With the turn in the weather, my bike rides to work and back have become noticeably more pleasant. Before, that is, during the last 2-3 months, I had to don or carry some sort of protective clothing whenever I left the house. This was to either avoid the rain falling out of the sky, or the dirt my bike tires kick up from below. Sometime during winter, I did manage to put on fenders on the bike (though I screwed that up pretty badly), and that does help.
Regarding my bike ride to work: I live almost exactly 2 miles from my office, so getting to work on a bicycle is not that tiresome. In fact, in the morning, I actually am faster on my bike than people who start around my house in a car are getting downtown (I've measured). It's due to a) the fact I live on a hill, and my entire ride to work is mostly going downhill and b) contruction projects around Lake Merrit, where they're building a big new catholic church, which limits the numbers of lanes cars can travel on. I like to pedal right next to the orange pylons, on the "illegal" side, where the cars can't go. This lets me slide past the downtown Oakland traffic jam (which is pretty tame compared to what people fact on the local highways and bridges). I enjoy this little "cat and mouse" game I play with regular commuters. Of course, they may be rooting for me to go faster. Who knows. Maybe they enjoy sitting in their car in the morning, listening to the radio and drinking coffee.
1) The intersection of Harrison St. and Bayo Vista Ave., one block from my house. From here, almost the whole way is down-hill.
2) Harrison St. / Grand Ave. You can see the cars ahead stalled next to the contruction site where they're building the catholic cathedral. To the right you can see the orange rubber pylons. I know they're rubber, because sometimes I run into those on my bike. I can usually get between those pylons and the construction equipment. The construction guys usually give me space. So far, none of them has spoken to me.
3) Harrson St. / 20th St. The tall building in the background is my office building. I work there on the 7th floor (1800 Harrison).
If parking were free at my job, I too would be sorely tempted to do the environmentally bad thing and drive to work. However, I have to pay for parking (I think currently it's about $8 a day), so the choice is easy. I've become a dedicated bike commuter. With those savings, I can drink 2 glasses of beer a day at my local bar, the Kerry House on Piedmont Ave.
