Bike to Work Day

Friday was Downtown Memphis Bike-to-Work Day, an annual event encouraging employees of companies located in downtown Memphis to pedal their way into the office. Since I live in Midtown, a short 7 to 10 minute car drive from the downtown headquarters of the Memphis Flyer, I hopped on Falcor (that's what I call my Electra Ladies Cruiser ... yes, I am a nerd) for a leisurely ride to work.

Last year, there were only two of us who biked to work. But this year, we had five employees take to the streets (and bike lanes). Here we are: ad man Chip Googe, marketing guru Matt Writt, senior editor John Branston, ad guy Mark Plumlee, and me (associate editor):

The Downtown Memphis Commission, the event's sponsor, awards the three companies with the most employees who bike to work. And guess what? We got third place!

But enough about bikes. You're here for the food, right? Well, the Downtown Memphis Commission hosted a Bike Expo with live music and food trucks in Court Square at noon, so I rode my bike over for some Vegan Tacos from the Fuel Cafe food truck:

God, I love these tacos! I've eaten them countless times, and they never disappoint. Two corn tortillas melded together with vegan cheese and stuffed with Fuel's homemade veggie burger, vegan sour cream, and avocado. I dusted mine with a little chili-lime salt.

Live From Memphis was there with their famous smoothie bike! I'm not sure how it works, but there's a blender attached to the pedals. They were offering free smoothies for anyone who peddled the blender themselves. And their offerings were totally vegan. They had fresh fruit, orange juice, and soy milk. Yep, no dairy. Just soy. Hell yea. Here I am peddling my way to a fresh fruit smoothie:

And yes, I'm wearing my helmet on a stationary bike. Don't judge. I just forgot to take it off. Here's my delicious and refreshing smoothie. It really hit the spot on this 90-degree day! Oh, and check out my Bike-to-Work Day bike bell. It was free in the schwag bags we got for participating:

Biking to work took me about 45 minutes in one direction, and according to my heart rate monitor, I burned 400 calories there and back. If I biked to work everyday, I'd never have to exercise again! Also, biking to work this year was WAY easier than last year. Since last time, Memphis has put in nearly 35 miles of bike lanes. We had hardly any at this time last year. But this year, our ride was smooth sailing. Memphis will never be uber-bike-friendly, vegan mecca Portland, but we're getting much, much better.

Do you bike? If so, if your city bike-friendly?