tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post6491356700502120207..comments2024-02-05T16:57:21.842-08:00Comments on The Speckled Hatchback: Post #105 - The return of the bicycle and an intro to bike-birding!Dorian Andersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15916335753403783947noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-26799780072439994032017-06-04T09:54:31.761-07:002017-06-04T09:54:31.761-07:00Hey Vjera! Good to hear from you! I also enjoy fin...Hey Vjera! Good to hear from you! I also enjoy finding birds in transit while biking. It makes eBirding them a bit harder but that's not the end of the world, right? <br /><br />I am stoked to get my Bay Area bike list up and running (60 species so far!). When/If I move again, I'll start another bike list based somewhere else. As you suggest, each move/homebase is kinda its own thing. How those would be combined into any form of biking life list is a bit tricky. At the end of the day, people can do whatever they want. My goal in the next few years is to get my Bay Area bike list over 200, and I'd love to get it to 250. As I explained, my photographic interest will certainly keep me from maximizing my eventual total, but I'll keep people posted either way!Dorian Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15916335753403783947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-76335717665803176292017-05-26T14:42:24.319-07:002017-05-26T14:42:24.319-07:00I'm a fan of green birding! I love my green l...I'm a fan of green birding! I love my green list and being aware of the birds along my whole route, not just the spots where a car can access it. One thing I have thought of that I don't think you mentioned--I think a proper green list (life) needs to be restarted every time I move, just like a yard list. The birds I could get on my green list if I moved to Florida would be very different than the 200+ I've earned from my Eugene, Oregon home.Vjera Thompsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00962874729725270858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-13448481774264440192017-05-25T20:45:15.403-07:002017-05-25T20:45:15.403-07:00Yes! I recall you telling me about your great bike...Yes! I recall you telling me about your great bike-birding efforts at some point in the last two years. Super work! I am hoping to slowly build up a San Mateo County Bike-bird list over the next few years. not sure if I'll be able to get to 300 since photography will be a constant distraction, but hopefully I can get it up over 200 or so. We'll see!Dorian Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15916335753403783947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-19783409085676620162017-05-24T16:28:38.464-07:002017-05-24T16:28:38.464-07:00Hi Dorian - Based on your adventure in 2014, in 20...Hi Dorian - Based on your adventure in 2014, in 2015 I undertook a Green Big Year in Santa Barbara County California. I biked over 4400 miles and tallied 285 species. I agree with your assessment that it is good for both one's physical and mental health. One other thing to point out, when you are biking along you are constantly in visual and audio contact with the birds, and can stop at any moment to observe them.<br /><br />Keep it up!<br />GlennGnTnZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15238041451364529170noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-20131318272608684642017-05-24T09:11:59.246-07:002017-05-24T09:11:59.246-07:00Hi Greg!
Biking to the festival would be a blast ...Hi Greg!<br /><br />Biking to the festival would be a blast - 1 very long day or 2 nice short days! Might find some good stuff along the way too!<br /><br />Building an ABA or life list by bike isn't really realistic for most people so I totally get flying to new places in the country or using cars to chase birds closer to home. You can bet that if an ABA bird shows up in Humbolt I'll be in my car to chase it. Luckily, ABA birds are so rare that I only find myself chasing new ones maybe 2-3 times a year. However, I understand less the desire to run up a huge county list with a car as a most counties could be well and easily explored by bike. The smaller the geography, the more the bike makes sense, not to mention that its fun and healthy as well! My new project is going to be my San Mateo Bike list, so stayed tuned to see how that grows in the next few months!<br /><br />Dorian Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15916335753403783947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-53394192231174251022017-05-24T07:12:08.809-07:002017-05-24T07:12:08.809-07:00Hi Gregg
Yes! The idea of utilizing public transp...Hi Gregg<br /><br />Yes! The idea of utilizing public transportation is a very good one. I've always thought that some combination of biking and public transportation would be a great idea for a Big Year, local, state, or national.<br /><br />I totally hear you on the safety thing. Biking is much safer than people generally think. I guess I was thinking more along the lines of a larger bike-birding project, the sort that would put a person at that low risk but over an extended period of time, like over a year. I was hit once and very nearly hit 7 or 8 other times during my adventure, but then again I wasn't riding on bike paths for most of that effort. Biking in some rural area doesn't carry the risks of biking in a more populated area. Everyone's situation is different, and I totally understand if people shy away from biking for either perceived or actual safety considerations. Mostly though, its the physical effort the the bicycle requires that deters people. It's minimal but its still more than the effortless car......Dorian Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15916335753403783947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-70236275227441937672017-05-24T05:27:32.411-07:002017-05-24T05:27:32.411-07:00Another bike birder here checking in from Indiana!...Another bike birder here checking in from Indiana! Ever since the beginning of 2015, I have pretty much birded exclusively this way, and your big year is a big part of the reason why. It is just more fun, and way more of a challenge. It is also a way for me to enjoy my favorite hobby while still getting in some precious workout time, where before I would have to do one or the other, and you know which one would usually win out.<br /><br />I definitely identify with your thoughts on "earning" birds. I have made some gasoline-powered chases of rare birds during this same time, and ticking something uncommon from a car doesn't feel as good as digging up a good but regular bird by bike. I had this exact experience last week when I undertook a big green day and found a Henslow's Sparrow and Black-billed Cuckoo, both of which were extremely satisfying. And if I had been birding by car, I definitely would NOT have found the sparrow since it was being on the bike that allowed me to hear its faint call.<br /><br />Next year, I hope to bike to The Biggest Week in American Birding at Magee Marsh in northwest Ohio, which is about 110 miles from my home.Greg M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17589804703249828778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6961914105467755287.post-50113593714077462042017-05-23T10:43:20.605-07:002017-05-23T10:43:20.605-07:00Shout out to bike birders! It is awesome and real...Shout out to bike birders! It is awesome and really fun. I supplement a lot of my bike birding with riding the bus - it isn't as pure as bike-only birding, but is still much greener than driving alone in a car and lets one travel quite a bit further. All the buses in our area have bike racks on them, which makes a hybrid bike/bus trip quite easy! <br /><br />I would also strongly disagree with your statement "Biking is also a much larger assumed physical risk than is driving, so someone with 3 small kids might opt for the car not only for convenience but also for the future well-being his family." I think this is a misleading statement in a variety of ways - the biggest being the danger of a sedentary lifestyle. Here is a link to a study that attempted to quantify the effect of cycling vs. driving on life expectancy. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2920084/ The study found that the health benefits of cycling far outweighed the risks. And that is just the benefits to the biker themselves! The benefits to other people from one biking instead of driving, in terms of traffic safety and pollution avoided should really be added to the positive tally as well! <br /><br />Gregg Seversonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17670198995258928099noreply@blogger.com