Pre-Bike To Work Day

Bike To Work Day is this coming Friday, May 20th. I've helped do maintenance classes, and done graphic design work for the Coast Guard's involvement in Bike To Work Day in the past, but never actually participated myself. Not having a bike definitely made it hard to ride to work. Well this year is much much different. I added 2 new bikes to my personal fleet this past winter and am now contemplating adding another dedicated commuter bike as well [but more on that another time.] 

On Sunday in preparation for Bike To Work Day, I decided I had better figure out the route to get me all the way into my building. I've ridden past the bridges that cross over into DC before, but never actually taken them in. I knew my route wouldn't be incredibly long either, so I headed off on my ride, and without much issue made it in just fine. There was one or two funky turns, but now that I know which street crossings to take, I'm all set for this Friday, and will officially be commuting into work via pedal power [well almost.]

See the issue is that there is no good or real safe way for me to get to the trails from my house, so I have to drive a short distance, park, unload the bike, then start riding. It may not be 100% commuting, but it's a real solid start. I have to drive about 7 or 8 miles to the parking lot, then ride 17 miles into the city. I'll be riding my real nice road bike on Friday, but I don't want to do that for very long since the abuse of commuting daily will certainly start to add up quick, also it doesn't have any fenders or racks on it to help keep the road spray off in inclement weather, or carry additional items like work clothes or my lunch.  Because of that, I'll have to plan ahead a little bit and leave some stuff here at the office on Thursday so I don't have to carry it all on Friday, but that's where getting a dedicated commuter will help out. 

Below is my ride from Sunday, and the route from the parking lot to my building. I'll be saving roughly 40 miles a day of driving, and adding about 34 miles riding. My goal is to be able to do this long enough that the bike will eventually pay for itself over time [late fall and winter commuting should be fun], but it will no doubt also help me get in really good shape for another potential 100 mile race in the fall. I'm up for the challenge though, and will be sure to update everyone on how the actual bike to work day goes on Friday.