Who Rides Bike to Work?
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I've been riding to work for nine years now, average about 10-1/2 months a year. When the roads get too nasty for my taste, I take the bus (car-free for 5 years now).
My commute started out at about 6-1/2 or 7 miles; moved, went up to 9. Changed job locations within the company, went to 2 -- but I soon found alternate routes that bumped it to anything from 4 to 9. A temporary relocation of job again took the commute to 9 miles; that lasted about 8 months. Back to the shorter routes again.
I've done all these rides on fat tires; one hardtail (the frame is due for an SS buildup this winter), and 4 different FS bikes.
Yes, you can get hit; yes, you will have trouble with drivers (who are stupid, generally). But the purity of pedaling will carry you further into a quality of life that's addictive, and healthy.
My commute started out at about 6-1/2 or 7 miles; moved, went up to 9. Changed job locations within the company, went to 2 -- but I soon found alternate routes that bumped it to anything from 4 to 9. A temporary relocation of job again took the commute to 9 miles; that lasted about 8 months. Back to the shorter routes again.
I've done all these rides on fat tires; one hardtail (the frame is due for an SS buildup this winter), and 4 different FS bikes.
Yes, you can get hit; yes, you will have trouble with drivers (who are stupid, generally). But the purity of pedaling will carry you further into a quality of life that's addictive, and healthy.
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Wait addiction is unhealthy? Man that explains why my teeth are falling out.
I have been riding to work off and on for 15 years, spanning four countries. My longest was in England, that was 12 miles one way and WINDY! Been in DC for 10 years now and I commute about twice, maybe three times a week 9.5 miles one way. LOVE IT, esp when I see the cars piled up on 66 HA HA eat fumes suckers. I ride mostly on a paved bike trail, but I have 3 miles of heavy traffic roads. I try not to ride in the rain because of the increased danger and I knock off around December and start up end of Feb. Since I bought my new Novara Touring bike 2.5 years ago I have put 1000 miles commuting on it.
Oh forgot my new favorite scary story- just the other day I saw a car driving oddly all over the road- I pulled over and she passed me. I noticed she was texting-then she drove another 300 feet and cut hard right and hit a stop sign on my side of the road. People just keep your wits about you at all times on the road because stupid people abound.
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147 Posts
I was just wondering who here rides their bicycle to work?
I do!
Do you find it good for health benefits,
Yes. In fact, I was in transition between two work locations and had tendonitis late last year, so I wasn't commuting near as much as I had been and didn't get to ride. When I stopped commuting, I noticed weight gain, increase in blood pressure, and a sour mood much more often.
do you ride in the rain too?
Some, but not so much in thunder & lightning.
How many miles do you ride it?
Old commute was 7 miles minimum each way; sometimes I took longer routes. My new commute is something like 16 miles each way.
Is it stressful, are you forced to ride on roads with cars?
On the contrary, it is a stress reliever. I choose to ride on the road with cars, riding my bike as a vehicle as permitted under law. Once I learned something about proper techniques for riding in traffic, my stress level went down considerably.
I do!
Do you find it good for health benefits,
Yes. In fact, I was in transition between two work locations and had tendonitis late last year, so I wasn't commuting near as much as I had been and didn't get to ride. When I stopped commuting, I noticed weight gain, increase in blood pressure, and a sour mood much more often.
do you ride in the rain too?
Some, but not so much in thunder & lightning.
How many miles do you ride it?
Old commute was 7 miles minimum each way; sometimes I took longer routes. My new commute is something like 16 miles each way.
Is it stressful, are you forced to ride on roads with cars?
On the contrary, it is a stress reliever. I choose to ride on the road with cars, riding my bike as a vehicle as permitted under law. Once I learned something about proper techniques for riding in traffic, my stress level went down considerably.
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499 Posts
I'm unemployed so I don't have a job to ride to right now but I also don't have a car so wherever I go I usually ride. My average length of trip is 2-3miles sometimes longer. Once I get a job I'll bike there too. And yes, I have almost been hit a few times. Riding a bike saves my wife and I no less than $500 a month through what we save in car payments, insurance, fuel, repairs, etc.
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793 Posts
Of course, the first bike commute was the first teen job, saving for that 'must-have' car; what a fool I was. But, 3-1/2 months of 12 mile RT on that old Schwinn 10-speed was a joy I relive regularly now. I feel the same way now, and without the baggage of wanting that car!
Did it again during the last six months of my 1st marriage, so she could have the car. Huffy cruiser. Traded it for an 11-drawer tool box when I relocated.
When I started learning bike assembly & mechanics in 2000, my bud inspired me to ride again. 18-speed Huffy rigid, friction thumbshifters. Recaptured that joy and freedom with that bike, and never lost it again. Haven't looked back, either!
Riding in the rain? Love it! The best ever was a commute home during an absolute downpour, so hard you couldn't see more than a hundred feet. Lightning, flash-floods in creeks, spray off the tires like the rooster-tail from an airboat. You couldn't chisel the smile off my face!
Did it again during the last six months of my 1st marriage, so she could have the car. Huffy cruiser. Traded it for an 11-drawer tool box when I relocated.
When I started learning bike assembly & mechanics in 2000, my bud inspired me to ride again. 18-speed Huffy rigid, friction thumbshifters. Recaptured that joy and freedom with that bike, and never lost it again. Haven't looked back, either!
Riding in the rain? Love it! The best ever was a commute home during an absolute downpour, so hard you couldn't see more than a hundred feet. Lightning, flash-floods in creeks, spray off the tires like the rooster-tail from an airboat. You couldn't chisel the smile off my face!
I wish I could ride to work…
Athens is quite hostile a city towards bikes. There are no bike lanes at all and car drivers get frustrated and even hostile when something slows them down…
On the other hand, when I ride for leisure, there are many people who show strong interest, admire the bike and state they’d really like to start riding too…Crazy Greeks!
Apart from being dangerous for the rider, going downtown is also hazardous for the bike…
Too many get stolen (and sold as parts), so it is impossible to leave the bike unattended even if its locked. One must put it in a garage or attended space to be safe.
Well, maybe in my next life I will be born American, Australian, British or some other advanced civilization…
Athens is quite hostile a city towards bikes. There are no bike lanes at all and car drivers get frustrated and even hostile when something slows them down…
On the other hand, when I ride for leisure, there are many people who show strong interest, admire the bike and state they’d really like to start riding too…Crazy Greeks!
Apart from being dangerous for the rider, going downtown is also hazardous for the bike…
Too many get stolen (and sold as parts), so it is impossible to leave the bike unattended even if its locked. One must put it in a garage or attended space to be safe.
Well, maybe in my next life I will be born American, Australian, British or some other advanced civilization…
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499 Posts
Any chance you can work on cyclo-advocacy around where you live? If you can find a few other people who also like bikes you might be able to pressure the city planners (or other government officials) to start including secure bike parking or bike lanes.
As far as I know, the EU has already proposed a network of bicycle roads that will be running through the whole Union as the national roads already do. My country has committed to join. The previous government in 2008 had announced that by 2010 Athens would have a bicycle network, not too extended, but it was a good start.
Needless to say nothing has happened…everything remained as planned…on the plan…somewhere in someone’s drawer…
There are already some cyclist groups in various cities (Athens, Thessaloniki and many others) but they seem quite weak and fragmented.
I don’t wish to be political, Not in Greece at least. I know people who fought for their ideas and found themselves in big trouble…things tend to get complicated no matter how simple they are in this country. So you stay low.
Needless to say nothing has happened…everything remained as planned…on the plan…somewhere in someone’s drawer…
There are already some cyclist groups in various cities (Athens, Thessaloniki and many others) but they seem quite weak and fragmented.
I don’t wish to be political, Not in Greece at least. I know people who fought for their ideas and found themselves in big trouble…things tend to get complicated no matter how simple they are in this country. So you stay low.
QueSera, there are thieves everywhere. In Seattle, my bike went inside both at work and home. When outside it has double locks (and crossed fingers). Good stuff at: kryptonitelock.com and pinhead-components.com. Athens might not be bicycle friendly, but watching motorcycles in traffic there always made me wish American drivers were as well trained.
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