"A journey of a thousand miles, begins with a single step."
-- ??????????????? (See Note #1)
Or in my case, a single push of the pedal. . . . .
--Andy

In the summer of 2008, the price of gasoline hit record highs. For a while, a single gallon of gasoline in upstate New York cost nearly $5.00. Commuting to work was suddenly taking a significant bite out of my take-home pay. In a moment of serendipity stubbornness I went out and bought a road bike. Without really doing much research on the matter, I decided that I would start commuting to and from work via bicycle. I figured I could pay for the thing by using the one-time George W. Bush kick-back and my gas savings. Thanks to the outrageous price at the pump, I easily broke even last fall. When it got too cold for me to ride, I discovered that I missed it greatly. I had grown rather fond of my commute along the Hudson River between Albany and Troy.
When the snow thawed and the sun peeked out for more than 3 hours a day (spring 2009), I pulled the bike out of the shed and dusted it off. I also bought a bike computer, so I could measure how far I had ridden. This was especially nice when Karen and I entered the 2009 Tour de Cure to raise money for diabetes. We rode 50 miles on that Spring Day, which was Karen's second long-ish ride on her bike. By this point-in-time, I was once again commuting to and from work 2-3 times a week on the back of my aluminum horsey. I went on a few long-ish rides, and I bought a mountain bike so I could bounce off of trees and rocks, but most of my miles were ridden somewhere between Albany and Troy. A month or so ago I realized I had ridden more miles than I realized.
Yesterday while riding to work, my odometer tripped over one-thousand miles. To me, that's a big number. I'm really careful OCD about the tire pressure on the road bike, so this number is scary accurate. Among the more experienced riders who will receive this, I'm aware that 1000 miles is only 10 centuries - something that some of you hit by May. But for me this was pretty incredible. On my way to work today I paused for a moment when the odometer first read 1000 to look around. I was still in Albany, down along the Hudson River. The city recently repaved this section of the trail, an improvement that is hard for me to fully explain in a way that keeps this e-mail G-rated. But I will tell you that my padded tights seem to work much better now. It was a nice brisk fall morning and there were many walkers/runners sharing the trail with those of us on bicycle. Although I was running a little behind schedule and needed to get to work, I couldn't help but enjoy my surroundings. I also paused to enjoy the screams of the children I had run over earlier, but that's a discussion for a separate e-mail.
What does this all mean? For starters, I can happily report that I spent more money on padded tights this year and less money on gasoline. Priorities??? Parking is free at work, and since I've had to spend a fair amount of money on cycling gear to be comfortable/safe, I doubt I've saved much money. On the other hand, I am in phenomenal shape although I rarely "work-out" like I used to. When I get home, I usually eat dinner, hang out with friends, take a nap, etc. Thanks to my commute, I know I'll get plenty of exercise. There are also the obvious environmental benefits. I am a walking/talking/pedaling carbon-sink.
But, the real benefits of all this riding go far beyond any financial or environmental advantages. Today, I am more familiar with the back-streets of Albany, where riding a bike is a little less suicidal than State Street or Madison Avenue. I can also honestly say that I feel less stressed. If a day at work sucks, I can take it out on the ride home. It gives me a chance to process things and generally work-out any I have regarding my day at work. And finally, time moves a little more slowly on a bicycle. I get to really notice the weather and the seasons in a way that just isn't possible in a car. Since my top-sustainable speed is somewhere around 20 miles per hour, I can honestly say that I have to move slower too. In a world that is often dead-set on making us all multi-task a little more or move a little faster to accomplish more in a single day, it's REALLY nice to just slow down.

--andy

---- Notes -----
I really like this quote. It fits into so many situations ranging from moments of careful self-reflection to opportunities of cliche comedic bliss. Being a rather scholarly individual, I checked on Google to make sure I cited it appropriately. Most appear to cite Confucius while others think this was said by Lao-tzu. They're both dead, so I don't think they'll mind me appropriating the quotation.