I'm a teacher who ride a bike to work, the same distance as this principal. I even make an 8 mile round trip every Tuesday afternoon to teach a one hour lesson in another school.

It's not really a big deal is it? Is America this car-dependant? Is he the only high school principal who rides a bike to work?

My husband rides a bike 30 miles to work (one way, and rides the train home). People think that is a bit weird/crazy, but it works for him. He picked a route that avoids the highway, etc. It allows us to get by living in the suburbs with one car. Good for us, the environment, and my husband's cute rear end! ;-)

Principal Ward also sets a good example for his students by demonstrating a helmet is an unnecessary piece of safety equipment.

This is a really wierd post. Where I come from - business people in suits and other people in high positions ride bikes to work all the time (and yep I live in a city). The Supreme Court Judge, Justice Mitchell was well known for riding his bike every day through the city to the courts. He only quit that because he now resides in Fiji and I don't know what he does over there. Can you please let me know when the first solar car is on sale? I wanna buy one as I hate riding my bike.

I can see how a teacher cycling to work could be a bit counter-cultural, but students?!
"many students are considering following his lead (although, sadly, no one had at the time the article was written)"
At my school in the UK, about half of us rode bikes to school. Most of the rest walked. The school heavily penalised parents who drove their kids to school, by making the cars queue until all the bikes and pedestrians had passed.

"Principal Ward also sets a good example for his students by demonstrating a helmet is an unnecessary piece of safety equipment."

Well, unecessary for a photo-shoot, anyway. Hard to know if he's usually wearing one or not... The photographer probably just figured that he'd be harder to recognize with a helmet.

This sort of behavoir is not unusual to people that live in more temperate climates, but this is beyond the norm for small town Iowa. Livig in Davis, CA riding everyday was not a problem. Living in Iowa, 4-5 months of the year riding can be horrible. My dad and I rode our bikes every day to the U of I, we took the bus when it was to dangerous to ride. We were the exception. The concept of alternative transportation is seeping into the minds of middle americans.

"Is America this car-dependant?"

I hear that it is. I ride my bike to work, to town, to gym, for fun, and it's nothing out of the ordinary..

Here in Eugene, Oregon, where we are blessed with 4 bike manufacturers, pedicabs, bike messengers, bike lanes, bike paths, wide shoulders, a progressive community, and a moderate climate, you see people biking ALL THE TIME.

On the other hand, when I was a messenger in Cleveland, Ohio, it was rare to see any bike on the streets that wasn't a fellow courier. There are places that are a little friendlier towards commuting than others, which is why this guy from Iowa needs to be applauded.

On the other hand, I have dealt with all sorts of weather and loads on my bike and I'm convinced that except in cases where ice is present on the roads, it is possible for every single citizen of the United States to use a bicycle for getting back and forth, running errands, and transporting moderate loads.