Easy Commute

I made a pact with myself. With an engineering internship for the fall term, I looked forward to working, but I also had something to prove. I wanted to learn about working as an engineer, but more importantly, I wanted to prove to myself that I could continue to have an active lifestyle while doing so -- by biking to work every day. After looking at maps, I saw that I could mountain bike commute over Burnt Mountain from Hanover to Lebanon, NH.

That meant weaving  around rocks and roots moments after waking up, heading to work only to pant uphill by headlamp for three miles before dropping into windy singletrack for a wild ride down.

The commute became the highlight of my day. Not only was the ride a fun and challenging one, but by riding the same track every day, I watched the season change day by day.

The ride was not without some mishaps. On day one, I carried my bike through a swamp only to exit the trail network on the wrong side of the mountain, slogging to work an hour late. On day three, I took a sapling down on the way home with my handlebars, sending me flying. On day four, I broke a chain halfway to work and pushed my bike the rest of the way. By day five, after going over the handlebars so perfectly that my bike landed, perfectly balanced, wheels still spinning, on my back, I was getting used to recounting my commute to my co-workers. I don’t know if they fully believed me, but I felt bad for anyone that didn’t have the chance to adventure every day and see some stunning fall colors.