// Now is the Time for Earth Day Resolutions
Posted on Wednesday, April 21st, 2010
I’ve been having a lot of bicycle guilt lately. Primarily because I have to drive to work in San Jose. It’s almost 100 miles of driving a day. I’m killing the planet, and I haven’t spent nearly as much time on my bike as I used to. I mean, I usually took BART to work when I was working in Orinda, but some days I’d ride over the hills to get home.
Well, I don’t do very well with guilt (I think it’s the Catholic school girl upbringing). So, I’m going to try to set some things right. Besides, everyone makes New Year’s resolutions to improve themselves, so why not make Earth Day resolutions to improve the world? And why not make them bicycling related?
Here are my promises:
1. The 2 mile challenge: This is a program put on by Clif Bar, with the idea being that if your destination is in a 2 mile radius, you should probably ride your bike to it. From the website: “40% of US urban travel is 2 miles or less. 90% of those trips are by car.” Maybe I can help fix this.
2. Attempt sustainable transit to work: This could be a serious pain. It means getting up at 5 AM, getting to BART, taking the train to Fremont, then riding the 20 miles from Fremont to San Jose. Then I have to change from my spandex to my professional clothing and hope I’m not sweaty. Then, after 9 hours at the office, I have to ride back to Fremont, and take BART home. It makes for a long day, so I’m going to attempt it once, and see how it goes. Perks include 40 miles worth of work out, not putting miles on my car, saving a little gas and parking money, and having a greener footprint. Problems include getting up early and being super tired, possibly getting sweaty and having to shower at work, carrying a bunch of extra clothes and shoes with me, and probably getting lost the first few times I try the ride. *Sigh* This will be the most time-consuming and challenging goal on my list. But Bike to Work Week is happening this month, so now’s the time to try my best.
3. Volunteer: I’m going to an East Bay Bicycle Coalition training tonight. I encourage all of you to come! 7:30-9:00 PM, at the Rockridge Library, 5366 College Avenue. I’m going to learn how I can help get other people on bikes more often, even if I can’t commit to living car-free.
I’m certainly open to suggestions, too. So if you can think of some way that I can commit to riding my bike rather than driving my car, post a comment!
Cool post! Good luck! You might try to anticipate what you will wear and eat the day of the bike commute. It is easy for your car to drive with stuff. But it can be challenging to carry stuff, especially that which has to be kept pressed. For the long run, perhaps your employer can help get you “shower access” and maybe even a locker at a local fitness club.
Make sure to treat yourself with a bagel and cream cheese or a muffin and a cafe mocha, or whatever. If you like to do it on a weekend, finding your way without worrying about being on time can help you establish a realistic timeline.
Right, I’m considering doing a weekend trip to test it…want to come? That’s what I did to find my way home from Orinda, and I ended up on South Park! Bad idea!!! I needed someone to show me a better route…you were pretty handy for that
We actually have a small gym and locker room with showers at my office, I just have to sign a waiver, so shower access is ok…the bigger problem is the time it takes to shower, dry my hair, etc. I want to avoid the time crunch..
As for what to wear…skirts take up less room than pants, and don’t need to have a crease, so they’re the optimal clothing for packing. And I can leave dress shoes and nylons in my locking cabinet. I think I can make it work….but the weekend thing is a good idea….one step at a time!