Gatorfreak

If you like to commute by bike then you might also like...???

I'll start off with two of my own:

1. Treadmill desk. I work from home some of the time and I have a treadmill desk so I can walk while working.

2. Reel mower. The old-school type of mower. Human powered.


I'm curious what other things I might not be aware of that a frugal or "green" person who tries to fit in exercise everywhere possible might be doing.

Steely Dan

........ then you might also like to commute by kayak.

i have a fold-up kayak that fits into a backpack. a dozen or so times in the past i've taken my kayak (folded up in the backpack) on the train on my way to work up in evanston, then after work i've taken the kayak over to the north shore channel and kayaked the 13 miles all the way home to my condo in downtown chicago via the channel and chicago river. it's a pretty unique way to commute and i might be the only person in all of chicagoland who's ever commuted by kayak.

it takes nearly 3 hours, so it's not exactly the fastest way to commute home from work, but it sure is cool doing things that never ever cross other people's minds. it's fun to have a little imagination.

caloso

Reel mower?

Please. The truly old-school homeowner uses a scythe.

no motor?

How about walking to the store?

chandltp

I really want to build this. I got the reel mower, just haven't taken the time. It's probably very impractical to use. I'm all about the frugal, not overly concerned with the green (other than what's in my bank account).

tarwheel 

Walking. I go for walks during lunch almost every day at work.

Taking steps rather than elevators.

Commuting to weekend recreational bike rides rather than using your car and bike rack.

Bike touring for vacations.

BTW, my next lawn mower will be a reel mower. I'm just waiting for my old gas mower to bite the dust.

chefisaac

.... buying bike gear and teaching people how to commute!

Booger1

Sell your car......you won't need extra workouts.

Gatorfreak

WOW! I want one of those!!! That never crossed my mind. Brilliant.

Seattle Forrest

Fold-up kayaks are unbelievably slow. They're like knobby tires and suspension forks on freshly laid tarmac. Also, a more rigid paddle will increase your speed quite a bit. Between that and a rigid boat, I can do about 7 knots - which is the speed limit - and shock people in powered boats.

Steely Dan

^ whew, talk about missing a point. saaaaa-WING and a miss.

i can keep up an average of just under 5mph on flatwater in mine. certainly not fast, but decent enough.

besides, i do it for the journey, not because it's the fastest way to get home from work (if i were solely concerned with speed, i'd just ride the train both ways, duh).


in any event, rigid kayaks don't fit on el trains terribly well*. that's a gigantic liability for my situation.

(*) they're not permitted at all.

Beanboy

Commuted by kayak once. Can walk to river both from home and work. 24 miles and 7 portages not as fast as biking however.

Steely Dan

^ that's freaking awesome! so you commuted 48 miles by kayak in one day and still managed to get a full day of work in? holy crap that's hard-core!

my kayak commute route is only 13 miles one way, and i've thought about trying to do a round-tripper in the boat, but 4:00am is a savagely cruel hour of the clock to be awake (not a morning person at all)

modernjess

I do a lot of 12 oz curls.

essiemyra

We hang clothes out to dry on a clothesline, that is frugal and green.

Beanboy

[QUOTE=Steely Dan;14003636]^ that's freaking awesome! so you commuted 48 miles by kayak in one day and still managed to get a full day of work in? holy crap that's hard-core!

Nah, just one-way (downstream). There's some quickwater spots that you really can't paddle upstream against effectively or at least I couldn't and live to tell about it. Was on the water by 4:xx, got to work in 5 hours or so (just a few minutes late). Took public transportation home.

Just did it to do it. Probably will do it again this year near the summer solstice.

Steely Dan

how did you get your kayak home?

Beanboy

Paddled it back as far I could go before the quickwater on the weekend and tossed it on the roof of the cage. Probably something like 5 miles back upstream.

bigbenaugust 

My electric mower cuts far better, cuts shorter, and is far more maneuverable than my reel mower ever was... I liked the reel mower and all, but when the fence went up there was a part of the yard I couldn't reach with it anymore. Enter a 14" electric.

Steely Dan

gotcha.

i have no cage; another reason that i need a folding kayak, so that i can use public transit to get to/from put-ins/take-outs.

Andy_K 

It would probably work better with something that puts less weight on the handlebars, like an Electra or maybe even a trike.

Seattle Forrest

I got the point, I just didn't think it was as interesting as an opportunity to chat it up with someone I didn't know was a fellow 'yaker.

storckm

I have both a reel mower and a scythe, but since moving to the city, I haven't had enough grass to make the scythe worthwhile. My children really enjoy using the reel mower, though. It works fairly well, actually.

How about making sourdough rye bread.
And hand-tools for woodworking.
Grinding oats to make oatmeal.

clawhammer72

I use one of these in my classroom. It's awesome and the kids get a kick out of something that works without electricity. I use it to drill holes in handmade books and journals.

Rhodabike

I have a reel mower, and for small lots it's actually faster and easier than a power mower. Instead of wrestling with a heavy motor and frame around all those 180 degree corners, I just pick it up and turn it around.
Reel mowers are only more work if they're the old cast iron models, modern ones are much lighter. I'm waiting with baited breath for the carbon fiber version.
I like egg beaters for whipping cream and egg whites, but when my last one died I couldn't find another. Pity, it took up much less room than the electric mixer I replaced it with.