My Commuter Husband

He leaves about 5:30 am 

Last week I walked into the garage to  find my 48 year old husband mounting my foam pumpkin to the back of his bike. MY foam pumpkin!

Because, why not? As if all the his reflective gear and wheel lights aren’t enough to warn drivers. And it’s Halloween week after all.

Many people ask about Jay’s sudden onset of crazy, riding to work three times a week, 20 miles each way, an hour and 15 minutes each way.

It’s simple….

He’s nuts.

He hasn’t always been that way. He’s always been a very even tempered kind of guy. But when he finds something he loves,he goes all out. For instance, he married me 23 years ago! But I digress….

First it was the 1976 Chevy Nova that he painted and souped up in college. Then is was the 1963 Triumph TR4 he got from a college friend’s grandma for free, restored and souped up. I won’t attempt to describe what “souped up” means but I know it involves big engines.

If you don’t know where to find Jay, you go to the garage.

And that is still the case today. You can find him cleaning his bike, airing up his tires, putting on additional parts and packing for his commute from Liberty to downtown Kansas City.

Yes, DOWNTOWN!

I’m not sure how it got this crazy. It started about 5 years ago when he found an old bike at his sister’s house and fixed it up to give it a spin so he could ride with our neighbor. I would constantly make fun of their cute spandex shorts and brightly colored tops. Why on earth would someone wear that stuff?

Then he got me with the cycling bug. I now know why he wears those ridiculous clothes (comfort and safety) and why he loves the sport so much. As someone with bad knees can tell you, cycling is the one thing besides swimming that doesn’t hurt the knees. And I really enjoyed riding with Jay and eventually other neighbors as well.

Over time we participated in the Bike MS, Copper Triangle and various other rides for causes that involved distance and mountain challenges. These felt like amazing accomplishments!

I guess he got bored with these races so he added “commuter” to his list of accomplishments by finding a safe route using back roads all the way to his downtown office where he can shower and change and do it all again in the afternoon.

He has also learned to use the bus on days when the weather is not cooperating (although he will ride in most anything).

Good thing there was no traffic when he
snapped this picture!

Commuting has it’s ups and downs. He gets his workout in with a purpose instead of just riding around in circles like I do. We have a discount on our car insurance because he drives so little now. But occasionally he will have a flat tire that causes him to be late. The roads in Missouri aren’t very kind to cyclists.

Overall, the guy has found a hobby he loves that is healthy for him and keeps him happy which keeps his family happy. It’s good for the environment too!

The only negative is that people don’t understand cyclists here in Missouri like they do in pretty much every other city we’ve cycled in. Las Vegas;  fantastic bike paths.  San Diego; best ride ever along route 1. Colorado; heck you see people in Denver riding in their work clothes through downtown.

We have some work to do in teaching people how to share the road so that the emergency bracelet I bought for Jay to wear never has to be used.

People often ask if I worry about him. Not really. I think I’d worry more if he wasn’t keeping himself healthy physically and emotionally. I’m proud of him. He’s nuts and all this biking takes up too much time in my opinion, but for now, we go with it…..with a pumpkin on the back.

Jay's Copper Triangle finish...a few hours faster than me:)

Best part about finishing the Copper
Triangle (80 miles in the Rockies)
was the hug from my son! That's
proud father in law in the background!

Dream bike ride, Route 1
San Diego