Your average Brit spends 400 days of their life commuting, so why not turn it into something enjoyable?
ADVERTISEMENTCommuting to work can be a real chore, and it takes up more time than you might think.
Your average Brit spends 400 days of their life travelling to and from work - and that’s with the rise of home-working taken into account.
But one UK man is aiming to beat the system: combining his passion for the waterways with his journey to the office.
“I’ve paddleboarded for about five or six years,” says Alex Kell, a financial planner from Gloucester.
“A couple of years ago I moved to a location that put me right on the water, so it allowed me to paddleboard not only in my leisure time, but also as my daily commute.”
How much money can you save by paddleboarding to work?
The 38-year-old from Gloucester began trading traffic jams for the waterways last summer. Weather permitting, the owner of Quayside Wealth Management travels two kilometres up the Gloucester-Sharpness Canal to his waterside office.
The unique commute provides Alex with some much needed thinking time, and helps him unwind after a stressful day at the office.
“Commuting to work on a paddleboard is pretty peaceful,” says Alex.
“You don’t get the traffic, you don’t get the usual rush of the morning. You get to just slowly cruise down the water, with no one in front of you, no one behind you. It’s a lot more leisurely than it used to be taking the car.”
The financial planner estimates that he saves €3,000 a year in petrol and parking costs. And he has no plans to get back in his Ford Ranger anytime soon.
“It’s a relaxing thing to do in the morning,” continues Alex.
“As the owner of a business, it helps me wind down and switch off at the end of the day.”
Watch the video above to see the paddleboarding commuter for yourself.
