The long way around
08/10/24 01:10
Our house is 2.7 miles from our son’s farm. There are lots of reasons why we enjoy living so close to farm. It is so easy for us to run over to the farm to see our grandchildren and to help when there is need of an extra hand at the farm. Our son generously shares space in their barn with me so that I have a workshop where I have several projects including a kayak that is nearing completion. It is no problem for us to farm sit when they need to travel out of town for a few days. If there is a special need, we’re just a few minutes away. If we need to watch a child while a parent is helping others, the child can be dropped off at our house or we can run over to their house in minutes. In the three years that we have lived here, we have made quick trips when a key was locked inside the house, when a child needed to be taken to the emergency room, when an extra driver was needed when different children had events in different places, and other reasons. We routinely share meals both at the farm and at our house.
2.7 miles is a very convenient distance to travel by bicycle. The only problem is that two of those 2.7 miles are on a two lane road with almost no shoulder and a 50 mph speed limit. It is no place for a bicycle. Although we occasionally see people riding bikes along that road, it seems too dangerous for us or our grandchildren.
This simmer I purchased an electric bicycle and I have really enjoyed riding it around the area. With the bike in assist mode, it has a range of nearly 40 miles, which is farther than I want to ride. I can, however, make a 20-mile loop from our home to the end of the spit on Drayton Harbor, riding both directions all the way around our bay. The boost mode allows me to go up steep hills without becoming winded and it is a wonderful treat when riding into the wind. It isn’t unusual for me to ride at an average speed of 15 mph. The bike is equipped with a speedometer and odometer and so I know that I have ridden it more than 1,000 miles since I got it.
The bike has a sturdy basket and a rack on the back, so it is a breeze to get a few groceries from the campground store or the slightly larger grocery store up the bay a couple of miles from our house.
I’m no stranger to riding a bike. When we lived in Boise, Idaho, I often rode my bike to and from work. Boise has an excellent greenbelt system of parks and bike paths that made it possible for me to ride all around the city, often being able to travel a shorter distance than required if driving a car. In those days I didn’t have an electric bike and didn’t feel a need for one. Rapid City, however, was a different matter. We lived up a hill from town and the 10 mile each way ride was too much for me. I never did ride my bike from home to the church, though I rode many trails in the hills as well as riding around the city.
Were the road different, I would definitely ride to the farm, often on a daily basis. I enjoy the exercise and it is wasteful to drive my pickup when I have nothing to haul.
Since I’m a person who enjoys looking at maps and driving on back roads, I’ve explored most of the country roads around here by car and am exploring them further by bike. I also have discovered two roads that parallel the road from our house to our son’s farm that have wide bike lanes alongside them. Even though the speed limit is 50 mph on both roads, there is plenty of room to ride my bike even when the traffic includes semi trucks going to and from the refinery.
The weather was just right on Sunday for a ride, so I set out to explore a back roads route to the farm. I had two possible routes in mind and so made a loop out of the trip, going one route on the way to the farm that got me there in 9.2 miles and returning by a slightly shorter route of 8.7 miles. I was so pleased with the trip that I repeated the loop yesterday going the opposite direction. Yesterday, I was able to spend a couple of hours at the farm working on my kayak, so I plugged in the bike while I worked and never saw the energy meter on the bike go below 3/4 charge. I’m feeling pleased with the new-found ability to ride my bike to and from the farm. With the boost of the electric bicycle, I can make the trip in about a half hour. Since my walking pace these days is only about 3 mph, the bike gets me there quicker than I could walk going directly and walking has the same dangers as riding the bike, so taking a direct route walking is not a safe option.
Riding my bike to and from the farm is a sign to me that I am settling into retirement. When I was working, I don’t think I often was willing to take that much time to cover a similar distance. I had things to do and places to go. These days, however, a half hour trip to the farm seems like a fun adventure when the weather is good. I’ll probably always be a fair weather bike rider. I have ridden it some distance in the rain and I have good rain gear, but I wear glasses and haven’t yet found a good way to deal with the way rain distorts my vision when it is running down my glasses.
For now I’m celebrating that I know how to go 17.9 miles to complete a 5.4 mile trip. Now that I’m retired, I have time for “long cuts” instead of always seeking out the shortcut.
2.7 miles is a very convenient distance to travel by bicycle. The only problem is that two of those 2.7 miles are on a two lane road with almost no shoulder and a 50 mph speed limit. It is no place for a bicycle. Although we occasionally see people riding bikes along that road, it seems too dangerous for us or our grandchildren.
This simmer I purchased an electric bicycle and I have really enjoyed riding it around the area. With the bike in assist mode, it has a range of nearly 40 miles, which is farther than I want to ride. I can, however, make a 20-mile loop from our home to the end of the spit on Drayton Harbor, riding both directions all the way around our bay. The boost mode allows me to go up steep hills without becoming winded and it is a wonderful treat when riding into the wind. It isn’t unusual for me to ride at an average speed of 15 mph. The bike is equipped with a speedometer and odometer and so I know that I have ridden it more than 1,000 miles since I got it.
The bike has a sturdy basket and a rack on the back, so it is a breeze to get a few groceries from the campground store or the slightly larger grocery store up the bay a couple of miles from our house.
I’m no stranger to riding a bike. When we lived in Boise, Idaho, I often rode my bike to and from work. Boise has an excellent greenbelt system of parks and bike paths that made it possible for me to ride all around the city, often being able to travel a shorter distance than required if driving a car. In those days I didn’t have an electric bike and didn’t feel a need for one. Rapid City, however, was a different matter. We lived up a hill from town and the 10 mile each way ride was too much for me. I never did ride my bike from home to the church, though I rode many trails in the hills as well as riding around the city.
Were the road different, I would definitely ride to the farm, often on a daily basis. I enjoy the exercise and it is wasteful to drive my pickup when I have nothing to haul.
Since I’m a person who enjoys looking at maps and driving on back roads, I’ve explored most of the country roads around here by car and am exploring them further by bike. I also have discovered two roads that parallel the road from our house to our son’s farm that have wide bike lanes alongside them. Even though the speed limit is 50 mph on both roads, there is plenty of room to ride my bike even when the traffic includes semi trucks going to and from the refinery.
The weather was just right on Sunday for a ride, so I set out to explore a back roads route to the farm. I had two possible routes in mind and so made a loop out of the trip, going one route on the way to the farm that got me there in 9.2 miles and returning by a slightly shorter route of 8.7 miles. I was so pleased with the trip that I repeated the loop yesterday going the opposite direction. Yesterday, I was able to spend a couple of hours at the farm working on my kayak, so I plugged in the bike while I worked and never saw the energy meter on the bike go below 3/4 charge. I’m feeling pleased with the new-found ability to ride my bike to and from the farm. With the boost of the electric bicycle, I can make the trip in about a half hour. Since my walking pace these days is only about 3 mph, the bike gets me there quicker than I could walk going directly and walking has the same dangers as riding the bike, so taking a direct route walking is not a safe option.
Riding my bike to and from the farm is a sign to me that I am settling into retirement. When I was working, I don’t think I often was willing to take that much time to cover a similar distance. I had things to do and places to go. These days, however, a half hour trip to the farm seems like a fun adventure when the weather is good. I’ll probably always be a fair weather bike rider. I have ridden it some distance in the rain and I have good rain gear, but I wear glasses and haven’t yet found a good way to deal with the way rain distorts my vision when it is running down my glasses.
For now I’m celebrating that I know how to go 17.9 miles to complete a 5.4 mile trip. Now that I’m retired, I have time for “long cuts” instead of always seeking out the shortcut.