Saving the planet 30 minutes at a time

I am at 2 days in a row now of ridding to work! Huge milestone I know. I decided to ride yesterday as a way to get in a workout. I forgot how much I enjoy it. It's only about 30 minutes each way on a mix of bike lane & neighborhood streets, so it's a nice ride. Unfortunately the weather people in PDX suck at their jobs and it was raining on the ride home, it was supposed to be dry until next week. I don't mind riding in the rain when I'm prepared for it, but yesterday I was not. I was on the single speed with no fenders, no foot covers, nothing but a wet ass and cold feet when I got home. I did stop on my way home though and picked up some full length fenders. What a difference! I was toasty and dry this morning on the way in. My new goal... See how long I can go without driving by myself. I've decided using the car to run errands on the weekends with Jen or at night is ok. But if I need to go anywhere on my own, I am going to try to ether run or ride. We'll see how long I can go. I figure by just riding to work I'll save about $60 to $70 a month in gas alone. I am also so much more relaxed when I get to work in the morning. I forget how much stress driving can cause. It's also nice to come up with a new routine. Packing my bag the night before, getting up a little earlier. Being strategic and leaving certain items at work so I don't have to haul them around on my back. We'll see how long I can make it.
Other updates... Not much going on. My new Mt. Bike is in and is being assembled. Should be ready in the next couple of days. Starting to crank up the training a bit. on track for 16+ hours this week. I am fired up too! After watching the IM world champs in HD this past weekend I am ready to hit it. Also, fellow Ironheads Dave and Ann Ciaverella ROCKED IM Western Australia on Saturday. Check out Dave's race report: http://try3sports.blogspot.com/. They are amazing, and I am so fortunate to get to train and learn from them. I had a crazy idea this morning... IM AZ in November!?! This year they are holding the race in April and in November as it makes the transition to a fall race only next year. I was looking at the calendar and wondering if 8 weeks is enough time to recover from Canada and be ready for AZ. The jury is still out on this one. Need to talk to the two bosses (Jen and Coach Scott). It's up to them at this point, If they say go for it then I'm in. Why am I such an idiot?!?