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05-09-18 | 06:30 AM

#19

Jim from Boston

Senior Member

Joined: May 2008

Posts: 7,381

Likes: 219

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlmostGreenGuy

Wow. It’s been…….. a long time since I’ve visited the Commuting forum. I hung here for a while, but once I got comfortable with bike commuting, I kind of dropped off the forum. I’m not sure why. I’ve been steadily commuting by bike for almost 10 years now, and it’s really been a great ride.

Seeing that I was able to garner so much great info from this forum, way back then, I thought I’d pass on a little wisdom that I’ve learned over the years, in attempt to pay you all back a bit…

It’s not all luck. You read about some people who have a magical bike commute. The gym is right across the street from where they work. The distance is just right. The roads have no traffic. They store their bike inside the building. And you wish you were them. But most often, those people didn’t get lucky or know a special kind of magic. Opportunities come with time..

It didn’t all happen overnight. It took patience and time for the opportunities to arise…[

Quote:

Originally Posted by Khb

I'll play devil's advocate ... for me riding "every day" is/was critical ... indeed I got rid of my car so I left myself virtually no other choice (yes, I CAN uber ... but I haven't in 18 months) ... otherwise, I'd find way too many excuses.

Yes, there are days when it's about 10 degrees when I question various life choices (not replacing the car being top of the list). But such days are few and far between ;>

Not everyone is lucky enough to have a short enough commute (under 15mi one way), showers at the office, etc. So I don't judge! Indeed, folks that have the will power to ride indoors or get other exercise in are way ahead of me ...

Cheers all!

I’m one of those (lucky) people. FYA, I have frequently posted, and even started this thread, “Describe your commute”:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

Humbly, if Bike Forums ever had a Best Commute Award, I would be a frontrunner.[Not to brag, but illustrate the possibilities]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

Yesterday I replied to this thread, “ How has your commute evolved over the months / years?.”…So I have expanded and slightly altered your format to report my commute:
Kenmore Square, Boston to Norwood over 30 years

Route:
Reverse commute from downtown on four different routes of a minimal distance of 14 miles, each defined by a different hill; can expand to about 30 miles to train

Environment: In order of hill difficulty: Gritty urban, pleasant suburban, pleasant urban, ritzy suburban

Hills: One moderate hill on each route, then smaller hills; estimate only about 1-2 miles flat

Frequency: Variable over the decades; currently about 50% in winter; 75% nice weather (work is an obstacle)

Bike: Specialized S-WORKS CF Road Bike; Cannondale beater mountain bike (fenders and Marathon Winter studded tires)

Bike name: NA

Cargo: Ortlieb panniers on the Cannondale; backpack on the S-WORKS

Helmet / Mirror: yes and yes (left and right Take-a-Look eyeglass mounted mirrors)

Destination:

Parking: inside about 100 feet from my desk, directly through a door from the outside

Cleanup: shower facilities; place to hang clothes, and a table fan available to dry; for most of the time I wear surgical scrubs

Amenities: coffee shop and cafeteria on site; almost all my personal service needs like barbershop, dentist, dry-cleaner/tailor, supermarket and drugstore, and good take-out restaurants are all within walking distance of work, or a short hop on the bike; bike shop two blocks away

Alternative Transportation: train, car, bus, taxis, car rentals, Zipcar, place to stay comfortably overnight.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

When I was asked a few years before starting my career, while living in Boston,“Where would you like to live?.” my criteria were living near a big body of water, and the ability to live without a car as I had been much of my earlier two-plus decades; and I was already an avid cyclist.

I learned to love the water from the Great Lakes in Michigan, and the Atlantic Ocean in Boston. I vaguely considered my ambition not as “Car Free," per se, but a lifestyle choice. Through certain life circumstances I was already primed to be Car Free

Fortunately I found a happy career here in Boston, and Living Car Free then became easy. So as a corollary to not arguing about what we want, should we rather discuss how we obtain our goals. By choice or luck?

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 05-09-18 at 09:46 AM.

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