Why Bike Commute?
Recently, I had the honor of manning our Bicyclincoln booth at the Lincoln Earth Day Celebration. It was great! First of all because it was Earth Day and who doesn’t love Earth Day?!? But, secondly, it was an opportunity to chat with our friends and neighbors about where they are within the realm of biking currently. Some folks said, “Well, I have a bike but it has a flat and I can’t find anyone to fix it”. Others replied, “My kids are totally into biking”, and left it at that. When I queried a bit further and asked if they had ever considered biking to work, there was some himming and hawing about, “I wouldn’t have the time to do my commute on a bike” or “My workplace doesn’t have shower facilities” or “What would my coworkers think?” I am here to put an end to all of that negativity. Biking to work is absolutely the best.
I am a member of Generation Jones; a very, very late Boomer but not quite GenX. We are known as such because our parents were always trying to “Keep up with the Jones’s”. Generation Jones was responsible for a few cool things: Punk Rock, New Wave and a few ground-breaking comedians like Steve Martin but, most importantly, David Letterman. The Late Show with David Letterman was must-see-tv for the quirky sense of humor we Jonesers had acquired from living through Nixon and Watergate and Disco and Iran-Contra and all of the other crap that filled our adolescent lives. From his Home Office in Wahoo, Nebraska (I kid you not), David Letterman delivered the truth in a bit he called his “Top Ten Lists”. Though I in no way intend to compare myself with the genius of Letterman and his writing staff, I will, however, offer a Lettermanesque Top 10 List of “Why You Should Be Commuting on Your Bike”.
Number 10: Let’s face it, you could stand to lose a few pounds. Am I right?
Number 9: Wait, what? I could actually see a Deer on my way to work?
Number 8: Last night’s Runza is sittin’ a little heavy on my beltline.
Number 7: “Om, Om, Om…” (peace and tranquility be with you)
Number 6: Road rage only comes into play with errant squirrels
Number 5: The satisfaction that comes with thumbing your nose at the Oil Industry
Number 4: Sweat? What sweat? It’s raining outside!
Number 3: Duck, Duck, Goose. No, literally duck, duck, goose everywhere!
Number 2: Not gonna lie, there are some really fit joggers out there.
And finally…
Number 1: I didn’t spend a cent on gas, I got a decent workout, I saw things I would never have seen speeding by in my car and, honestly, I’m more mentally ready to deal with whatever this place has to throw at me today! Win, win, win, WIN!
I realize this is an over-simplification of what you have to deal with when committing to bike commuting. However, try it. Most commutes are only 5 to 10 minutes more than what it would be in your car. If you need help defining a route, reach out to us. We’ve all been there and know some pretty cool routes. As far as arriving at work without getting called into HR for personal hygiene issues? Grab a backpack with a change of clothes, bring some wet wipes and grab an “Irish Shower” (as some call it), keep an extra stick of deodorant in your desk. You CAN do this and once it becomes a habit, you will wonder why it took you this long to get started. See you on the trails, friends!
