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positive people role models if we think about it that will support and enable that about which i am passionate further the new job is closer to home and has an infrastructure that better supports bicycling to work so i was keen to start doing it anyways and had done but e ven with all of those pieces in place it ultimately took the removal of my car as has acted as a key motivator in the past to throw the cards on the table and force me back into the saddle on a daily basis since then the last 40 work days of consistent all five days of the week riding to and from the office have begun a slow positive transformation while the number on the scale is very slow to respond at my age there is progress happening more than that body measurements are beginning to change for the better jeans are looser the shirt not quite as tight in key locations as it had been only two months ago the aches and pains that used to typify the end of my workdays are largely gone replaced only by the small niggles indicative of the increase in exercise which has included daily weight training and stretching to supplement to cycling the desire to snack during the day is largely gone the occasional stress score peaks i would see on my wrist based activity tracker during a typical work day are also gone and while the exercise certainly helps here that is likely due to the positive environmental changes mentally i feel a lot happier a lot more even keeled i no longer have trouble falling asleep or getting up in the mornings even if the hour i rise these days is a couple hours earlier than it was only four months ago even though the office is close by i have been adding miles in the mornings and evenings just because i have taken a lot of sunrise photos during my rides to work and part of me can t help but see the metaphor in the appreciation the future is very bright indeed it s also clear i m finding a strong love for the bicycle again i never hated it to be clear but when one sets the stakes too high the things we love can also become a trap what i learned is important here there is no score card while i am keen to keep counting and keep a streak going i won t advertise it much unless i happen to hit a big personal milestone again like 80 days or a year and only if i find a way to communicate it in an inspiring way right now it s 40 days and if it stops at 41 days that s fine no one is keeping score and honestly we all deserve to be a little kinder to ourselves as it is the counting will be done honestly as ever and as was done here my current streak started on may 23rd when i returned to work after a short vacation to support the audax kc santa fe 1 000km brevet ha during which my car decided to eat its own transmission memorial day was a day off as was july 4th neither of which i would have ridden or driven to work during so they aren t part of the 40 same rule for the weekends of course so while i haven t driven to work in 58 calendar days some of those days i wouldn t have anyways i ve still driven a car for errands and family stuff on the weekends of course so i m not completely car free i just don t own one of my own and honestly considering the costs involved i m not sure i want to when i only live 3 miles from the office that will certainly become a problem as soon as i get tired of riding long distance events that start within a few miles of home of course but that s why rental cars exist or u haul s lol self induced pressure removed it should be said that while there shouldn t be a scorecard goals are good there s nothing wrong with setting big scary goals if one has the correct perspective about them always ask am i doing it for myself or someone else if i never hit 100 days or get another r 12 or another sr series or even another 200km well who cares i have spent far too much of my life worried about measuring up to someone else s yardstick and for what will i still try to do some rad stuff absolutely and if i fail well i ll learn from it and i ll try again personally and professionally alike failure is always an option it s what you do with that failure that matters once that pressure is removed you ll be surprised what you can do tactical stuff i still prefer panniers i noticed that a lot of riders at the new workplace ride in with a backpack and that works fine for them as far as style aerodynamics and just the convenience of getting in and out of the building the locker room etc backpacks make sense but on the couple of days i tried using the messenger bag or a backpack my shoulders and neck paid the price as well as my ability to look around while in traffic combined with my preference to ride in cycling gear and better control how sweaty i get i don t need to re learn that lesson from decades back panniers are the way for me at the end of the day i find riding longer distances on the other bikes in my stable seems far easier after a week of lugging around a heavier less aero bicycle for sure and for those future touring adventures on my mind well it s good practice anyways i have also learned my new gig has a strong cycling culture within that while some do ride to from the office most are performance minded cyclists who choose to ride over lunch some do both and some ride multiple times per day many are really really strong riders which can be intimidating there is always that pressure in any group dynamic from fishing to paragliding to running to freakin crocheting quilts to conform to societal and cultural norms to fit in to measure up to use the right tools and that s normal too also important to note unless they re telling you you can t do y because of x or there exists some legitimate rule much of that pressure to conform or measure up is self imposed so far everyone has been more than welcoming which is amazing i m just unapologetically a little off in a lot of ways and always will be but i have to remind myself that if i don t fit in it s only because i m self selecting i still need to work on the bravery to show up and that s on me and that s been the case for commutes fast weekday rides and brevets alike for a few years now the day is fast approaching where i will get over my personal fears and i will just go without worrying so much and i ll try to hold a wheel take a pull and talk bikes racing commuting cross whatever you got even freakin crocheting quilts man i love cycling don t you so there there s your in depth look at what the last 40 days of riding to and from work has done for me more than anything it feels good to be back and we re just getting started talk to you at the next milestone and thanks for reading be good to each other and if you see a cyclist out there wave let s go ride posted by kg on 7 20 2024 no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest january 20 2024 did i have it right all along if you ve spent any time at all surfing these pages you know i have posted hundreds of thousands of words trying to articulate the benefits of commuting to work by bicycle and it is very nice to see that this topic is still as relevant today as it has ever been back in 2008 during the financial crisis and subsequent inflation and big spike in petrol prices in the states traffic to this site nearly tripled today that cycle continues at least evidenced by youtube content social media podcasts and everything else that has taken the place of the humble blog my own fault really a personal education journey and subsequent tripling of my workload in the office has wiped out any desires to spend additional hours at the keyboard to type out what others are articulating very well in fewer typed words or well produced videos to that end i want to share the following with those of you loyal readers some of my favorites from the vast array of content out there these days particularly from a source which in my opinion represents the best of cycling on the internet gcn now hold on there are as many opinions about other people s opinions out there as there are well opinions some have criticized gcn as being too racer focused which may well have been accurate a few years back but i contend they have become quite aware of this notion their content of late is broad well balanced and it paints a far wider picture of cycling than it had perhaps originally intended simon richardson seems to be a champion of this balance with a terrific blend of well timed delivery humor research and first hand knowledge across a wide range of cycling topics needless to continue reinforcing what is clearly apparent here i m a fan of their stuff and have been watching it here and there for over five years now this isn t a plug really they re doing just fine on youtube and certainly don t need my endorsement and to be transparent they haven t prompted asked or compensated me in any way for the posts below i simply feel they are worth sharing the first video delves into winter commuting which may be a touch easier to stomach in the uk than say commuting in upper manitoba this time of year or the american midwest uk winters may not have the staggering arctic temps and icy roads we must contend with here in the central us but the content still translates well especially considering most would only consider riding to and from work if the temperatures were well above freezing anyhow beyond that mark not much actually changes just add layers and ride carefully reinforcing another point that i ve attempted to make on this blog over the years is the beneficial training that commuting to and from work provides for me this was simply observational i did it because i liked it and i just also happened to attend randonneuring events and the occasional ultra distance race i never had much time to train in big chunks so the commuting to and from work just had to do the daily exposure to the elements allowed continuous improvements in layering techniques required adaptation to daily workout loads demanded that i listen to my body it kept the weight off sharpened my logistical sensibilities allowed me to experiment with lights and reflective gear and so on it never occurred to me that riding twice daily was actually a highly beneficial training tactic that others have begun to adopt from pros to aspiring amateurs turns out recent research backs this up and gcn this piece also presented by si produced a brief video discussing it in some detail obviously both videos have done quite a bit toward getting me back into a routine the pandemic un did a lot for many but i can only speak for myself comparing my fitness between 2018 2019 and today a clear piece is missing that i have never successfully replaced consistency i have however not had a physical office to return to since our company radically downsized our real estate footprint in early 2021 but that is beginning to change now that our team has a mandatory once per day appearance at the office on the calendar i have put bicycle commuting back into my lifestyle and i didn t realize just how much i d missed it as i get my legs back underneath me and set big targets this spring you can bet that i will be commuting to and from the office beyond our current once a week mandate adding consistency and twice per day rides as a big part of my training regime not only has it worked for me in the past but research backs it up not to mention all of the mental health benefits that will come with it remember that big bicycle boom that started during 2020 still have that bike today well here we are friends i think especially considering the current financial climate riding back and forth to work may be just the thing for all of us hope to see you out there posted by kg on 1 20 2024 no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest older posts home subscribe to posts atom what is bicycle commuting simply put bicycle commuting is the act of travelling to a place of work or education by bicycle in many areas it is common to combine bicycle commuting with public transport worldwide the bicycle remains the most common commuter vehicle and bicycle riding the second most common form of commuting second only to walking while the absolute number of bicycles in existence globally is unknown it is clear that significantly more bicycles are manufactured than automobiles in the united states about 40 of automobile trips are two miles or less using a bicycle for these short trips can reduce your emissions and expenses if you live within ten miles of work you could save thousands of dollars in fuel insurance and automotive maintenance costs each year this webpage seeks to highlight bicycling as a viable transportation platform and a fun exciting healthful way to improve your life visit the commuting links below and get started today what is randonneuring the french term randonnée loosely translates as a long tour or ramble along a defined route and persons embarking as such are dubbed randonneurs in cycling the term defines a hard riding enthusiast attempting a long distance randonnée called a brevet usually 200 kilometers or greater within a certain time allotment non competitive by design randonneuring encourages camaraderie riders test themselves against the clock the weather and a challenging route but not each other randonneuring s ethos embodies self sufficiency and mental toughness support vehicles are not allowed and brevets are held regardless of weather randonneurs usa rusa organizes brevets in the united states under the auspices of the audax club parisien acp and the randonneurs mondiaux rm and rider s results are recognized world wide this website seeks to highlight the excitement and challenge of long distance bicycle riding by sharing personal ride accounts with the hope of growing the sport if this type of bicycle riding interests you and you d like to find out more visit the rusa webpage to find rides in your area for ride announcements and discussions on randonneuring in the greater kansas city area visit kc ultra cycling and join the kc ultra cycling email list subscribe to kcuc email visit this group courtesy randonneurs usa what is ultra marathon cycling just as the 26 2 mile marathon represents a benchmark for runners bicyclists generally consider the century riding 100 miles a worthy endurance challenge ultra marathon cycling involves exceeding that benchmark often several times over offering the long distance challenge of randonnuering with a more competitive flavor this is the world of 24 hour races double centuries and beyond where randonneuring rewards all finishers equally and emphasizes self sufficiency ultra racers compete for time and placing maximizing speed by utilizing support crews for hand ups and fast repairs event courses can be long and scenic but may take the form of many laps of a looped course winning ultra distance events requires the rare combination of endurance and a high average speed randonneuring and ultra marathon often complement one ...