Beer Bike

Beer Bike

noun

1. A bike dedicated solely to the purpose of acquiring and/or consuming beer.

"Nice Beer Bike man, looks good with the custom 6-pack front basket."

verb

1. The act of bicycling with the primary objective being the acquisition and/or consumption of beer. One must not necessarily own a dedicated Beer Bike to participate in a Beer Bike, in fact any bike will do just fine.

"Honey, would you like to go on a Beer Bike next weekend?"

Two of my favorite things, beer and bicycles, are truly a natural fit. You see, riding a bicycle to often will make a guy to skinny, and drinking beer to often without a little exercise will make a guy fat. Put em' together and your're just a fit and jolly fella!

Bare with me as a I geek out for the next few minutes.

Invented in 1864 by French carriage maker Ernest Michaux, the modern bicycle is the most efficient form of human powered transportation ever invented. A human being can travel at 10-15 mph on a bicycle with the same energy output required to walk at 3-5 mph. In terms of the ratio of cargo weight a bicycle can carry to total weight, it is also the most efficient means of cargo transportation. The bicycle has changed little in the last 150 years.

Beer is what I consider and energy positive beverage. At 200 kilocalories a serving and high in carbohydrates, a decent quality IPA doesn't really qualify as a health drink, but it tastes pretty damn good warm or cold. Besides, beer outdates Jesus and that pretty much makes it sacred.

All these interesting facts naturally lead one to pose the question, "How many beers does it take to power a bicycle?" Assuming clinical conditions controlled for additional caloric intake and ideal riding surface, this is really a simple math equation.

We can use the constant of .28 kcalories a mile per pound of rider assuming travel on flat firm ground. When I plug myself into this simple equation it looks like this:

.28kcal (Calories) x number of miles ridden x 160 pounds = total energy cost in kcal

Assuming a ride of 50 miles:

.28 kcal x 50 miles x 160=2240 kcals or roughly the equivalent of 11.2 cans IPA.

If we wanted to state this in mpg of beer we would need to convert our 11.2 twelve ounce cans into gallons:

11.2 cans x 12 oz/can = 134.4 oz/128 oz = 1.o5 gallons of beer

Divide that into our theoretical distance of 50 miles:

50 miles/1.05 gallons = 47.62 mile per gallon of beer

To tell you truth, I like the math problems but don't really care about the milage. You see, the most important thing is that Jen and like to get on our bikes and hunt down a beer or two at some cool place that we have never been and then ride back home. I get to hang out with my cute wife, exercise and drink beer all on the same day! Truly, I am living the dream!

It is pretty fun to go on a Beer Bike and there is probably one to be had in your neighborhood!

Maybe you should find out?

Livin' the Dream

Matt

More than one great day has started right here at the Wild Mountain Cafe in Greenwood. Serving one of the best breakfasts in Seattle.

While beer is a fine breakfast food, I prefer eggs and toast.

Black Raven Brewing Co. in Redmond WA. Beers, peanuts, pretzels and Connect Four.

Jenny suffering in the dreadful Pacific Northwest weather aboard the Walla Walla.

Seattle is nestled between the Cascade Mountains to the east and the Olympics to the west.

Jenny refused to pedal further until I took a photo for her train-loving father.

Hood Canal Brewing Co. Kingston, WA.

Refuel and rehydrate.

Terrible views of Mount Rainier from Suquamish, WA near Agate Strait.

Another gray rainy day in The Emerald City.