FIFTY-MILE STROLL: How much do you walk on your morning commute? That is, if you don't telecommute. Can you only count the steps you make to your car or to the train or bus? Maybe you can throw in a hundred steps more, for when you pull over for a cup of coffee. But, beyond that, does your commute contain any actual movement? The answer is no, for the most part, for most people. At least that's what article after article tells us, typically with the word "sedentary" blasting from the headlines. There's also the not-so-small matter of blearing by neighborhoods and businesses and landmarks in our autos, day after day, without knowing such places exist. But little urban happenings keep popping up in our cities, determined to, if not undermine the commutes we do need to make to work, then to complement them with the occasional exploratory walk.
THE COMMUTE: The San Jose/San Francisco "The Commute" is one prominent example. A group of get-out-and-move mavens meet up and then proceed to hoof it between the two cities along the interesting Route 82 (so think El Camino Real and more story-laden streets). The mileage? Fifty two. The time required to complete the walk? Twenty four hours. It's pretty serious, in terms of physical commitment, in other words, but not in lighthearted adventure or the desire to know the places we pass. And the message is both things at once, we think: We need to know what we drive by five times or more a week (the serious bit) and we need to have some fun where we live (the smiley part). We love it when events dovetail on those two things, and we like it when some physical effort is involved.
The Commute sets out on Saturday, June 1. The walk will wrap up on Sunday, June 2. You'll want to attend an orientation meeting before tying on your tennies, too, so schedule that into your May.
