My commute would be 10 miles each way and very pretty as it winds past Grays Bay on Lake Minnetonka here in The Twin Cites of MN. But a couple years ago a guy pulling a huge boat on a trailer cornered so close that he brushed my pants leg with his trailer. Now I have a nice lady who manages an apartment complex at the halfway point who lets me park days. This gets me past the two most dangerous parts of the full ride. I miss it, but I'd miss my life or health more. You really have to stop and think about things when you are sole providor for your family. I bought a pair of heavy chrome steel loops like the ones that you see on the bed rails of pick up trucks and mounted them to the trunk of my '92 Camry. Also at Home Depot, a pair oversize carabiners. It took a little experimentation but I can clip the bike to the back of my car in about 10 seconds. The right crank has to be down and I carry a 6mm allen key to turn my bars 90° left, but it cost me less than $8.00.

I'm riding the same Ross Super Gran Tour XV I bought new in '82. With the Shimano 600 Arabesque group, it's always been a sweet ride. I run on a set of knobby 27" tires too that are soft and comfy so I can go off road or onto a rough shoulder if necessary. I ride in my work clothes, slacks with a velcro strap and a polo shirt with running shoes. Platform pedals with toe clips give me good power. There's a fan at work where I can grab a quick cool down and old cloth diapers make excellent sweat rags. I wear cheap pigskin work gloves partly for comfort and also for some protection if I crash. A Bell Citi in flat black with the dedicated mirror works well. I can't stand those helmets that make you look like the Alien or that Olympic luge team back in the 80s. I bought a mesh vest for $15.00 at Northern Tool. In a pinch, on a hot day, I can wear just the vest and pop my shirt into a shoulder bag.

There are so many levels of good even with a short commute. I'm going to be 50 in September and I want to feel like I did at 40 when 50 comes. "40 by 50" is my motto and this short commute is just the right tempo for getting back to even that modest level of condition I'm shooting for. People at my office either ignore me or are jealous and wistful. I try to tell them it's not that hard! Just decide you're going to do it.

I guess the hard part is the same as it's always been - staying safe. Drivers have not gotten any mellower over the years have they? "Go go, faster faster, hurry hurry hurry" seems to be the rule and seeing a guy doing a good thing like commuting by bike just seems to bring out the worst in some drivers. And did they always run so many red lights? I swear, there used to be a law that said you could not enter an intersection when the light was red... Now red is the new yellow. Even though my commute is short, I'm so glad to be out of that rat race for even a small part. Good luck to you all and watch your backs! But enjoy your commute no matter what the length.