My First Bike to Work Day!

So I've been riding my bikes around on weekends and to run errands, but I haven't actually biked to work all year. I know, I know, it's just so hard to get myself out the door that early in the morning until I make it a habit. I even got packed and dressed a couple of days this week, then promptly sat down and fell asleep again. But for Bike to Work Day, one makes the effort. I was still pretty out of it when I got up though, and tried to put my bag on my Brompton's front reflector rather than on the carrier block, oops. Luckily I only have to go about a mile to get to the Metro for the first leg of my multi-modal commute, and could use the train time to wake up for the rest of my ride.

Train segment of my multi-modal commute

What's the opposite of drafting??

I slept in a little yesterday, which meant that I left for work about a half-hour later than I have been the past couple of weeks. I wouldn't have thought that it would make a big difference, but the traffic along the Millennium Trail was noticeably busier. The part of the trail I ride is right next to a road with a 40mph speed limit, so in the mornings I'm going in the opposite direction of the cars next to me,  and I can feel the "headwind" as they pass by. The worst part is this long stretch starting at the bottom of a bend and going up to an overpass; I don't enjoy going uphill anyway, and adding wind resistance to that--I guess it's a good workout. Here's a picture of the general area (although this was taken in the evening, when it was much more placid):

In the mornings I head in the direction of the green arrows,
while cars are speeding next to be in the direction of the red arrows 

I actually remember dealing with the cars last year since I used to leave later, and I disliked it so much that I found some alternate routes for the first stretch of my morning ride. What is this called, anyway? Not even D could tell me, and he's my go-to source for bike knowledge:

I do know about D's drafting! I don't really mind though because I have calves of steel

I definitely plan on keeping my AM departure early to avoid this unnamed phenomenon!

One Year Later

I haven't written in a while, but given that's its been about a year since I first got my bike and there have been a lot of changes in my life, I feel like this blog is due for an update.

The biggest change has been that I have since moved to the DC metro area, which explains in part the blog's new name. The second biggest change (somewhat related to the first) is that I walked into a deal I couldn't refuse on a folding bike, so now I have a second bike, which I use for multi-modal commuting. This also explains in part the new name.

However, the biggest impetus for the new name is that I've had a year under my belt of riding around, and I've loved every mile of it. In that year, I've done so much more than I ever envisioned when I first got my bike, and I've learned a lot too. It's funny to look back now at my profile picture, which D took the first weekend I got my bike: my arms are completely locked, and I'm clearly tense, even though I was enjoying myself. When I got my second bike, D took a picture of me riding around that as well, and my position is so much more normal and relaxed! I like to think I picked up on the riding pretty quickly, though much of that was with D's help.

Another summer, another bike

Really, I owe my love of riding now to D, who had the patience to teach me the basics (seriously, I bought a decent used bike when I was in college and couldn't figure out the gearing well enough to ride up a moderate slope) and instilled in me the confidence to ride. But I like to think I had some influence on him too: before I got my bike, D only had a road bike and a mountain bike, and although he had raised the stem of his road bike to un-roadie heights, he was still going around in clipless pedals. Now he has a folding bike (he's the reason why I got mine--those are our bikes in the header), he rides in normal shoes, and has exchanged the padded shorts for cargo shorts. Our first ride together was through dirt trails in the woods, but we've since discovered a love for leisurely night rides through winding streets, or exploratory rides in tree-lined neighborhoods where D races down hills and I power up them.

Which brings me to the blog description. In all the days I've ridden it's never been about racing or getting exercise. Neither an upright bike nor a folding bike is really conducive to those modes of riding. I also ride for more than recreation, even though rambling about with D is one of my favorite things to do. But the non-recreational ways in which I ride a bike--to pick up groceries, to get to the office, etc.--aren't really about being environmentally conscious (although that's a nice side benefit) or saving gas money (minimal can be directly attributed to the bike) or cutting time (it's the opposite, in fact). Riding a bike is just fun. It makes going to work a pleasure. It takes the edge off an oppressively hot summer day. I will park my car further from my apartment, not because it's less likely to be dinged or because the parallel parking spots are more generous (though that's another fringe benefit), but because I like having the excuse of riding my bike the couple of blocks home. Riding a bike is so much fun that I can overcome my internet reticence and wax effusively about it to an audience of one (hi D!), because I just can't help myself. That's how much I've grown to love it in this past year, and as I continue to ride,  I hope to write as well.