CORPUS CHRISTI ARMY DEPOT, Texas -- In the second of three segments of "The Bicycling to Work Series" we introduce you to Army Veteran Richard Edwards, a Corpus Christi Army Depot employee since June 2001 who currently repairs US Navy and Air Force aircraft parts as part of a Cross Service Examination and Evaluation program.
Richard began riding to work to improve his health and fitness.
In no time at all, he realized he was actually having fun cycling the twenty plus mile round trip to work every day. Exercise can be a great stress reliever since increased physical activity releases endorphins, which stimulates a natural high. Even though he leaves home about the same time that he did when motoring in, Richard arrives earlier and reaps the same time reward of about 10 minutes when returning home at the end of his shift because he doesn't have to wait in long lines of traffic at the security gates.
While there are a variety of bicycles available on the market, Richard has only used three types to ride to work: a mountain bike, a road bike, and the recumbent bike.
What's the difference?
Mountain bikes are designed to handle rough terrain, road bikes are designed for speed, and recumbents, with their reclined design, are designed to give the rider an ergonomic and comfortable ride.
In a community and workforce culture that does not see many bicycles, Richard and his recumbent bike attract a lot of attention. Some have asked if the bike is as comfortable as it appears, if it's difficult to ride and, of course, the cost.
Richard will be the first to tell you that recumbent bikes are extremely comfortable and that's the main reason he rides one.
He made the switch to recumbents after experiencing wrist pain from the added strain they received when he rode upright bicycles.
Richard says that recumbents are not hard at all to ride, but they do require starting off slow. He has allowed people to sit upright on his bike while he pushes them around to get the feel of it. Afterwards, most people take off riding like they were a natural.
Recumbent bicycles were first designed in the 1800s, right around the time of the first safety bikes (the proper name for the bicycle we are accustomed to seeing now). Even though you rarely see them, they have been around for a very long time, just like regular upright bikes.
The cost of a recumbent is higher than a comparable upright bike in the Corpus Christi area but, if you don't mind making a trip to Houston, Austin or San Antonio, you can find a wider variety of recumbents at competitive prices -- some even beating the cost of a conventional upright bicycle purchased locally.
Don't let the cost of recumbent bike dissuade you and if you just don't like those "lay down bikes," you can still ride a regular upright bike to or from work and CCAD actually has specialized parking for normal upright bikes that a recumbent doesn't fit into. There is specialized bike parking behind the Transmissions Shop in Building 8, at the corner of Avenue D and 4th Street. Inside the chain link fence there is a protected lockable parking area where your bike won't get sunburned or rained on. It's called a bike locker, and is a super deal for CCAD cyclists thanks to the US Navy who had some unused bike lockers that were donated for use. The CCAD workforce is lucky to have a bike locker so riders don't have to try and find somewhere around their work area to stash their bikes.
Now that you know what kind of bicycles are available, how much time you could save on the commute and where to park your bike at work, what are you waiting for? Cool weather and sunny skies and 5 parking slots are available in the bike locker near you!
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