Posted April 22, 2005   Email this page

Commutes to envy

With the great weather in Florida, Ride to Work Day happens quite frequently for these Kennedy Space Center employees.

An out-of-this-world ride

I work at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, so my destination is a very exciting place to go under any circumstances. But when you consider that I love my ride to work, plus the fact that I ride the sweetest candy apple ruby red 1991 Electra Glide on the planet (OK, I might be biased), my commute is truly one of the highlights of my day.

So, join me for a ride! I fire up the Harley at my home in Titusville, Florida, ride two blocks east and turn right on U.S. 1. The Indian River is on my left as I ride south.

I typically leave for work at 2 p.m., so the sunshine is gleaming on the water and a breeze is blowing in from the ocean.

The entrance ramp onto Route 405 aims me east toward the space center, past the Police Hall of Fame and the Astronaut Hall of Fame. Then I come to the first of two drawbridges I cross to get to my destination.

This first drawbridge crosses the Indian River. Many days I see porpoises swimming, fishermen casting bait nets into the water, boats, jet skis and windsurfers coming and going.

Once I was crossing this bridge and I noticed a pelican that was flying parallel with me less than 20 feet away and slightly above me. He was flying at a slower speed than I was riding but I noticed he was looking over at me, like he was listening to the music coming off my stereo ("American Pie," by Don McLean). As he slowly dropped back out of
my view, I felt like I was in a dream. Surreal!

After crossing the bridge I go through a tree-lined section with canals running on both sides. I see alligators prowling the waters and turtles sunning themselves on the banks. I’ve seen peregrine falcons or bald eagles sitting on treetops, scanning the area for food. I see egrets standing in the water. The area around the canals is beautiful!

Past the canals, I come up on the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Center. Each day I pass this area I realize that I am passing a historical area that is a testament to the many years of dedication and accomplishments of our country and its space heroes.

After the security check, I drive past the KSC Headquarters building and the Space Station Processing Facility before driving through another tree-lined section with a canal on the right side of the road and a wooded section on the left.

It pays to be alert here. The Kennedy Space Center sits on the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. There are many wild hogs, raccoons, bobcats, small deer and 'gators. Many times the animals are crossing the street to get to and from the canal. Motorcycle riders have had close calls in this area.

After passing these canals, I come up on the second drawbridge, which crosses the Banana River. This causeway provides two beautiful views, one to the left, one to the right and you are getting close to entering the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Man it’s beautiful!

The view on the left as you split the Banana River basin begins with the massive Vehicle Assembly Building. In the distance is Launch Complex 40 and the Titan Missile launch (ITL) area. The Space Shuttle, Delta and Atlas rocket launch pads are also close by.

Can you smell the fresh-cut grass and ocean breeze blowing in? Can you smell the brackish water of the Banana River? Picture a small flock of birds flying 12 inches above the water in formation, I’ve seen it!

As I approach the entrance to the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, in my view on the right I see the Freedom Star and Liberty Star Solid Rocket Booster Recovery Ships sitting at the dock. This is an area known for manatees, which roll about in the waters. They’re huge! But they’re very peaceful creatures.

Farther over to the right I can see the cruise ships coming and going or docked in Port Canaveral.

Finally I arrive at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. I’m less than a mile from my destination, Hangar S, home of the first Gemini and Mercury astronauts.

Now, picture all this at night as I'm leaving to go home. The water is lit up by the lights on the launch towers and
the sky is full of stars. Most nights a beautiful moon is visible rising in the background.

As I approach the Titusville horizon and the drawbridge returning home, I see the lights reflecting off the water from the city.

I think I have one of the most beautiful commutes in America. And even better, there are four other entry points that I can use to get to work, which are equally beautiful and vary in distance by an additional 10 miles or so.

J. Greg "Tikiman" Devlin
Titusville, FL

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