My daily rides are over

M

Merkid

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I just came off two steady weeks of taking my bike to work to save gas and enjoy the feeling.

Each day, I had to watch for near misses so I felt stressed each night to the point of not looking forward to the traffic route taking me thru the the Mississauga Heartland Commercial area every morning and night.

I usually go for a Sunday morning ride with the Buds. We did this for the last 8 years and I enjoyed the early run into Escarpment country with minimal traffic.

I called the guys to tell them I wasn't in the mood for it yesterday, a wonderful day for that ride. One guy got back to me and told me to stop taking the bike to work as he thinks I'm losing my desire to enjoy riding.

He is so right.

Caging it today to work....how sad.
 
I'm the same. I commute Peterborough to Whitby for work every day. Sometimes I take the bike, but end up regretting it. I leave at 5:45 am and see all manner of distracted driver, cars creeping into my lane, tailgating and cars switching across all three lanes in one move. I don't enjoy it. I got into motorcycling at 16 because it was fun. It is my passion and my hobby. I plan on keeping it that way. If I'm going to deal with idiots in cages for two hours a day, five days a week, I want the safety of my own cage.

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I don't commute for those very reasons. I don't like riding in traffic. To lazy to put on all the gear in the AM. No where to put my lunch. Bike really only comes out when it's time to have fun.
 
Iswitch it up... Ride to work a few days a week, take the train other days....
I get to see just how retarded some drivers are but keep my sanity because its not eveyday.
 
I understand the risk and the frustration, and I'm also sorry to hear that your passion is dependant on other people.

ninjanewbie said:
......

...but keep my sanity because its not eveyday.
Click to expand...

This is one way to keep your passion alive, I guess.
 
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I love commuting to work. If anything it makes me want to go out more, and if I'm already out on the bike and I get off work late I'll just take it for a spin before I go home. It's way more nimble than my car, I can change lanes easier, I can make right turns at a red when there's a lineup of cars going straight, the morning air is excellent and the ride wakes me up and ready for work. I have a backpack and it can easily store a lunch. The only downfall is when I'm on the bike I normally don't go out to eat because I don't want to gear up (I'll walk to the diner or go out with a co-worker in that case), and I can't pick stuff up on the way home if I need to (which isn't that often).

Maybe you should see if there are any detours you can take to avoid highly congested areas where the idiots congregate?
 
I'd love to be a daily commuter. And then I realized my path work directly involves riding through pacific mall area. Thanks but no thanks, I'll stick to being a weekend warrior.
 
I hear you brother!

I want to ride to work (Bowmanville to Ajax) but the main routes are the 401 and Taunton Rd. Every day I observe very bad and extremely aggressive drivers. People so distracted and rushing, I've seen a garbage truck (HUGE vehicle with flashing lights) read-ended on Taunton.

If I lived in Toronto, I don't think I'd be able to ride at all. Here I am complaining about Taunton Rd... :)
 
Merkid said:
I just came off two steady weeks of taking my bike to work to save gas and enjoy the feeling.

Each day, I had to watch for near misses so I felt stressed each night to the point of not looking forward to the traffic route taking me thru the the Mississauga Heartland Commercial area every morning and night.

I usually go for a Sunday morning ride with the Buds. We did this for the last 8 years and I enjoyed the early run into Escarpment country with minimal traffic.

I called the guys to tell them I wasn't in the mood for it yesterday, a wonderful day for that ride. One guy got back to me and told me to stop taking the bike to work as he thinks I'm losing my desire to enjoy riding.

He is so right.

Caging it today to work....how sad.
Click to expand...


Transition to a Sport Bike mentality, in that you ride for the pleasure not the commute.
I do not commute on my Ninja downtown, I know better.


It's like dressing up your wife/girlfriend to look like crap.; You'll not want to ride her anymore.
Keep her for one purpose, and you are good to go.

It's how you interpret your "situation".
D
 
Believe it or not, the same idiots are on the road morning,noon and night, downtown or out in the burbs.

I'd rather commute on the bike, and generally the only time i'm on my bike for free/pleasure time is trying to get out of Ontario.
 
I've got those feelings too once in a while (i.e.: when it rains heavily) but in the end I'm a daily commuter on the bike. Personally I find less and less time to take off for a day or two of riding as there are other priorities in life which take precedence. Can't leave the wife at home each weekend to go riding now can I!?

Also, we have only one car and I enjoy commuting on the bike enough, that I'm too cheap/can't be bothered to buy a second car at this point in time. None bring me the thrill / joy of driving that a bike does and for me it gets me some entertainment on my way to/from work. A pair of proper hard luggage, and the right mentality lets me enjoy the bike whether it's to work and back (not fun) to a day away solo or with a buddy (fun!).

In the end it comes down to your mentality...maybe it's time to switch up to a different bike? Or try a different route? Or just take a break from riding to work and then get back into it.
 
I guess it's a bit dependant on the length and location of your route, but my commute takes me through 20-25 min of moderate city streets and I absolutely hate it when I have to take the car (i.e. when it snows), because it's 100x more fun on the bike. I have a top case at the back to store any random stuff I need to take to work, and pick up some groceries at the end of the day too. As much as it can be challenging to deal with downtown traffic, I find it's still better with a bike than a car.

If at all possible, consider finding an alternative route that's less stressful and more fun.
 
I commuted in the 1980's, West Hamilton to Appleby Line on 403. Most days I could hit 100mph+ at least once. Good times. My neighbour is a new rider at 68yrs.old. First bike 1200 Sportster (traded for homebuilt rat rod) Now he's telling me about his commuting woes to post retirement job. I tell him he's crazy! No way would I commute today. I get the willees just riding thru town to get to the good stuff on the weekends.
 
as said already, i do both. sometimes on my bike and sometimes in my cage.

mind you, my commute to work isn't crazy. i live in brooklin and work in markham. so literally, my commute consists of a hwy7 and 16th ave. not to many crazy drivers in cages. and when i am done work, i don't usually go home when i ride my bike. i cruise and maybe meet up with some people. so by the time it's ready to go home, it's around 10-11pm already with very minimal cars on the roads i take.

edit:
today, i took my car. supposed to be a thunderstorm all day. same thing tomorrow.
 
Avoiding retarded drivers, is more pleasurable on a bike than in a car. Plus saving so much in gas and parking since I now have to work down town. Rode almost every day in May and took different ways every few days to figure out the best route with avoiding the worst traffic areas and construction.
 
The only riding I do in the GTA is on my way out to better and less populated roads
 
There are some days no matter how beautiful that I can't enjoy my ride. Be it massive cage traffic or light after light after light, something just ruins it. I can't even get out of the city. I just turn back and head in. Then I get days like last Saturday. Had a blast.

This is my signature.....apparently
 
This is what I do every single day!!
I have to travel from north to downtown for work...
I hate TTC and the parking for car is way to expansive...
I ride bike to downtown every single day!
I put on gear around 5:30 am, heat up my bike
and I take my bike out!
not many cars before 7am so actually is not that bad.
if I have extra time, I can stop by any coffee shop and have a breakfast and coffee!!!
If I only ride in the weekend.... For me it will be a big waste!
our winter is way too long enough, and I don't want to wait anymore!!
Plus, I enjoy riding.
 
Gave up riding to work after doing it last summer...made riding so much better this year.
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