Commuting via bike

I've had the best intentions of bike commuting once a week for quite a while now. I even bought a simple single-speed road bike for the purpose. It just hasn't happened. There was always an excuse: I need a rear light; I don't want to get up that early; It's dangerous; It's too far; And many other logistical questions.

Well, I started last week and it went great. I came in today via bike and it again, went great. So Wednesdays are going to by my official bike to work day.

Here are the stats of the one-way trek:

Anyway, in order to start...I had to blow away the excuses that had been holding me back. I'll explain how I did that.

Need a rear light - Since my commute (for now) starts in the dark, I need a good rear light. I already had front lights. The solution here was simple: buy one. There are some great inexpensive (25-50 dollars) and effective lights. Research and pick one.

Don't want to get up early - In order for me to be at my desk and working by 7AM, I need to leave the house at 4:55am. Well, I had to stop crying and harden the heck up and get it done. There are worse things in life than needing to get up early and ride my bike.

It's dangerous: Yes there are dangers to riding a bike on the road, just like there are dangers of driving a car on the road. The bottom line is that I needed to find ways to minimize risk. This includes things like wearing a helmet, using lights, riding defensively, etc. Also, I used Google Maps to create a route that minimizes riding on any main roads. 90 percent of my route is on residential type roads. The speed limits are lower (25MPH) and the number of cars is significantly less.

It's too far: Well, 25 miles is the commute one way. It's not ideal, but not impossible either, especially for a one day a week commute. Again, harden the eff up and get it done. If your commute is longer, maybe you could drive part of the way and bike the rest?

Logistical stuff: Luckily, my work has a shower and lockers so that helps a ton. Other than that, there isn't much to think about. I make sure my bike and pack are ready to go before I go to bed, and when I wake up, I basically get dressed and leave. Simple.

At the end of the day, I'm not doing this for any reason other than I like to ride. It isn't to save the earth or be more "green" (though those are nice side-benefits). It helps me with fitness. It helps me be more productive at work and helps me de-stress on the way home.