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I just read Bicycle Commuting for Fun & Profit and am really excited about starting to ride my bike to work on Monday. You were right! All I had to do was look around to find a place to store my bike in the building where I work. I thought that because it’s such high security, they would not let me come in through a back entrance. Like you said, all I had to do was ask! The security office was glad to accommodate. No showers, but I did find a room conveniently located next to the back entrance with a sink. I’ll use it as my changing room. I won’t have to walk around the office in tights! My husband was so surprised about me wanting to do this. He thought I was too much into style to agree to take sponge baths at work. Now he is considering riding the tandem with me and dropping me off and picking me up. He even offered to install a rack and bag on the tandem. Thanks for all the tips. When I bought the eBook I did not realize it would have such an immediate effect on me. I thought I would never say this about going to work, but here it is: I can't wait until Monday! -- Mercedes C.
I've occasionally commuted to work by bike. Your newsletters have helped me make commuting a more regular habit. Much thanks! Granted, I live in San Diego and only commute about 6 miles each way. But, I figure I am one less car on the road and feel much better doing it. Riding to work every day last week convinced me that it really isn't hard at all. After a few days you get a rhythm going. You don't miss the car at all. -- Jerry W.
In 1977 I bought a late-model car that annoyed the hell out of me with its constant squeaks and rattles. I finally told my wife that I'd rather ride my bike than drive that piece of crap. I sold the car, started bike commuting, and haven't looked back. If you leave the car in the driveway and ride a bike, you save a few dollars in operating costs. If you can get rid of the car, then you save real money because you also eliminate the fixed costs. No car payments, insurance or license fees add up to big money saved. -- Larry S.
My truck blew up in March of 2001. So far I haven't replaced it! I love to ride my 12-year-old DeRosa (now configured as a 70-inch fixed gear) around town for errands, and my custom Davidson for longer stuff. I'm in my 50s, and though I'm not as fit as I'd like to be (who is?), I still can make it up the hills here in Tacoma, WA. I've been using a "trail-a-bike" to deliver my 6-year-old to kindergarten and pick him up. He loves it, though it's only 2 1/2 miles through residential neighborhoods. I get to really work on the climbs. I want to say thanks for putting some emphasis on commuting. Anything that gets folks onto a bike is good! -- Dave M.
Better than Sex, Drugs and Rock 'n' Roll I've been commuting by bike for about a year. It's a 25-mile roundtrip to college. I tell anyone who will listen how great it is. If like me you are married, stressed, poor and have young children, for God's sake cycle to work! It is a better stress reliever than sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll put together. Which is handy 'cause you gotta give up all that when you get hitched. I live in the south of Scotland. The hills are
steep, the wind is strong, the rain is horizontal and the truck drivers are mad.
So if I can do it every day, so can you! -- Luke H.
I've been bicycling to work for almost five
years. When I began, almost everyone considered me a freak. They thought it very
dangerous. Wow! You should see the huge changes in people's
attitudes and behaviors! Bicycle pooling is when people who live near each other, work near each other and have similar work hours commute together in a group. It's a great way for us hardcore bike commuters to help novices get the courage to ride to and from work. -- Kimberly
I commute year round, a couple of days a week. My number one tip is to get two high-quality lights plus a rear flasher. The need for the flasher and the handlebar light is obvious. The helmet light is used for cornering, when your handlebar light isn't pointing where you want to go. But most importantly, it's used to get motorists' attention. If I see someone coming up a side street in a big hurry, looking to blow through the intersection or turn right without stopping, I shine it right in their eyes just for an instant. Since I'm coming from the side, it doesn't blind them, but it sure gets their attention and they hit the brakes. This also works for people on the same road you're on, who are about to turn left in front of you. Just don't keep shining them once they've seen you. -- Rob C.
Most commuters are warm-weather riders. I ride in
winter.
I took a job at the beginning of this year
partially so that I could commute. After hauling the commuting bike with a heavy battery up the hills, I almost fly up climbs during group rides. I kept the old pedals with clips and straps so I
can ride in whatever shoes I need to work in. One less thing to haul around.
Until I retired, I bike commuted for 19 years -- 13 miles each way from suburban Philadelphia to center city. Bike Commuting for Fun & Profit properly lists the obstacles that prevent people from trying. My biggest problem in getting started was to overcome the feeling of foolishness. After that, it was easy. I once went eight years without a sick day from work. Some days I shouldn't have ridden, but I was hopelessly addicted to the ride. (And probably cheap, too.) Commuting made going to work so much better for me. And, of course, I looked forward to the ride home, too. -- Dick W. I started sporadically commuting to work last
year after dislocating my foot in a rock climbing accident and needed to find a
way to exercise without impacting my busy schedule. I found that commuting to
work (it's 5 miles each way) took only slightly longer than driving. Along with
walking at lunch time, I was able to rehabilitate without having to cut into
family time.
I cycled 20 miles roundtrip every day during my
last employment. Now, I'm "semi-retired" with my own business. I still visit
clients and do errands on my bike.
Back in the Saddle I woke up an hour early and went for it. Nineteen miles to work in 1:07. Man, do I feel my quads this morning. But, I am ever so thankful for that first ride of the year and I'm looking forward to my second -- going home tonight. -- Don S.
Another Way Commuting Saves Money I'm disappointed! I couldn't ride to work today because we are having thunderstorms. I have 2 guidelines I follow for safety and comfort reasons: I don't ride in wet weather or when the morning temperature is below 15 degrees. I've been commuting via bike off and on for over 25 years and consistently for the last 6. My daily commute is 35 miles, roundtrip. As Ed mentioned, bike commuting is a great way to save money and stay healthy (both mind and body). One thing Ed didn't mention was the fact that you also save money by using someone else's hot water for your daily shower after your commute! -- George H.
My first bike commute to work was on June 7 last year. I've learned many things since then and come to enjoy the early morning and early evening time in the saddle. It's 58 miles from my home to work and back. It allows me to get some good base training miles without taking too much more time away from the family. In my case, commuting to work is all about logistics. I bike to work on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I have to make sure that I have clothes at work the day before, pack meals and plenty of granola bars for energy, and be ready for that stiff southern breeze that picks up on warm summer days. But my advice to all bikers is get in the saddle and commute. I almost always enjoy the ride, and I never have to stress out about traffic jams on my bike. -- Keith G.
My commute from Boulder, CO, to my office is 24 miles. I do it three or four times a week. I wake up early and don't think, "I gotta get up and go to work." I think, "I'm going for a ride!" Like many others, I have family obligations. The time commitment of making a roundtrip by bike would be a problem. But I'm part of a van pool, and at our request they put a four-bike rack on the van. So I ride to work and van pool home. I couldn't ask for a better setup. If commuting roundtrip seems like too much to bite off, look for a coworker that you could car pool home with. -- Al P.
I've been commuting to work for the last two years. It's great and I wouldn't give anything for it. It's my favorite part of the day. -- William R.
Let Me Count the Advantages. . . I only ride five miles to work, but use the way home to ride from 10 to 15 extra miles in the evening. One of the best advantages to living in Phoenix is that commuting is a year-round option, even though winter mornings can be as cold as 35 degrees and summer afternoons as hot as 120. There are many advantages I've found in commuting. First, because my sons drive, I don't always have a free vehicle. Second, thanks to Maricopa County efforts to reduce cars on the road, I receive $1 per day that I ride. Third, the ride into work gets my juices going and I'm more ready to meet the day. On the way home, I ride hard and reduce the stresses from work so that I'm easier to get along with at home. I also use my commuting to train for long rides and do centuries three or four times per year. Commuting is great for exercise and stress relief! -- Mike S.
Throughout Northern California, today is being promoted as Bike-to-Work Day. I arranged to commute on my Santana tandem. About halfway through, I picked up my executive assistant at her home and we rode in to work together in fast-paced style. The only negative with this scenario is that
during the first half of my commute, I'm constantly barraged with people in cars
at stop lights, asking me if I knew that I lost my stoker. Ha, ha... not really
funny the 10th time.
Tandem With a Special Friend II Today I rode my tandem to my blind friend's house, then we rode to her job (12 miles), as it was "bike-to-work day." We think it's a great idea! We can't do it every day, unfortunately. -- Guy T.
After moving back to Colorado, I continued to
ride to work. My commute was 34 miles one way. Needless to say, I got pretty
skinny and was in the best shape of my life.
Like a Mini Vacation Twice a Day One of the coolest things I ever heard about commuting on a bike is that it's like a mini vacation twice a day. I now live in Montrose, CO, and get to ride with Fred fairly often, which is cool. I sure was spoiled back in Boulder where I commuted for years. I have a story for almost every day.
Everyone Should Try Commuting for Two Weeks I started commuting four days a week and love it. I'm a novice cyclist with a high-stress, long-hour job. My commute time is really the only time I have for myself. It allows me to include the riding I love into my schedule. Too often I found that at the end of a hard day, I could find way too many excuses not to ride. But you have to go to work, and you have to go home, so it takes away a lot of the excuses. I suggest that everyone try commuting for at least two weeks. For me, it took that long to get over the initial pain/disgust of riding that early in the morning! -- John H.
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