There is one thing we do here at GroupSwim that we never boast about; all of us bike to work (both in San Francisco and Sweden). I admit I was a little intimidated when I first joined the team. I don’t think I had consistently rode my bike to anything since grade school. However, the whole team does it so I thought why couldn’t I. I’m not saying there wasn’t peer pressure because that would be a blatant lie.
Turns out, riding to work isn’t so hard. Once you get in the routine of it, it is actually fun. Here are some things to consider if you decide to take up bike commuting:
- Linkage with public transportation if you have them. I take the Ferry across the bay so I need to consider the schedule for departure times
- Meeting with customers – we have a locker in the office so I keep a change of clothing there to change into when we have face-to-face meetings
- Weather – this is an obvious one. In the summer, it is very straight forward. During the winter, having good rain gear on hand is crucial. One night I was riding from the ferry back to home, and it was dumping. I was wearing my gear, but after a while, I was so wet I started aiming for puddles because it was physically impossible to be any wetter. I felt like a little kid again
- Equipment – my bike has become my main form of transportation. It requires a similar commitment to maintenance that you provide for a car
- Death buds, otherwise known as head phones. I ride with them on certain routes home as I’m mostly on trails or sidewalks, but I don’t recommend them if you do much city riding as you never know where an opening car door or distracted driver is going to pop up
While I (and my colleagues) like saving the planet, I think I speak for all of us when I say we really enjoy it. It provides great time to think and get some exercise. Try it out; it isn’t as hard as you might think.
