Friday, October 20, 2006

COMMUTING BY BIKE
Friday, October 20, 2006

This has been one of THOSE weeks, when time has been at a premium and running and riding ended up not getting done... for the most part.

When school started back up I decided I wanted to try something different this year, and either walk or ride to work three or four (or even five!) times a week. At first I was limited to walking (recovering from The Crash) but as September progressed I was able to get back on the bike and cut my transit time by a third (amusingly, I can typically ride to school in slightly less time that it takes me to drive there.) Also, there's just something I find unbelievably cool about showing up for work on my bike, even though it means I have to cart the bike up to my third floor office and change into proper working attire.

This week I encountered chilly mornings (3), an afternoon when it was raining quite a bit, an afternoon when it was sunny but a bit chillier than I expected (fortunately the ride's only 10 minutes!) and one beautiful warm sunny afternoon where I really wished I had more time and energy to keep riding.

One thing that really stood out was the morning when I was riding down a quiet side street and was suddenly struck by how much I wished I could just keep riding. Let's face it - 10 minutes is just enough to start to warm up and whet your appetite. I've thought about leaving earlier and taking a longer route... but I haven't been feeling quite that motivated.

Of course, today I planned to ride in despite the rain - and then overslept, making it necessary to drive. I missed my morning hop on the bike... but as I drove home through the downpour and flooded streets - maybe it was for the best!

JMH
Posted by at