I did it!

[Heifzilla]

I commuted to work today!

I posted before about the routes I have to work with and so today I wanted to at least ride part of the way to work on the busier one to see how it was. I had DH drop me 5 miles away from work and I biked in. It wasn't too bad, though there was one hill going that way that I was really not happy with and left me pretty out of breath. Once at work I wiped down with some babywipes, fluffed my hair, and changed into my scrubs. My hair never did look great today but, eh, I'm a vet tech, who am I trying to impress?

The deal was that when I got off work (if I get off on time it is pretty much dusk at that point) I was going to see what time it was and either have DH pick me up at work if it was too dark (I need better lights, some more blinkies, a vest) otherwise I was going to meet him where he'd dropped me that afternoon. I got out of work right when we closed and started off. It was bright enough so that I had no issues seeing, and I had my headlight on blink, as well as my tail light. I also had on my obnoxiously construction-yellow windbreaker. My black messenger bag was around my shoulders (and what a pain in the tuchus *that* was...I need me some panniers or a rack with a trunk). I think I was pretty visible, though I still want to really get some relfective tape, more blinkies, and a better headlight. I figure that looking like a lit up christmas tree is the way to go.

So when I got to the meeting spot, I thought, "Hmm, well, I'll ride to the bridge and then wait for him there." Once I got to the bridge, I rested for a bit, drank some water, and took a couple of pics with my cellphone. And then figured, "Eh, I'm not that tired and I can still see where I am going." So I kept going. Eventually I was already so close to home that it just seemed dumb to call him to pick me up. I took a shortcut through this field that a lot of ATVs use (yay for my 26x1.95 tires and monster bike frame) and amusingly enough, DH saw my tail blinky from half a mile away and rode up the road I was on but I had already cut through the field and was in the subdivision across from ours. I called him when I got into that subdivision to tell him I was almost home, and he told me he had been out running errands and waiting for my call, and had seen me. He was pretty impressed at how far he could see the blinky.

Anyway, I am so happy I did it. My ride was a little over 11 miles from work to my front door and while I'm pooped, I'm also psyched about it. The hills (inclines ) weren't too bad, though there are two spots where I really was huffing and puffing and probably going about 8 miles an hour in my granny gear, LOL. But I managed.

Here's the sunset over Grass Lake from my commute tonight. When driving you just don't get to appreciate this kind of thing.

[shootingstar]

Anyway, I am so happy I did it. My ride was a little over 11 miles from work to my front door and while I'm pooped, I'm also psyched about it. The hills (inclines ) weren't too bad, though there are two spots where I really was huffing and puffing and probably going about 8 miles an hour in my granny gear, LOL. But I managed.

You will fly over that hill soon. Just wait and see. Congrats!

[PamNY]

Congratulations! Lovely sunset. I've found consistent practice really works to conquer hills. I'm happy for you and would love to hear more about your adventures in commuting.

Pam

[OakLeaf]

Yay! Way to conquer those fears!

[Becky]

Good job! Before you know it, you'll be a seasoned bike commuter

[7rider]

When driving you just don't get to appreciate this kind of thing.

Isn't THAT the truth???

Congratulations! Awesome job.

[Pax]

Way. to. go!!!!

[Biciclista]

yay!! fantastic!!! I am so proud of you. Now how many states did you ride through?

[bikerHen]

Don't beat yourself up for doing 8mph going up hill. If I can stay above 6mph on my "inclines" to work it's a good ride. On one short but steep (9% grade) little bugger my goal is to keep enough foward motion to not fall over. And, I'm of the opinion one can never have too many blinkie lights. bikerHen

[ny biker]

Good for you!

I routinely drop to 4 or 5 mph going up some hills. As long as you reach the top, who cares? And you will get faster, and it will get easier.

[Melalvai]

That's a beautiful sunset. I second what ny biker said about hills. I've been commuting the same roads for about three years. The Hill got a lot easier...when I got a 23-tooth granny gear. Now I can spin up it at 3 or 4 mph. Instead of "beating" The Hill, I came to accept The Hill! I didn't get faster, I learned not to be ashamed of low gears. It's more about patience than about physical strength or stamina.

There's probably philosophy in there, or maybe not.

[Tri Girl]

Super duper congrats to you on your commute to and fro. How cool that you rode all the way home, AND you got to see a killer sunset over the lake- you'd have been bummed to miss that driving in a car. Kudos to you!!!

[newfsmith]

Yeah! So glad you did it. Vet teching is the perfect job for bike commuting.
Have fun!

[Jones]

I wanted to add my congratulations to the list, I love bike commuting. 8mph on a hill isn't bad I have seen my odometer at 2.2mph before.

[Heifzilla]

Thanks, everyone Unfortunately, since DH is out of town (I have kids I need to pick up at the sitters after work, etc.) I won't be doing another commute this week, but I plan on it next week.

I picked up a set of Lightweights last night and decorated my bike a bit and I found a $30 gift certificate for a LBS that I had gotten two years ago for Xmas, stuffed it in a drawer and forgotten about so I was also able to pick up a rear rack. I looked at the lbs around here for a safety vest and found one at Performance Bike but they only had a size XS, which I guess I could have wrapped around my arm or something, but figured I'd order one that I could actually wear instead My next purchases are going to be a helmet light (I am leaning towards a NiteRider Minewt X2 or a Cygolite Hi Flux II LED), but I need to save up for it, and also a red blinkie for my helmet as well. Also, for the time being, I plan on bungy-ing my bag to the rack until I can get some panniers or a trunk bag.

Here's the new rack and the back wheel with the Lightweights. They really pop when the light hits them. And tedious to put on, but I like the result.