My bike is sitting near President Lombardi’s office right now. It’s parked there almost every day — tangled with all the other bikes outside the Rec.But I’m sure the president won’t notice it. After all, she’s no Greased Lightning. Just your average 1994 Mongoose five-speed mountain bike with a rusted rear brake pad and cracked reflector.Chances are something else will catch his eye — like the gas guzzling H2 or the seductive new BMW Z3 parked in the South Stadium lot. Commuter lots are just teeming with expensive sports cars these days, Lombardi said. It’s a prime reason why he told the Baton Rouge Rotary Club he supports raising tuition.Oh, I can picture the rotary club reminiscing now. “Today’s college rascal just doesn’t have to put up with the 13-mile hike through the snow anymore,” they’ll grumble, puffing their old clay pipes austerely.Looking around, it’s hard to refute his point. Everyone despises the spoiled college kid stereotype. Especially spoiled college kids.But there’s something significant Lombardi’s missing. And it’s sitting right outside his office — shackled next to 50 others bicycles.In a way, this dilapidated bike represents the average student Lombardi overlooks.For every BMW or Mercedes on the lot, there are 50 rusted bikes lassoed around a tree trunk or tied around some temporary fencing.Sure, they might not be as flashy and refined as the slick new convertibles parked outside the CEBA lot. Neither are their stingy navigators.But we’re the bikers. And we represent the ever-increasing cyclist movement taking over thousands of college campuses across the globe.You’ve probably seen us swarming around campus. Chances are you dodged one of us today on your way to class. Or perhaps you dislodged one of us from our fine chariots after making some spastic sidestep into our path.Don’t worry. We don’t take it personally. It’s not easy being the most discriminated minority on campus. We knew exactly what we were getting ourselves into as soon as the training wheels came off.But finally, colleges across America are realizing the benefits of promoting biking on campus.Schools, like the University of New England in Maine and Ripon College in Wisconsin, are giving complimentary bikes to freshmen who leave their cars at home.Some schools have even implemented free bike sharing or rental programs which allow multiple students to rent bikes and return them at different locations around campus. Others partnered with local bike stores to supply students with bikes at discounted rates.So far, these programs have been a raving success.There are many reasons why University administrators should make our campus more biker-friendly — the most obvious being it’d improve commuter parking.
But there are also many reasons students should jump on the bike bandwagon.First off, biking is cheap and efficient. There’s no gas involved and no pricey insurance needed. Secondly, it saves time — which is especially important on large campuses like ours. Lastly, it’s a good way to exercise and burn off the Freshman 15.And if the whole “Geaux Green” environmental movement gives you a Jolly Green Giant hard-on, consider biking your hot new fetish.Of course, biking is only a small example of the various ways our University can cut back while trying to move forward.But considering the enormous budgetary constraints our University is currently undergoing, it’d at least be a step in the right direction.To endure these cutbacks, our administrators need to search for more innovative ways to enhance our campus and encourage costs-cutting alternatives.Who knows? Perhaps we won’t have to consider brash proposals — like raising tuition — once we think outside the box.Until then, I hope President Lombardi has a big trunk — because I’m putting my bike in it.Scott Burns is a 20-year-old business and history junior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_sburns.—-Contact Scott Burns at [email protected]