Bike To Work (Anyway) Day

Last week, in California and Nevada, we celebrated bike to work day. If you are unfamiliar with the idea, it is exactly that. Every out of shape Johnny Schwinn dusts off the ole ten-speed, fills up the tires and rides to work. This was great, but the impact that the day has, even during a Spare the Air event, is minimal at best. I'm going out on a limb of sounding like the crazy bike people that I ride the train with, but if you can ride your bike one day a year to work, couldn't you figure out a way to do it one day a week or more? My dad called me the other day, like worried parents tend to do, and asked how we were dealing with the gas prices as they seem to skyrocket through the $4.00 barrier. Huh? was my response. I've been riding my bike to the train station for the past month or so and Holly has been driving the Prius. Since she really only takes the kids to school and hits the neighborhood Safeway, we haven't filled up the tank in either car in about a month. It has been great. There is still half a tank in Jermaine duPrius. Aside from saving a bunch of dough on gas, I've also noticed a few other benefits of riding to work every day:
  • My wireless bill is shrinking - Since I'm not in the car, I'm less inclined to talk on the phone and I don't want to be that annoying guy talking on the train, so I really only use my phone as a way to interact with customers when I'm working from home.
  • I'm losing weight - I'm far from Lance Armstrong, but I have dropped a few pounds.
  • Lower stress - Being in the car in Bay Area traffic bugs me out. I go a bit nutty, even in the comfort of the Prius and the carpool lane, I still get goofy. A little exercise to get the blood flowing in the morning and to cool off in the evening and the day is your friend.
I'll be the first to admit, that riding to work can be a pain in the ass. You have to deal with traffic in a different way, you get sweaty and stink a bit at work (unless you have a shower), it is exercise and that means you have to be unlazy. But it is also a lot of fun, great exercise and provides a chance to meet some really interesting, hard core, anti-car people. Tell me, how are you coping with $4.00 gas prices?
Tagged Sports biking gas
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