I am an art director at a St. Louis advertising agency. I am in no way starting this blog to advertise anything. I would like to share my new experience. You see, I am guilty of commuting back and forth between home and work twice a day, five days a week. It is a short, 5 mile drive, but the impact on the environment and my wallet have been a growing concern of mine. I am buying a bike this week and am launching my “virtual commute” with this blog.

About 3 years ago, I was gainfully employed by my father. As I didn’t have a vehicle of my own, I relied on driving one of his company’s service vehicles. When that business relationship ended, as do many family-business relationships, I was pretty stuck. I couldn’t buy a car because I didn’t have a job. I had also just finished cleaning up some license issues from unpaid speeding tickets, and I knew full-coverage on a new vehicle would cost me an arm and a leg, even if I had been working. I wasn’t prepared to pay for gas on top of that, when my financial future was so unstable.

I think it was early spring when I finally saved up about $1600 and bought a vintage Vespa scooter. It was a completely restored 1969 Sprint 150. It was my first bike, and solved my immediate problems of not having transportation to work. I had been getting rides to my new job with a girl who worked there. I had to mix oil in with the 2 gallons of gasoline it took to power the two-stroke motor. After about a year of riding it, I crashed it in a construction zone, as one of the 13″ tires was swallowed by a pothole.

I was lucky enough to work out a deal with a friend’s grandmother, and bought her 1994 Toyota Tercel with only 37,000 miles on the engine. I’ve been driving it ever since. Gas has been getting more and more expensive, and every spring and summer, I find myself on Craig’s list and eBay looking for a new scooter.

Well, the heavier I get, the more ridiculous I imagine myself looking on a scooter. You never see the fat guy on the scooter with the sexy woman on the back, do you? No, this guy is alone. He’s also lost all of his friends, who are now really hurt to find that he’s been hiding his homosexuality from them for years. Of course, I don’t believe there’s anything wrong with scooters or being gay, but all of my friends think the two go hand-in-hand.

The more I think about it, the more sense buying a bicycle makes: My commute is short, only about 5 miles. I am close to public transportation if I get caught in the elements. I could stand to get a more efficient and regular exercise in every day. I am concerned about my personal impact on the environment and am always looking for ways I can live more harmoniously. I am also increasingly embittered by the politics of oil, and feel that abstinence is the best way for me to bitch about everything surrounding the oil crisis, the environment, and my fattitude.

I spoke to some avid riders, and got some great advice. I hope to share some of that here once I have it compiled. After I make a decision and purchase a bike, I’ll be sharing the word on the street.