Who Knew going to work was this much fun?!

[shootingstar]

How fast are the cars going Aggie? Any traffic light intersections / traffic calming mechanisms along the way? Is there any way to choose a quieter side street..it might an extra 10 min. but worth your comfort level.

Hopefully your bike lights flash strongly front and back when it's dark.

[Tri Girl]

Did you ride yesterday? We had 30 mph south sustained winds with gusts up to 50. I didn't want to ride to work, but driving home I thought it would be so much fun to ride the wind on my bike.
IMO, building confidence comes with just doing it. Maybe if DH is home, you could do it on your own one day, that way if you feel nervous/afraid, he can come get you and you'll still make it to work on time. My first couple rides alone I did that- waited 'til DH had a day off then rode so I knew he could come get me if I felt unsafe. I know that it took me about 3 times doing it to feel "comfortable" in the dark. If you have a wide shoulder, you should be OK. I ride the same time as you. It's dark, and I'm on city streets (2 laners with intermittent traffic), but I feel OK so long as I know I'm lit up like a Christmas tree. It all depends on you.

A co-worker who lives on the north side of town with me said she wants to start carpooling to work. I'm excited because on her days to drive, I'm going to take my bike and ride home (a 2+ hour ride home). I decided I just can't do the full commute anymore. 4.5 hours of commuting each day is just too much. It's almost as much as my work day.

[Melalvai]

Next question- is there anyway to build confidence for riding alone?

Take the Road I course (check the League of American Bicyclists site for classes in your area). The #1 thing I got out of that course was confidence. I need that confidence to withstand with the yells, honks and bad behavior from the college kids who drive on my route. Their shenanigans don't hurt me or endanger me, but make it unpleasant enough that without confidence, I'd lose my motivation for biking.

[GLC1968]

Next question- is there anyway to build confidence for riding alone?

I'm assuming that you aren't afraid of being hit - it's just being alone on a fairly lonely stretch of dark road, right?

It's hard, but the best way is to just do it as much as you can. I had the same problem on my old commute. There were stretches where I just felt unnerved when riding them in the early AM. In my case, I felt even worse when there was no traffic... I remembering coming to the road where the traffic was and feeling almost 'safer', like the cars were comforting. Weird, I know! I also think that if you ride at the same time, over the same route, the cars will get used to seeing you because most of them are also commuting and will be there at the same time, too. You can build a kind of rapport with them - it used to help me to see some familiar cars (if not faces) each morning.

To be perfectly honest, I never got 100% comfortable with it. I just got better at not letting it get to me (or to keep me from riding).

[Aggie_Ama]

TriGirl- It was only a 10-15 mph headwind and then a 20-25 mph tailwind home. I didn't ride this morning, with 25 mph headwinds to work.

It is just the darkness, not the cars. The shoulder is the size of a regular lane. I have an over active imagination and picture me hitting a kamkazie squirrel or raccoon, endo-ing and being stuck on the side of the road bleeding with a broken collarbone and a concussion. See, very active imagination. My husband makes fun of me for my imagination.

Mainly, it is just lonely and creepy. I feel so very vunerable without a pack. By the time we split it is a very short stretch and is getting lighter outside. I guess I just need to bite the bullet and do it one day.

[GLC1968]

I have the same active imagination. I know EXACTLY what you mean!

It does get better with time, I swear.