With a Little Help from My Friends: How My Endless Carless Summer Came to Be
I have a friend named Ray who needed a ride on Mother's Day. I obliged, and he told me his car was in need of major repair and he was looking for a temporary solution while he figured out whether to repair or replace his car. I thought about it for a few minutes and realized I could afford to be without my car for a week or two. I've always enjoyed commuting by bike, and this would give me the chance to get back into that rhythm.
A week or two has turned into six, and for more than half of that time, I didn't know, didn't care, and didn't care to know what had become of my car. I was experiencing the liberating joy of being self-propelled, as I like to call it; why would I want to subject myself to that giant metal frown-box again? In the past week, I've learned from Ray that my car is fine, and he took the liberty of having a few repairs done to it, but in the meantime, I've decided to extend that carless week to a carless summer.
My friend Emily is getting married in Maryland in July. I don't want to drive there; I'd rather ride. The Honda Civic I've had since 2007 I've never driven out of the Carolinas. I want to keep that streak going. But how can I take that time off of work in a bike shop during peak season? 500 miles each way would probably take two weeks for the round trip. Enter Trek's new E-bike, the Super Commuter + 8. With a top speed of 28 mph, maybe I could ride that distance in a day or two.
Then I learned that the battery range at that speed is only 30 or 40 miles. And extra batteries cost $950. That's when my friend Jacob suggested I ask Trek to sponsor me with extra batteries. BRILLIANT! I contacted our Trek rep, Bob Myers, who both gave me special permission to purchase the new Super Commuter, even though we're not a Trek Ride+ dealer, and put me in touch with Rick Hoak and Paul Jones at Bosch, who are sending me two extra batteries to use on my trip. Yes! I'm in business. I've still got some logistics and training to do, but more on that later.
The final piece of the puzzle came in the form of a Burley Nomad trailer my friend Paul found at an REI garage sale on Father's Day. For several years, I've been using a 1989 Burley D-Lite child trailer to haul everything from groceries to new suits to a couple of dogs I've taken care of. He thought I could put the Nomad with its waterproof cover to good use. HE WAS RIGHT. With the Nomad attached to the Super Commuter, running errands has become the highlight of my day. Super Commuter indeed.
Thanks, friends!
A week or two has turned into six, and for more than half of that time, I didn't know, didn't care, and didn't care to know what had become of my car. I was experiencing the liberating joy of being self-propelled, as I like to call it; why would I want to subject myself to that giant metal frown-box again? In the past week, I've learned from Ray that my car is fine, and he took the liberty of having a few repairs done to it, but in the meantime, I've decided to extend that carless week to a carless summer.
My friend Emily is getting married in Maryland in July. I don't want to drive there; I'd rather ride. The Honda Civic I've had since 2007 I've never driven out of the Carolinas. I want to keep that streak going. But how can I take that time off of work in a bike shop during peak season? 500 miles each way would probably take two weeks for the round trip. Enter Trek's new E-bike, the Super Commuter + 8. With a top speed of 28 mph, maybe I could ride that distance in a day or two.
Then I learned that the battery range at that speed is only 30 or 40 miles. And extra batteries cost $950. That's when my friend Jacob suggested I ask Trek to sponsor me with extra batteries. BRILLIANT! I contacted our Trek rep, Bob Myers, who both gave me special permission to purchase the new Super Commuter, even though we're not a Trek Ride+ dealer, and put me in touch with Rick Hoak and Paul Jones at Bosch, who are sending me two extra batteries to use on my trip. Yes! I'm in business. I've still got some logistics and training to do, but more on that later.
The final piece of the puzzle came in the form of a Burley Nomad trailer my friend Paul found at an REI garage sale on Father's Day. For several years, I've been using a 1989 Burley D-Lite child trailer to haul everything from groceries to new suits to a couple of dogs I've taken care of. He thought I could put the Nomad with its waterproof cover to good use. HE WAS RIGHT. With the Nomad attached to the Super Commuter, running errands has become the highlight of my day. Super Commuter indeed.
Thanks, friends!
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