Traffic lights that go to yellow flashing mode after midnight.

Glimpses of the gridlocked freeway I'm avoiding.

Greeting the crossing guards, joggers and walking groups I see every morning. Asking my co-workers how many people they smile and say hello to on their commute.

When I say "Yup" in response to my shocked coworkers after asking if I biked in this weather.

When I show my coworkers how prepared I am for any condition.

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes

All of this.

Had a long rural commute for over a decade. I loved the wildlife. I loved riding in the dark -- when there is no ambient lighting aside from that provided by the moon and the stars, you feel like it's all yours. That absolutely never gets old.

Now that I live in Portland, I don't get to enjoy those things a fraction as much as I used to, though I occasionally encounter a coyote, deer, or someone's stray chickens. Cyclists here whine about the traffic, but it's easy riding, and there is something fun about regularly riding by literally miles of cars :) Though my current commute doesn't hold a candle to my old one in terms of pure fun, it's still one of my favorite times of day. Not many people can say that.

Snowflakes that land on my nose and eyelashes. Actually, it's pretty nice to ride amidst snow flurries. Especially in darkness.

I really enjoy the songs of the tree frogs awakening sometime in early-to-mid March. It's happy.

I saw an owl fly low across my path on a wooded lane this morning. Any car commuters see that? I didn't think so...

Yesterday, as I prepared to return home from work, I was sitting and adjusting my gear and putting on my backpack. A pair of bald eagles were circling low then high overhead. Many co-workers walked by, heads down, preparing for their long car commutes home, never noticing. Glad I'm not them.

The high price of gas and knowing I don't have to purchase any for my bike.

I really enjoy the changing of the seasons; much of my commute is through rural farmland and the smells of freshly mowed lawns, just-harvested alfalfa, and yes, even cows can smell oh so sweet. I love seeing the peaches ripen on the trees, then watching the branches sag under their weight. It gets really hot in the summer here (northern Utah) but the big puffy clouds are wonderful. And nothing beats the smell of sagebrush in a summer rainstorm!

When I worked at Boeing, my commute was barely over 4 miles. It was 17 minutes to drive, park and walk if I got there early (before 6:30 AM) and got a decent spot. It was 17 minutes by bike as well. :)

If I was there after 7 am, add a few minutes to the drive because 1) looking for a spot and 2) walking much further.

Experiencing changes of season, seeing deer, coyote, and fox, and the light after a springtime rainstorm.

Good thread. Let's hope a certain someone doesn't try to hijack it.

I love the fact that "I'm my own engine." In fact, I have that written on the bottom line of my Road ID bracelet.

About a year ago I posted on Facebook what I thought were the benefits of cycle commuting. Of course the only people enthusiastic about my post were other cyclists. By memory, some of the benefits I really enjoy are that I feel further connected to my community greeting other people & smelling the local smells, being green by not burning gas, getting an efficient workout twice a day and feeling refreshed when I get to work. I also like some of the interaction with drivers-- some. Of course there are drivers who lack respect for us cyclists, but when someone does give me the right of way (even if I was supposed to have it) I will give them a thank you wave. It just makes me feel good, doing that.

Arriving.

Sometimes taking a break from bike commuting makes me happy about bike commuting

I can't ride every day. Some days I just need my car.

But when I take a day or two off of biking to drive, when I get back on the next day I appreciate it all that much more!

I have to be at work by 6am and love having my city to myself. Bombing College Hill in Providence at 530 gives me a lot of adrenaline and keeps me sane throughout the day. When your city is bustling but also the size of a tea cup-- commuting at pre-dawn hours can be a very personal experience. You get to explore alternate routes, find diminutive streets you didn't even know existed, pick through piles of trash before anyone else. Drunk drivers and Sysco trucks be damned.

I do my best thinking of the day during those 25 minutes. Probably why I am a four season rider in New England!

The mere fact of being able to. My morning commute runs through NYC's Central Park from 100th street to Central Park South, then down 7th Avenue through Times Square (before the tourists arrive) where I've probably been in the background for the 'Today Show' outdoor segments many times, then east to my office across the street from the Empire State Building at 34th street and 5th Avenue. Every day I share sidewalks with people who are visiting my home on a dream trip. I'm present to and grateful for the good fortune to be here and to be healthy enough to enjoy it on two wheels.

days liek today were almost everything went perfect and i jumped from 130th on a segment to 47th on strava. my quest to earn that KOM is showing progress. :D

What makes you happy when commuting?As a self-described decades-long, lifestyle, year-round cyclist (mainly commuting nowadays) I have enjoyed many moments of happiness as described above, outweighing those not so much.

In an overarching consideration of my experience, apropos to the above two quotes, I posted to this Car Free Living Forum, “What's awesome about Living Car Free”:

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge always gives me a rush. There are annoying aspects: the cars are noisy, it can be windy and cold, and if you're on the pedestrian side between about 10 am and 3:30 (when the west side opens up to bicycles), you have to be extremely wary of oblivious walkers. But it's an amazing view to take in, and on a bike you have time to enjoy it.

That'd be cool. I'd ride that!

Do they still charge you a lot of ride a bike over the bridge?

It's free. I'm not aware that bicyclists and pedestrians have ever had to pay.

Fresh air and it's free cardio!

I know! I mean you wouldn't want R-
Oh. There goes the neighborhood

I start out at 3.30 in the morning, the air is cold and crisp. Knowing light that my headlight gives off is generated strait from me. I have a hill at the end of my commute and when I get to the top I feel great and I know when I go home, I get to ride back down it.

More biking = better sleep quality = less tired when I wake up = better mood.