The latest edition of Bike to Work Week is well on its way, and I finally skipped the bus and SkyTrain and onto my bike this morning to take part.

I ran out the door and cycled my heart out (I was running late) to meet Travel Smart’s Sarah Loewen on route to work in Burnaby. I left home before sunrise and cycling as the sun flooded the parks we passed and reflected off the chrome of the cars, casting a magical spell on Metro Vancouver. That, combined with the exercise-causing endorphins, put me in a very good mood indeed.

My leisurely commute to work took roughly 40 minutes from door to door. When I take the bus and SkyTrain, it can take me between 25 and 35 minutes depending on what bus connections I make. For me, the extra ten to fifteen minutes of commuting time is worth it for the exercise and enjoyment I get from the ride. Beside, with a little practice, I’m sure I can get my bike commute down to about 30 minutes.

Fall Bike to Work Week is put on by the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition (VACC). Their mission is to make cycling an attractive choice for everyone. They hope to achieve this by getting companies and groups of individuals to form teams and participate in the week. That doesn’t mean that you can’t participate by yourself. Even though the week started on Monday, October 31, individuals or teams can still track their greenhouse gas emissions savings and kilometers accumulated by logging into the VACC website up until Sunday, November 6th.

Another perk about riding to work is getting to visit the celebration stations along the way. Volunteers give their time to cheer people on and give away drinks, snacks, swag and prizes. I can tell you from personal experience that having someone cheer you on while you tackle a difficult hill climb sure makes it easier. Getting a free snack and drink as well as free stuff like bike lights are nice perk as well. Check the VACC website for a map of the celebration station locations.

If you’ve never cycled to work before and need to know the best route to take, you can either ride with a friend like I did,  use the Metro Vancouver Cycling Route Planner, the bike function via the Directions tab in Google maps, or of course you can check out TransLink’s cycling maps.

Are you cycling to work this week?