Riding to work on my bike has become a stressor.

My commute is from the outskirts of Rochester, on mostly rural county and state highways with limited traffic, though I have a lot of cars coming at me as people head in to the city to work in the opposite direction that I am heading.

My commute in is 37.5 miles (75 round-trip), about 45-50 minutes long.

I guess I am posting this because I want to see how others feel about riding to work, and to be heard by others who will understand.

Here is what is stressing me out:

-I am drowsy in the morning, even after coffee, getting up at 5am to walk the dog a couple of miles before leaving around 7:00.
-I am tired in the afternoon, after dealing with people all day.

As a result of the two things above, I don't feel I can generate the focus I need to ride a motorcycle safely.

-My ride in is mostly east, ride home is mostly west. Therefore, I get the sun both ways.

-Riding the bike throws off my routine, so I usually forget something like my office keys, and one time, my wallet.

-I don't like leaving the bike out in the parking lot for 8+ hours, in full sun the whole time. I cover it, but that is something else that makes the whole experience inconvenient.

-Speaking of inconvenience, I sometimes go to three different buildings during my work day, involving transportation. It is much easier to this in a car vs. putting on a helmet, stuffing my briefcase in the saddlebag, etc, etc.


I am an analytical and detail person, so I keep track of how many times I ride the bike to work. Last year, I rode 62 times, including nearly every day in June. This year, only 14 total.

I bought the F6B as a 50/50 commuting/recreation bike. I rode 8,500 miles last year, with 5,000 of that accumulated from commuting.

Now I just don't want to deal with it anymore. It is taking away from the riding experience overall, with the lingering unpleasantness of commuting affecting my desire to ride at other times.

I even mix up the route home, heading up to Lake Road, which is a very nice ride along the shore of Lake Ontario. That makes it a little better, but often I can't wait just to get home.

Not only that, but now I have a bike that may only get 4000 miles/year riding when I spent a chunk of change on it to serve as commuter transportation. Good thing its a Wing, and I could have it 25 years without spending much on maintenance and repairs.

Anyway, just wanted to share this and am interested in what others think.