Two Wheeling, Now with Barns!

"Columbus Gets High Marks for Low Stress"

Trumpeted a recent article in the Columbus Dispatch which proudly reported that Columbus fared well in a recent Forbes Magazine survey of most stressed out cities. We finished 5th--only Minneapolis, Portland, Milwaukee, Boston are LESS stressful cities to live in.

It's pretty sad that researchers are even measuring this.

You might ask, "How the hell do they measure a city's stress level?" Well, in this case the researchers examined six metrics, including the unemployment rate, time spent at the office, 3 health-related factors dealing with exercise and access to health care AND COMMUTE TIMES

Very interesting. I'm betting the commutes referenced in the study are via cars, not via bikes (since everyone knows bike commuting relieves stress). But to include commutes as a major factor determining a city's stress level is very telling and points to the obvious solution--get on a bike!

I think it's also interesting that 2 of the cities ahead of us in the study, Minneapolis and Portland, are the cities leading the pedaling revolution in the U.S. (FYI, Minneapolis recently unseated Portland as the bicycle capital of the U.S.)

So, one more reason to become a twowheeler--CHILL! 

My First R-Rated Blog

I had dinner last night at the venerable downtown Columbus Club with my fellow Board members and former Board presidents.We finished around 8:30 pm and I hopped on my bike and headed up High Street.

Imagine my surprise when I passed the Garden lingerie and adult toy store near 5th Avenue 
 and saw this!

Boy,  I don't remember ever seeing manequins like this in Sears or JC Penny's when I was a kid!

I've been biking past this storefront for years--the "girls" are always nattily attired, or partially attired, in seasonal garb. I think I caught them between changes from their Halloween to their Thanksgiving and Christmas wardrobes.

Maybe it wasn't so great that I finally learned to use my camera phone.

I Miss the Olentangy Trail

I don't ride the Olentangy bike trail much any more, which is weird--for my first 5 years commuting, it's the ONLY place I rode. I've gotten used to riding on the streets which enables me to go faster (there's a 15 mph suggested speed limit on the Olentangy trail) and to take a more direct route (the trail meanders back and forth across the river). I can get to work 10-15 minutes faster when I take to the streets.

But riding the Olentangy trail this week has reminded me of some of the things I miss about riding along the river. 

 First of all, there's the wildlife--the river is a highway and resting spot for lots of ducks and other migratory waterfowl. This morning I happened upon an OSU employee, Mark, who feeds the ducks and geese his leftover bread every week or so on his way to work at the OSU math dept.
 

I even spotted a little greb, dark gray with a white bill, in the river. Mark said he hasn't seen many grebs on the Olentangy and they're more reluctant to come up on the river bank than the mallards.

As I approached downtown, I happened upon a fellow who salvages cans, wire and other metal to take to the salvage yard. He recently lost his job at Goodyear in Chillicothe and makes a living this way. He hauls his stuff on a bike trailer. He was readjusting his load as I biked by and snapped his photo.

Finally, I saw these purple asters near the federal courthouse where the bike trail ends. 
Now that I've learned to use my camera phone,  I hope you're enjoying the photos!

Big News on the Olentangy Trail!!!!!

I've been biking to work almost 10 years now. For the first several years I used the Olentangy bike path, but the segment through the OSU area was always a frustration--it was very dangerous, especially near Drake Union where you had to ride on the sidewalk and make 90 degree blind turns, and for years it was very badly maintained.

For most of this summer, the bike path has been closed to bike traffic through OSU. I heard last week the trail would be reopening soon, so this morning I gave it a try and I was stunned!
The bike path has been entirely rerouted along the river to the west of the Drake Union! This is what we've been waiting for forever! Halelujah!!
This is the best thing that's happened to the CBus bikeway system in years! I can't wait to hear from other twowheelers how they like this improvement.

"They Don't Even Get to Vote in China" or "Update on Morgan Kids"

We were on skype with our youngest son, Corey, who is in Shanghai doing an internship with WR Grace. Corey is an OSU senior majoring in Chem E and Chinese and got an opportunity of a lifetime to spend 3-6 months in China and he jumped at it--even if it meant leaving his track career behind (he ran the 800 and mile for OSU--here he is running against the Maize & Blue (he's the one with the long hair and headband) http://www.runnerspace.com/video.php?do=view&member_id=3990&video_id=8296). We were discussing the low voter turnout last week and he paused and said, "Dad, they don't even have elections in China." I knew that.

As for the other Morgan kids, our oldest son, Brandon (29), is settled in Columbus for the time being with his wife, Komang, whom he met in Bali while he was backpacking around the world. We think he used several of his 9 lives on the trip which many of you followed at www.wheresmorgan.com.

And our middle child, Kate (24), finally secured full-time employment in her field (wellness) and is working at the McConnell Center as a personal trainer and fitness and nutrition coach. She's very passionate about helping her dad turn the Titanic.

I thought my friends might like an update on the kids. Today's going to be a beautiful fall day in CBus--I might have to bend the rules and take a bike ride today.   

And Now for Some Good News

My election day blues were dispersed and replaced by bright sunshine yesterday as I biked home from downtown along High Street. A young cyclist passed me just north of campus and I caught his back wheel and we biked together for a couple miles up to Baer Wheels, where I was dropping off my Night Rider light which stopped working--Dave Baer says he can send it back to the factory and they can probably fix it. The warranty expired quite awhile ago, but the light was expensive and if they can fix it it'll save me having to buy a new one and keep my old one out of a landfill. I really need a light this time of year, so Dave loaned me one until mine comes back.

Turns out my new friend, Andrew, is a 29 year-old computer programmer who works in the Arena District and lives in Clintonville. He started biking to work this year and has lost 30 pounds. He agreed to stop at Baer Wheels so I could snap his photo for you. Doesn't he look great!

While I was getting Andrew's photo, another cyclist friend, Jerry, who owns a downtown marketing and graphics company and commutes via twowheels from his home in the North End, happened by. I joined him on his ride north. I told him I'm nursing a pulled muscle and he recommended fish oil pills--he swears by them to help heal muscle pulls and general inflammation. "You can get 250 pills for 10 bucks at Target," he offered. I asked Beth to pick some up next time she's there.

I left work a little early yesterday because we went to the Bob Dylan concert at the Schott. Bob's voice was never great and the little voice he had is mostly gone, so he growls his way through all the great songs Beth and I grew up with. But he looked great (I wonder if he bicycles--he's from Minnesota) and his band was superb, and we and our friends had a great time. And it made me want to relearn a few of his songs to maybe perform with the Pep Boys--don't know how that'll go over with my bandmates.

It was definitely brisk riding in this morning and, according to the forecast, I might be riding home through some flurries this evening. I love twowheeling through the change of seasons and I'm already starting the countdown toward an important date on the twowheeling calendar--the Winter Solstice--when the days begin to get longer.   

48% Voter Turnout--What's Up With That?

According to the Dispatch this morning, we only had 48% voter turnout for the recent election. I can't believe that a majority of the citizens of Ohio would not take the time to vote in such an important election during such a tumultuous period in our state and nation's history. I mentioned in my blog on election day that I had seen a t-shirt on the bike path with the admonition "Democracy is not a spectator sport!" Well, it appears that that's exactly what our democracy is becoming.

I'm worried that our great American democratic "experiment" is at grave risk. I'm afraid it's because we've become so disconnected from each other and because folks don't think they or their votes matter or maybe they're just tired and have stopped giving a damn. Whatever the reason, it ain't good.

What's the answer? I don't know. But we've got to find a way to reconnect and move forward together. TwoWheeling can help do this, but we need everyone to pitch in. Time is of the essence.  

    

Greetings from the Loading Dock

I joined a new law firm, Hahn Loeser & Parks, which has offices at 65 E. State Street, a 20+ story office tower in downtown Columbus. And for the first time since I began biking to work almost 9 years ago I have a place to park my bike. The building management put bike racks in the loading dock area which is underneath the building. 
The architecture is brutalist concrete--stark and cold, but functional and easy to keep clean. It's great for bike storage--secure, convenient and out of the weather. It's even heated. 

What I like most about the loading dock is the opportunity it offers to meet and get to know the folks that keep our building operating. Most tenants know them only as the security guards that sit at the front desk. They actually rotate assignments and one of the guards is always stationed in a small office at the loading dock. Over the past 9 months I've gotten to know almost all the guards. Jason #1 (there are/were 3 Jasons) was the most gregarious--he's a devoted father and was thrilled to get a much better paying job at a central Ohio factory 2 months ago. Travis, who is good friends with Jason, told me Jason recently won a promotion and another raise. Kyle was recently promoted within the management organization and will be leaving our building to work at the company's Dublin location, but will be back from time to time to check on our building. Travis was promoted to Kyle's former supervisor position. Daniel is a young veteran who was "dipping" (using Skoal tobacco) when I saw him on the loading dock a couple weeks ago. I busted his chops about it (there's no question it causes mouth cancers) and he said he was planning to quit--when I saw him this morning he said he quit 8 days ago and it's pretty rough, but he's gonna stick it out. 
 Last week Jim, an older guard, and I had a discussion about Teddy Roosevelt and I recommended the book, River of Doubt, to him.

All of the guards are supportive of me and the other 65 E State cyclists--there are about 5 or 6 of us that bike daily, soon to be more with 2 by 2012. I'll try to get photos and introduce you to the rest of us soon.

Anyhow, it's amazing  how many new friends I've made since I started biking to work. And I've met them in the most interesting places, like the loading dock.      

"Democracy's Not a Spectator Sport"

That's the slogan I saw on the back of a jogger's t-shirt as I biked down the Olentangy bikepath a couple years ago. I couldn't agree more. Historians and political scientists are well aware that democracy, and America for that matter, are "experiments." Certainly when we have less than 60% voter turnout in important elections like the one today, one can question whether these experiments are going awry.

My 24 year-old daughter, Kate, isn't too interested in politics. After graduation from Miami in 2009, it took her over a year to land a full-time job in her field--wellness. For the first time, Beth and I and Kate, requested absentee ballots. We sat down at the table after dinner last night with the League of Women Voters Guide and the Dispatch recommendations and discussed the issues and the candidates. My wife, Beth, and I met in first grade in Clintonville and see eye to eye on most things, but recently our politics have begun to diverge a bit. Our collective effort to make sure Kate voted turned into a lobbying competition. Although Kate tried to hide her ballot from me, I could see Beth was being more persuasive.

I dropped off our 3 absentee ballots at the Board of Elections on my way to work this morning. 
 
 
I miss stopping by Ridgeview Middle School to vote in person and seeing my neighbors and the school kids. I don't think I'll use absentee ballots in the future.

Please make sure you get out and vote today!