Choosing to arrive at work under my own steam isn’t exactly a life-changing decision, but instead a decision made up of various factors which culminate in me climbing into cycling gear, packing office-wear in a pannier and flinging my leg over the top of my seat to a faraway bicycle pedal without giving myself a back injury.
As a previous reporter just recently pointed out, I could literally jump from home to work, the distance being so short. However, distance doesn’t necessarily factor into my decision to cycle to work. Terrain and weather do.
As my alarm sounds at 7 am I begin to take stock of elements that will factor into my decision whether to cycle.
Can I hear rain? If so, I’ll not be cycling. My mud guards, though fitted to the bike, do not prevent puddle water and mud spraying up like a rooster tail behind a power boat and marking my back with a wet, dirty stripe.
What do I have to do today? If I have meetings out of the office or need to pick up groceries, the bike stays at home. The Peak office is located on Marine Avenue near the Westview ferry terminal so if I have to go anywhere else during the day there is a major hill to climb.
The last element of the decision is whether I have the extra few minutes it takes to get to the office by pedalling. I don’t like having to rush. If it is 8:55 am before I climb onto my bike, I am in trouble and may as well drive; 8:54 and I’ll be able to make it.
Once the decision is made, I really do enjoy cycling to work. It gives me time to listen to the birds, look out at the ocean, feel the wind in my eyes and cold chill on my fingertips. My journey to work is easy, starting with a sharp downhill then a moderately level ride along Marine. The journey home took a little figuring out at first, but I mostly travel by the flattest route possible.
Cycling allows me to see things I would miss in the car. One journey along Marine I found a Blackberry on the grassy verge. It is convenient working at the Peak as I turned it in at the front desk and within a few days of a lost and found ad running in the classifieds the owners turned up to claim it. In February I saw my first sign of spring when I viewed two eagles at the top of a tree on Hammond Street doing what two eagles do to make four.
A few days ago I saw another cyclist go past the entrance onto Marine from Nootka Street. To me the race was on. By the time I got to work I was full of pride from having caught the cyclist up at least a block before the office. I didn’t pass him though because who would want their morning ride ruined by being passed by a woman on an old $50 Raleigh mountain bike?
Work has provided me with a secure place to store my bicycle, out of the way but safe, and my colleagues no longer say anything when they see me arriving in luminous yellow gear. I appreciate that as I don’t follow the latest cycling fashion when dressing.
I was very happy a few days ago when I realized I am no longer the only one making the effort to dig in deep and put a little energy into getting to work; after all, I would not hesitate to encourage my colleagues to cycle to work.
Cycling is good for the environment and good for my health so long as I do not fall off. My journey to and from work provides a moment of peace and contemplation driving a car just doesn’t give me and I arrive at both work and home in a good mood for having my moments of “Janet time.”
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