Commuting - Exhausted

I am thinking about taking the long, slow, neighborhood routes on my commute home, as I used to do. It's not fear of traffic. The problem is car exhaust.

I did not switch to bike commuting to trash my lungs. Car exhaust is one of the main reasons I don't like cars. The last thing I want to do is bathe in a sea of it.

The air is actually fresher away from the traffic arteries. The scenery is also a lot better!

In the mornings, I don't seem to have the same problem with heavy traffic on the arterials. But the afternoons are a good time to take an "escape route." And with the "smog season" coming on, it might be wiser!

(Besides, I'm not in as much of a hurry in the afternoon. :) )

Mmm mmm good! Nothing like the sweet sting of car exhaust on the tougue. I need to start carrying something flavored with me because water just doesn't cut that taste. It looks bad, but I find myself spitting a lot. I often think about how I'm trashing my lungs with every deep breath. I try to ride back roads. I finally junked my car with the carbon problem. I felt horrible driving it past cyclists because even I could see what was coming out of my exhaust pipe, especially on hills when the bikers I passed were breathing the hardest. When I drive now and have to pass a cyclist, instead of flooring it to get around as fast as possible, and leaving a cloud of smoke in their face--which is what everyone does, I either pass slowly and stay easy the gas, or I accelerate behind them and then coast around. Biking or walking really do put one more in touch with their environment.

Clay

Probably will have lungs like a smoker if not already. I hate the exaust. I try to ride the bike paths. Diesel is the worst.:mad:

Filthy beasts...