GradStudent

So here's the deal: Last summer I moved 35 miles away from school, and I stated doing a bike/train/bike commute (with my trusty folder). My main reasons for not commuting by car are environmental and financial, and my main reasons for biking a portion of it was to get some exercise and not having to wait for a bus.

Now I've gotten involved in some activities at school (masters swimming, working out at lunch with a friend) so I get plenty of exercise that way. Also, the mass transit has improved a great deal so I can easily take a (free) shuttle bus to the train station and back from my apartment, and a (free) bus from the train to school without having to wait.

So now I'm still not commuting by car -- but I'm no longer bike commuting. And I feel so guilty about it! I keep telling myself I'm still NOT driving 70 miles each day, and still saving the expense of owning a car...yet the guilt persists.

Has anyone here ever stopped commuting by bike for a significant length of time? Did you feel bad about it?

I-Like-To-Bike

I stopped commuting by bike for 16 years when it was no longer the best method for me - distance and time constraints. I resumed when those constraints were no longer in effect.

Feel bad or guilty? Not a bit -why should I? And why should you? IMO, Bicycling is for pleasure, not for doing penance.

Rowan

Yes. For various reasons. The period has ranged from days to weeks. Rest and variety is sometimes a good thing for revitalising enthusiasm for cycling.

Boogs

I stopped last winter when my other bike's rear wheel was stolen... I never got around to getting it taken care of. My commute is short, so never again!

ofofhy

Those buses and trains are still going to run, whether you are on them or not. So if it's the environment your worried about, don't feel any guilt.

Bike commute for yourself. If it no longer fits your needs (excersize/time constraints), then by all means stop.

jnbacon

I've commuted by bike off and on to this job for six years, and rode my bike (I guess I didn't consider it commuting then, it was so close) to university for five years before that. The off stretches were due to not enjoying it, job changes, and my wife having an illness. When I started up again six months ago, because of my past experiences commuting and then stopping, I made more clear choices and knew better what I wanted to do, how to do it, and what obstacles I had to overcome in order to continue on with it. In doing that, my commitment has grown, my love for biking has grown, and I feel good about myself.

When I wasn't biking, yes, I had some guilt about not biking, primarily because I knew that it was what I wanted to do. But that was mistaken guilt: circumstances and lack of motivation got in the way. Chalk up your past bike commute as a sucessful solution to your transportation needs for that moment in time, learn what you can from it, and use it in the future.

theden

I have to stop every now and then for work reasons. Sometimes I need to drive to go out to job sites during the day (about 30 miles or more oneway), or we have projects going where I need to get to a site quickly in an emergency. This lasts anywhere from a few days to a couple months. I really hate it, especially after the first week I can just feel myself losing strength. I am in the middle of such a period now (haven't commuted for 9 days), so I took a nice ride last night when I got home. I am taking a week-long tour in a week and a half, and I am losing my fitness base by not commuting!!!

AverageCommuter

Nah, don't feel guilty. Consider that the diesel engine in that bus is most efficient when it is carrying the full load for which it was designed. So by helping fill the bus you're making it a more efficient vehicle. Efficiency-wise, trains are even better than busses. Sure you're not riding your bike, which would be better, but you're also not driving a car, which would be a lot worse. I get upset with myself when I don't ride too, but a lot of that has to do with the fact that I really enjoy riding.

genec

Yes, on all counts... however usually my stopping was preceeded by some other event... too many close calls with cars, or an accident, or changing jobs. When I got back on the bike again, I would suddenly go into a super bike mode and wonder WTF was I thinking when I stopped.

While commuting is a great way to get from point A to point B... it really is lousy bike riding... depending of course on where you do it. My current commute (which I am NOT doing) is all dense urban arterials at 45MPH, with a section on a freeway... it does nothing to relieve stress and the reality is I cannot ride at full speed and spend a lot of moments second guessing traffic situations. So right now I am just riding on this beautiful bike path that is a full 9 feet wide... it is a bike hiway. It goes at one point along a creek, and past housing, and later parallels a freeway, but is well removed and even has it's own bridges. I can open up on this path and ride to my fullest... without the constant negotiations with motorists. It as really brought back the joy of cycling... of course, now I am thinking "gee, why not commute..."

sbhikes

I've not commuted more than I have commuted by bike. I usually get really into it, then stop for some reason.

I also haven't always had a job that I could easily commute to. Maybe it was too far, or I had to drive during my job.

The worst time was when my job was so close I could almost walk, but because I had to stop off at a further away office each day to pick up stuff I could never avoid using my car. I can't say I felt guilty, just frustrated.

The other day our stupid local newspaper editor ran another stupid opinion about traffic. So I wrote a letter to the editor about biking to work (I wonder if he'll print it). Fact is, not everybody can bike to work, but there might be some errand or place you go to other than work that you could bike to. There's usually some way to reduce your driving, even if it's just a little bit.

Sorry this is so long. Another thing. I'm thinking I might have to stop commuting or ease up a bit because I had surgery 7 months ago and all of a sudden it seems biking is making my belly swell up like a watermelon.

K6-III

I bike commuted when I lived in the burbs. Now that I'm in the city, everything is rather transit friendly and I rarely commute on my bike. Now, when I need to go out to the third ring suburbs for something, transit becomes lacking and I'm back on my bike...

Machka 

I didn't start commuting by bicycle until 1997 and I only did that for a few months then stopped because I started attending school in a neighborhood where there were no cycling storage facilities.

I started again in 1998, but stopped for a couple months in the winters until 2002. The winter of 2002-2003 was the first one I cycled right through.

I've stopped commuting by bicycle again now ... pretty much. I ride 1-2 days per week. What's changed? Well, my commute used to be 13 kms round trip which was managable on even the worst days. My commute now is 65 kms round trip, and that would be a long ways if I were to do it every day, especially with my weekend cycling events. So now I ride when I can, and rest the rest of the time. It's not ideal, but it is OK for now.

Jessica

I have commuted other ways more than I have done by bike, but I keep coming back to the bike. I have commuted by bike for several years four or five times in my adult life. This time I think i will remember how fun it is.

when I was single parent to two kids, the car was easier, and faster.

when I lived farther than I knew how to ride (my knowledge about how to enjoy a longer ride has improved) then I drove. i used to think 7 miles was the farthest I could ride at a time... now I commute 16 miles one way, with a lite rail boost most days but all the way sometimes. and I have ridden up to 35 miles in a day, which is not much to some, but a lot for me.

GradStudent

Thank you, everyone, for all of your supportive posts! I took your advice to heart and decided to stop pressuring myself, feeling like I 'should' be bike commuting.

The funny thing is, once I did that, I found myself thinking, "It would be fun to bike to school tomorrow." So I brought the bike in for a tune-up this weekend, and will start bike commuting when I feel like it (and only when I feel like it!).

eubi

I'm glad these post have no one condemning us for not riding our bikes everywhere.

**so far**

I will be accused of apostacy, but there are times when the bikes just aren't practical.

This weekend I had to haul 7 Scouts and nine canoes. Not the best task for a bike.

So ride when you can, and enjoy it!

closetbiker

I guess I've been luckey. Circumstances haven't changed so I've been able to keep on commuting on my bike.

In '84, my wife bought me a bike for my birthday and I rode it into work all summer. I drove into work in the winter and next spring I started up again. This time it stuck and I rode in all year. I haven't stopped and, if things stay the same (and I don't see that they're going to change), I should make it to retirement commuting on the bike.

I'm saving that cross country trip on the bike for retirement so I don't stop riding.

RT

I took the entire Colorado winter off. Just too damn cold and icy. So glad spring/summer is here! If I lived back in central California, I might not own a car.

GrodyGeek

I stopped commuting for about 2.5 years after being struck by a pick-up while commuting. Shoulder and back injuries led to lots of different exercise. Cycling wasn't comfortable, not 'bents, not anything. After lots of walking and other therapy I'm back to commuting. In the mean time I learned a lot about the bus system and ride it as well as cycle so its all good. Car is getting less use all the time.

Camel

That's odd. Have you had a chance to mention this to your doctor at a follow-up visit?

pgoat

yes, and yes I felt bad - physically, and emotionally.....

I just started riding regularly again after spotty commuting due to f/t work and school at night for the last few years - my mood has improved tremendously (feel like the 'old me'! ). Part of that might be that I don't have to write any more %#$@ing thesis papers for a while, but I think the bike has a lot to do with it.....

Rowan

It's amazing how it works like that. Stop worrying, and suddenly things get better. Hope the new phase goes well.

pgoat

today I have to take the train (going away for the weekend) - nothing will convince you how gr8 it is to commute than using other transit after steady cycling......in a word, it SUCKS!!

Guest

Why feel bad about taking public transportation? If you were driving by yourself in a Hummer, would that feel better?

It's still a good thing to take public transportation if you don't ride your bus. Overall, it does reduce pollution.

Koffee

Rowan

Well, I have no idea of your train system, but it's 100% on the one where I live -- there isn't one! And I like trains very much. I live in Australia, and did a trip to Perth in the far west last year, and loved their commuter train systems because it allowed me to take my bike on it. So I was a multi-model transport user.

Nevertheless, as KB says, public transportation is a pretty good option. I use buses and legs when I don't feel like cycling. Be happy that you are being far, far more creative than the car owner whose only creativity is finding a way to earn the extra dollars to pay for their transport options.

ivan_yulaev

I stopped for about 4 days, as the first two I had a sore knee (patellofemoral pain syndome), and the next two days it was raining :-(