Trying not to be Afraid of Bike Commuting

Back in May, I spent $25 on a bike at a garage sale, only to realize I’d forgotten how to ride. Between my rusty skills and the rusty bike, I’m not sure how I managed to find the courage to pedal any further than our apartment garage, but I did eventually figure out how to make the bike carry me around with a modicum of skill.

As an exercise in re-learning how to ride, that $25 was worth it. Of course, between the age and style of the bike, it wasn’t going to work for me in the long term. I ended up going to one of our local bike shops and testing out a couple of bikes before taking home something more upright, with better brakes, and easier shifting. 

I’ve spent the past month riding around on this lovely new bike, trying to overcome the hurdle of arriving somewhere slightly overheated, sweaty, and out of breath.

I ride my new bike, slightly terrified wheneven I venture beyond our neighborhood path. Sharing the road with trucks that might not be able to see me scares me to death. And, there’s the fact that I’m still developing the balance to be comfortable looking over my shoulder, or even considering lifting a hand off the bike to signal. But, now that my bike is outfitted to carry me and my things to other destinations, I’m compelled to use it to commute to work.

Depending on the route I take, it will be anywhere from two-and-a-half or three miles. The hardest part, is one street where traffic will likely be the busiest, depending on the time of day I choose to ride. Going out on a Saturday morning, just after 7am, is an entirely different endeavor than at what qualifies for “rush hour” in our area.

I’m glad I didn’t make the decision to just take off at 7:30 on a Monday morning, without making this first (lower stakes) attempt.  Some of it went exactly as I expected, but then there are the little things, like finding out the shoulder on the busy street is much bumpier than I realized; in a slightly uncomfortable way. I’m pretty sure taking an alternate (smoother) route might lead to me driving through a few poorly aimed sprinklers, but on a hot day, maybe that wouldn’t be the worst thing. It also turns out maybe it will be less stressful for me to cross at a busier intersection than somewhere I was expecting fewer cars to be. Getting the bike moving after coming to a stop is still a difficult endeavor, but it is getting a little bit easier with practice.

At some point, I will stop forgetting these posts, and have some photos to share, since I have yet to take pictures of my bike.

My wife also just joined the New Bike Club, so it’s possible there will be cooperative bike adventures for us in the future.