Reader encourages community to bike to work for fitness of body and planet

I ride my bike to and from work most days. I have ridden in rain, snow, sleet, wind, sun, and darkness.

I ride for many reasons: Number one, as the father of four boys, my personal time for fitness is limited. Riding to work helps me to stay fit.

I also reduce my carbon footprint a bit. My wife and I have one car for family use.

A third reason is I take a car off the road. That helps reduce traffic for the other commuters out there, saving time, energy, and aggravation on the road, at the gate, and, for many of the Fort Belvoir automobile commuting community, in the parking lot.

Some do not view my bike riding as wholly positive.

Over the nearly four years I have been riding on Fort Belvoir, I have been hit once, forced off my bike two times, and bellowed to at least a half dozen times for various "offenses" such as avoiding a large puddle or riding a safe distance from the curbs on Gunston Road.

Recently, two motorists stepped out of their vehicles to accost me verbally for "not waiting in line like everybody else" at the gate.

Please understand. Most bicyclists sacrifice a shorter commute to ride our bikes. Riding along past idling cars at the gates or walking the bike through a crosswalk is a way to shave a bit of time and completely legal.

Bike to Work Day 2009 is [tomorrow]. If you do not normally ride, but want to try it, [it] is a great day to start.

If you cannot ride, please be considerate of the bikers. We ride first because we enjoy it. A small, ancillary benefit for you is we help improve the morning and afternoon commutes for the Fort Belvoir community.

(Twomey works at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Fort Belvoir)