Bike Commuting Can Suck When...

• You need to leave at 3:30pm at the latest to meet a contractor at home at 4:00.
• You get a call at 3:20 which eats up your time for changing and getting out the door.
• You get stuck behind a DB in the narrow parking lot at work who can’t get his Expedition unstuck and pulled around the Explorer coming the other way vying for the spot.
• You run smack into a monster headwind.
• You’ve now got 20 min to travel a distance you’d be pushing it to make in 25.
• You’re riding a 25+ lbs behemoth bike with all your crap in a stuffed pannier.
• You ran 5.5 hard miles at lunch (but in your fastest time yet!) and are subsequently spent.
• You hit every freaking light, even the one at Wadsworth and 26th which you busted your ass uphill to try and catch.
• A German Shepherd, although ‘restrained’ by its owner, lunges out at you and almost pushes you into oncoming traffic.
• Every pedal stroke on your monster truck bike, translated to your road bike (comfortably sitting in the dining room at home) would easily net you 5+ more mph for the effort…and you make this calculation with every pedal stroke.
• The damned wind just won’t stop.
• You kill yourself to get home and make it by 4:02 and hope that like all contractors, delivery persons, and repair men these guys are late…but nope, they’re standing in your driveway and they give your sweaty, exasperated ass the, “hey get a load of this guy” look.

All this ranting aside, I really wouldn’t trade it for a second. A bad day of bike commuting means you still got to ride your bike. And with that: it is weekend time, adios!