’s freedom, for some an escape into the mountains, to get out of ones own head, breath fresh air. For others a physical escape, ones only form of transportation, only way to get to their place of work, make money, and live. What else does riding bikes do for us? It is sustainable. It provides an alternative transportation to cars. It is one of the simplest ways people can live more sustainably. And that is what I am here to talk about today. Sustainability, and how the one industry that supposedly is huge advocate for it, it kind of cheating behind the scenes.
Sustainability is a word that’s thrown around A LOT these days. You see it on social media, I know on my Instagram feed every other Ad is for those compostable iphone cases. In the news (although unfortunately not in politics as much). Your one veg-head friend constantly trying to get you to go vegan for the animals and now for the environment. And bike shops, they now see how they can monetize “sustainability” to get more people to buy bicycles. Which do not get me wrong, I am all for more bikes. I just think they are going about it a little wrong. Cycling Companies, big brands, that are throwing the ‘sustainability' stamp on their products to sell sell sell! But isn’t that the opposite of sustainability? Aren’t we supposed to be reducing, reusing and recycling? Okay I’ve been talking a lot of game here so far, so lets unpack this, *insert gif of Johnathan of the fab five*.
Let me go back to where my interest in all of this first started. My first month working at a bike shop in the dead of winter, I was leaning at the front counter, wasting away as the staple women in a bike shop, scrolling through instagram, when a post caught my eye. Actually it was a photo of a freak commuter bike that caught my eye but it was the caption that changed me forever. Yes that sounds dramatic but let me absolutely shake your world with some facts real quick. Brace yourself:
“Car trips of under a mile add up to about 10 billion miles per year, according to the 2009 U.S. National Household Transportation Survey (NHTS). That’s like the entire population of Chicago driving to Las Vegas and back! If we all chose to power half of these short trips with our bikes instead of petroleum, assuming an average fuel economy of 22 mpg and an average fuel price of $2.50/gallon, we would save about $575 million in fuel costs and about 2 million metric tons of CO2 emissions per year. Get a better bike instead! If you’re in the Bay Area - stop by @newwheel up on Bernal for some advice on e-bike car replacements (At BevMo, 0.8 miles from my house with 40 lbs of party in the basket, would never dream of driving) #carsarecoffins Source: epa.gov “
-@hellshommus on Instagram
Holy hell. This shook me! At the time, I had driven my car to work that day from my apartment that was 1.5 miles away. I wish I could say this story ends with me stating that I hence forth sold my car, devoted my life to the bike commuter lifestyle, turned vegan, and now live in a yurt with a zero carbon footprint. But no. And that’s not what this letter about. It is so so hard to be 100% sustainable. I mean, almond milk is canceled for crying out loud! We, the world, society, humans, are constantly learning new ways that we can do better and be better. One person can’t make a change, you can make small changes, start trends, change culture, create the culture of sustainability in our communities, and start a chain reaction of events that ultimately lead to the masses all getting behind oat milk instead of almond milk because RIP the bees. Okay, okay, I’m sorry I’m getting way ahead of myself here. Reel it in Troy. Ultimately one person cannot make big change.
Big Brands can make a bigger, faster impact than just one person. In-order for things like ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’, choosing bikes over cars, oat milk, etc. to take off, is the big brands that have to get behind all of this. The cycling industry has kind of tricked everyone into thinking that its all fine and dandy in the two wheeled world. After months in sales, and honestly lucky circumstances, the service manager at a different location noticed my basic bike mechanical skills and took it upon himself in his busy schedule to train me to be a full time bike mechanic (bless you Bryan Oprel, ultimate bike daddy, you changed my life xoxo). I began to dig myself deeper into the cycling industry, thus leading me to really see how the cycling industry is not really doing enough, if not anything to be sustainable!
Every new bike that comes out of a newly manufactured (not recycled) card board box. Comes covered in plastic wrap, bubble wrap, plastic zip ties, paper coated in waxy non-recyclable coating, and the occasional, the very very occasional recycled paper packaging. Also a goodie bag of extra bits and bobs, again made from plastic, that bike shops end up throwing away anyways and not giving to the customer. Also also! while I understand maybe legally or for some reason or another little owners manuals that again no one actually gives to the customer because it can all be found online. At the end of the day if the customer really really wanted to know that if they fall off their newly purchased bike they indeed cannot sue this brand, it’s all online.
Some big brands have been making strides to support non-gender conforming stereotypes, funding initiatives for local cycling programs, etc, etc, however, they still fall short on sustainable packaging, and producing less waste. I have a huge box full of metal shims, and do-dads at my shop that are specifically used so that the rider can customized the fit of their bike. Great, love customization and comfort on a bike BUT if I didn’t luge my bin of metal recycling to the metal recycling container on northside every month, they’d just end up in a landfill somewhere. I’ve asked the big brand reps whenever they visit, what, if anything, are they doing to battle this kind of waste production. Can I send these shims back to the main warehouse to be reused, are they thinking about ditching plastic packaging for strictly cardboard packaging?
While I love our reps (always extremely respectful and kind to me) they never have an answer for me, its always just a shrug and a “yeah unfortunately you just have to toss those if you don’t want thousands of extremely proprietary piece of metal taking up space in your shop”. This is just one example. I have yet to see any big brands that are actively trying to reduce the waste that comes with their new products. Wait! Surly once did a thing where they wrapped their new tires in a reusable strap that can be used for backpacking/touring… While I’m sure I could do some in-depth research and find some more brands and examples of companies that are doing this, It is pretty upsetting that for someone who works in a space where I come in contact with a plethora of mainstream brands and companies I can only think of two examples of conscious stainable actions from theses kinds of big brand companies.
Moving down the chain of command from Companies to local bike shops. Big companies make their products so damn expensive (not mention available online, oof don’t even get me started on that) that local bike shops in order to make any sort of profit they have to up-sell and push new product and charge big bucks for service too. My most cringe worthy moments as a bike mechanic are when customers decline to have work done on their bike because buying a new one would be cheaper. But I have to follow policy, I have to charge a customer $20 on a chain that only costs the company $6. Look I know not every bike shop is the same, not every bike shop is owned by cis-white men looking to turn a profit, but also, they kind of are. So this is the question. I could probably keep secretly changing the price of chains from $20 to $15, subtly charging less on maintenance to convince a customer to do the work on their already existing bicycle, and hope I don’t get fired for it. OR how can this industry do better? I may not be able to answer for the big businesses but us little folk, we certainly have some ideas. Whether you’re a bike mechanic, shop owner, big brand intern sitting in a cubicle wishing they were out in the California sun, or even just a customer. We can all do better.
Bike mechanics: This is what I am, this is how I sleep at night for the most part. Ask yourself, how much use can you get out of these bike parts? There is power and sustainability in overhauling / repacking bottom brackets, hubs, headsets. A customer insists on a new chain ring, even though the current one has tons of life left? Donate gently used parts to a local bike co-op. Encourage your customers to do the work, even if that means, throwing in a free wheel true, or set of break pads. Talk to your co-workers about these practices, get everyone on the same page. Metal recycling? Paper recycling! But first reduce and reuse.
Customers! Please please do not buy things online, spend the few extra bucks on supporting your local shop. Buying local is sustainable. Seriously google it. Also fuck Jeff Bezos.
Bike shop owners. “Most Sustainable Bike Shop in Business”, how does that sound for a title? I certainly like the sounds of that. Think about where you can cut corners on service charging, keep inventory small and thoughtfully chosen. Products that support brands that are sustainable. Have those tough conversations with your Brand Reps about sustainability. If enough people talk to their reps about these things, word will make it up through the grape vine. Buyers want to make what their customers want. It is basic economics. SO. We need to change what we want which will in turn change what the big business provide. If the people want less waste, less plastic packaging, more durable components, green energy powered factories, I could go on. And eventually, well you get the idea. Or do away with Capitalism all together. Just a suggestion…
Okay finally, I do not have nor do I have to provide all the answers. I know you have some ideas too. You love riding your bike because it makes you feel some type of way and it’s not driving a car, your helping the environment, and your own health all at the same time. What a goddamn win win. But there is more. What a single person can do to change the cycling industry is limited, but there is power in people. And big companies there is a TON you can do, so this is an open letter to you, yes you in the cycling industry, do better. Because the planet literally depends on it.
Thanks,
Emma