With Spring arriving early, it is time to get back on the Bike Commute. This was originally posted in March 2009 while living in Switzerland.
A ride along with the voice inside my head as I make the 50 km commute from Savigny to Gland by bike on March 30th 2009.
Another cold morning. I hope I put on enough layers. I should be fine if I can keep my hands and feet warm. Good thing for these gloves and shoe covers. The clouds are really low this morning. No lake or views of the Alps. Cresting the small hill to the village center. Better shift. No traffic this morning on the Route de Oron...nice. Huh, they took down the snow fences along the route into town. That means it will probably end up snowing again this weekend. Oh small hill...shift and peddle, pedal, pedal. I am warm now. I should have put my lights on, the sun is coming up later now due to the time change. Oh well, the reflector strip on my yellow jacket should be visible enough. These big looping "S" curves on the down hill are so fun, that guy in the Saab doesn't know what he is missing. Stop light. Can I balance here without putting my foot down before the light changes. Come on, come on turn green already. Nope. Foot down. I love that the lights turn yellow to warn you they are about to turn green. Is this only in Switzerland?
Pass the hospital. Why do thy call it the CHUV. I should know this after being here a year now. Through the center of Lausanne. Traffic is light this morning. I love the bicycle lanes. I shouldn't have had that second cup of coffee. Gotta pee. Shit, did that motorcycle cop see me just blow through the stop sign? Another round about, look left. Eye contact, eye contact, there it is. She sees me. Accelerate and pass these cars on the right to the front of the line at the stop light. Ok balance, balance. Don't put your foot down. Light is yellow, now green. Go! Finally, onto the lake road. Thirty minutes to get to the lake road, not bad, and just in time for the sun rise.
A little tail wind this morning, makes for an enjoyable ride. Uh Oh, road construction, bike lane ends. I better hug the right shoulder of the road. Lets see how long I can ride on this yellow line. Do I have any meetings this morning? Why the hell did I bring my lap top home last night, carrying this thing sucks! Ok, does that dump truck see me? Eye contact, eye contact, eye contact. What the fuck...how can you not see me in my canary yellow jacket, sparkly yellow and orange bike and reflective booties. I look like something out of a freakin circus, you idiot. Do you think I dress like this for the fun of it. No, its so A-holes like you can see me. Wake up, take the cigarette out of your mouth and pay attention before you kill someone. Nothing like a dumb ass to get your heart rate roaring in the morning.
No, I don't think I have any meetings until 10 this morning. I hope there is more than 30 seconds of hot water in the shower at work. I haven't seen any other bikes this morning. Why don't more people ride their bikes to work? I loved riding my bike to school as a kid. Through the center of Morge, this is such a pretty lake side town. Its Tuesday, that means street market today. Wow that bread smells good. Look at all the fresh fruit. I need to tell Amy about this market.
Another round about. How come we don't have round abouts back in the states? They are so practical, and far more efficient than four way stops. Very rarely do you have to come to a complete stop. The U.S. should also import lights that turn yellow, to warn you they are turning green. I bet some Swiss transportation analysis did a study on the warning yellow light. He probably found that it allowed those who drive manual cars a half a second to get into gear prior to the light turning green, which allowed for 2 additional cars to make it through the light each cycle. Now with X number of lights around Switzerland they were able to move X thousand more cars through the intersection each traffic light cycle.
E'toy, what an ugly place. Box stores and box apartments. What were the developers thinking?Ok, my butt hurts and I still have to pee. I like this area between Allaman and Rolle. Nice rolling sections hardly any traffic. Rolle is nice too, I should take Amy to that French restaurant on the hill she would like the views. The road through the center of Rolle is narrow. Move to the left, take the center of the lane, watch for car doors. Cross walk ahead. Slow down for the guy with the baguette leaving the bakery. Hey, look another cyclist coming my way. Lets see will he wave. I gave him the handle bar wave, he gave me the head nod, we're cool. Thank god for my iPod and DJ Steve Boy. This mix is awesome, pretty funky, 120 or so beats per minute. The music help keeps a nice tempo. Last 10 km of slightly down hill through the vineyards. Lets push it a little bit so I can get to the office before 8:15. Heart rate check 154. Shift into the big ring and lets go.
