Starting to Bike Commute

ScottM

ScottM

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iBazinga!
Well on Monday I will start my first day of bike commuting to work. It has been about 15 years since I did it last. When I did it last I lived about 1.5 miles form the front door to work. This time I will be biking to the trian station and taking the train into the office.

I have taken the train in the past. I figured what the heck use the bike and save a $1/day (soon to be $1.2.5/day) on parking.

I'll have to bring an extra pair of shoes with me as I have cleats peddles that require bike shoes. I also have recently switched to a backpack computer back so that should be easy to ride with.

Should be fun and I'll get some extra exercise each day.
 
Cool, Scott. I'm 20 miles one way from work, with no train option (there is limited commuter rail in the DFW area, but not a good network). I know a couple of the guys at work who do pedal in 20+ miles each way.

We did start (this month) carpooling--4 of us on the west side of town meet at one guy's house, and we drive one week, ride three weeks.

For exercise, I've been walking 3 miles (1 hour) each night. Last night I got adventurous and went around an additional two times (for a total of six miles).
 
i walked to the airport two days last week. only 3ish miles each way. need to find a cheap bike...
 
Good for you Scott!

I live roughly 8-9 miles from work, and as a bonus don't have to drive anywhere at lunch time so putting less than 20 miles per day on the car is not a big deal (even if I go to the grocery store after work...). One of my coworkers has been a bike commuter for a few years and she tells me the trails have gotten MUCH more crowded lately.. all commuters.
 
I bike to catch the bus to catch the train - only ten minutes or so each way to the bus lot but it's fun and sure beats driving or walking!
 
Good on ya, Scott. I dunno how you connect at the work end, but I'm sure you do.

The word is those trains are getting crowded, so.....they don't allow bikes on board most times. (They used to encourage bikes during off peak times on marked runs, but you were always subject to be denied due space. The bikes go in handicapped area where the wheelchair anchors are.)

I'm lucky enough that the station is a mile away. I can and have walked it. The hard part for me is the 3 mile schlog on the downtown side where walking it with *my* (personal and company) computer(s) in the pack on my back kills me every time.
 
I have been riding my bike a lot lately. I am only mile from the airport and so I have used the bike instead of driving. I got slowed down when I took a header a while back but I am ok now. Keep up the good work men. Bob
 
tonycondon said:
i walked to the airport two days last week. only 3ish miles each way. need to find a cheap bike...
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I live 2.5 miles from the airport, where I work, and should be biking as much as possible to get some weight off and get back in shape. Some of my colleagues bike to work here all year, even through the brutal winters unless there's a blizzard or the snow's just too deep. I wish I had that sort of drive. I have walked here once or twice but a worn-out hip and low back make that difficult.
In the spring and summer here the ride is gorgeous. Through the small town, along the rural highway with deer browsing along the road and birds singing, no busy traffic or monoxide and noise. Early, like 6 AM, is the best because then I'm going to pull the airplane out and go flying for a while before work. The air is like velvet and the grass strips of the nearby farms are carpeted in new grass.
I know, it doesn't seem fair, but there are Drawbacks. Salary, for one. The big money is mostly in the big cities. But I'm thankful, as I should be.


Dan
________
easy vape vaporizer
 
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I quit riding when I moved to Phoenix. These people hate bikers or something. I used to ride 150-200 miles a week on Michigan highways with traffic going by at 60mph but we all seemed to get along. Here...they just don't seem to give a crap, even with the bike lanes.

And there's no way I'm riding in 115F heat. :D
 
I'd give myself an over under of 3 weeks before I get killed by one of the sand trucks that frequent my road. They've almost run me off the road in my truck a few times.
 
TangoWhiskey said:
(there is limited commuter rail in the DFW area, but not a good network).
Click to expand...

Still, that is a hell of a lot better than the joke of a light rail we have here in Houston right now... :mad:

Anyway, I take a van-pool to work most mornings. We all meet at the Kroger parking lot about 3 miles from my house at 6am and we leave there by 6:15a. We drop off and park at the large office complex across the street from my office building, so I'm at my desk by 6:55a. We leave at 4p, getting back to Kroger at 4:35p, so I'm back home by 4:45p. All this costs me about $115/mo, which includes my part of the van lease, fuel, and tolls.

All in all, it's a very good deal, especially since I figured out that with my XTerra and current gas prices, I pay about $1 for every 5 miles driven. My commute is ~25 miles each way, with about $3.50 in tolls each direction. So my daily cost of driving is ~$17.00, which adds up quickly. So, I'm saving a significant amount of money by using this van pool.

I would consider riding my bike to Kroger save for a couple of things:
1) I can't find the keys to my "U"-lock at the moment.
2) I know how awake I am when I'm driving to Kroger in the morning - I don't want to be out there on a bike with people driving that early.
 
Day 1:

Woke up early to make sure I had enough time for the ride. I had gotten everything set up and packed last night. I opted to wear my pants that I would work in but not my shirt. Instead I wore a biking shirt and packed my dress shirt and work shoes for the day. I figured I would change either on the train or at my office. But when I got to the station I just changed there.

Did not sweat a lot. My brow was a little damp from wearing a helmet. But no big deal at all

Parking was a pain. The bike rack was filled. About half the bikes are really old abandoned vehicles that have rusted in place.

The route I took was not too busy with cars at all. I rode on a bike path for about 1 mile and the second mile was all side streets. I crossed the major road at the stop light which was easy.

Going home I think I will change shirts at my office and then head to the bus back to the train station.
 
I bike or walk most days... it's nice to be only 3 miles to work. The walk is a bit much takes me 45 min and I nearly die on the way home if I have an active day. At some point I know I will catch up and not feel like expiring on the walk home but...

This weeks a little gloomy for biking or walking... roveing thunder showers for most days. Nice thing for me is a friend who lives 1/2 way to my house will drive me home (or closer) if the weather is looking iffy on the way home.

I only drive anymore if I have an afterwork appointment or it's Thursday....

Thursday is airplane night! And Ricks house it on the otherside of work and a bit far for me to bike to. I try to do any erands on Thrursday since I have the car.

Scott welcome to the bike commute.

Missa
 
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I just moved to OKC to start a job with "the dark side". They have shuttle busses that will come to my front door (apartment complex) and pick me up. That seems pretty good to me.....
--Matt
 
I bike 5 miles each way in phoenix, mainly along residential streets. The company has locker rooms with a shower. They also have a nice bike storage area in the stairwell next the main entrance. When I started riding a year and a half ago, there would be maybe six bikes parked there, now their are usually 10 or 12.
 
mikea said:
Good on ya, Scott. I dunno how you connect at the work end, but I'm sure you do.
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I take Metra to Palatine. There is a bus from work that picks us up. There is also a run to Arlington Park. Cost is free so it is not a bad idea. The funny thing is the bus is filled to capacity and is SRO. But we still have not been able to get Pace to do a run. PAce would be getting $2/rider.
 
smigaldi said:
Walking to the car in that kind of heat is hard enough.
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I'd actually prefer walking TO the car over getting IN the car. THAT'S the oven. Ugh.

Thankfully the really wicked stuff is only for a few months. Otherwise it's great here. :)
 
smigaldi said:
I take Metra to Palatine. There is a bus from work that picks us up. There is also a run to Arlington Park. Cost is free so it is not a bad idea. The funny thing is the bus is filled to capacity and is SRO. But we still have not been able to get Pace to do a run. PAce would be getting $2/rider.
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Yeahbut for Pace I'm sure it takes considerable time to set up the bus schedule so that the morning bus that runs every 75 minutes for 2.5 hours leaves 9 minutes before the train arrives and in the evening arrives 11 minutes after the train home left. ;)
 
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