Rambling On/The World at Your Feet

Abstract

Why walk when you can drive? This question arises when I mention to those less inspired that I walk to relax. Like most forms of exercise it is addictive and most people experience a natural high from the physical exertion. The benefits are numerous, but walking for fun and relaxation is not for everyone. Historically, walking was connected with work and was generally thought a tedious necessity of daily life. Walking was "common," not usually considered worthy of comment and often associated with poverty and vagrancy, creating negative socio-economic meanings. In rural England workers trudged many miles to work each day and peasants lugged their produce to market along roads and byways. Bandits preyed on defenceless wayfarers, robbing and sometimes murdering the unwary. The infantry, or foot-sloggers, were not willing walkers: they were ordered to march, sometimes for hundreds of miles. Until the transport revolution there were only two alternatives to walking: ride a horse or travel in an animal drawn vehicle. These two options were limited to the wealthiest classes. Everyone else travelled by shanks' pony. The early coaches and buggies were rough and uncomfortable and usually travelled no faster than walking pace.