I has a bike.

[saffronhare]

And I rode it to work today.

After putting a big hunk of my share from the "economic stimulus" payment into the moving fund, I bought a bike. Shopped around and put together a few different components to my satisfaction at a local shop. (See, I'd *wanted* a Joe Breezer bicycle, but those start at about $750. Eep.) Anyway. I picked it up (along with a helmet!) yesterday, and -- after some practice riding -- decided to ride it from the shop to work. My car is at the spa for its 60K service today, which effectively halved the commute.

Which is nice, because it's hot today. I bet I'm going to be glad of a cool shower once I get home this evening! And there are more hills than I remember, along that frontage road. I'll be glad just to ride from home next time. It's longer, but I can take neighborhood streets and mostly avoid many of the hills. I might scout out a slightly longer but less congested route to get back to the shop this evening. Other points of interest (for me, anyway):

• Disc brakes are groovy


• Grip & shift gears are *so* much easier than the old, clicky ones


• Only one person called me "lardass."


• Only had one fall, and it was while I was trying to dismount (wobbly legs), witnessed by a friendly police officer to slowed down and made the universal "are you okay?" face at me (I laughed and gave him a thumbs-up)

Crossing my fingers that the weather at least stays clear until I can pick up my car after work today.

Comments

[zylch.livejournal.com]

On a regular route to work:
Having ridden part of the route when going to WFM, I'd recommend going over to Santa Fe to get across SMPKWY with a light, then down through dt OP, over to Antioch, and the straight route to work from there. 75th is a bit of a bear to cross, but you can go a block out of the way to get to a light. None of the hills are that bad -- certainly not as bad as Frontage. And it's a much shadier, more pleasant ride than being next to the highway.

[saffronhare.livejournal.com]

Absolutely. You've said that before, and I've taken that route before. It's the way I plan to travel in the future, when the commute is "from home to work" instead of "from someplace else to work." :)

Today, I simply had to drop the car off for service on Frontage Road, so that's the way I came.