Glenn Eck, assistant superintendent of grounds in the Office of Facilities Management has worked at Temple for nearly 12 years. For more than 10 of those years, he has commuted to and from campus several days a week by bicycle from his home in Ambler, Pa.

He estimates that over the first 10 years of his commute, he has logged 33,600 miles, more than half of that on commutes to and from Temple.

Eck offers the following tips to students, faculty or staff who might be contemplating commuting by bike:

• You don’t need a fancy bike to get started in commuting, but bicycle shop bikes are much more reliable, enjoyable and serviceable than department store offerings.
• Do a few weekend test runs of your planned route, with all of your gear, before you start commuting. “This way you’ll get your body accustomed to the workout, and you’ll be able to fine tune your clothing and equipment. Just remember that there will be more traffic on the weekdays.”
• For hilly commutes and those over a half hour, plan on cleaning up and changing clothes once you arrive. “If fitness is part of your commuting goal, you’re going to want to go sufficiently hard to get your heart rate up — and that means breaking a sweat!”
• Backpacks move around a lot less than messenger bags and distribute the weight across both shoulders. “Backpacks can be the more convenient choice when you don’t need to constantly access your bag during your ride as bike messengers must.”
• There are two types of bicycle headlights: those suited for in-town use — which are mainly designed to help you be seen — and those sufficiently powerful to light your way at speed in darker suburbs. “If your commute takes you outside the brightly lit areas of the city, buy the best light you can afford. Helmet-mounted lights — it should go without saying that you should wear a helmet — are great because the light is always right where you are looking, which is very helpful when locking your bike or fixing a flat. And don’t forget a red flashing light for the rear of your ride as well.”

— Preston M. Moretz