In Which We See The Best Bike Rack

Wednesday afternoon after parking in Pit, I find a new bike rack on pavement. That is nice.

It was raining Wednesday morning, and had rained Tuesday night. On Tuesday, I left my bike in my office and rode home with my wife after doing an evening presentation at MMU.

So it was no big deal it was raining Wednesday—I needed to hitch a ride back to campus to get my bicycle anyway.

That afternoon, I was scheduled to be interviewed for local cable TV. I decided to ride my bike there, but it was still misting when I tried to leave campus, so I decided to drive the van my wife usually drives.

And when I got back to campus, the parking lot behind Warde Hall was full. So I drove around to the pit, parked in a faculty-staff space, and walked up the Basile Hall stairs and sidewalk towards Warde Hall.

And there I saw it. I’m sure it has been there for a while, but is new this year This is the style of bike rack just donated to MMU by the Bike Club, and this rack has been installed on a cement pad near Basile Hall.

That, my friends, is the best bike rack on campus. The one near Warde Hall is bigger, but is also located in a garden. I feel guilty leaving Clarence in those damp leaves every time I ride to campus. The bike rack by Regina is in a grassy area.

Bikes are vehicle. They are small, sure, but a vehicle parking lot is usually paved, not grass nor set in the midst of flowers. The issue isn't contact with nature--after all, like most bikers, I bike partly because I want to be out in nature--but is is moisture. Grass and gardens can be damp places, and bikes have all sorts of steel parts waiting to oxidize.

So this bike rack was a bit of a pleasant surprise. The same day I found it, I used it, to park Clarence briefly while I moved the van back up into the Warde lot late in the afternoon after it emptied a bit.

Clarence in rack. OK, the pad be just a tad wider and the rack back just a bit so that bikes don't stick out into the sidewalk, but it's still the right idea.

I thought of parking there today, but was in a bit of a hurry. If I have time, I may tomorrow. I like the idea of my bike on a slab of pavement—it seems cleaner and drier than other earthier locations. So thank you, MMU. You got it almost right on this one.