Commuting by Bike and Prospect Park Laps
With the uptick in crime and violence on the subways, the recent shooting in Sunset Park did not bolster my desire to continue with my normal commute to work. Yesterday was my first ever commute to work by bicycle! While I wish this was something that I had tried awhile ago, it was only a recent change to my work schedule that allowed for this endeavor.
It was chilly in the morning so I hoped that would help me show up to work and not be a sweaty mess. I showered at home and put my wet hair into a tight bun that I could wear with my helmet. I threw on some casual clothes for the ride in and had my work clothes, hair dryer and a few other items in my pannier. I left Crown Heights and took the Bergen bike path west. In Boerum Hill, I ran into a few other women who were commuting to work!
Riding in the morning meant most streets were quiet so I enjoyed all of the birds and their chatter, and admired some of the trees starting to bloom. Then one of the ladies riding in front of me tried to go through a red light and almost crashed into another cyclist. So much for that moment of peace!
I made my way up to Dumbo to take the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. The new dedicated bike lane has made crossing this bridge a million times safer and, most importantly, more tolerable. When the pedestrian and bicycle lanes were on the same level, it was always so difficult to cross - tourists often took up both lanes for photo ops or just because they were clueless about the presence of the bike lane.
Bike path leading to the new, dedicated bicycle lane on the Brooklyn Bridge.
I had even MORE fun riding the bridge this time around, thanks to those sweet new gear ratios on my Surly Pack Rat. People were cruising by me on the way up but I took my time, mostly because I didn’t want to get sweaty. At the other side of the bridge, the bike lane continues and you get up close and personal with the somewhat imposing David N. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal building.
I cut west across the city to reach the Hudson River Greenway, which allowed for an easy, uninterrupted ride up the west side.
This portion of the bike path wasn’t too crowded but there were lots of walkers and runners on the pedestrian side.
As I got closer to my building, I hopped off the Greenway and took 10th Avenue up the remainder of the way. Once I got to the site, I entered through our Sally Port so I would be able to access the bike room that we have in my building. I was greeted by my favorite security guard, CJ:
CJ is always sniffing around for treats!
After my greeting, I walked my bike over to my building to access the bike room.
I’m in the office earlier than most of our tenants so let’s assume that the remainder of these bike racks became full throughout the day.
Work put me in a bad mood so I was hoping my ride home would turn it around. The weather helped and so did the compliment I received from this cyclist, as I rode back down the Hudson River Greenway.
He told me that my hand signaling was impeccable! I was using signals because I stop for pedestrians on the Greenway and often, other cyclists won’t, so that was my attempt at avoiding any accidents with speedy cyclists not expecting me to be stopping at the intersections. I also received a compliment on my safety pizza so thank you fellow bike commuters, for making me feel a little bit better and a little bit happier!
While the interactions with my fellow cyclists were great, I was still in a bad mood and almost bailed on the Prospect Park laps that I had agreed to do with a few of my B-SIG Cougars. I was able to convince myself to go, since I have never regretted a bike ride.
Look at all these people trying to dodge the traffic on the outer loop!
Art installation near Bartel-Pritchard Square.
While riding to the meeting point we had decided on, I ran into Jessie, a member of my group who just happened to be at the park. She was just about to text us to see if we were still planning on meeting up so she followed me the rest of the way to Machate Circle. We met up with Lilly and Nazli and took turns pulling for three laps of the park.
Knowing I would be riding with people was enough motivation for me to push through some of my laziness and get myself back on my bike. It was fun to ride outside of our Saturday group rides. Next week, we’re planning on grabbing some beers after the ride and hopefully we’ll have a few more of our group members joining us!
Between my commute and the laps, I rode a total of 31 miles. I went home, stuffed my face with some pizza and then took a nice, long bath with some epsom salts.
