Bikes are the BEST. I've been obsessed with riding bikes since I first decided to try my commute from the historic (and pretty weird) Woodner apartment building 2 miles north of the White House in Washington, DC all the way to my office 9 miles away at the American Physical Society wayyyyyyy back in 2005!

I didn't know the FIRST thing about it! I thought you were supposed to ride AGAINST traffic! I don't know where I got that idea -- I think I confused childhood tips for walking on sidewalks. Back then there were not many people riding bikes except mostly bike messengers. There were hardly any bike lanes, so not a lot of people on the streets for me to copy what they were doing and definitely no one was riding on my very weird route.

I only ever took the Metro to work and it took 15 minutes, even though I left DC and went to Maryland. I'd never been to my office in a car and I didn't drive anyway so I didn't really have a firm idea of what 9 miles was.

Navigating in the Time Before Smartphones

I'd decided I needed to ride a bike to work even though it was swampy August and I hadn't ridden one since I was a kid. So I extracted the dusty Huffy I'd had since high school from my parent's basement, wiped off the spider webs, and did absolutely nothing else to prepare -- no air in the tires (WHAT? I still don't know how that's possible), no oil on the chain.

This was pre-Google maps, pre-smartphones, so I pulled up Mapquest, printed the directions on the printer I bizarrely owned in my studio apartment, taped them to the handlebars of that somehow still functional bicycle, and began what became the scariest hour I ever spent on a bicycle, as I rode 9 miles in the street, against traffic, on some of the most dangerous roads in the DC area.

And Now I’m a Bike Mechanic

It was harrowing! My chain fell off while I was in the middle of crossing East-West Highway. I had to hop off my bike in the middle of the road and run across the street with it to become a bike mechanic with no tools or knowledge, on a tiny sidewalk, dripping with DC humidity sweat, and covered in grease, as I tried to get the chain back on.

It worked somehow and I was able to continue riding up and down the hills of Prince George's County until I finally arrived at my office in College Park, a fascinating pinkish-purple-ish hue, absolutely stunned and thrilled to still be alive.

Showers + Lockers Do Encourage Active Transportation

Unlike every bike advocacy organization I worked for in the years to come, the American Physical Society had showers. (And a locker room and a small gym). But it was the showers that made it possible for me to even consider riding a bike. They're the main reason I was comfortable enough with the idea of riding a semi-long distance at a sweaty time of year.

Access to showers and other facilities really can help open bike commuting to many more people who wouldn’t otherwise.

Companies can and should provide incentives for people -- customers, employees, guests, etc -- to use active (or public) transportation whenever possible. Changing the way we think talk about -- and use -- transportation is essential and urgent.

As soon as I took advantage of the fabulous shower facilities, I ran up to my office and began searching things like "why ride a bike?" and "how to stay alive while biking". I certainly did LIKE/love riding that bike but that was really way too scary so I couldn't imagine anyone else wanting to do that if that's what it was like.

Ah! We’re Supposed to Ride WITH the Flow of Traffic!

Luckily, I discovered I was doing it wrong: you ride With the flow of traffic. And from that day on, I could never ever stop trying to get everyone to ride a bike and I still want everyone to be able to ride bikes safely and easily everywhere.

For today and every day, I hope you have a fabulous ride!

Photo from 2013, me standing in an empty square in Adams Morgan, DC, where there's a ton of people on walking, on bikes, etc. Handing out coffee and talking to people about bikes...