In the winter I like the ride in better as well. It's cold both ways (or it ought to be), but the sun's out in the A.M. and the chill is a nice wake up.
On the way home, it's dark, I'm a little more tired, and drivers seem to be a bit more antsy than in the morning.

Right now it's suckin' a bit more both ways because Will Smith has his Hollywood s**t all up in my bike path by the Bklyn Bridge.

I voted different every day, but if I had to choose one, I enjoy the morning commute better.

There's something about being on the road at 4:30 AM or 5:00 AM with a fresh snow, being lit up like a Christmas tree and dressed like an astronaut in training that I really enjoy. I don't pretend to understand it.

I love my ride in,

by MUP its 19 miles , by major 4 lane road 13.5 miles.

Riding into work I dont have too much climbing one hill if I take the MUP , rolling hills if I take the road with a monster big hill at the end of the commute to scream down. also less traffic In the AM , precarious traffic in the afternoon. home is 360' higher elevation than work.

my trip home even in good weather is much slower. if I take the MUP I have a 1.5 mile climb (pretty steep) to get on the mup and when I get off the MUP I have a 4 mile climb at the end of the commute (fun in the morning going down)

If I take the road I have a 1.5 mile very steep climb right off the bat out of office and then its small incremental climbs untill I get home and always a headwind in the afternoon as Im heading west.

the ride home takes 20-30 mins longer than my commute into work due to elevation and wind.

"John"

Home. Reasons:

1. The ride in is on the way to work. Who in their right mind wants to go to work? I like my job but still...it's work!

2. The wind blows like the furies of hell from the west here. Work is to the west. 'Nuff said.

3. Real mountains are only 3 miles away from my work. Real mountains around here generally shoot up into the sky from the plains. Unfortunately, they don't shoot up fast enough. It's up hill to work - 10 miles and 587 feet of climbing...about 150 feet of that in the last 2 miles

4. Home is 587 feet lower than work...Wheeeeeeeee! And the wind is at my back....WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

I think I like the ride home better. My ride is like a big W so it is truly uphill both ways with a bonus hill in the middle. The difference is that to work is a blazing first mile and slogging uphill for most of the rest.

On the way home I reel back in all of that gradual uphill, so it's blazing fast for a longer distance with a really steep climb up the mountian on the last mile home. Plus on the way home, lots of cars are trapped in the gridlock. It's fun to laugh as you roll buy the steaming cagers, trapped in their own swill.

The ride in: Dark, cold & uphill.

The ride home: Light, not so cold & 4 miles worth of downhill excitement!

Both equally. The ride in is cooler and feels great to be out and living first thing in the morning. Good descent on the way in. The ride home...well I'm headed home to the family...plus I get a chance to crush the climb on the way home.

It's out there, waiting for me now....shhhhh....you can hear it.....it's waiting....

I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who can hear my commute calling me throughout the day. I also can hear my bikes beckoning me from the garage as I lay in bed at 4:00AM debating how long I can sleep in and still make it to work on time.

Even now as I sit here and type this, I can hear my bike tempting me behind my shoulder (it's parked five feet from my chair):

[whispering] "come on, get changed and let's ditch this place...let's go! what are you doing sitting here and wasting away..."

I've obviously got problems.

i said the ride home, but after reading all the posts here, i gotta say they're equally good.
i am usually not completely awake for my morning ride, and i get to work all sweaty... (no shower ) at least in the afternoon i am on my way home and don't have to sit at a computer unless i want to...

Boy! You picked the wrong place to work...and live

That's just crazy.

Both, In the afternoon I can see better than at midnight. But then again I have the roads to my self at midnight. So They are both fun in they own ways.

Ride home. It's mostly downhill, and I'm going home. Although I love summer/fall mornings in cool air, dodging sprinklers when the air is clear and crisp and the sun's just coming over the horizon.

I miss summer...

Different every day.

The ride home in winter, the ride in all other seasons. So both.

Winter mornings are into prevailing winds, my hips get sore, and its depressing dark.
Winter evenings often have a tailwind, I have more energy, and its evening dark.
"Summer" mornings are on a faster bike, rif-raf is still in bed, and the sunrise, mist on the river, and morning air are intoxicating.
"Summer" evenings are hot, muggy, the rif-raf is about and bored, and I usually have to mow the lawn.

I'm torn.

The terrain is the same both ways... 1/3 up, 1/3 flat, 1/3 down

I'd have to go with the morning. My legs are fresher, traffic is much lighter no matter what time I leave, and the air seems fresher. The earlier I get out the door the more I enjoy it. Unfortunately, I'm not a morning person so this is difficult.

In the evening (especially if I can't get out before 5:30) traffic is really bad - meaning I have to worry more about the stopped cars and whether I can get past them.

The ride in is generally more enjoyable... 800 feet elevation drop from home to work, and going home is against the wind and 800 ft elevation gain. Half of that gain is in the last 2 miles.

The best part of the downhill ride into work is if I'm running late it's easy to push hard.

Hell, I probably live near where cyccommute works, and work near where he lives! Sure is good exercise, though.

Depends on my mood, the weather, and the wind.

My morning ride is all downhill, with very little traffic (I ride before the rush hour since I start early) and in the dark (I love night riding). My afternoon ride is all uphill with more traffic (although still not rush hour, heh heh) and I'm pretty tired on the way back. So I guess I prefer the morning ride most of the time. But they're pretty hard to compare and I do like them both.

Don't let those morons ruin it for you, bikedaddy! Just get determined not to get upset about it. Those suckers shouldn't have that kind of power over you, so don't give it to them. Laugh at the idiots: it sucks to be them.

Ride in-downhill early in the morning. Minimum work, in the dark, no cars.

Ride home - uphill in the afternoon. Maximum work, starting to get dark, lost of cars.

But hey, I'm RIDING!

On the ride in, I have to leave the comfort of my warm house, outdoors, where it's usually 35-45 degrees and often raining. On the ride home, I relish this encounter with the elements but on the ride in, my body just not quite prepared for the cold, at least not until about two miles into my ride.

I’ll second the drivers are less ******bags in the AM which is why I generally like time of commute the best. On the way home I could take a nice MUP to avoid the cars but it is 5-10 miles out of my way (depends on where I am at in the city.)

My feelings exactly. Plus on the way in you actually see people. As for the Will Smith movie they're filming on the Bklyn Bridge — yeah, thanks, Will. Like I don't know what a mass evacuation from Manhattan looks like already.

The ride in is usually better; it's dark out (I would rather ride in the dark), usually a tailwind or no wind, less traffic, downhill. On the way back it's the opposite of each of those. However, there are sometimes some redeeming features of the ride home, so I had to vote "different daily". Also I have learned to not let the riding conditions get me down (back when I did, I didn't ride much in the winter) so I just listen to my radio and spin until I'm home, regardless of wind gusts, icy hills, close passes, etc.