As I sit here on the Coaster writing an update about my new commute, I am happy for three things. First, I'm happy to be able to write on my commute instead of my lunch break. The second reason is a just a small word at the beginning of this post, sit. On the trolley I was supposed to stand with my bike and only occasionally was the car empty enough for me to justify sitting down. The 1.5-2 hours I spend commuting is much better if I don't have to stand the whole time I'm on the train. Finally, I'm happy that I see the same faces everyday with their bikes on their way to work or on their way home.
My commute works out like this: Ride from my residence to Old Town using surface streets. This part of the trip is not yet finalized. I'm not real happy with the route I'm taking (which happens to be the most direct route). I have a few other routes I need to try out, but they involve writing up a direction sheet, which I haven't had time to do.
Once in Old Town, I jump on the Coaster and hangout, either chatting, catching up on podcasts or coming up with some delicious word meat for you all to chew on. I get off the train in Carlsbad where the worst/best part of my commute takes place. Due to the fact that there were so many transit options between my house and my old job, I was able to slack off and only ride the easy parts. This means that I was not in shape for this last leg of my commute. My office is 4 miles from the station, three of which are false flat (see Sheldon Brown's definition of false flats to see why they are evil) and the other mile is a climb.
The trip home would sound good, what with the 4 miles of downhill cruising at the start, but there is often a pretty good onshore flow that becomes a headwind for me once on shore. This part of my ride might be my favorite however, because it is the first time I've commuted on a road that gets so backed up that I am going faster than the cars are going. There is something truly satisfying about that.
I jump on the Coaster home, where I discover that not only are you allowed to eat and drink (not allowed on trolley or buses) but you can enjoy and unwind with an alcoholic beverage. I was actually stunned at the number of people that stop at the liquor store on the way to the train station to pick up something to help them unwind. (Not to mention people headed to the baseball game getting some of their tailgate parties started).
Currently I'm taking the trolley home from the Coaster because my legs are pretty much destroyed from my morning climb and I'm often in a hurry to get home. But this can be augmented to a pretty nice tailwind of a ride along a route that I take sometimes just for fun.
As much as it kicks my a**, I love my new commute. I started bike commuting for two reasons: exercise and money. This commute costs the same as my old one as a percentage of what I would be paying for driving. The exercise is the kicker though. While I feel like I'm only barely going to make it to work, I know that in a month or two I will have gotten to the body I was looking at getting all along.
-Matt
My commute works out like this: Ride from my residence to Old Town using surface streets. This part of the trip is not yet finalized. I'm not real happy with the route I'm taking (which happens to be the most direct route). I have a few other routes I need to try out, but they involve writing up a direction sheet, which I haven't had time to do.
Once in Old Town, I jump on the Coaster and hangout, either chatting, catching up on podcasts or coming up with some delicious word meat for you all to chew on. I get off the train in Carlsbad where the worst/best part of my commute takes place. Due to the fact that there were so many transit options between my house and my old job, I was able to slack off and only ride the easy parts. This means that I was not in shape for this last leg of my commute. My office is 4 miles from the station, three of which are false flat (see Sheldon Brown's definition of false flats to see why they are evil) and the other mile is a climb.
The trip home would sound good, what with the 4 miles of downhill cruising at the start, but there is often a pretty good onshore flow that becomes a headwind for me once on shore. This part of my ride might be my favorite however, because it is the first time I've commuted on a road that gets so backed up that I am going faster than the cars are going. There is something truly satisfying about that.
I jump on the Coaster home, where I discover that not only are you allowed to eat and drink (not allowed on trolley or buses) but you can enjoy and unwind with an alcoholic beverage. I was actually stunned at the number of people that stop at the liquor store on the way to the train station to pick up something to help them unwind. (Not to mention people headed to the baseball game getting some of their tailgate parties started).
Currently I'm taking the trolley home from the Coaster because my legs are pretty much destroyed from my morning climb and I'm often in a hurry to get home. But this can be augmented to a pretty nice tailwind of a ride along a route that I take sometimes just for fun.
As much as it kicks my a**, I love my new commute. I started bike commuting for two reasons: exercise and money. This commute costs the same as my old one as a percentage of what I would be paying for driving. The exercise is the kicker though. While I feel like I'm only barely going to make it to work, I know that in a month or two I will have gotten to the body I was looking at getting all along.
-Matt
Direct link to REI Cycling store
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