In a discussion of commuting options (in which I was primarily an observer), the following exchange took place: A: I would rather get kicked in the shins every morning than bike up the massive hill that sits between my apartment and main campus. B: Have you tried an electric bike? C: If you’re going to eliminate pedaling, then you may as well go all the way and get a Segway. B: Actually, I used to own a Segway. I was floored by the engineering achievement of creating a device that combined the speed benefits of walking with the exercise benefits of driving, and for just the cost of a used Honda! Note, of course, that this is just one engineer’s opinion. Some people at Microsoft are quite enamored of the Segway device.

Public Service Announcement: Today is Bike to Work Day. A number of commute stations will be set up along popular bike routes in the greater Seattle area to hand out bicycling information and snacks. And if you pass a guy creeping up the 520 hill at around 8:00am, that was probably me. Sorry I forgot to wave.