So I saved a $1.68 today by riding my bicycle to work

[smithenhiven]

I decided that I'm going to ride my bicycle to work as much as possible this summer. My initial motivation to do this was to get back in shape, and to prepare myself for the "Pittsburgh MS150" (which is a 150 mile bikeride that benefits Multiple Sclerosis) Then I thought about the money I'd save since I won't be driving my car.

My round-trip from home to work and back is 16.8 miles, and my Accord gets right around 30 mpg, gas around here is right around $3.00/gallon, so I figure I just saved $1.68.

So if I ride to work 4 days a week (although I work 5 days a week, but I'll give myself one day per week off incase the weather might be bad, or I need my car to transport stuff, or if I just don't feel like pedaling to work) for the next 16 weeks, assuming gas stays at $3/gallon this summer (which it most likely won't), I'll save around $107, plus I'm sure I'll drop a few pounds in the process.

[trebuchet03]

Originally Posted by smithenhiven

I'll save around $107, plus I'm sure I'll drop a few pounds in the process.

And less pounds = easier to ride Not to mention muscle growth and extra energy

I find that when I do my regular rides... I eat like there's no tomorrow (perhaps offsetting my carbon output?)... But as soon as I stop (well, within a day) - my metabolism drops back significantly and, pardon the expression, my bowels aren't too happy either

But don't forget the savings in wear/tear on your vehicle too (as long as it gets a little attention). But really, given the health side of it - can you put a "savings" on better quality of life?

[MetroMPG]

Nice going. 17 miles is no small commute, either.

[Matt Timion]

I try to ride about 10 miles a day. Some days it's more, some days it's less. Today I rode about 5-6 miles when I went to return my movies to blockbuster.

Anyway, I'm doing it to lose some weight too. My goal of 175lbs is almost met (176 as of Monday). After I hit the 175, I'm going to set a new goal of 170 and then stick with it.

In comparison, I was 189 in January before I started riding my bike.

[Hockey4mnhs]

you guys are so lucky my work is 22 miles. thats way to far for me. i try to ride my bike to the small town down the road (3miles) but theres nothing there so i rarely ever go there

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Hockey4mnhs

you guys are so lucky my work is 22 miles. thats way to far for me.

Too far for electric assist?

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Matt Timion

I try to ride about 10 miles a day. Some days it's more, some days it's less.

I was going to install a digital speedo/odometer on my beater bike this year just out of curiosity, but I haven't done it. I figure I'm riding about 10 miles a day on average too.

[jdham137]

You also need to consider that not driving is the ultimate in fuel efficiency. I haven't been riding much and need to start again now that spring is finally hitting Maine. If you have a very long commute, try this. When I lived in Virginia I had a 38 mile commute, 2/3 of it on the highway, so biking was out. So what I did was I put the bike in the trunk, drove till I got off the highway, parked the car in a grocery store parking lot, and pedaled the rest of the way. This was after 9/11 when the lines to get on Navy bases were miles long and I did it just to avoid traffic. That was before I became "FE Aware."

John David

[MetroMPG]

John David - I know a guy who does something similar to that.

In the summer he drives in from the countryside with his bike on the back of his car, parks at the marina where he keeps his boat and then cycles another 10 km or so round trip to his office.

[repete86]

Wow! I try to bike when possible, but I can't bike that far. It's consistently over 90 degrees out now with humidity really high. I miss winter....

[QDM]

Wish I could ride a bike on my 28 mile daily commute, up and down hills, but that's just too far for me. My engine assist bicycle works nicely though and gets roughly 120 mpg.

Q

[smithenhiven]

Originally Posted by Matt Timion

I try to ride about 10 miles a day. Some days it's more, some days it's less. Today I rode about 5-6 miles when I went to return my movies to blockbuster.

Anyway, I'm doing it to lose some weight too. My goal of 175lbs is almost met (176 as of Monday). After I hit the 175, I'm going to set a new goal of 170 and then stick with it.

In comparison, I was 189 in January before I started riding my bike.

I'm setting a weight goal for myself also. Right now, I'm ashamed to say I'm 220lbs. I want to be well below 200 by the end of summer. I started riding towards the end of April, and already have over 100 miles on the bike. I want to set a mileage goal also, 1000 miles by the end of August.

[Snax]

I've ridden to work every day for the last 2-1/2 weeks, and about 50% of the time for the previous 6 months before that. Yeah, it's only 5.5 miles round trip, but it's not helping me lose weight per se. I think I'm replacing fat with muscle though, as I've lost almost 3" around my gut and I'm more comfortable at higher and higher speeds.

I also like the fact that I'm able to jazz up my metabolism twice a day without overdoing it. Sometimes that means 8 minutes on the way to work, and 15 minutes into a headwind (why is it always a head wind?) on the way home, but it's making a difference.

The money we've saved is over $3000 during that time since we got rid of a $450/month payment by selling our second vehicle.

[MetroMPG]

Nice going, Snax.

Are you still considering an EV conversion or kit also?

[Snax]

Yeah, the EV-MR2 is still a work in progress. Despite the money we've saved, I don't have any to spend on the EV yet however, but there's still plenty of low-cost prep and fix-up work to do on it before it will be ready for building.

[atomicradish]

I hate to rain on your parade, but....

You're not saving $1.68 completely. Deduct a decent chunk of all the money you save by not using gas for the extra food you'll have to eat to support your increased metabolism.

[Snax]

Well yes and no. It depends upon his weight loss. For myself, I could bicycle to work and back about 10-12 times for every pound of fat I burn. If I am in fact burning fat, then it is money I have already spent. It's a caloric savings account so to speak that has limited liquidity. Withdrawls can only be made slowly. :P

[boofighter]

this may have been posted before.
this is what i am saving up for.
http://www.bionx.ca/
i have gone to the show room in edmonton and rode the demonstrator bike that they had. it was really cool and worked well. the motor had enough power to keep me going at 25kph, just the motor. with pedaling it was way easier to hit 35kph.

[omgwtfbyobbq]

Originally Posted by atomicradish

I hate to rain on your parade, but....

You're not saving $1.68 completely. Deduct a decent chunk of all the money you save by not using gas for the extra food you'll have to eat to support your increased metabolism.

Yeah, but it's better than getting exercise elsewhere, especially paying for it. I mean, it's silly to bike everywhere unless we're in a city, but doing two things that we really should/need to do, exercise and transport rolled into one is pretty imo.

[Bill in Houston]

Originally Posted by omgwtfbyobbq

Yeah, but it's better than getting exercise elsewhere, especially paying for it.

Yeah, I shake my head when I see people taking the elevator to the fitness center, and then going in and getting on the stairmaster.

[omgwtfbyobbq]

What, what?

[Bill in Houston]

Heh heh heh.

[Snax]

My next vehicle upgrade will be this. I'm thinking that it will need to be paired with a cheap cruiser however to keep from weighing down my 'good' bike.

[omgwtfbyobbq]

Damn that's expensive! $1000 for an electric motor? Why not get two 1200W scooter motors and run a fixed/free wheel flip-flip hub? More power at a third of the price...

[omgwtfbyobbq]

They must make a killing off of each one sold! Of course, they've "gotta make a living", even if it means ripping people off.

[Snax]

Actually I don't believe $1000 to be too expensive considering what's involved in labor and materials cost to build something as slick. Hub motors are about as simple as it gets, and the brushless ones will last longer than any brushed scooter motor. (I've looked at other brushless motor options and the cost savings just isn't there.)

I also want something that retains as much the appearance of a regular bicycle as possible since our idiotic local laws limit electric assisted bicycle top speed to just 20MPH! Cripes, that's barely faster than I pedal on the average day.

Besides, if I do anything custom, it's going to involve using an E-tek motor and require vehicle registration.

[white90crxhf]

Originally Posted by smithenhiven

I decided that I'm going to ride my bicycle to work as much as possible this summer. My initial motivation to do this was to get back in shape, and to prepare myself for the "Pittsburgh MS150" (which is a 150 mile bikeride that benefits Multiple Sclerosis) Then I thought about the money I'd save since I won't be driving my car.

My round-trip from home to work and back is 16.8 miles, and my Accord gets right around 30 mpg, gas around here is right around $3.00/gallon, so I figure I just saved $1.68.

So if I ride to work 4 days a week (although I work 5 days a week, but I'll give myself one day per week off incase the weather might be bad, or I need my car to transport stuff, or if I just don't feel like pedaling to work) for the next 16 weeks, assuming gas stays at $3/gallon this summer (which it most likely won't), I'll save around $107, plus I'm sure I'll drop a few pounds in the process.

you're actually save more than just gas money. each mile you drive you're spending money on tires, struts, oil, starter, alternator... and on and on.

[Snax]

Now, sell the car, use the money equity to pay off debt, and pocket your insurance money. Biking to work is currently saving me over $500/month in those terms.

[korax123]

If i lived closer then 15 iles to work I would bike to work atleast a couple days a week. But screw doing 30miles a day thats a little much for me.

[Perrymason]

Feels kinda wierd ... i put a digital meter on my bike and was quite shocked.
i used to drive to work which was 5 K away took me 15- 20 mins a day on average.... biking takes me 10-13 mins... did the math and i was actually geting a higher average speed and quicker time not to mention that going to work was all uphill...turns out that it was the idleing time that was killing my drive to work since on my bike i could just scoot through red lights and such.

now i'm looking to convert/rebuild a 1956 mini to electric
should be interesting ... this site has totally given me some amazing info... time to put it to the test .... if the guy that owns the mini will let me put it back together

cheers from toronto