Memorial Day Ride to Work - and an After Work Trip on the Bike Ferry to My Mom's House!

The weather forecast for Memorial Day said 40% chance of afternoon rain.  Ever the optimist, I decided that meant 60% chance of not rain.   So - I rode to work!

Promise, there's a fox up there.

Can you see the fox?

The morning ride was lovely.  I saw a fox on the bike path.  Trust me, though this picture doesn't really show it, the fox was there, crossing the path calmly in front of me.  Lovely.  This is a reason I ride!

I got to work in 58 minutes, with 11 mph average speed.

 I took a nice change of route (same distance) through the university campus.  I will take this route again.  It went through less traffic, and it was just beautiful.

One of the nice things about biking to work so early is that I skip a lot of the traffic.  This route is easy first thing in the morning, but after work, I am stuck in traffic for 5 minutes at least, waiting on cars and lights..... that's a whole lot of no fun.  I'll take morning, any time!

My mother asked if we could go out for dinner.  The Hubby had the day off, so I asked him to meet me there with his truck, and after work, instead of biking home, I biked down to the end of the causeway, and hopped onto the just-opened-for-the-season bike ferry, into my home town.  From there, it was another 5 miles or so to my mom's house.

I got rained on only very briefly.  A couple rain drops was pretty good for 19.1 miles, 40% chance of rain.  It took me 1 hour and 42 minutes (moving time) to get there from work - it was a long ride, but so satisfying to have done it!  I can't say this will be a regular ride, but it was one that I have been wanting to do ever since I heard about the bike ferry.

On the other side of the ferry!

A beach I grew up near

Colorful bird houses ... and a dinosaur?

The rest of the week looks to be unsettled, weather-wise.  I'm hoping for some more rides, but likely this is the big one!

Finally there!

Penelope : My Happy Little 3-Speed

This is Penelope.  She is my sweet little 3-speed Vintage Raleigh.  I've had her for 3 years, and some of my most joyful times have been riding her.

When I first got her, I was able to bike to work nearly every day for 8 months. My work was about 11 miles away, via a beautiful bike path for most of the journey. I had a flexible schedule, so if my commute took longer than anticipated,  it wasn't a big deal. I was working in a lab, so if I didn't look great, that wasn't a big deal.

Since then, I have had two jobs before my current one. One job was 40 miles away,  so that wasn't bike-able. The other was 12 miles away, but via unpleasant roads with very little shoulder and no bike paths. Again,  not ideal.

Since my joyful biking time ended, my father passed away. I stopped exercising. I have gained 20 lbs. Obviously,  I'd love to get back into the shape I was in when I was biking.

My current job is only about a mile away from the job I was biking to so happily.  However,  though I have worked there for a year,  I have not biked to it yet. The schedule is not flexible, and in fact, I have to be there much earlier than my old job - most days by 7 AM. I am working with people all day, so it's important to arrive to work looking presentable, and it's a more physical job, so often, I am very tired in the evening,  even with no outside activity at all...

I love my new job. It leaves my grinning on a daily basis.  Spring has come,  and I find myself yearning for Penelope. 

The National Bike Challenge begins on May 1, and I really want to try biking to work. With some extra time and some dry shampoo, can I get to work without leaving at an insanely early time?  Will it tire me out too much before a full day of work? Will I fall asleep even earlier than I do currently?  

Or, will it leave me energized after a beautiful ride to work and an exhilarating ride home? I need to find out. Biking has been my favorite physical activity since I rediscovered it in adulthood, plus you can't beat the views on the commute...

(I also love hiking and yoga, but hiking is not an everyday thing, and I haven't worked up the gumption to do yoga - even at home - in far too long.)

If I can ride my happy little Penelope to my happy happy job, I may just become so happy that it's obnoxious. 

I need to find out.

This Saturday is the second day of the National Bike Challenge.  I happen to be working at 7:30 instead of 7. The weather looks lovely. I don't have to get the kids ready for school before work. I may just give it a go.