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-   -   Well damn, commuting for me has finally come to an end. (https://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/545208-well-damn-commuting-me-has-finally-come-end.html)

DavidLee 05-25-09 05:21 PM

Well damn, commuting for me has finally come to an end.
 
This past March the company I worked for the past 16 years decided to close the location I worked at & move work out of state. I've finally found a new job, start next week :thumb: but commuting by bike is not an option. :( I actually looked for a new job that would allow me to keep commuting by bike but it just wasn't in the cards for me.

It's been a fun 3 years & I will salute you fine men & women that I see with your backpacks, panniers & milk crates. You are a fortunate lot of people. :commute:

The good news is that my hours are better & all weekends are off so I can get more time on the bike overall. :D Now I gotta change my avatar & title!

uke 05-25-09 06:10 PM

You do what you gotta do. If your routes are safe, you can still reduce car usage via trips to the post office, groceries, and other errands.

JoeyBike 05-25-09 06:26 PM


Originally Posted by DavidLee (Post 8981914)
Now I gotta change my avatar & title!

You should wait until you establish a new bicycle identity at least. Good on your new job! I just hope you don't become an expatriate in the ROADIE forum!:eek:

urban_assault 05-25-09 06:40 PM

Once a bike commuter, you are always a bike commuter. Even while driving you will think about things
you would usually only think about on a bike.

Congrats on the new job. No need to be a stranger here.

lil brown bat 05-25-09 07:48 PM

You'll be back. Best of luck in the new job, and come back and visit us sometime!

bragi 05-25-09 08:04 PM


Originally Posted by DavidLee (Post 8981914)
This past March the company I worked for the past 16 years decided to close the location I worked at & move work out of state. I've finally found a new job, start next week :thumb: but commuting by bike is not an option. :( I actually looked for a new job that would allow me to keep commuting by bike but it just wasn't in the cards for me.

It's been a fun 3 years & I will salute you fine men & women that I see with your backpacks, panniers & milk crates. You are a fortunate lot of people. :commute:

The good news is that my hours are better & all weekends are off so I can get more time on the bike overall. :D Now I gotta change my avatar & title!

Congrats on your new job; in this environment, that's a notable accomplishment. :)

I don't at all doubt your decision to give up bike commuting to your new job, but just out of curiosity: how far is your new commute?

chipcom 05-26-09 05:56 AM

Nothing is forever and never say never. Someday you'll either figure a way to bike all/part of the way to your new job...or you'll land another job where you can ride to/from again. ;)

DavidLee 05-26-09 07:01 AM

Thanks all, bragi it's 17 miles but the distance isn't a problem for me it's that I have to take the beltway & MD does not allow bikes on the beltway. Like I said, I'll have more of an opportunity to cycle with my better hours so it's a wash I guess.

chipcom, you are correct. I'll never say never but in today's economy I'm not looking for another job anytime soon. :p

JoeyBike, nah I only hit the roadie forum when such controversial topics like "which sock, ankle or 3/4 length?" are being debated. :lol:

tarwheel 05-26-09 07:13 AM

Congratulations and condolences. Perhaps you can do like some cycle commuters and just bike once or twice a week, taking a long route. My current commute is about 22 miles RT. If I had to take a job that was say 40-50 miles RT, there's no way I could continue commuting 3-4 days a week. But I would probably at least try to do it at least once a week.

baron von trail 05-26-09 09:29 AM

I would say about half of us have had to stop commuting for a brief period or a long stint here and there. It's funny though how we always manage to find our way back onto the commuter bike.

I have been on and off commuting for about a decade now, with a lot more on than off during the past 5 years. However, I am off right now due to a broken leg. I figure to get back on before summer's end.

Maybe you will find a way to either commute the whole way in your new job. Or you will find a way to half-commute. Or you will give it a rest for a while. No matter what, it is true that this stuff is in your blood now. You will always be looking to get your butt back on the bike.

JusticeZero 05-26-09 01:24 PM

Pop up the general route you need on a map, and i'm sure someone familiar with the area can come up with an alternative route. Alternately you should be able to sue the state and win, as my understanding of that particular bit of law holds.

alpacalypse 05-26-09 03:29 PM

Yeah, what JusticeZero says. The law generally requires that bikes be allowed on the freeway if a reasonable alternate route doesn't exist. If the alternate route is too long for you to commute on, I think that signifies that it's not reasonable.

dobber 05-27-09 04:41 AM


Originally Posted by alpacalypse (Post 8987259)
Yeah, what JusticeZero says. The law generally requires that bikes be allowed on the freeway if a reasonable alternate route doesn't exist. If the alternate route is too long for you to commute on, I think that signifies that it's not reasonable.

Good Lord.

chipcom 05-27-09 04:55 AM


Originally Posted by dobber (Post 8990398)
Good Lord.

Don't blame me...must have been a bad batch of molds.

rumrunn6 05-27-09 08:45 AM

How about a partial commute? Drive halfway?

DoB 05-27-09 04:52 PM


Originally Posted by alpacalypse (Post 8987259)
Yeah, what JusticeZero says. The law generally requires that bikes be allowed on the freeway if a reasonable alternate route doesn't exist. If the alternate route is too long for you to commute on, I think that signifies that it's not reasonable.

Bikes are not allowed on the freeway because it is suicide. What exactly is your strategy to cross the numerous entrance and exit ramps that have 70 mph traffic crossing the cyclists path from behind?

CB HI 05-27-09 06:09 PM


Originally Posted by DoB (Post 8994381)
Bikes are not allowed on the freeway because it is suicide. What exactly is your strategy to cross the numerous entrance and exit ramps that have 70 mph traffic crossing the cyclists path from behind?

And yet those bright cyclist out west have figured it out just fine. There must be something odd in the water in the eastern half of the country.:p

CB HI 05-27-09 06:18 PM


Originally Posted by DavidLee (Post 8984417)
Thanks all, bragi it's 17 miles but the distance isn't a problem for me it's that I have to take the beltway & MD does not allow bikes on the beltway.

Given a choice between driving on the beltway every day or cycling a few extra miles on surface streets; I would choose cycling every time.:thumb:

Pull the map out and avoid going crazy driving the beltway.:twitchy:

DoB 05-28-09 03:38 AM


Originally Posted by CB HI (Post 8994800)
And yet those bright cyclist out west have figured it out just fine. There must be something odd in the water in the eastern half of the country.:p

Cyclists ride on urban freeways (similar to the DC beltway) out west? What cities?

Most urban freeways have interchanges every mile or so, and the 4+ lanes of traffic mean there is a near continuous stream of full speed traffic on the ramps.

Zian 05-28-09 04:00 AM

I don't know about the general case but in Southern California, there are at least 2 places where bicycles ride on the side of the freeway:
1. Camp Pendleton
2. Sorrento Valley to Genessee (sp?) in San Diego

baron von trail 05-28-09 06:55 AM


Originally Posted by DoB (Post 8996870)
Cyclists ride on urban freeways (similar to the DC beltway) out west? What cities?

Most urban freeways have interchanges every mile or so, and the 4+ lanes of traffic mean there is a near continuous stream of full speed traffic on the ramps.

I doubt they ride the "urban" freeways. I can't quite pix a cyclist pedaling in the emergency lane on I-10 through downtown LA. However, I do know that when they do the ride across America, which launches out of the Huntington Beach area, they make their way to I-10 and ride the shoulder in order to get through the mtns and desert, taking it nearly all the way to Arizona.

Here in the MW, cyclists riding on a freeway is something not often seen. I do not know if it is legal here -- sort of doubt it.

chipcom 05-28-09 07:19 AM


Originally Posted by CB HI (Post 8994800)
And yet those bright cyclist out west have figured it out just fine. There must be something odd in the water in the eastern half of the country.:p

In all fairness...when riding on the interstates out west you are usually outside the larger cities where the traffic is lighter and the interchanges farther apart. Riding on an urban interstate anywhere in the country would be an adventure in adrenaline rushes. ;)

alpacalypse 05-28-09 11:41 AM

It's more common in the west where there are fewer surface roads, so you're more likely to really NEED to take the freeway. Outside of Santa Fe, where my girlfriend lives, all of the major interstates allow bikes.

No, it's not the most pleasant, but the shoulders are normally wide and the visibility is quite good, so it's actually not that bad.

baron von trail 05-28-09 12:05 PM

Around here Interstates are extremely loud 6-lane affairs. The main line, I-75, is a heavily traveled noise-machine clear down to Atlanta. I could not even begin to imagine pedaling my bike on it.

chipcom 05-28-09 12:14 PM


Originally Posted by alpacalypse (Post 8998958)
It's more common in the west where there are fewer surface roads, so you're more likely to really NEED to take the freeway. Outside of Santa Fe, where my girlfriend lives, all of the major interstates allow bikes.

No, it's not the most pleasant, but the shoulders are normally wide and the visibility is quite good, so it's actually not that bad.

I-25 is about the ONLY way to get from Raton to Trinidad or Cimarron or Springer without going way out of your way or overland. When using I-25 to get over to Trinidad, the traffic is much less of a PIA than climbing Raton Pass. ;)


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