When I made my first bicycle commute from Albany to Schenectady in June, I had plenty of sunlight and warm air for company. It was around 5:30 a.m. when I began pedaling west on Western Avenue, near the University at Albany.

At that hour, most people were still an hour away from personal ignition — two hours away from vehicular ignition. City and suburban streets were all mine.

The benefits were fourfold: Making the 32-mile round trip from home to work put less carbon emissions into the atmosphere, saved wear and tear on my 1998 Honda Civic, saved wear and tear on my personal finances and fulfilled my daily exercise quota. I was also into work early, and got a head start on the daily talking and typing that passes for a living.

But now the days grow short. ... I’m in the autumn of the year, as Frank used to sing in “It Was a Very Good Year.” And now I think of my biking life as vintage times for fine old legs. I generally give up the challenge after Labor Day, but this year am pushing on into fall.

This morning, I began my 90-minute roll at 6 a.m. And what a difference a season makes! The moon was still in ascension in midnight blue skies. Street lights were still on the job and every car on Western was burning tungsten. Road signs were also lit; I noticed the plum and orange colors of the Dunkin’ Donuts signs, the red and white stripes for Fridays and the bright yellows favored by Sunoco.

I was bright myself. With three flashing red lights on my bike’s side and back, and two Halogen headlights topped by two four-inch LCD flashlights, I look more like Jim Kirk’s celestial warp-drive spaceship than a terrestrial chain-drive bicycle.

By the time I took a right turn into Crossgates Mall, a pink haze was visible in the eastern skies and was moving quickly into gray territory. I noticed a strong wind rousing leaves in the maples along the mall’s access road. This was not Frank’s summer wind — I promise, the last Sinatra reference — but a stiff, solid breeze that advertised fall.

I made Rapp Road in back of the mall and then took a left onto the access road of Washington Avenue Extension, really the Albany County Speedway. High velocity is popular on the “speedway” and its long stretches, at least during the morning. By this time, the eastern skies had become a swirl of pink, light blue and ivory, and I was glad for the extra light. I turned off the battery-powered illuminants on my handlebars.

The short ride down Route 155 (New Karner Road) was the usual evasive maneuvers around jagged chunks of glass and rocks. After about a mile of this, I took my left turn onto Albany Street for the western expedition. My odometer read 6 miles and my watch read 6:45. The skies to the west were still dark blue, and cars were still running with headlights. I switched my LCD beacons back on, just to be on the safe side.

That’s my favorite side. I am always looking at side streets and driveways. I will not take chances by running red lights or trying to find ways around heavy metal; I rolled by two squirrels and two skunks on Albany who had tempted fate — by design or by accident — and would tempt fate no more.

Generally, the only zombies I see are behind steering wheels with coffee cups and cellphones in hand. Now that September has arrived, I see groups of walking dead — kids waiting for school buses — waiting at road sides. Today, the shorts and T-shirts of a week ago were gone; most of the kids wore parkas or athletic warm-ups. Nobody cracked wise. During Tuesday’s ride, some clever girl shouted “Ride that bike to school!” I guess I look younger than my 53 years. Thanks, kid.

Still on Albany, I made the left turn at St. Paul the Apostle School, cruised past a silent Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School and headed toward the crossing at Route 7. At about 10 minutes after 7, I noticed sunlight on the top of the former St. Luke’s School, beams that would quickly spread to other bricks in the wall. I closed down the LCDs, this time for good.

I crossed Brandywine, and enjoyed open road — no traffic the rest of the way down Albany to Veeder Avenue and then Nott Terrace. Quick turns put me on Franklin Street, then Jay Street and past City Hall, the Post Office and the Saw Mill tavern. I picked up the bike trail near the Union College lighted soccer field and crossed Nott Street. Another mile of bike trail brought me to Maxon Road, and by 7:30, I had docked at the newspaper’s modest parking lot bike stand.

I hope to make 20 trips before standard time begins and any semblance to warm weather ends. But time is not on my side. I really should be back on the trail home by 5:30 p.m., to ensure arrival back home at dusk. Any later departures and I’m back in the dark again.

But have batteries, will travel. And the snow won’t really come until late November.

Maybe 25 trips is a possibility.