Orange Photography took fancy portraits of bike commuters for BTWD.

I was going to ride my bike in today. The weather has been gorgeous the last two weeks, and this morning I got geared up before looking outside. My 6.15am brain saw the clouds and thought, "I guess I won't wear my sunglasses," before it processed the sound of raindrops. Also, it was 44 degrees. 7 miles of unpleasant cold wetness was just not appealing. So I gave in and drove. Maybe next week.

I rode to work today. Then again I ride to work pretty much every day, rain or shine.

When I fix my back wheel (the FOURTH I've replaced in the last four years) and get over a minor health annoyance, it'll be a nice long string of Bike-to-Work-till-the-Snow-Flies Days. Until then, the bus and train.

All you two-wheelers - come join us on WeEndure!

I've been biking daily for about two weeks, basically since the weather turned nice. So I made sure to drop in to our free Bike/Walk Commuter Breakfast.

We were talking about biking last night with some friends. First of all, how much FUN it is. The difference in mood between riding somewhere and driving somewhere is really in how you feel when you've arrived. I always feel more _present_ when I bike somewhere, whereas when I drive I tend to zone out and make mental to-do lists, or crowd my thoughts by listening to the radio. For some reason on the bike there's too much sensory input to really lose track of the moment like that.

Also, there's a sheer kidlike pleasure in whizzing along. Whee!

Indeed.... Whee!

≡ Click to see image ≡

As is often noted amongst regular commuters, when you bicycle to work the commute is the best part of the day.

when you bicycle to work the commute is the best part of the day.

Indeed. I've got a couple of regular routes to/from work that can take me 8.5, 13, or 17.5 km (about 5.3, 8.1, or 10.9 miles) while avoiding heavy traffic, and which I'll choose based on the weather or how much of a rush I'm in. If I take the long one in the morning it's about 50 minutes, but although it's almost all on roads, it's practically nonstop (only one traffic light!) and winds through neighbourhoods and along the top banks of a couple of ravines. Not too physically taxing, though I do work up a sweat; fortunately there's a shower a floor down from my office (and I bring clean clothes). Just seeing the seasons change and encountering the urban wildlife (plenty of white-tailed jackrabbits, the odd coyote - last year I saw a porcupine) makes me so glad not to have to drive, even on the cooler or wet days.

Straying off topic a bit it's a gorgeous day here in Western Washington today so I rode into the city and am as I type on the ferry to Bainbridge Island. I missed Chilly Hilly this year due to a scheduling conflict so I'm making up for it today. Will be a bit odd riding the island in the warmth.

It was raining with threats of lightning in Chicago on Friday so I didn't bike to work. But I did Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. (Wednesday was stormy too. I'll ride in rain, although I don't have appropriate rain gear yet, but not lightning.)

I signed my company up for this bike Commuter Challenge that is being organized through the Active Transportation Alliance here in Chicago. During Chicago's Bike to Work Week (June 13-19), we'll be competing with other similar companies to get the highest percentage of staff that ride to work. I spent half the day Friday commandeering one of the office bulletin boards so I could put up information about it. :)

I just started biking to work three weeks ago (bought my first bike in 15 years last month.) It truly is a great part of my day. I'm lucky that:
1.) My ride is the perfect distance - 8.25 miles each way, which takes about 45 minutes and is the same amount of time that it takes to ride the El.
2.) My building has indoor bike racks on the lower level level. With security cameras and a guard, because it's the loading dock. Virtually no worries about the bike getting stolen.
3.) My building has a fitness center with showers so I can shower once I get to work.
4.) My ride is 95% on a bike/ped path along the lake - beautiful and no car traffic to worry about. Of course it can be really windy along the lake, and the path gets really crowded on nice days.

As I noted to my husband (also an avid bike-to-work-er), even when riding in the wind/rain I can honestly say to myself "Would I rather be squished on a crowded train right now? Hell no."