What I learned after riding my bike to work for three weeks

The author's Specialized Stumpjumper in the office bike cage. The author's Specialized Stumpjumper in the office bike cage. Photo: A. Graff Photo: A. Graff Image 1 of / 32 Caption Close What I learned after riding my bike to work for three weeks 1 / 32 Back to Gallery

After losing my parking space at work last month, I pumped up the tires on my 22-year-old Stumpjumper and made a plan to start biking to work.

I dreaded the first day when I would have to give up my comfortable commute with heated seats and NPR for a strenuous and cold ride under a blanket of San Francisco fog.

Now, I've got three weeks of the new commute on my wheels and I've learned the chill, with the wind blowing in my face as I speed down Market Street, is a refreshing way to wake up (though I still miss my news updates from "Morning Edition").

In fact, I've found biking to work is actually life-changing. I'm in better shape without paying $50 an hour for a personal trainer and the added exercise and the decrease in stress from not driving has improved my mood.

ALSO: Here's what it's liked to get doored on the streets of SF

Here are a few other things I've learned and noticed (some of them important, some of them not) from riding my bike to work.

1) There's camaraderie among cyclists. On the road, other cyclists have smiled and waved at me. They've given me friendly signals alerting me they want to pass, which happens often because I'm slow. When I'm driving, fellow motorists never do this. I only ever get the finger, a scowl or a honk. The connection among cyclists makes commuting pleasant.

2) Getting doored is a real thing. If I'm going to die this year, it's going to be because I'll be whizzing past a parked car right at that moment when someone flings open a door and turns me into pulp. I have no science to back up that statement, but in three weeks, I've already nearly been doored. The SF Bicycle Coalition has tips on how to prevent being doored, including riding over the center of bicycle arrows that are intentionally placed outside the door zone.

3) Biking is often the fastest way to get around the city. At rush hour, whether in the morning or late afternoon, biking is undoubtedly the fastest way to get around downtown and up and down Market Street. In other instances, it's equal to driving. I used to drive from my house to work at 6 a.m. and it took me about 15 minutes. Riding my bike is the same. Going home requires riding up some hills so it takes about 10 minutes longer.

4) The streets are cleaner than the sidewalks. On foot, I'm always playing a game of hop and skip to avoid feces smeared on the sidewalks. The streets on the other hand are remarkably clean, although one morning I had to bike around a pool of spaghetti vomit in the bike lane.

5) Dressing in layers is crucial. I get cold easily and have found down jackets are great because they keep you warm while riding downhill and you can easily scrunch them up into a backpack once you hit the flats. On my ride uphill home, I'll often strip down to a T-shirt even on a cold day.

6) You can eat more if you bike to work. I'm not a calorie-counter, but I have noticed that with the extra exercise I'm eating a lot more ice cream since biking to work. No wonder the lines at Bi-Rite get so long.

ALSO: City celebrating cycling accomplishments at annual bike to work day

7) San Francisco is hilly. Of course, we all know this, but when you bike around the city your calf and thigh muscles also know this. I used to see those electric bikes as excessive, but now I very much get the appeal.

8) People in San Francisco bike fast. The hills seem to make everyone as fit enough to break away from a peloton. The speeds at which people speed past me are remarkable.

9) People wear suits, even skirts, while biking. Riding your bike to work doesn't mean you have to give up style. I've seen girls in skirts, men in suits, You don't sweat as much as you think you might because most of the time this city is cool. But I've confirmed that white pants aren't a good idea.

10) Drivers are clueless to cyclists. It wasn't until I started riding my bike to work that I realized how clueless drivers in this city can be to the presence of bicycles. Just the other day I was nearly mowed over by a massive SUV with tinted windows in a hurry to make a right turn. I don't think the driver saw me stopped waiting for a red light to turn green. Now that I'm a regular cyclist in the city, I've found that I'm driving differently. And on my bike, I'm seeking out the protected lanes.