because 3.2mi is a waste of gas. and i can take gorgeous trails/access roads on the way home, making a 10mi return trip, to decompress from work.

i get to ride the bikes i built and love just that much more.

watching my friends get larger and larger from inactivity, with the associated health problems, scared the crap out of me. so biking is just one more way to stay fit. i'm in much better shape at 42 than i was a 30.

You know, that actually is not a bad idea. Now I don't know about an Ultegra upgrade, but any drive train upgrade would be miles ahead of what I have now. Solves a few problems right there. Besides, I do other things One Day At A Time, so why not smoking. Thanks.

BTW, if SkippyX can over come his obstacles, then maybe I can too. What an inspiration.

Every cloud has a silver lining

I started commuting Bike/train. I,too got rid of my car. Now we are just a 1 car houshold as well.

Believe me, you're being more green

The energy to Explor for Oil, Drill for Oil, Refine Oil, Distribute Gas, Store Gas, Pump Gas then manage all of the supply chain and facilities in between surely discounts the numbers in this rather biased analysis. Not to mention a car, while more "Caloric" effecient at burning gas then humans burn caloric food takes a lot more energy to maintain, store & manage.

I also ride my bike to a local farmers market where i buy ogranic foods.. so no (oil baseD) pesticides, no cross country/world shipping

I've forgotten the reason why I started. The biggest reason now is probably the gas money; it's enough to keep going.

I really like it, that's reasons 1-9, and number 10 is that it helps keep us a 1 car family; gas $$ isn't really much of a blip on the total price of owning a car (paying for the damn thing, insuring it, maintaining it...) (I know you can do cars pretty cheap too, in dollars at least, I just don't want to)

Just doing this weeks budget. The Mrs. had to gas her car for which I also had to buy oil and filter. Total of about 75 bucks.

I bought a new floor pump at Wally World ( a Zeffal which actually is quite nice for mostly plastic ) for 20 bucks and haven't put diesel in my truck in weeks.

Nuff said.

I'm 56, I look....40? Some have said 35. My blood work is the sort of thing my doctor says he wishes his 35 year old patients could match. I get compliments from the ladies on my legs, My stress levels....what stress levels? Run up stairs? Pfft! I get flirting from teenagers!! ( that one blows me away, not sure if they're teasing the old dog ) When I spend money on my transport, I'm also spending money on my hobby!

What's not to like?

I started commuting by bike 42 years ago at age 15 to my first job and have done so ever since.

Reasons for starting:

No license

No car.

Broke.

Hated bumming rides and being dependent.

As a teenager I was a counter-culture, anti-authority, eco freak, long haired, hippie who loved drafting the school buses to high school and showing up virtually everywhere on a bike.

I love the feeling, the exhiliration, the rush of riding a bike.

Reasons for still commuting after 42 years-

I got really fast and fit on the bike and there's a certain kind of pride and vanity involved that I can't seem to jettison.

I HATE SITTING IN TRAFFIC IN A CAR. It feels like the biggest waste of time, resources and money ever.

I'm cheap and it saves me tons of money.

For about an hour and a half of each working day I feel like I am on vacation.

I love the feeling, the exhiliration, the rush of riding a bike.

I commute by bike because I am miserable if I don't My job varies in its location, and there are times I have to be 80+km away on short notice so I have to have a car, but when I can have a stable assignment in one location that is within reach of my bicycle, I ride.

it's bike vs. subway. the car never factors in.

+1

That's how long my commute is, and on the rare occasions I drive I feel absolutely ridiculous.

Because I enjoy riding, I go through a nice park and residential area of town on my way, and because I feel good when I get to work. I feel more connected with nature and the outdoors. And also, because, after 15 years of daily driving, I have come to hate the drive.

The cost savings and health benefits are not a consideration for me. I need to keep the car, so the cost savings are insignificant. I have not lost weight since commuting, my blood pressure has not gone down, and my cholesterol has not changed. My commute is 10 miles each way.

When I started commuting about four months ago, it wasn't meant to be a complete lifestyle change. It was meant to save money on gas and parking and incorporate some exercise into the daily routine (I was getting a bit pudgy). Well I will eventually save money (I've wound up spending a good bit on the bike and gear), and I'm in much better shape (25 pounds shed over a few months). I didn't expect that I would love traveling to and from work as much as I do (prior I was at best indifferent, at worst frustrated by traffic). I've wound up completely altering my wardrobe and appearance... some changes related directly to cycling and others unrelated, but it really has been a tremendous lifestyle change. And I expect it will continue for a very long time.

For health reasons and for savings. When we moved to Juneau and were shopping for a house, I didn't want a place too close to work, I wanted a decent bike ride between home and work. The 6.9 mile distance seems to offer a good balance in time in commute and getting a decent workout. I don't worry much about not getting exercise because it's baked into my daily routine.

On the saving money side. I find that the savings in terms of gas is actually fairly minimal. When I was riding my mountain bike, I was surprised how small the savings was in terms of gas. 2400 miles per year, divide by 20 miles per gallon = 120 gallons saved times $4 something per gallon, say $500 per year. OTOH, I was spending a fair amount on maintenence on my bike, about $200 a year. So what a net saving of $300 per year...

EXCEPT

I don't own a second car. If I were commuting by car, I'd own another car. We have one car, my wife drives that. I rarely if every have the option of driving a car to work. So if you figure not owning a (second) car for 20 plus years the savings easily rise into the tens of thousands.

Before: I was going from a big climate-controlled box (house) to a small shiny climate-controlled box (car) to a big gray climate-controlled box (work) and back every day, getting fat and high-blood-pressury and burning a poisonous product produced by companies who actively used their profits to work against my better interests. I was out of shape and had no connection to nature.

After: I look forward to 6 miles each way of whatever mother nature can throw at me. I like my commute now, both the connection to nature and the physical challenge and experience of it. I have zero road rage. I have lost 35 pounds and been high-fived at the doctor's office. This is the best shape I've been in since the 90's. I have moved my belt loop 2 notches smaller, close to a 3rd now (at some point may need new clothes, will be a nice problem to have). I haven't saved a lot of money, but at least I'm now supporting producers of useful biking stuff rather than oil companies.

It took some adjustment, some reorganization of my routines, some purchasing of useful accessories like panniers, lights, and such. But I am in the groove now and loving the bicycle commuting and all the benefits. I wish I would have tried it sooner.

I commute in two ways with the bicycle. My commute is 14 miles each way in the Appalachian mountains so I do it about twice a week when I can, sometimes once, and somtimes none .
But I keep a Walmart Schwinn Avenue locked to the a bike rack at work because we have about 6 other offices in town I routinely visit. So even when I have to bring my car (due to bike tires cut up, broken spokes, etc..until its gets repairs or other reasons) if I need to go out locally I just use the Schwinn. I leave it 24/7 here on a bike rack. It's a 24 hour service and we have our own security team. If something happens to it, I got an old Walmart 7 speed Avalon I'll put over there and lock up.

This is my main reason. I only live 3 miles from my job, but commuting by MBTA can take 45-50 minutes. Plus you locals know there's always a chance of a train dying in the tunnel, delaying everyone by 20+ additional minutes.

The commute by bike is approximately 18 minutes... 15 when it's cloudy and the sun isn't sucking my will to live.

Your post made me chuckle.
Even though we're the same age, I cannot attest to the same reactions from women and teenagers, but like you, my doctor is happy.

When I was a kid, we had the typical one car family. I was expected to find my own way to any activities. "Soccer moms" (or in my case, "baseball moms")were not invented yet.We learned how to fix and maintain bikes at a very young age. Except for a short and misguided hiatus when I first got my drivers license, I have biked to work and stores all my life. Kudos to the green people out there; but it's not my thing.... I like to eat, and want to stay healthy. Also great stress relief.

I couldn't agree more that sitting in a stopped, idling car seems like a monumental waste of time and money!

True. My bike route is parallel to the freeway, with a slough between the two. The slough is a protected area, so I get to see a lot of birds there. Since I'm new here, all the birds are new to me, and therefore quite interesting. If I'm on the freeway driving home from work I'm invariably in traffic, and I can see the trail so its more irritating to be stuck behind a car than usual.

I commute to stop middle age spread and to purchase one less gallon of fuel from people flying occupied aircraft into occupied buildings. I guess I bike out of vanity and contempt.

Let me pose another question to you. Out of curiosity, how do your co-workers react to you pulling into work everyday on your bike? My boss understands and commutes by bike from time to time, as do others. The ones that only drive crack jokes about it from time to time, but they mean well and it is all in good fun.

I am just curious what your experiences have been.

My coworkers have been really good about it. They can't imagine actually doing a 20 mile commute on a bike, so they're actually a bit impressed (and concerned for my mental health).

The only "bad" reaction was when I first started riding to work I wore a rolled-up bandanna as a sweat band. It was 1980 all over again. Of course, I had to listen to Rambo jokes.......

I commute because I get exercise, and it feels great riding. I also live 2 train stations away from work, so I hate to give the MTA my money for 2 stops. I have saved so much money by biking.