Twin Cities Bike Walk Week

Indeed. One score, minus 4 years ago I graduated from college and left with a degree and forty extra pounds. And when the millennium turned I brought 2, beautiful young ladies into the world.

My once Rubenesque frame was now a frumpy mess of flab. In 2004 I was diagnosed with MS and thought life would be less shiny… less enjoyable and definitely less active. With a little love, patience and tenderness my hubby bought me a bike. “You gotta move it or lose it,” became our folksy-homegrown wisdom. It’s hard to accept conventional wisdom when you’re struggling with an ailment (arthritis, back pain, even depression) that adjusting your metabolism and upping your exercise is just what the doctor ordered.

This week I’ve logged ten miles on my bike and this body and mind couldn’t be happier.

“J’yeah? Well, alright,” I gritted through clenched teeth and rode my bike several times, to and from work last year and actually enjoyed it. But seriously, it was the Midtown Greenway that made it possible. It’s smooth, beautiful and without cars. So with confidence I hopped my black with red flame 3-speed and rushed to see the mayor cross the finish line on Monday.

I live 2 miles south of the central library. Being notoriously late to everything, I left home at 8:00 -the time I was supposed to BE there. Was that Jane Khalifa on a 3-speed like mine? Had to be. Impeccable hair, flawless makeup and smart pants suit (triple check!) Heeding traffic rules and for the first time, using the bike lanes I made the trip in 13 minutes.

WAHOO!!! I got free breakfast and a t-shirt for my trouble…and as an added bonus a hug from Commissioner Carter. This week I’ve logged ten miles on my bike and this body and mind couldn’t be happier. What’s my average mile per pedal? 9.3. Baby, I still got back, but at this pace it’ll be a lot more solid.

- Rachel D.

On Wednesday May 14th I rode my bike to work for the first time. I was very excited. I had planned out my route the night before and woke up extra early to make sure I had enough time to get to work. I spoke to numerous people who bike to work everyday and they raved about how relaxing it is, how great they feel all day long, and how much money they have saved on gas. My ride was 45 minutes long and I was exhausted. Not discouraged, but exhausted. Thursday May15th was my second day riding to work and thanks to John Siqveland, a Metro Transit employee who gave me a bike map, I was able to cut 15 minutes off my commute. I plan to bike to work most of the summer.

I say get a map and start pedaling!

- Emily

Thanks for organizing. I drove to a friend’s house in Highland Park and then rode my bike to meet others at Trotter’s for breakfast. We had a great time. As a result, one of our riders is getting ready to send out an email trying to set up a weekly ride that meets for breakfast this summer.

It was particularly meaningful to me to take the challenge because I was diagnosed with cancer almost a year ago and have since successfully undergone treatment. Before my surgery last year, my husband and I took several bike rides with friends, because it is an activity I love despite being totally athletic (I am NOT athletic); we did not know then if I would be riding my bike this summer.

Thanks to family, friends, coworkers and doctors, I was able to happily and successfully make the ride yesterday. If the weather is nice, I’ll do it again tomorrow.

- jmp

Photo by Hoary Head

Morning commuters in their cars were stuck at a light while nearby those who biked and walked to work enjoy a free breakfast and the morning’s entertainment.

The first appearance of the sun since late February made for a stunning commute to work this morning. My 15-mile ride from the west side of St. Paul follows the gorgeous curves of the Mississippi River, and I’ve had to stop along the trail for deer, turkey, bear, and once a 13-foot Burmese python. Just kidding. This morning I did see the blue flash of an indigo bunting or some other florescent blue thing—it was not a great blue heron which, just last weekend, my son mistook for a flying monkey when it swooped low over our house.

When I enter the city, I feel as though I’ve completed an epic journey. I’ve overcome adversity… I’ve been sworn at by drivers… I arrive in Minneapolis victorious…

Because most of my ride skirts the bluffs of the Mississippi, when I enter the city, I feel as though I’ve completed an epic journey. I’ve overcome adversity. I have raced other riders. I’ve been sworn at by drivers, and I have eaten bugs (I need to learn to breathe through my nose when I ride.) I have conquered 15 miles of road and have scoffed at the sign at the gas station that reads $1.74 a gallon. I arrive in Minneapolis victorious and, quite honestly, I kind of expect a smallish tickertape parade and a lot more fanfare than I get.

But today was different. As I approached the Government Plaza everyone was cheering for me. Mayor Rybeck welcomed me from the stage. This was what I’d been waiting for! This is how riders should be greeted every morning. (Though, to be fussy, I’d like cream cheese with the bagels, and I was bummed that there was no coffee left.) I circulated among the brethren, pleased by our numbers and, as always, amazed by the fact that, really, no one looks that good in Spandex.

I made my way to the bike locker and shower room that US Bank Plaza generously provides for commuters which was when I discovered that in my enthusiasm to embrace Bike to Work Day, I’d inadvertantly joined forces with the lesser-known celebrations: Leave Your Underwear at Home Day and Forget to Shave Day.

Participation may have been limited…to …um… me, but at least I don’t have to worry about those nasty boxer lines showing through my ultra-thin summer business casual wear. But it made me smile as I recalled all those people on the plaza—was I really the only one who may have rushed out of the house just a little too enthusiastically? Or were there ten’s or even hundreds of commuters that were sitting at their desks dressed just a little bit differently today?

- Paul Pfeiffer