May 15th, Bike To Work Day

[scottmorrison99]

Who's riding to work on BTWD, and is it your first time?

How many regular bike commuters do we have here?

I'm riding, and I have been commuting by bike since 2005, rain or shine.

[x136]

Oh, gee, I'll have to dust off the ol' bike! :p

I've bike commuted every day so far this year, and only missed two last year.

[Nycycle]

Never heard of it? sounds good though!

[sweetnsourbkr]

What's a bike?

[scottmorrison99]

What's a bike?

Look between your legs....No, the big thing.:D

[mtnwalker]

There is something big there but its not a bike.:eek:

Anyways, everyday for me is bike to work day. Except the past 3 days when I had to carpool with the wife.:rolleyes:

[msincredible]

I'll actually be headed into the office that day, and I don't have to meet customers, so I will be able to do my 50-mile RT. :D

[x136]

I'll actually be headed into the office that day, and I don't have to meet customers, so I will be able to do my 50-mile RT. :DOn the unicycle, I hope. Just to be contrarian.

[msincredible]

On the unicycle, I hope. Just to be contrarian.

I'd need Bike to Work Week for that one though! :lol:

[x136]

If that's what it takes to change one mind, to inspire one child, then ask yourself: How could you not?

*waves a large US flag back and forth as bald eagles cry in the background*

[scottmorrison99]

On the unicycle, I hope. Just to be contrarian.

No,no, on the folder.:)

[StephenH]

The last time I saw something about "Bike to Work" day, it was some Canadian city doing it, not a national thing. I might, but I'd have to start about 3:00 am, based on previous experience.

[subframe]

I'll be riding from SF to Cupertino, should be fun. I sort of did it last year, if you don't count the 40 miles of train-riding in between two sections of bike-riding :D

i'm a regular commuter, since the fall of '06. Stopped for a few months when my work started a charter bus service, but found I missed biking too much.

[cccorlew]

I bike commute every day by bike as does my wife. We're both promoting it at our schools. I have my graphic design students designing posters. I got the Associated Students to set up a "refueling station"
We're having a mini-event in the quad at noon.

Last years poster:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/190/509607167_107a53e4f6.jpg

[msincredible]

No,no, on the folder.:)

I will probably do it on the folder. :)

[reidconti]

I bike commuted for the first time last week, going again tomorrow. So, not a regular, and with my strange 56mi r/t, I probably never will be... But I'll be doing it on BTWD and quite a few other days this year I hope..

[BlastRadius]

I bike commuted for the first time last week, going again tomorrow. So, not a regular, and with my strange 56mi r/t, I probably never will be... But I'll be doing it on BTWD and quite a few other days this year I hope..

What a lot of folks do is drive to work with the bike, ride home, then ride to work, drive home, and so on. That's if your schedule can accommodate the 1.5-2hr one-way commute.

[msincredible]

I think reid might be able to use Caltrain as an option too?

[dauphin]

the other day, I drove to work and all my customers were asking, "Where's your bike?".

[kster]

I'll be trying it for the first time. The distance (about 22 miles each way) doesn't bother me but the traffic (from Fremont -> Sunnyvale) is a concern, especially around the highway on ramps.

[chucko58]

I'm a fair-weather bike commuter - not every day, but I try to go for at least 3 days/week unless it's raining or my schedule is too full to permit it. I bike for transportation all around Silicon Valley. I can't remember how many Bike To Work days I've done.

[7rider]

I try to bike to work as much as possible. Anything to avoid the weekday traffic on Grant Road. On the days I decide to drive, there always seems to be some delay. I really try to ride when it's raining because those are the days where the cars really clutter up Grant.

[redspoke]

It's so hard with needing to drop-off and pick-up two small kids 4 of the 5 days of the week. If it were just me and the Mrs. I would do it every day (40mi/rt).

I will try to do this on 5/15. It should be the easiest day of the week to do this since I do a training ride after work every Thursday anyways (wife picks up both).

I won't have to do my normal ridiculous Thursday ritual: pack my bike in my van, drive it to the vanpool van and load it (secure parking at work not at park n' ride), load it into my van upon returning, drive it to the ride spot and unload it, ride the bike 23 miles, reload it into my van, and then finally unload it into my house (phew!).

I'm in!

[murphstahoe]

I'll be trying it for the first time. The distance (about 22 miles each way) doesn't bother me but the traffic (from Fremont -> Sunnyvale) is a concern, especially around the highway on ramps.

Whenever Caltrain is really broken down I'll take BART to Fremont and to this ride (to Lawrence/101).

That is not an easy set of coordinates. I almost think the best way to do it is the Dumbarton. Once you cross thr bridge there is bike path then through EPA, then there is another bike path. Eventually you get near Baylands park and you can cross 101 on the pedestrian bridge at Fair Oaks. The Dumbarton is sort of weird but you have a huge barricade between you and the traffic. One thing - it can be very windy out there.

This is probably longer than the straightforward route - I ride Mission/Paseo Parkway/Warren/Warm Springs(becomes Milpitas)/Able/Great Mall (becomes Tasman), Tasman to wherever. I go "off roading" a bit by getting on the Levee (ridable even with a road bike - it's like a fire road) just before Fair Oaks. At the end of the levee you cross onto a small bike path into a park which leads to a pedestrian/bike overpass of 101 into a neighborhood between Lawrence/Fair Oaks.

[murphstahoe]

I think on the Peninsula the problem is going to be a large influx of people who normally bike/caltrain/bike who bike all the way planning to take Caltrain home, coupled with people who rarely take Caltrain doing the bike/Caltrain/Bike thing. This will work fine - until there is 2x the normal bike demand for Caltrain on the way *home*. Palo Alto could be a very difficult place to board on the way home.

For those planning on Bike/Caltrain/Bike that day, if you don't need the bike on the southern end, you may want to check your bike at Warm Planet.

[msincredible]

The Dumbarton is sort of weird but you have a huge barricade between you and the traffic. One thing - it can be very windy out there.

It definitely is, although it is usually worse going my way (reverse commute).

[Siu Blue Wind]

Okay, dangit. I'll try.

[scottmorrison99]

:)Yea, Siu!:)

[sweetnsourbkr]

Maybe I'll volunteer to help out this year. Anyone know how I can get hooked up?

[wirehead]

I knew that I had to replace my stolen bike before BtWD. I have succeeded.

[spingineer]

I'll be out there. Although I am not sure if any of the bike stations will be out there that early. I'll be out there at 5:30 am.

[jonathanb715]

I usually walk to work - if I take a bike, what will I do with all that extra time?

JB

[mtnwalker]

I'll be out there. Although I am not sure if any of the bike stations will be out there that early. I'll be out there at 5:30 am.

Last year there was only one station that was out there at 6 am when they were supposed to be. Hopefully it'll be better this year. I need some supplies.;)

[mtnwalker]

I usually walk to work - if I take a bike, what will I do with all that extra time?

JB

Ride your bike around?

[DiabloScott]

Maybe I'll volunteer to help out this year. Anyone know how I can get hooked up?


There's a contact e-mail on the BtWD page:
http://www.bayareabikes.org/btwd/index.php?page=index.htm

I think most of the volunteers work for CalTrans or something, but I'll bet they could find a place for you.

[parity]

Hit as many energizer stations as you can for free swag.

[MACinRWC]

The Woodside High School Cycling Club is hosting the second annual bike to school day.

[reidconti]

I think reid might be able to use Caltrain as an option too?

Could, but too slow.

I checked the schedule once and my commute (either Santa Clara, Lawrence, or Mountain View stop on the south end, and Belmont or Redwood City on the north end) only has like 1 train per *day* (in each direction at anywhere normal commute times) that stops at both sets of places. And then once you're on the train, it goes slow. I managed to make it home in just over 95 minutes the other day, and going north just over 105 minutes. Biking to the train, then the fudge factor of having to be there with enough time to not miss it, then riding the train, then biking again, just ends up being too much of a hassle. And then I'm still spending money -- I'd rather drive if I'm going to have to pay to commute :D I love driving, just would like more fresh air, keep the miles off the car, and get a good workout.

[murphstahoe]

Could, but too slow.

I checked the schedule once and my commute (either Santa Clara, Lawrence, or Mountain View stop on the south end, and Belmont or Redwood City on the north end) only has like 1 train per *day* (in each direction at anywhere normal commute times) that stops at both sets of places. And then once you're on the train, it goes slow. I managed to make it home in just over 95 minutes the other day, and going north just over 105 minutes. Biking to the train, then the fudge factor of having to be there with enough time to not miss it, then riding the train, then biking again, just ends up being too much of a hassle. And then I'm still spending money -- I'd rather drive if I'm going to have to pay to commute :D I love driving, just would like more fresh air, keep the miles off the car, and get a good workout.

Wow. I leave my house in SF, ride 3 miles, ride the train, ride from Mountain View to work in Sunnyvale (5 miles) and get from home to work in 80 minutes, tops. Almost every train stops at Mountain View, and those that don't stop at Santa Clara. Ditto Redwood City, vis a vis San Carlos.

Is your commute North or Southbound?

Your selection of available stations doesn't make sense - Santa Clara, Lawrence, Mountain View, but not Sunnyvale? RWC or Belmont but not San Carlos?

I'd love to help. Depending on where you start and finish, honestly the train is probably a lot faster and more convenient than you've calculated. I'm not against riding the whole way, but on the days you don't, if you take the train instead of the car, big win..

[nachomc]

I don't believe I have class that morning. If I don't, I'll be riding. I can't wait for semester end so I can start commuting again.

[uspspro]

Various conductors have told me that Caltrain hits close to 80mph with baby bullets (supposed to be 72 mph, but sometimes they go a little faster if they were a couple mins behind), and the express trains hit around 68 mph.

Try to go that fast in rush hour traffic.

I get from Hillsdale in San Mateo to Downtown San Jose in 33 minutes via baby bullet and 42 minutes via express. On the train, I can make phone calls, eat breakfast, go through paperwork, read, etc...

How is that slow?

[reidconti]

Wow. I leave my house in SF, ride 3 miles, ride the train, ride from Mountain View to work in Sunnyvale (5 miles) and get from home to work in 80 minutes, tops. Almost every train stops at Mountain View, and those that don't stop at Santa Clara. Ditto Redwood City, vis a vis San Carlos.

Is your commute North or Southbound?

Your selection of available stations doesn't make sense - Santa Clara, Lawrence, Mountain View, but not Sunnyvale? RWC or Belmont but not San Carlos?

I'd love to help. Depending on where you start and finish, honestly the train is probably a lot faster and more convenient than you've calculated. I'm not against riding the whole way, but on the days you don't, if you take the train instead of the car, big win..

I commute northbound in the mornings (within about a 2 hour window), southbound in the evenings (within a 3 hour window). I left off Sunnyvale and San Carlos just because I couldn't remember off the top of my head, not because they're not options. I had definitely considered all available options when I looked at the train option seriously about a year ago (back when I started this job). I looked up the schedule again and it's marginally better than I remember, but the only reliable options are the milk run trains, which take 40 minutes to travel about 18 miles.

The milk runs are inconvenient because they are slow. If you factor in the fact that I'm going out of my way to get to Caltrain, and that I have to plan a 5 minute buffer to avoid missing the train (and then having to figure out which station the next train stops at if I *do* miss it), plus the 40 minute train ride, I'm probably saving zero time versus riding the whole way.

The more normal trains are faster but more awkward to plan. I have a highly irregular schedule, so there are a ton of variables to track. On the way north, the 323 stops at Mountain View, then Hillsdale (a bit too far north). Next train is the 225 which stops in Sunnyvale and Mountain View, and then San Carlos. 227 stops everywhere down south, but only Redwood City and Hillsdale up north. 329 stops in Sunnyvale, but then only Redwood City on the north end.

The southbound trip is even more complicated because I could leave any time between 4 and 7. Apart from the few milk run trains, a glance at the schedule tells me that the stops are even more scattered.

As far as I'm concerned, the problem with Caltrain is the schedules operate almost without rhyme or reason. While the trains run at very regular intervals during commute hours, they seem to rely on chaos theory to determine which stations they will serve. If you miss a given train, you are either stuck waiting an hour or more, or trying to figure out where the next one stops. If you can take a baby bullet, it's great. Ditto for having an origin or destination at Diridon or SF, where at least you know that every train stops at either your origin or destination.

If I have the time to take the train, I have the time to bike, and it costs me nothing.

If I don't have the time to bike (or I find the weather conditions unfavorable, or whatever), the train does nothing for me.

I do appreciate the offer to help, but in the end, with the train, I'd have to plan everything around the train schedule -- that would be great if it made up for it by making my commute more convenient, but it doesn't.

[murphstahoe]

I commute northbound in the mornings (within about a 2 hour window), southbound in the evenings (within a 3 hour window). I left off Sunnyvale and San Carlos just because I couldn't remember off the top of my head, not because they're not options. I had definitely considered all available options when I looked at the train option seriously about a year ago (back when I started this job). I looked up the schedule again and it's marginally better than I remember, but the only reliable options are the milk run trains, which take 40 minutes to travel about 18 miles.

The milk runs are inconvenient because they are slow. If you factor in the fact that I'm going out of my way to get to Caltrain, and that I have to plan a 5 minute buffer to avoid missing the train (and then having to figure out which station the next train stops at if I *do* miss it), plus the 40 minute train ride, I'm probably saving zero time versus riding the whole way.

The more normal trains are faster but more awkward to plan. I have a highly irregular schedule, so there are a ton of variables to track. On the way north, the 323 stops at Mountain View, then Hillsdale (a bit too far north). Next train is the 225 which stops in Sunnyvale and Mountain View, and then San Carlos. 227 stops everywhere down south, but only Redwood City and Hillsdale up north. 329 stops in Sunnyvale, but then only Redwood City on the north end.

The southbound trip is even more complicated because I could leave any time between 4 and 7. Apart from the few milk run trains, a glance at the schedule tells me that the stops are even more scattered.

As far as I'm concerned, the problem with Caltrain is the schedules operate almost without rhyme or reason. While the trains run at very regular intervals during commute hours, they seem to rely on chaos theory to determine which stations they will serve. If you miss a given train, you are either stuck waiting an hour or more, or trying to figure out where the next one stops. If you can take a baby bullet, it's great. Ditto for having an origin or destination at Diridon or SF, where at least you know that every train stops at either your origin or destination.

If I have the time to take the train, I have the time to bike, and it costs me nothing.

If I don't have the time to bike (or I find the weather conditions unfavorable, or whatever), the train does nothing for me.

I do appreciate the offer to help, but in the end, with the train, I'd have to plan everything around the train schedule -- that would be great if it made up for it by making my commute more convenient, but it doesn't.

[I'm trying very hard these days to be less of an asshat but sheesh.]

Because this is not commuting, A&S, or LCF I am going to retract my comment.

[jinws]

I'm trying very hard these days to be less of an asshat but sheesh.

2000 cyclists a day make it work and their only complaint is that there isn't MORE room for bikes.

Train 329 - "Oh man it only stops in Sunnyvale and Redwood City" - in SEVENTEEN MINUTES. That's at least 25 minutes drive at rush hour. If you miss it - it costs you a whole 15 minutes. If there is a wreck on the 101, you will be delayed at least twice that.

I almost never miss a train. My commute to the train from my house in SF varies by less than 2 minutes. On the south end, the variance is even less - there is far less variance on a bike due to traffic because we just bypass the traffic.

Can't memorize the schedule? Use this tactic.

http://kwc.org/blog/archives/2005/2005-02-22.caltrain_tags.html

Granted I don't know your exact addresses, but wow. I'm sorry but if you need to put that much work into justifying not taking the train, well, you are the automakers and Oil companies wet dream.

Don't be too harsh, you either want to commute or you don't. If the benefits of commuting to work out weights the extra planning, you'll make it happen.

Commuting by bike and public transportation isn't for everyone. If you told me 2 years ago I'd riding my bike to work, I'd laugh at you. But now, if you tell me to drive to work, I'd ask why? I have a bike.

[BlastRadius]

I wish my commute was longer so I can organize a Bike Bus!
http://www.sfbike.org/?bikebus_diy

[reidconti]

Sorry, I didn't realize I was stepping on anyone's toes by criticizing the almighty Caltrain. I could understand your outrage if I came onto a bicycling forum just to explain that I'd rather drive an Excursion to work by myself rather than take an extra few minutes to ride my bike. But what I'm doing is not justifying driving, just saying that Caltrain offers me no advantages to biking, other than swapping time on the bike for time sitting indoors in exchange for money.

As for your example of missing the train and waiting 15 minutes, you're absolutely right, that's no big deal at all. But what if I'm shooting for the second train and miss that one? Now I have to figure out where and when the next train is. As the schedules clearly show, there's no guarantee that the next one will stop anywhere near my location, so I'm off chasing trains all of a sudden. Maybe it will be a minor hassle one day, but maybe it'll be a huge hassle the next. Don't even get me started on Caltrain engineers stranding me for hours in the middle of nowhere, at night, because they mistakenly thought I was the one who grabbed the handle of a train as it went by.

And none of this explains why I should take the train rather than just ride directly.

As I've already explained, taking the train will easily take as much time as riding my bike, it will cost more money, and be more of a hassle. Now explain how any of this would make me a more avid bicycle commuter?

By the way, my drive to work is 22 miles and rarely is more than 30-35 minutes at rush hour. Riding my bike is 28 miles and takes over 90 minutes, but I'm doing it anyway. Again, I'm not justifying driving, in fact I am only working towards biking more, now that I have figured out my best route. All I'm doing is saying that Caltrain does not aid my bike commute.

I'm the automakers' and oil companies' wet dream when I've got my car out on the track or at autocross anyway. The bike won't cure me of my love for cars, as it is another hobby and interest of mine. Not everyone can have the same purity and single-minded devotion to one hobby.

[nachomc]

I wish my commute was longer so I can organize a Bike Bus!
http://www.sfbike.org/?bikebus_diy

That's cool. I think there are some organized starts in the Sacramento area. I might hook up with one for the 15th. Looking forward to this Thursday - planning my first commute of the year :D

[BlastRadius]

I'm the automakers' and oil companies' wet dream when I've got my car out on the track or at autocross anyway. The bike won't cure me of my love for cars, as it is another hobby and interest of mine. Not everyone can have the same purity and single-minded devotion to one hobby.

What kind of car do you autocross? uspspro here autocrosses his MR2 (at least he used to).

[LanceMach]

I'm a regular bike commuter (well, I ride my bike to the BART station and then take the train into the city).

If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend giving it a shot: nothing like getting to the BART station and jumping on the bike for a quick ride home (much better than dealing with the cagers - even for the short drive home)!

[reidconti]

What kind of car do you autocross? uspspro here autocrosses his MR2 (at least he used to).

Cool! I was thinking maybe I had seen him (since I've seen a few MR2's out there), but then I realized it's probably one of the more perfect a-x cars, so I'm sure they're used by lots of folks. I've got a Z3 M Coupe, so far I just compete BMWCCA as that's where a bunch of great folks are at.

Off to make breakfast so I can hit up the bike. It's always so hard to adjust your schedule to get up even an hour early, seems that I can never start by going to bed an hour early -- the early rising has to come first, followed by the bedtime a day or two later. :rolleyes: