@jordanread - Thanks for directing me to the cycling challenge! You actually inspired me to get off the couch and go for a ride today - low 40s and windy but the sun was out! I only did 11 miles but it was great, though my fingers and toes were almost numb at the end.
What's sad is I can't remember the last time I rode. Last summer, probably. After that my time was consumed by marathon training and overtime at work. No more excuses this year - I definitely want to ride more! I'm not sure if I have an exact goal, I'll have to see how it goes.
At the moment my office is 25 miles away from my home. It sucks in the car, fun DC traffic. I did the whole thing on my bike once last year when I was feeling particularly bad ass. It was epic and I was in a fantastic mood all day. But it also took about 2.5 hours one way, lots of momentum-killing street crossings on the trails. So...great if I had nothing else to do that day! Today, it occurred to me that I could probably ride my bike the 5 miles to the metro, ride it a ways, then either take a bus or ride the rest of the way to my office. I need to look into this option more!! I can't believe I didn't think about this sooner, considering how miserable the commute makes me.
I'm not sure I'm bad ass enough yet to make it a regular habit during below freezing temps and dark mornings, though. Excuses, I know!