"This is usually understood to be by car. It's not clear, then, how the Census would categorize Joe Simonetti, a 57-year-old psychotherapist who lives with his wife in Pound Ridge, New York. His commute takes him from the northern reaches of exurban Westchester County to his office just south of Central Park.
It's about three and a half hours each way.
By bike."
READ THE ARTICLE HERE
This article not only struck me (no pun intended!) by where this guy lives (Pound Ridge is just up the road from me and I ride up there every now and then) but why anyone would want to commute to the city. Eh, people often wonder why I do what I do. So I guess nobody is perfect ;) Kidding!!! haha!
Now, this guy isn't some "Nine to Fiver" making the commute to-and-fro 5 times a week. 7 hours? I don't think so. He does it 2X a week and has a "crash" pad in the city. Yeah, the dude has some bux not only to live in Pound Ridge but to also have a "crash" pad in NYC. This commute isn't out of necessity, lets just say!
But aside from that, the article touches on another guy who has mounted video cameras on his helmet and saddle to get all angles of cars who buzz by him too close.
So this article got me thinking about my interactions with cars while riding for 10+ years.
Fortunately I have had little issues.
In NH, the only issue was "Buck" the giant dog coming out after me. There was the occasional idiot kid who yells out the car as they zoom by.
I rode down in Savannah, GA, where putting a nascar #3 number on my jersey was prolly a smart idea (I never did this). I did get used to 18 wheelers giving me 6 inches of room. That was fun the first few times (dropping a "NOT "joke here!).
Riding in the Provence was the best. Cycling is part of the French Culture, so I was basically a family member in every village I rode to.
Riding in NY is like riding in NH. I pick roads and routes that aren't car busy and have good road conditions.
I'd say I have had more issues with hitting potholes and going down and being bitten or chased by dogs than humans in cars!
I guess I should count myself as lucky to not be a statistic.
Have you ever had any "bad" encounters with cars?
I have only had one incident. Some jerk in a truck threw a quarter out of the window and it hit me in the leg. Yes, it hurt!
ReplyDeleteI was JUST talking about this while biking. As someone who commutes in city traffic, I think it's really easy to tell which cars hate bikers and make extra effort to do annoying things like not leave enough room on the shoulder for you to get by or get scary close to you.
ReplyDeleteMy commute? About 15 steps. :)
ReplyDeleteMy scariest moment on the bike occurred as I was biking to Grand Haven to meet Jennie at work. There is really nice shoulder the entire 35 miles except for two miles through one of the towns. It is still a 4 lane divided highway, so there should be plenty of room. I had a huge pickup truck (the type that is designed for towing semi trucks and other large vehicles) passed by so closely I swear my bike jersey moved. After he went by, the brake lights came on, he swung into a driveway and got out. Oh shit! I thought he was going to be an ass and chase me down for riding on his road. I sped up to just get by him. As I passed, he yelled out "You OK? I didn't clip you did I? Sorry! I didn't see you!" Yeah. It was that close. Close enough for him to think he actually hit me.
Scary as hell, but that burst of adrenaline got me to my destination in record time.
I live on a rails to trails. My commute is 6 miles (bike or run). In the summer I meet a couple of guys and sometimes my commute is 30 miles in the morning.
ReplyDeleteI was biking on Hwy 61 north of Jackson, MO about ten years ago. I had a LARGE grain truck following me... tailgaiting me. Yes I mean riding my butt.
ReplyDeleteIt would NOT pass and had plenty of room. I came to a spot where I could pull of and did so but as I exited the road, I hit a patch of gravel and lost the bike totally. I came very close to ending up on the pavement in front of the truck.
Disaster avoided but it was a close call.
geeze. that's a long commute, but once you read the fine print you can't really feel sorry for him! i'm about 7 miles from work, runable and bikeable :)
ReplyDeleteMy commute is about as long as Kevin's give or take a few steps (-:
ReplyDeleteI get buzzed by Bubba's weekly on the farm roads.
My commute changes daily. Some days it is 15 steps, others it is 2hrs (by truck) and still others, it is 4hrs+. I like the 15step days better, it is better for training!
ReplyDeleteBuck the dog. Groan. I have some good riding up here, but have had people throw crap out the window at me and holler and beep and stuff. So pretty minor stuff in teh scheme of things.
would LOVE to commute by bike
ReplyDeleteor take a few steps from my kitchen :-)
I live 1.4 miles from work, easy side road commute
ReplyDeleteYa, I wont get into Mrs Soccermom that almost ended my life last year