Tired of the wear and tear on his car, not to mention the improbability of finding a downtown parking spot over the noon hour when his work shift starts, John Paul turned to his bike.
Three years later, the 29-year-old is still pedaling to and from work – a 22-mile round trip between his Old Mission Peninsula home and his job at
Hagerty Insurance. "It's a nice stress reliever, before and after work," says Paul, among a growing number of Northwest Michigan commuters who are forsaking their vehicles in favor of two-wheeled transportation.
"I think it's the right thing to do socially -- not to burn a lot of fossil fuels if I don't have to," says Scott Howard, a 40-year-old Traverse City attorney and father of three young children. "And there's also both a physical and mental component to it for me. I always feel better in the morning just spinning my legs a little bit. It helps me to have some time to myself to clear things out mentally. I come in more refreshed and ready to go. Even a little bit of time in the sunshine – or cold and rain -- starts my day right."
Figures from this month's
Smart Commute Week suggest more people are at least giving bike commuting (and other "smart" commuting such as carpooling and bus riding) a try. The 16th annual event, hosted June 7 - 11 by Traverse Area Recreation Trails and Transportation Inc. (
TART) attracted more than 1,100 commuters.
"It was the biggest ever for Traverse City," reports Missy Luyk, trail program specialist for TART. "We had some days with over 300 people coming for free breakfast in the morning. We estimate that over 60,000 miles were commuted 'smartly' during the week and prevented over 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions." Emmett County's 2010
Smart Commute Week -- its first -- was equally successful, drawing 200 participants and many others who didn't register.
Johanna Schmidt credits last year's event with pushing her to ride her bike more often to her physical therapist job at
Munson Medical Center. "Now it's a habit and just what we do," says the Traverse City resident, whose husband Ty also pedals to his job with the hospital. The couple also rides with their sons, ages 6 and 3, whether it's to their school or another destination. "Most of it is it's just easy to do," Schmidt says. "We just hop on our bikes and go. Living in town, it's just easy."
TART leaders hope others will stay smart beyond the annual event like the Schmidts. To that end, TART is partnering with the
Traverse City Film Festival to encourage smart commutes to the downtown film venues. Plans also are underway to install a semi-permanent bike rack in a parallel parking space on Front Street for three months a year starting as soon as the July 4 weekend.
Still, for all its benefits, giving up driving to work – or elsewhere – may seem too daunting a task. After all, there's icky weather, not-so-great drivers and the change-of-clothes scenario once at work to consider. Paul, Howard and Schmidt offer these tips.
The gear (and how not to be a sweaty mess at work):Howard: A friend says there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing choices. I've commuted in sub zero, pouring rain, beautiful sunny days and I've had fun with all of them. I wear a relatively inexpensive raincoat and rain pants when it's raining hard. I wear a cycling cap with a brim under my helmet. One of the biggest and most important commuter accessories you can get are fenders for your bike, which are maybe $30 to $50 -- and they last a while.
Paul: I usually wear biking shorts and a jersey while riding in to wick the sweat -- and so I'm not a disgusting mess. I'll have a change of clothes in my backpack. And wipes to freshen up.
Schmidt: Some people drive in on Mondays and take a weeks' worth of clothes, then bike the rest of the week.
The attitude:
Schmidt: Ty and I used to live in Arizona, and it was easy because you never had to worry about the weather. It was nice every day. In Michigan, I was kind of a fair-weather commuter the first couple of years we lived here. This past year, I have not driven the car at all.
Howard: If you've got a long commute, it doesn't mean you can't do just part of it. Figure out a good, safe route. It doesn't have to be this monumental task to commute all the way into work. Go out, try it, have fun with it.
Paul: The biggest thing is just starting to do it. That's the hardest part -- pushing yourself to do it. Start with small goals, like 'I'm going to bike to work three days a week for the next month' and kind of ease into it.
Ready to start biking more?
Sign up for the 10th Annual
Tour de TART, a 19-mile evening ride on a gorgeous rural trail from Traverse City to Suttons Bay on Friday, August 13, between 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., with snacks and a bayside meal at the Suttons Bay Marina, then a bus ride back.
Heather Johnson Durocher is a freelance writer specializing in
health and psychology, well-being, relationships, parenting and
retail/business topics.