Tomorrow is National Bike to Work Day. Unfortunately, I won’t be participating.

While I am a cycling enthusiast, the 37-mile ride from my doorstep to the I-R office isn’t the hurdle. The direction is.

Please allow me to explain.

Several years ago, when I was new to long-distance road cycling, I went on a ride with a few friends. About halfway, we were on the southern edge of Burma Road in Saline County and Fr. Steve asked, “Karen, why are we riding from north to south on this road?”

It was a question I hadn’t considered. My route selection primarily had to do with our starting point. And come to think of it, that was the first time I took that road from the north.

Fr. Steve went on to explain that the particular road was easier to ride from the south.

Several weeks later, I was on the same road, but my route took me up the road from the south. Fr. Steve was right — it was a far easier ride!

It was something I never previously considered, but I sure do now.

I can absolutely handle 40 miles “in the saddle” as cyclists say, but I find that I tend to be choosy about where I go. This lesson was driven home during day two of a 300-mile weekend trip with some friends. I found myself on the longest and flattest stretch of road in central Kansas. I have three words for that: No thank you.

Seriously, there were tears as I rode, especially when I looked down to see I had barely advanced a quarter of a mile. When I arrived at our lunch that day, it’s possible that I very dramatically flung myself on the ground and proclaimed, “I’m done, the flat road is the end of me!”

Since that trip, I find myself keeping an eye on the road, especially as I’m driving in the car. I have plenty of time to watch the ribbon of Old U.S. 40 Highway unspool before my windshield as I drive to and from Ellsworth for work. In the year that I’ve been taking this road, I’ve decided the optimal route for me is from west to east.

Yes, there are some hills, but they seem less steep than in the other direction. I also have visions of myself screaming down the hills and around the curves at more than 40 miles per hour. It’s a good vision.

The group I often ride with includes several men who are close to 60 years old. Through trial and error, I’ve found I pace well with this particular demographic. I do get some razzing from the guys about my uphill gear (which is admittedly the slowest thing ever ... I have visions of “Dueling Banjos” playing as I chug up a hill on my bike).

Yet, my downhill speed simply rocks. I love to push it into the most difficult gear and crank as hard as I can. Flying down hills is my absolute favorite, and there are some good-looking hills east of Ellsworth.

While I’m being a grump and not on my bicycle this week to celebrate National Bike Month or National Bike to Work Day, I encourage you to take advantage (for free) of the bicycles provided by KANcycle for the rest of the month of May.

Bonar is the editor/publisher of the I-R and can be reached via email at kbonar@indyrepnews.com.