baron von trail 

Weather, appointments, fatigue, a sore ass...what are the things that put your butt in a car seat instead of on the bike?

This year was a good commuting year for me. It's the first year that I have a shot at 5,000 miles. But, it's still at least 2500 miles short of commuting a majority of the time and roughly 5,000 miles short of 100% commutes. So, I got to thinking. What keeps me off the bike?

Number one has to be fatigue. With a 50 mile R/T commute, it's difficult for me to ride to work more than 2 or 3 straight days. In the heart of summer, I can get 4 commutes in per week, but as the year progresses, I fall of to 2 or 3 rather quickly. October, for example, saw me average about 2.5 days per week. I guess, I don't really enjoy riding in the dark, wind and cold.

fietsbob

1991 stopped trying to own a car then .

Before that an other situation Drove 12 Miles, each way, then I got a CDL,

then Got a second Job driving a Bus to go pick up other people, who also went to Job 1
then After Work I drove the Bus to get them Home again.

Now I just Live in a Small town on a Big River.

... with a Bus system & a couple taxi companies,,

Gresp15C

For me, it's basically when I need the car for some reason, e.g., driving to an appointment, picking the kids up somewhere, or ironically, taking it for an oil change. I'm a musician, so I sometimes have to go straight from work to a performance.

But my R/T is only 8 miles, and mostly flat.

Jim from Boston

When Do You Drive Instead of Ride?

I had replied to this similar thread, "What stops you from riding?"

gregjones

Never.

A year ago I realized that I had been paying insurance on the truck for five months since I put a new tag sticker on it and it hadn't been out of the driveway. I rode to DMV and canceled the registration then the insurance the next day. Two weeks ago I sold the truck. CDLs expired.....rode to DMV and gave 'em back. Got a state ID.

I have an eBarf single wheel trailer to carry trash to the dumpsters and food from the store. I live in a small town, work close (5.4 mi.). The longest ride that I have is to the liquor store---21 miles.

But, I do ride more on the weekends..

wphamilton

I drive to the grocery store, but if you mean commuting: post-op for a few days, collarbone. None of the weather we get here stops me. Dr's appointments, I've been scheduling them first thing in the morning and have my wife drive me in then biking back. Other than that, I think I've driven instead one or two days over the last three years, purely on whim.

tsl

Well, first I'd have to buy a car...

I figure sometime in the next ten years or so I'll buy one. I plan to retire in 2027, so I'll own one by then.

In the meanwhile, one may be a bit closer in the future. My parents health is failing. I may end up moving out there to take care of them. They live in a section of the suburbs that's not the best for cycling even in the best of conditions. I'd probably drive in foul weather if I move out there.

But for now, working in (and for) the city, living in the city a quarter mile from one grocery store, a mile from three others, and having to pay for off-street parking or deal with the daily hassle of alternate side parking, a car is far more hassle than it's worth.

Jerrys88

Sadly, when Daylight Savings ends (this weekend :-( ). Then I ride bike to work every other day, take bus back, because I don't like to ride in the dark. Drive to work on in between days, taking bike home to ride back the following morning. I'll also drive if it's too cold, windy, or any precipitation.

alan s 

Rode 170 miles last weekend and drove to work on Monday to give my legs a rest. There are a couple really nice rides from work, so sometimes I'll drive and ride after work. Nice to mix it up a bit.

gregjones

As Cheryl became progressively weaker and worse, I made her some steps so that she could get in my full sized truck. Then she couldn't get in the truck with the steps. We started using a Medicaid program that provided rides to a chargeable doctor's appointment. I only had to take trash to the dumpsters and get food from the stores. That's where the trailer came in. You might check into assistance options of that sort to provide care for your parents.

But, you retire in 12 years, I do in 1.5, and have no responsibilities other than to a little Min-Pen. I hope that you can work out not needing the expense of a gas thing.

GovernorSilver

I assume you're talking about commuting only, as opposed to having to run errands after work.

If I'm not riding to work, I'm taking the Metro (DC subway system) to work - no need to drive.

I only drive to work if I need to go to Baltimore right after work.

crankythunder

There are a number of issues that will have me reaching for the truck keys or Harley keys in lieu of the bike helmet.

1) Weather
2) Distance needed to travel
3) Time available
4) How much hauling capacity do I need?
5) Passengers?


Sincerely,
Cranky

wolfchild

I am car-free. All the places I need to get to are within bike riding distance. Owning a car right now would be a waste and an unneccessary expense...Fatique, tiredness, bad weather ???...those are very lame excuses.

mcours2006

My R/T commute is only 22 miles, so distance isn't an issue like it is for you. I drive when I have to run errands after work for which I cannot use the bike--shopping (too much groceries to be loaded onto the panniers), going far out of the way, driving people.

Of course there are the weather-related reasons, and despite what @wolfchild says , are perfectly valid reasons for taking the car--extreme cold and wind, heavy snow, ice, heavy rain, lightning, etc.

I've allotted myself 40 car rides for the year. Thanks to the month of January, and especially February, so far I've used up 35 or 36. Nothing to brag about, but I think those are decent numbers considering this is my first full year of commuting.

baron von trail 

If I have an early morning meeting or customers coming in for a visit, I usually drive simply to ensure I am not late or have another problem. Not that I've ever had any issues come up while cycling which caused me to be late, but the chances are much higher that an hour or two "disaster" occurs by bike than by car. Also, if I have to be at work an hour early and/or stay an hour later, I'll drive. Sometimes a twenty minute car commute is simply more convenient and/or reliable than an hour-plus bicycle ride.

wolfchild

I am lucky to be living in a good location..If I lived in a different location or if my work/life situation changed I wouldn't be talking like that

spyguy

My wife does not like me riding in the rain, so there are times I defer to her. Not every time, naturally.

Actual winter precipitation on the roads will keep me off the bike. I don't have studded tires, so that will do it.

I've not found a low too cold at this point. 5F or so is about the minimum I've had to do in STL.

Jim from Boston

I have posted a few times that once my wife chided me for riding in nasty weather with, "You just want to ride today so you can write about it on BikeForums."

I usually leave very early, well before she awakens and checks the weather.

Recently posted to this thread, ”Abbreviations... What The Hell You Talkin Bout”

bikinglife

Amen.

The more you bike, the more your body becomes a sophisticated pedalling machine.

I do 15 km commutes as if they're short strolls to the corner store

gregf83 

Sometimes my pedaling machine just gets tired. With my commute I'm away from home for around 11-12 hrs. Some days if I don't sleep well I'll take the car. Other reasons for driving:
1. Heavy fog. For me fog is the worst riding experience.
2. Snow and Ice. Doesn't happen very often so it's not worth dealing with on the bike.

Over the last couple of years I drive about 17% of the time.

Darth Lefty 

Days I have an appointment, days my wife's got her thing, some Wednesdays and Thursdays. It's pretty rare for me to get three commutes in a week.

bikinglife

I guess. When I'm tired, I just ride at like 10-12 km/hr and coast my way home. It could take really long, but I guess there's an inherent joy that comes with being on a bike instead of in a car for me.

rodentcloister

When I have more to carry to or from work than will fit in my panniers. Not gonna buy a trailer, especially if I have to try to haul it on the train.

When the train isn't running. Sixty miles round trip just takes too much time.

When I need to be somewhere on the way to or from work that I can't get to conveniently from the train.

When I'm in costume for Halloween, like yesterday.

gregf83 

Unfortunately, I can't afford to take 3 hrs to get to work...

tjspiel

Our kids are at an age where they've got lots of stuff going on late afternoon and evening. We have carpools and my wife drives so unless I need to transport some kids, I can often ride to where their game (or whatever) is. But sometimes I need to be the driver and some events are too far away for me to have time to get there on a bike after work.

On other occasions I'll have a meeting away from the office and then there's times where I just have errands to run.

As far as weather goes, I'll ride in most anything except a severe snowstorm. At that point I'll walk to the train station rather than drive. The other thing that happens in the winter though is that I won't detour very far from my normal route. Due to winter road conditions I'm not very comfortable riding at night on unfamiliar streets. Because of that I will take the car more often to run errands I would have run on a bike during better weather.

In winter I probably commute by bike 3 to 4 times a week. In the summer 4 to 5. Last spring my son had a crazy baseball schedule so I was down to 2 to 3 times per week for a couple of months.