Vigorous, sparkly, snowy
Junior art major Beka Youngberg has a great love for the walking technique. In part because she doesn’t have many other options, you will always catch Beka on the walk. Beka’s walking shoes of choice are her “adventure shoes.” She is sure to stay away from wearing Converse if she wants to thoroughly enjoy her walk without knee pain. Beka’s favorite things about the walking technique are the exercise involved and being able to enjoy the environment because of the slow pace walking forces upon her. Beka did bring up the fact that she owns a longboard. However, she said, “I look stupid when I try so I avoid it,” or at least save it for after dark.
Pros: beautiful scenery, exercise, no needed device to haul and manage once destination is reached.
Cons: slow, taxing on the body, requires comfortable shoes, no hope for being on time once late.
Manual Scooter: Vaughn Smoker
Efficient, thrilling, graceful
You have probably seen junior bio-chem major Vaughn Smoker scooting to class on his tried-and-true scooter. He is hard to miss with his long strides and speed. Vaughn especially loves this mode of transportation, saying, “I can sleep for as long as possible before I have to leave for class.” He specifically enjoys scooting on nice days when he can really get some speed and feel the fresh air against his back. Vaughn always wanted a scooter as his main mode of transportation. He asked for one for his birthday, and lo and behold, it has been with him ever since. Vaughn does warn of the dangers of a manual scooter, saying, “Don’t ride your scooter with sandals,” or on ice, as he has now survived three major incidents. These include a cracked phone, a great fall into the bushes and tumbling down in front of his professor. That won’t stop him from riding though!
Pros: time-efficient, it’s fun, able to get places quickly, easy to use.
Cons: hard falls, not all-terrain, requires special shoes.
Electric Scooter: Kyla Smith
Speedy, thrilling, calm
Junior psychology major Kyla Smith remembers her feet hurting during her campus tour, despite the relatively small campus. Kyla remembered she had an electric scooter at home and decided to bring it upon arrival in the fall. Kyla said, “I thought it would be more efficient for me to get to class, especially if I tend to leave five-ish minutes before class starts.” She describes the journey to class by electric scooter being much quicker than by foot. After her old scooter broke down, Kyla got a new scooter from a factory recommended by a friend. It arrived very fast from China, thankfully, with plenty of time to put to use on GC campus.
Pros: Efficient, easy to handle, different modes and adjustments, getting to class and destinations quicker.
Cons: Hard to use in rain or snow, can leave a trail of dirt, kind of big and can be in the way sometimes, can be super cold in the winter.
Bike: Aysia Adkins
Fun, fast, freeing
You will always catch senior music major Aysia Adkins taking advantage of paved paths as she rides her trusty bike around campus. As a self-proclaimed Goshenite, Aysia has observed bikes as a common source of transportation for her whole life. In need of a reliable source of transportation, Aysia bought her beloved bike from Chain Reaction Bicycle Project in June of 2024. Since then, she has replaced two tubes and invested in a new seat and basket for her bike. She refers to this maintenance as “a labor of love,” and a way to “add some pizazz.” Over the past summer, Aysia describes getting “really close” with her bike, as it was her main source of transportation.
Pros: can take you all around town, you can feel the breeze, the fresh air on your skin is freeing, the transportation time is much faster than walking.
Cons: the seats can be uncomfortable, even painful at times, bikes (particularly their chains) do not tolerate the cold, making them a three-season mode of transportation.
