Third step

Find a good place to bike. If I had only bought a bike and try to roll out into traffic, I would have moreover died or been so scarred by the knowledge that I would never have tried it again. Biking in the city is a whole dissimilar thing. Instead, I went to secluded areas: parks, mainly, but also parking lots or near-deserted side streets in the outer boroughs. It meant no traffic to worry about, but it also meant no witnesses and no judgment. Not those onlookers would have actually been judging the grown-ass man who without a doubt didn’t know how to ride a bike, but my own fear of that would have been crippling enough to keep me from focus on the task at hand. Depending on your preference, an adult bike-riding class will cover both the wheels and the location. Here in New York, they’re offered by a nonprofit partnered with the city; wherever you are, there’s sure to be at least a private offering. I haven’t done one myself, but taking a class with a group of caring people in the same boat as me would have been the safest space imaginable. As you get better, bike where you can. At a friend’s house? Ask if you can hop on their bike and take a ride around the block. On break? Look up bike tours, or just rent one and toddle around the back streets. Not only will you get more comfortable with riding in varying locations, and get a little more capable each time, but your confidence will grow from knowing you can make biking be a inferior or tertiary activity to develop an already-fun time.