'Cycle Sunday' - The New Holiday Tradition

by: Mike Norris

Last Thanksgiving, I spent the day with family. The next morning, when a lot of people were heading to the mall, I went for a peaceful bike ride at Bluff Point State Park and later spent time with my dad in his workshop building a wooden bike rack for his bike. We later shared turkey sandwiches while watching the news, which, as would be expected, was filled with images of people with bags under their eyes staggering through doorways into chain stores. We could only shake our heads. I'll take 'If Aliens Could See This, They'd Never Visit Earth' for $200, Mr. Trebek.

I'm not a Black Friday person. I really like Small Business Saturday, though. However, the entire shopping mentality has been going overboard lately. Not only do we have 'Cyber Monday' I've heard talk about something called 'Mobile Tuesday.' Not only that, but a lot of chain stores are (rather obnoxiously) pushing Black Friday into Thanksgiving. I guess we can call this day 'Are-You-Seriously-Open-On-Thanksgiving?! Thursday.'

But as my wife pointed out, no one has actually claimed Sunday. Until now. Yes, I have dibs. Double dibs. I hereby designate the Sunday between Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday: 'Cycle Sunday.'

Yes, 'Cycle Sunday.'

Here's how it works: this Sunday, collect as many friends and family members as you want/can stand to be around, and bring your bikes to any main thoroughfare in a small town. The earlier you go, the better. Then, take a ride of any length, and make careful observations (bringing a camera would help) of the independent businesses around and when they are open. You can then take this information back home with you and then plan your shopping trips for later in the week. You don't need to be one of those smug people who fights their way through horrifying malls to gleefully post on Facebook that they've finished all of their holiday shopping. And as much as I like Small Business Saturday, more needs to be done the other 364 days out of the year. As a bonus, there isn't a better way to see small businesses than on a bike: you can ride up, turn toward the curb, make a note of the hours, and head off again.

There are other very strong links between cycling and small businesses. Every new bike I've ever bought has come from a small business (I have taken apart enough trashed department-store bikes to confidently tell you the quality just isn't there - stick with a bike shop). I buy accessories from independent shops like Pacific Swim Bike Run and Greenwich Bicycles. I ask these and other small business owners if there are any scrapped steel bike frames they are throwing out anyway so I can practice welding (and if any readers out there have any old, preferably dust-covered bikes, you know who to email if you want to get rid of them).

Now for the link between cycling and Thanksgiving: when you've loaded up on turkey, stuffing, pie and other assorted treats, you often don't want to move. Instead of associating the holiday with overindulgence, one can associate it with balancing that with some exercise (Pacific Swim Bike Run, incidentally, is sponsoring the Harbor Point Turkey Trot, which takes place early on Thanksgiving Day so you can make a preemptive strike against the calories before you drive to your relative's house).

So remember Cycle Sunday as your time for fun, fitness, family and finding small businesses to shop at later. As much as the press wants to convince us otherwise, this season is not a race and there is no need to rush: savor the holiday season, and you'll quickly find that wandering through a small town and supporting a small business more than one day a year is a lot more valuable than the $20 you may save waiting in line at 4:00 in the morning on Black Friday. Thanks for reading and thanks for riding.

Mike Norris is the founding editor of DIYBIKING.COM, a site dedicated to casual cycling, random builds, and bike travel. He lives and works in Stamford and owns one 3,300 lb. SUV and 7 and 9/10 bicycles. He can be reacheed at connecticutmike@gmail.com