Bicycling

Tomorrow is our Bike to Work Day. I got 12 people at my work to sign up. They all got t-shirts and after filling out an online survey are entered into a drawing to win lots of fabulous stuff....gifts certificates at various restaurants, railroad trip, glacier cruise, shirts, jackets, helmets, bicycle tune-up, etc. There are about 50 prizes and 1,500 bikers.

I've been biking to make sure I was in shape enough to do it. No worries. I've already biked to and from work twice this week, am doing it today and will be able to do it tomorrow. My husband can do the 4.8 miles in 20 minutes. It takes me about 30.

When I start out each morning my legs protest for about 1 block. Then I hit a steady incline on a sidewalk along four lanes of traffic. This is the part I hate. ka-thunk, ka-thunk over each sidewalk partition, my heart and lungs protest loudly, sucking air, and each car that whizzes by kicks up dust and by the time I finish that stretch I feel dirty with dirt/ash in my face and hair.

Then I join a bike trail, still next to the highway but a little separated. It's a gentle decline and it's easy peddleing for a minute or two. Then it's bike trail, tunnel under the highway, bike lane, sidewalk, alley, warehouse district, back roads and eventually bike trail again.

It's a pleasant ride for most of the way except for that one stretch. Coming home it's just as bad even though then it's a slight decline. The wind/breeze seems to come from the south every evening so instead of an easy downhill ride I feel like I'm fighting my way into the wind and each car now blows the dirt directly into my face.

There is another way that would put me completely on a bike path through the woods but it would add another 15-20 minutes to my trip and I don't like being in the woods when I'm by myself. We have had problems in our city with woman being accosted on bike trails because there are so many spots where bad people can be hidden until it's too late and there's not that many people on the trail. After work it's full of people with bikes, kids, dogs, skateboards, roller skates, training wheels, etc.

Got to go. My bike (and work) is calling my name!