Doin' it for the first time....

[Medianox]

....this morning!!!! I am a little scared and excited. Half of my route is on the bike path that runs through town here so that part is easy, and there are no hills at all.
I can't wait!

[dervilfal]

Congratulations! I just did my commute for the first time this morning too. All but the last mile on trails. Took twice as long as it should have (I got lost on the last mile), but I am so glad I did it!

How was yours?

[jobob]

Excellent! :cool:

[sfa]

Have fun!

[Tri Girl]

Way to go!!! Lets hear all about it when you get home today. :D

[out_spokin']

Congrats to both of you first timers! We want full reports! :)

[Medianox]

It was great! It is about a 3.5 mile ride each way, with about half on a bike trail so that cuts out traffic a lot...and the rest is on quiet side streets. I left plenty of time and still got to work early (took about 20 mins)! At about 0800, I had to take a patient for a scan and I was talking to the tech...he said that I seemed "really energetic this morning" and I told him it was because I rode my bike to work....he was really impressed!
Funny thing is, I got sent home early due to a drop in our patient census so I got to ride home after only working 4 hours and before the main heat of the day-I had been worried a little about riding home in the evening after working 12 hours mostly on my feet. Made it home with no trouble at all, even though there was a bit more traffic.
All in all a good intro to commuting! Thanks for the encouragement!

[MM_QFC!]

It was great! ... At about 0800, I had to take a patient for a scan and I was talking to the tech...he said that I seemed "really energetic this morning" and I told him it was because I rode my bike to work....he was really impressed!


Great job! And I chuckled to myself when I read your reference to the tech saying that you "seemed really energetic"...as I've had the same experience.

When I first commuted to the office by bike, I felt great, of course and, was greeting colleagues enthusiastically when they got to the office after I had been there a while. I recall that one remarked to me that, "you rode in today, didn't you?" - I was taken aback as it had kind of an accusatory sound to it, so I nodded that I had and he added that, "everyone knows when you ride, cuz your energy level is off the charts and we're not even really awake yet!"... oops! note to self: tone it down and look forward to the return ride home...:D
Tailwinds!
Mary

[Tri Girl]

Congrats!!!! Sounds like it was a great first day of commuting. Hopefully there will be many, many more. :cool:
Yeah, my mood was always a million times better the few times I've commuted. Now that my new job is only 2 miles away, I plan to be in a great mood every day. :D

[dervilfal]

That sounds like a wonderful first ride in!

Mine was 15 miles in and 15 miles home. The ride in was wonderful, I practically had the trails to myself, and besides getting lost once I got off the trail and on the streets, it was great. The ride home was a little tense on the busy streets to get to the trial, but a wonderful ride home also even in the heat. I was worried when I started home because I was so worn out for the day, but after a few minutes of riding I got my second wind.

I hope to do it 3-4 times a week going forward. It takes longer than driving in, but is so much more enjoyable!

[Reesha]

I am always anxious before a new commute. Mine are 12 miles each way and wind through the city of St. Louis. The anxiety usually transforms into exhilaration once I remember that I'm in control, everything is fine and that at 5:30-6:30 AM there aren't many people on the roads! ;)

I also found out this morning with my trusty Polar HR monitor that I burned 800 calories while commuting with 20 lbs on my bike! :eek:

[Geonz]

And you might want to look into a "road riding" course to boost your skills and confidence, just for fun.

[GulfCoastAmy]

Congrats - that's awesome! I wish I could do the same, but I don't have the guts to ride in all that traffic!

[Fontinalis]

Commuting by bike is HIGHLY addictive!!!!
I just can't get enough of it.

[tyrocks00]

Commuting by bike is HIGHLY addictive!!!!
I just can't get enough of it.

I can't wait to try it out! I'm google mapping my route right now and I'm going to try it out tmrw!