Bummed: Rode my bike to work

CarterGrt

My company relocated very close to my house (~7 miles away). I had my old bike tuned up and was very excited about starting to bike. I finally did it. According to my HRM, I burned a ton of calories. Getting to work was fine, but coming home was a near death experience.

I am bummed that I really don't think it is safe to ride my bike home. There are long stretches with no bike trails, driving in rush-hour traffic seems very risky, and I end up having to wait a lot for traffice to die down to cross streets etc.

I was really looking forward to this as a way to combine my commute and exercize, but I am not sure it will work out. I still might explore a bit to see if there is a better route, but 14 miles round trip is pushing it and any other route would add distance.

Any suggestions from other bike commuters before I hang up my helmet after one day?

--Carter

happy_heather121

Hi there,

I live over 20 miles from my work and that's if i take the highway the whole way so I have never considered biking there. I do love to bike though so I took my bike there when the weather was nice (it's snowing now) and rode bike trails near my work right after work so i could fit in my exercise before I even got home for the day. Also, I liked to ride to the store a lot. I just brought a big backpack and I bought things in smaller quantities. If you're making a small run it works out well but if you need a cart full then I would say no. Riding the gym and bank is also something I've done. I live 12 miles from my gym but I can take side roads and sidewalks the whole way there so that's more doable than work.

That's all i've got for you!

Hibpshman1

Things I would try before hanging it up:

1. See if you can commute a little earlier or a little later to miss the rush hour traffic.
2. Try a parallel route that is about the same distance but has less busy streets.
3. A longer route at a steady pace will get you home much quicker and be a better workout too.

Good luck.
AL.

binary_jester

Try google maps? I believe they have an option for bike routes.

UpToAnyCool

I would also see if there is any alternate route that is more bike-friendly, but whatever you do, be sure to get one of the blinking lights for the back of your bike...

visibility is key!

Good luck!