Communiting

[betagirl]

Thanks guys. Lise, I rode up Oak Park Ave today past Montrose. I have no idea how it is going into the city from the NW side compared to the west side. It's not too bad getting up there, so I might scope that out in my car to see how it looks. I will also check with the police stations to see. I'll let you know if I get any "say what?" or "woman are you crazy!?" reactions

[Lise]

It's better on the NW side, for certain. I would not cross the west side on a bike south of Division. What's rough about Fullerton, Belmont, Irving Park is the traffic. And you can't take side streets without having to go up or down to get across both the expressway and the river. I'll figure out a route or a couple of them this summer, though, because I like riding to my sister's. It's about 9 miles, and always involves a meal when I get there! Did you notice all the little asphalt lines on Oak Park Ave? Drove me nuts! I avoid that street when I can! Fun to talk about stuff close to home. I'll be curious to see what the cops say about your proposed route.

[betagirl]

Cool. Yeah, there were some sketchy parts of Oak Park Ave. Like the stretch north of irving park that's all beat up. But they've repaved a lot of it, so most of it was actually pretty nice. Coming back south riding into that wind I thought I was going to get blown into traffic. I rode all the way north until I hit the Kennedy, then turned around. Foster didn't look too busy to ride down. I think I'll have to drive around this weekend. Between the two of us we can figure out a way to get to/from Oak Park I think

Yesterday I rode around town and ended up on 1st Avenue. Instead of turning around like I should have, I rode that up north to North Ave, by Kiddieland. I was like hmmm, this isn't where I want to be. Thankfully it was a short stint down North ave to get out of 3 lanes of traffic. Obviously I'm still working out my routes around here

[tulip]

I don't know anything about Chicago. I do ride through some rough neighborhoods of Washington, DC, though. I have never had any problems with folks. I do not ride at night, and I do vary my route. Of course, my situation may be different than yours. Best of luck.

[betagirl]

Thanks Tulip. DC certainly has some rough areas.

Ok, I'm going on a reconaissance mission today to see if I can get through going a bit north. Lise, I'll let you know what I find

[tulip]

Thanks Tulip. DC certainly has some rough areas.

Ok, I'm going on a reconaissance mission today to see if I can get through going a bit north. Lise, I'll let you know what I find

My commute is 14 miles each way, and takes me through a variety of neighborhoods, from downright posh to rapidly gentrifying to still pretty bad. In DC I have found that even rough neighborhoods are still someone's home. I've come to notice the regulars on their porches, keeping an eye out. And the girls jumping rope who would yell "hi biker girl" to me last summer. And there's the guy on the corner who's always washing his car and always tells me I'm going to win a race someday. Once a kid on a BMX bike yelled out, "Hey lady... wanna race?" It was really hot, and I was close to the end of my ride, and I was tired, but I said sure--to the next stop sign. As we zoomed past his house with all of his relatives on the porch, they all yelled out, "Go Mike! Go Mike Go!". It was really neat. Neighborhoods are made up of people. I say good morning and good evening and have a good weekend. Perhaps I've become a persistent oddball part of the neighborhoods that I ride through. I've commuted for four years.

But I don't take it all for granted. I vary my route so as not to become too predictable (and to keep things interesting for me). I don't ride at night, and if my gut tells me to be careful or take a detour, I do. I keep my cell phone on me (not in my pannier), and I don't stop to chat--all common sense stuff that I would do if I rode through Beverly Hills.

Frankly, I have alot more trouble with drivers regardless of the neighborhoods. Nincompoops in cars are in all neighborhoods.

I find that riding through different parts of the city really humanizes the city. I know more about much of DC than my coworkers who have lived in the area for 20+ years, and who are still scared to go into DC. It's crazy, but they are the one's who are missing out on a vibrant and beautiful city (and I don't mean just the monuments and such)

This is just my experience. You have to determine your own comfort level.

[betagirl]

Thanks Tulip. I agree with you on a lot of what you said. I remember my boyfriend in college scolding me in the car for driving through Cabrini Green (big housing project here that's currently being torn down) and how "stupid" I was. I didn't understand his reaction. Because as you said, for all the crap in that area there were 10 times more average people just out and about.

The west side of Chicago is probably the worst part of town, even though the south side is stereotyped a lot as being the "ghetto." It's been gentrified and the sprawl has gotten out pretty far. 10 years ago my stretch would have been 6 or 7 miles, now it's 4. Part of me says no big deal to ride that bit of road. But part of me says that it's better to find another way.

The route I found yesterday sounds like what you described as what you enjoy about DC. It shifted from an older neighborhood made up of polish and czech immigrants, to puerto rican, to white, to mexican. I spent a lot of time in college in the mexican part of town, and really enjoyed the life that area had. I saw that on my route yesterday, with the kids out on their bikes, and the vendors pushing their carts to sell various treats and popsicles. I never felt ill at ease, except for the people that like to turn left in front of me