I was thinking that about 2 months ago. And then I saw people doing bikepacking/long distance bike touring, and I was quite amazed. With wide enough tires, adequate tire pressure control and seat suspension, people ride huge distances with no problems, on old fashion dirt roads.
The reason I linked a bike above was that they truly are a modern marvel. So unassuming and yet so flexible, reliable and overall... powerful, plus cheap by modern standards. A bike is probably the most accessible high tech modern invention that we take for granted.
I don't think you need seat suspension for bicycles to beat walking. On the kinds of surfaces that foot traffic naturally forms, am average commuter bike is gonna perform very decently.
I think the only qualitative difference would be that modern roads are usable all year whereas natural tracks are generally gonna get unusable when it rains a lot.
It's incredible that we have machines that can take that kind of a beating, while also having precision components on them, and also being light enough to pick up in 1 hand, and being affordable to the poorest members of society.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QSrBIIC4po
The reason I linked a bike above was that they truly are a modern marvel. So unassuming and yet so flexible, reliable and overall... powerful, plus cheap by modern standards. A bike is probably the most accessible high tech modern invention that we take for granted.