I went with some friends to an Independence day party in Chicago. After we returned, I was talking about cycling with my non-cycling friend, and about how he wanted to start, but had no time to do it, so I recommended that he try commuting. I told him I knew of a pretty good route for him which would only take him a few extra minutes every day. Since I tell this to pretty much everyone I know, I figured he wouldn't seriously consider it.

The conversation changed subjects, but later, more or less out of the blue, he asked me to show him the route right then and there. So we got our bikes out, and we did the 13 mile loop. It's almost completely flat. Most of the route is a well paved bike path. I wanted to break him in easy to cycling in traffic, and I think paths are a good place for beginners. He is in pretty reasonable cycling shape for someone who's just starting. I think we averaged 12 to 13mph for the loop. On the way back, we stopped at an LBS, and he picked up a helmet and some gloves, which he said signifies his commitment to start bike commuting.

Today will be his first day commuting. I'll have to ask him how he did. With any luck, I'll have a new riding partner soon.

Anyone else recruited any new commuters?

Excellent job! I talk about the benefits of commuting to all I meet (health, environment, enjoying your comute not hating it, save tons of $$$). There is a woman at work who has asked me some detailed questions so she is considering it. But, so far no commuters have been converted.

Again well done on helping this person out. When he is much healthier as a result he'll have you to thank.

Soon the highways will be OURS!

It's working!

I was also talking about cycling to a friend in Chicagoland yesterday at July 4th festivities. He's big into following professional cycling and watches cycling every chance he gets. He's my OLN source as he only lives a few houses away. Yesterday he asked me to go with him to LBS to pick out a bike. He now wants to ride. No commute yet but you figure that has to be next!

Chicagoland first, next the world!

I haven't converted anyone yet, but I'm subtly laying the groundwork at my work place. Can't come on too strong or I may look like a quack.

Nice avatar, Tree Trunk.

Yeah, this is true. Everyone who knows me knows I bike everywhere, and I try to suggest it to everyone at least once, but if I don't get any interest, I lay off, which can be hard sometimes, since I think about bikes 24/7. But I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have any friends left if I just kept going on and on about it, so I bide my time and just answer questions as people ask me.

There's another guy I'm working on too.

I haven't converted my co-workers... yet! But when they see me come in slightly exhausted, but still on that high, and feeling great, they have all started to look at their own lives and their health. One coworker, who has just gone through a major illness has started riding her bike and her goal is to commute to work. Another is toying with the idea of partly driving in, partly riding, and she NEVER really rides!! They both told me I *inspired* them! Cool eh?

Yeah, I'm working on the tracts to pass out now.

I don't mind looking like a quack. I pretty much have webbed feet now. (Go Illini, hubcap)

When people ask me for directions someplace in the city (Boston, Somerville, Cambridge, Arlington) or how long it will take, I usually respond with something like, "Well, I bike there, so it takes me about 20 minutes. If there's a Red Sox game tonight and you're driving, it'll probably take you 40 minutes."

-Or -

"You could just jump on the bikeway and be there in 30 minutes..." or some such thing...

It's just my way of throwing it out there. I try not to pepper the same people over and over, but I remind them every now and then of how easy it is.

I have converted a few over the years. I never bring it up, but everyone knows I ride. The ones that might actually try it, will first look at you and see if it is working. If they believe it is, then they will start asking questions. Answer honestly, both the good and the bad (with work arounds for the bad). Those that try it are more likely to stick with it.
A couple of the newbies went high end right away and stayed with it.
Sadly, a couple of others were just trying to prove they were man enough to do it too. They usually made a point of arriving at work about 15 minutes before I normally got there and made sure to park their bikes in the spot I normally parked in. They only lasted a week.

No one at my work has shown any interest in commuting, but most people in my office live too far away to do so (SoCal suburban sprawl.). My commute is about 15 mi. one-way, and I live closer than all but one other guy in the office. He only lives a couple of miles closer.

Another guy in our office is currently in the process of moving to within 5 miles or so of the office, but his commute would involve a mile or two of steep climbing in both directions. He could route around the big climb with a more moderate climb, but that would stretch the commute to about 8 mi. or so. I don't see much likelihood of him doing the climb, or the longer ride.

My biggest worry lately is not so much encouraging other potential commuters as it is preserving my own commute. Our small company is expanding somewhat rapidly, and will soon outgrow our current space.

The decision hasn't been made yet whether to expand into more space in the current office-park (We're not entirely happy with the somewhat shoddy, property management, but we're kinda tied-up in a lease.), or to move elsewhere. If we move somewhere that eliminates the ability for me to bicycle-commute, I'll be a seriously unhappy camper.

Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to have much of an influence over the decision...

-Trevor

I recently took an interest in mountainbiking and got a bike. I've been babbling about biking to my workmates about cycling on the weekends and I decided to come into work by bike the two days a week that I can (the other days I have to pick up/drop off my daughters at grandma's so I need to use my car).

Well, two of my workmates took up the idea and have started coming in by bike 3 days a week each.

Yep, I've recruited my girlfriend And gotten my roommate to at least commute by bike *some* of the time. And I sold a used rack to another one of my coworkers and showed him where to buy panniers cheap. And I'm currently working on another coworker and another roommate...

My bike sits in the staffroom at school so I am often asked. No converts yet, but a couple mentioning thinking about it.

Softly softly, catche monkey.

a

I just try to get in a comment from time to time about how the road I take home was so backed up with cars the other night, but of course it didn't effect my time...

Same here. Maine is so rural, the car culture is very embedded and public transportation is virtually non-existent. Most of my co-workers live at least 20 miles away.

I've only "converted" one person, mostly by example, I think, because I didn't talk to her much about it. Unfortunately, she didn't stay with it. I think she tried to do too much too soon. Too bad I hadn't discovered this forum yet and gotten more ideas to suggest to her, such as driving part way, etc. I don't know what she's doing now, since she left the company last year. I think she works closer to home, though, so who knows?