Lydia Barter of North Brookfield likes to double
her commuting time in nice weather. That's because the time it takes to get to
work on a bicycle is not time she wishes she could have for something else.
Barter, admissions assistant at the Bancroft School in
Worcester, says it takes her 35 to 40 minutes to drive to work, vs. 1 hour, 10
to 20 minutes, to bike.
"I ride the same routes that I drive,"
Barter said. "I have either the short, hilly route (18 miles, which I never
return home on at the end of the day because I feel too tired), or two longer,
flatter routes: One is 19.8 miles, the other is 21 miles. The longest route is,
of course, the most enjoyable because of less traffic."
She'll
bike to work two or three days a week, once school is out for the summer and
school buses are off the road.
Weather is a deciding factor in
the morning. If she has biked to work and it turns rainy by afternoon, she'll
still bike home -- unless there's lightning.
Some planning is
required. At the beginning of the week, Barter stores three sets of dress
clothes at the office. "I keep some fresh smelling soap in the bathroom (at
work), and just sponge off face, arms, and legs if necessary. I don't shower (at
work), although I could," she said. "No one has ever complained that I smell ...
"I am 48 years old and my coworkers are in awe of the distance
that I travel," she added.
Most bike commuters don't have as
far to go. The average distance traveled by Americans who bike to work is 12
miles, according to the Federal Highway Administration.
An
estimated 200,000 new people a year will give bike commuting a try, and
altogether there are millions of Americans who bike to work, occasionally or
regularly, according to Dave Glowacz of Chicago, author of the new book "Urban
Bikers' Tricks and Tips" (Wordspace Press, $14.95, 800 888-4741). Tuesday is
National Bike to Work Day.
Glowacz' book is written in
comic-book style, with only short blocks of text and lots of diagrams, pictures,
lists and charts. Bike-to-work tips cover how to clean up without a shower (most
bike commuters don't have the luxury), how to carry clothes wrinkle-free, what
to do about "helmet hair," and even how to bike in a skirt or dress.
The longest chapter is on getting through traffic, and is
summed up by "Komanoff's Rule," which says that the more assertively you ride,
the safer you become. "In other words, when you act like the vehicles around
you, motorists see you as one of them _ so neither of you will surprise the
other," Glowacz writes. "But if you get too assertive, you become reckless. Then
nobody can predict what you'll do next _ meaning there's a better chance you'll
get clobbered."
Traffic is indeed the biggest concern, said
Barter, who advises riding defensively. "Never assume that a car or truck sees
you. Assume they don't see you," she said. "Look 360 degrees before pulling
through an intersection. Most cyclists that I know who have been hit by a car
are swiped by a car turning in front of them.
"Once last year,
I had a very close call with a utility truck, and I saw my life flash before my
eyes," she continued. "I think car and truck drivers don't realize how fast a
bike can travel, and on a downhill out of Rutland, heading toward Worcester, a
bicyclist can travel at 25 to 30 miles per hour without even pedaling!"
Environmental analyst Greg Root of Worcester has an easy
two-mile bike commute from his home in the neighborhood of Chandler and June
streets to the state Department of Environmental Protection office at 627 Main
St., Worcester. Traffic varies at different hours, but if he's on his bike,
heavy traffic somehow loses its power to aggravate him.
"There
is no rush hour on a bike," said Root, 34, who is head of the Worcester chapter
of MassBike. "If I have some luck with
the lights, I can get (to work) in seven minutes." Driving usually takes him
eight minutes.
As many as three days a week, Root will attach a
trailer to his bike and ferry his son to day care. But he acknowledges that work
and school trips, fraught with deadlines and other complications, are not the
easiest to separate from our car culture.
"As far as using the
bike for transportation, as opposed to just recreation, I try to sell people on
riding on other trips, like going to the video store," Root said. "Why get in
your car for that?"
~~~
The "down" road from
the summit of Mount Wachusett to the visitors center on Mountain Road,
Princeton, is going to be closed for repairs this season. Both the "up" road and
the "down" road will be closed to cars. However, bicyclists will be allowed to
go up the "up" road and then down the "up" road, according to assistant park
supervisor Mike Dembek.
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