Today I needed to go into the office for a while in order to pound out some policy/procedure updates due tomorrow. Anyway, it was a chance to see if I could actually bike all the way to and from work. Most of my rides are four to five miles, since I mostly ride with the dog and I don't want to destroy his joints. To work and back is about twelve and a half miles.

The route to work is mostly downhill, and while the return hardly rates hors de categorie like l'Alpe de Huez, there are some long uphill stretches. According to my USGS map, downtown Portland lies at thirty feet above sea level, and the highest point my path crosses is at three hundred above. Luckily I don't need to go right to the top of Mt Tabor, which is at six hundred-odd feet. I have walked up there with the dog-faced boy and admired those cyclists gung-ho enough to race up the path.

So thank Portland for its lefty commitment to bike transit. I made it to my place off employment and back, all due gratitude to the useful bike lanes and carefully arranged routes. Next up will be to try biking to work occasionally. Will have to finesse the sweat factor.