Posts Tagged ‘advocacy’

Let me be clear. I find commuting via bike superior for a multitude of reasons. There’s health, economics, environmental, political, …etc. That said, I still drive my car regularly.

I have a couple different routes to work. The shortest is about 16 miles each way. I will only do this route on my mountain bike since it involves a little off-road action. On my road bike, the shortest ’safe’ route is ~20 miles each way.

So…why do I live so far from work? Simple, when I bought my house 9 years ago, it was not a concern. Since that time, my priorities have changed.

Most days, I don’t mind having such a long commute. It gives me plenty of time to get the heart rate up and the blood moving. Besides, it is almost a matter of pride when people say “you commute how far!?!?”.

The downside is that riding is not always practical.

Here’s a good example. The other day, my wife (Cortney) needed to take the baby (Clara) to the doctor for shots. Since she knew she would have her hands full with the baby, so she wanted me to watch Ella (our 4 yo) while she went. The appointment was at 10am on a Wednesday. If I were to ride my bike to work, I would not be able to make it to work until noon at the earliest. Not exactly ideal.

Sometimes, the weather *keeps* me from riding. I can handle cold. I can handle rain. I can handle wind. Put them all together for 40 miles…not so much. Fortunately, living in Texas, I don’t have to worry about weather too much. Wind is regular, rain is occasional, and cold is unusual.

I guess you could call me a ‘casual’ commuter. Nothing wrong with that in my opinion.

Here’s my typical schedule:
Monday: Normal commute via road bike. (~40 miles total)
Tuesday: Normal commute via mountain bike. I usually hit up some local trails on the way home. (~50-60 miles total)
Wednesday: Car day. I take in a fresh set of clothes for the next week and bring home the dirties. I also stop at the grocery store on the way in and get some food to keep at work. Additionally, Wednesday night is my wife’s ‘night out’. I try to be home as early as possible so that she can get some relax time.
Thursday: Normal commute via mountain bike. I usually hit up some local trails on the way home. (~50-60 miles total)
Friday: Normal commute via road bike. (~40 miles total)

Rinse, Lather, Repeat.

This schedule amounts to 180-200 miles/week. That is some good exercise. Additionally, that is about 120 miles that I do not spend in my car. (Note: 120 != 180-200 because of additional miles for mountain biking & safe routes.)

This is what I plan, but rarely does it actually happen. This week is a prime example. The weather was crappy on Tuesday. Wednesday, I had a late meeting a work so Cortney couldn’t have her free night. We traded and I rode to/from work on Wednesday instead of Tuesday. I really try to make sure I ride at least 3 days a week.

Why do I bring this up? Just to point out that you don’t have to fully commit for it to make a difference in your life. Start out simple.

Here’s how you do it.
1. Start off by driving your proposed route(s). Figure out what is the safest way to get to/from your work place.
2. On a Saturday/Sunday/non-workday, get on your bike and ride your route.
3. At the beginning of the week, check the weather and pick a day for your inaugural ride.
4. The day before your ride, take a set of clothes to work along with any toiletries that you will need.
5. Ride to work.
6. Pat yourself on the back.

If all goes well, try to increase your frequency.

Two years ago, I was the only person in my office that ever commuted. In the past year, I’ve helped 4 other people (in a 30 person office) make their first commute. 3 of them still do it on a regular basis.

If you continue to ride, you will soon find your mid-section smaller and your wallet thicker (well…unless you really get into it and start getting fancy bike stuff…) all while reducing pollution and dependency on foreign oil. Even if you don’t go for all that hippie environmental stuff, riding home after a hard day at work is a great stress reliever.

I am a big believer in using what you already have until it is completely worn out. I have to try to fix everything two or three times before it either wears out completely or all hope is lost. This is the case with my current bike commuter.

I ride a 1997 Schwinn Homegrown mountain bike to work. The frame is in fairly good shape as far as I can tell although there is a lot of paint missing. Most of the components are the same. It’s probably easier to tell you what I’ve changed and why:

After two rear derailleurs, I converted to a single speed – the Performance-offered conversion kit – because I wanted to keep using my current hub (see Product Reviews White Industries Hubs). This seems to work well and I don’t miss the sound of grinding gears. I replaced the right break lever due to the pivot bearing failing. After two suspension forks, I went rigid with a Surly mountain fork. The seat did not fail but became very uncomfortable so I replaced it with a Specialized mountain seat. The White Industries crank arms failed last year due to striping at the interface of the arm and the hub spindle. Also replaced the bottom bracket as I decided to go with a splined system. The Shimano bottom bracket still seems fine and I kept it in case I need it for another bike. The rear wheel was rebuilt from a Mavic 220 (I think) to a Sun Rims Rhino Lite. Cables and housing have been replaced a couple of times. Numerous chains, of course. I will soon need to replace the seat post as the clamp which holds the seat began slipping this year and I have twice placed aluminum shims in to allow it to clamp harder. The seat post has also been bent slightly after years of use (and some abuse). The tires have changed from the VelociRaptors that were on there (which I hated) and I now ride a Hutchinson Python on the front (Love It!) and a Sweetskinz semi-slick on the back. I must ride treaded tires in Memphis due to the large quantities of sharp objects lining the roads.

Send me a description or photo of your primary means of transportation (as long as it’s not an undesirable vehicle) and I’ll publish you here (mason@biketofeel.com).

INTRODUCTION:

Ever have those days where you wake up and you just don’t feel like doing anything hard? I do. I had it this morning. I stood in my closet for a solid 5 minutes with my bike shorts in my hand thinking “I really don’t feel like doing this today”. It would be so much easier to just drive. I could be to work in 25 minutes instead of my usual 1+ hour ride.

In the end, I put on my bike gear and threw my leg over the bike. The funny thing is that I very rarely regret riding, but every time I drive I wish I hadn’t. I’ll see somebody else cruising along the road on their bike and I think to myself “That should have been me”.

Why then so I still struggle in the morning?

I do not know the answer to that question. Maybe I’ll figure it out as a write more about my cycling experiences. I’ve never had a blog or even a diary before. Hopefully I’ll learn something about myself while providing some information and hopefully some entertainment to others. Who knows? Maybe blogging will be like commuting. It seems like a lot of work and relatively unrewarding when looking at a small slice of time, but cumulatively, it could have a net benefit. Who knows.

I guess I should take some time to introduce myself. My name is Eric Swartzendruber and I am a husband, a father, a Christian, an engineer, and cycling enthusiast. For the past (almost) 10 years, I have lived in Round Rock, TX and worked in Austin, TX.

Since these meanderings are meant to be primarily cycling focused, I will indeed write mostly about my cycling experiences. While I love all things bike related, it is not the only thing (or even the most important thing) in my life. I am sure plenty of non-bike related material will permeate my musings.

In case you didn’t notice above, my primary occupation is an engineer. In case you don’t know many engineers…we are not exactly known for our superb communication skills. Please accept my apologies in advance. Since my last foray into any sort of creative writing came 15 years ago while a student of Joel Robbins (Mason’s Dad) in AP English, I feel like a can accurately say that my meager skills are substantially rusty.

Feel free to comment at eswartzendruber_AT_gmail.com. If you are going to grade my grammar and semantics, don’t bother (unless your Mr. Robbins, in which case I’ll read your input and then probably ignore it since I’m not getting graded).

If you haven’t alread heard by now, see:

“>Bailout Helps Bike Commuters

The economic stimulus package includes a provisions for companies to give bike commuters $20 per month for commuting related expense. This $20 is tax deductable for companies.