Why the Bolands Bike to Work, Even When It “feels like 38C”
Health Care Climate Heroes #2
(Yes, those lovebirds really are Jim and Shannon Boland, back in the day.)
One day in early July, during that eight-day ordeal of “feels like 38C”, I watched a lean yet powerful guy whizz up my street on a bike. Despite my brief glimpse, I recognized the cyclist to be none other than Health Sciences North physiotherapist and Sudbury Symphony Orchestra French hornist Jim Boland, heading home from the hospital after a (presumably) long hard day at work. I thought to myself, Jim is going to need a really good shower.
So what would be the motivation(s) for biking to work in such torrid weather? I can think of a few:
1) You are a fitness freak
2) You are too cheap (or poor) to pay for parking at the hospital
3) Your car broke down and it’s in for repairs
4) You sold your car so you could afford your new racing bike
5) You are training for a road race that will probably be cancelled due to the pandemic
6) You are a militant supporter of cycling, with no fear of being killed on Paris Street
7) You are concerned about your carbon footprint
8) All or many of the above
My curiosity was getting the better of me. Luckily, Jim’s wife Shannon is a friend of mine. and a physiotherapist at the Children’s Treatment Centre. She bikes to work too. So I invited them over for glasses of ice water one recent evening, and we hashed through the reasons for the Bolands’ active transportation habits.
The logistics
Shannon and Jim live in the south end of Sudbury, about 5 km from Health Sciences North. They have several options for getting to work:
1) Walk: about 50 min each way (time consuming)
2) Drive 6 km to the cheap parking lot, then walk back 1 km to the hospital (stupid)
3) Public transit: viable option, but the routes have changed, for the worse (annoying)
4) Cycle: either through the woods and the University, or up Paris Street (dangerous)
So why does Jim bike to work?
For Jim, the reasons are pragmatic. First of all, “I like to get my legs feeling a little stronger,” he told me. And why does Jim need strong legs, you might well ask? For the sake of his golf game! He needs the stamina. He’s also motivated to save money on gas. Additionally, the Boland family has two vehicles and five drivers, making alternative transportation for some a necessity.
Tucked underneath these practicalities is an awareness of the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels. Jim studied ecology in his undergraduate years.
Jim is not a snow biker. During the depths of winter, the bus is an option. However, since the bus routes changed, it’s become way less convenient. What used to be a 20 minute trip now takes 45 minutes.
And what about Shannon?
For those who know Shannon, her main reason for biking to work won’t come as a surprise. “It gives me great joy,” she confesses, laughing. “It brightens my day to ride there and back.”
“She’s a racer,” Jim comments. Shannon’s older brother was a three-times Olympic cyclist. She recalls trying to race him on her tricycle at age three! It’s clear the competitive fires still burn brightly.
Love. Joy. The fitness of it. And as Shannon gets older, she’s thinking more. About politics, about our earth, about more cyclists on the roads driving the creation of more bike lanes, preferably smooth, safe ones, where she could go faster and get even more joy.
Co-Benefits: Planetary Health . . . Human Health
Jim and Shannon are perfect examples of the health co-benefits of active transportation. They are reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and improving their city’s air quality, while simultaneously (and cheaply) improving their own mental and physical health (and in Jim’s case, his golf game.)
They are also helping make the case for more and safer bike lanes, which will entice more people to cycle to work and school safely.
By setting a great example, Jim and Shannon are multiplying their positive impact on their community and the planet.
Great job, Jim and Shannon! You really are Health Care CLIMATE Heroes.
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