Not So Bike Commute Day

No ride in today because it was storming up a storm. As soon as the alarm went off my wife told me that I wasn't riding in.


I was disappointed because this was promising to be my first 5 day bike week.

I thought it might be interesting to treat my car commute the same way I treat my bike ones and see how they compare.

My other ride is a bike

IN -
I got out late so I pulled away from the house at 4:25. I got to work and in the door at 4:50, so a 25 minute commute instead of a 32 - 37 minute one. That's not that big an advantage. I did take a different route, so I don't know if that makes a difference. I'll have to try this again with the same route as I bike. I will drive home my bike route though and see how that goes.

I didn't see or hear any critters, as suspected.

I listened to the news a bit and weather. Since it's a strong radio broadcast it wasn't very specific to my situation. I had the wipers on steadily for most of the way, and only switched to intermittent for a short while.

I also listened to "Black Dog" by Led Zeppelin and "We Are Sex Bob-omb."

HOME -
Sleepy, so very sleepy. That is a drastic difference between car commuting and bike commuting. I hadn't noticed how much less sleepy I am from riding until today when I nearly nodded off twice on the way home. I guess the ride really does make me less sleepy, even if I get only four hours of sleep I never nod off on my bike.

I did see a pair of ducks in a puddle in a field. I always like seeing them since they remind me of a longstanding, happy marriage. I'm pretty sure ducks mate for life, and it's very easy to see which one is the male and which one the female. There is a Korean tradition of giving a pair of duck figurines to a newly married couple for luck. Our pair is in our china cabinet near our "plate."

It was so windy that it pushed the minivan around a bit. I am glad I didn't ride today, though disappointed that I couldn't.

The drive home was about 24 minutes, so driving alone was twice as fast as riding, but I had parked where I usually do, at the back of the furthest parking lot, so I can stretch my legs and get in the most steps for my 10K-A-Day pedometer. I didn't check my watch to see when I left the building to walk to the car. I think it is between 2 and 7 minutes, so the whole commute home could have been 26 - 31 minutes. I have riding in to work in 32 minutes so that is very close to being a wash, but then you have to add in the time it takes me to change clothes.

In the end it really isn't that much extra time to ride, and well worth it to get in the daily 75 - 90 minutes of free exercise time. Though sometimes I don't see much more on the ride than the drive the alertness of riding makes those trips more memorable and pleasant.