I've recently bid "to heck with it" on my regular cycling route because despite it is shorter mileage and time wise, the route is boring and I share parts of it with fast moving vehicles.

Therefore lately, I've started to try a more scenic route that takes me along a river and parks. It is a bit slower and longer. But it's also more pleasant. I don't arrive all flustered.

Just wondering how many of you folks take the indirect route for commute?

at 15 miles each way, my most direct commute is just about as long as i would want it to be anyway. the fact that ~9 miles of it just happens to run along the beautiful chicago shoreline of lake michigan vs. fighting cars, cabs, buses, jaywalkers, stop lights, etc. on overcrowded city streets means that there really just isn't any longer, roundabout route that would make much sense.

I've got a longer route that adds about 3 miles, but necause it has fewer traffic devices only takes a few minutes longer. I usually only go that way when the weather is nice because it's got an S-turn with no shoulder and although it's on a low-traffic rural rode, the people who do drive there make me nervous.

My most direct route is 3.75 miles. My favorite route is 24. But it obviously requires me to leave at least an hour earlier.

My shortest round trip is 21km, but I only use this if I'm late or the weather is horrible. Otherwise I take the 27 km scenic route around the park. I'll often make it 31 by adding a steep hill and zoomy descent at the start.

I add ~2miles to an 8 mile ride in order to take the bike path along the Trinity River, rather than streeting it the whole way. I do take the shorter path if I run late or have a flat before I turn out to the longer route.

If I take the route that google maps tells me to take, it would be about 16.5 miles. The problem is that there's a lot of stop lights (over 35) and traffic would probably be nasty. I've never actually biked the route, so I don't know for sure, but it's pretty nasty driving it in a car. The route that I do take has a lot less stop lights, is more scenic, and the traffic isn't bad. It's 19.1 miles long.

Depends on if I'm listening to Phish or not.

I don't deliberately take a longer route because I don't generally want to be away from home any longer than I have to. But I do have a number of ways to vary my route to make it more urban or scenic, and the distance and travel time is very similar no matter which variation I choose. Access to the most scenic (and my favourite) variation is, unfortunately, blocked by construction (closed bridge).

My most direct route is 13km of mostly residential streets. My most frequent route to work is 26 km of traffic calmed residential streets, parks, unlit fire roads and deserted industrial routes. 13 km 2x per day is not enough exercise... It's weird because I love the fire road in the dark for it's isolation and the industrial route for it's speed and efficiency.

I happen to live right on a scenic reservoir, and lately my ~ 4 1/2 mile commute isn't cutting it, so I've taken to adding an extra lap or two around the reservoir on my way home (at about 2 miles/lap). It's the most pleasant part of my commute, so why not drag it out longer?

I used to more than double my route a couple times a week, but lately (last few years) I don't find time for consistent extension other than a .3 mile scenic detour on my way in...

With the weather as nice as it's been lately, I can't resist. Normal route is 9.75 miles one way. I've gone as far as 37 miles, which was yesterday morning. Then 15 miles to get home from work, made it my biggest mileage day.

Could happen. Sometimes the ride would be so enjoyable, I almost forgot to go to work.

My ride's around 13 miles one way..long enough for me five days in a row.

My shortest most direct route is 25 KM round trip, but on most days I extend it to 38 KM. I usually take a longer route on my way from work. I can tell you that 25 KM can be very challenging in winter time when there is a big dump of snow.

17 miles each way, but for about an extra 4 miles on the ride home I can stop by a bar that has $1.50 PBR pints all the time. Once in a while I take the long way home.

Yeah, I know... I know... my mileage is "wimpy"... a mere 2.8 miles (one way) for the short, traffic-heavy way. Or 3.5 for the calm, riding-through-serene-neighborhoods-with-aromatic-juniper-firewood-smoke-escaping-from-within-the-chimneys-of-pastoral-households-and-little-traffic way.

I'll choose the leisurely ramble anytime.

Lately, I've been going directly home. I don't like mornings, so I get up with enough time to make it to work at a reasonable hour ... it's only on the way home that I have leeway. We've been having a great Indian Summer lately, and my patio faces west, so I like getting home in time to watch the sun set. Not that I'll have a choice tonight.

Also, while I don't want to admit it, most of the time I just want to get home from work, so I take a quick, direct route. It seems like the only time I've done otherwise in the past few weeks, has been when I'm on my way somewhere in particular. But I do a lot of recreational riding, and prefer being on my road bike vs my commuter.

I've got a 9 miler. There aren't a lot of different ways to get to work from where I come from. I do however tack on an extra 10 mile loop beyond work just to ride in the mornings. It's almost always in the dark, and there are few people around. It's good clean fun.

The best part is, it's still a quick 9 miles back home afterwards and I get home in a reasonable amount of time.

I would definitely ride out of my way for 1.50 PBR...

The longer, more pleasant path is your best option. Less stress.

When I stop off for the PBR, one neighborhood I have to come through on the way home is a largely hispanic working class area. The other day I could smell all kinds of good stuff cooking- carnitas, pescado (fish), and other stuff I had no idea what it was but boy did it smell good!

Shortest way to work 9.7 miles. Charge as fast as possible, or do intervals on the long stretches, or do a moderate 70% pace if its toward the end of the week.

Take a different way home that adds a few little hills I can grind up. Nothing big but its nice to add to the ride. 12.2 miles.

Sometimes I'll head past the house and go the LBS as an excuse to add another 10 miles, buy a gel or two, look at the overpriced stuff I'll never buy from them and then head home.

I ride a route that is over 9 miles instead of the shortest route which is under 5 miles. It's faster, and much nicer. Not as many stop signs.

The short route, which takes me through city streets, is 22.2 miles each way. The longer route is mostly on a MUP and is 25 miles each way. Lately for variety I have been taking the shorter route in to work and the longer route home.