Cycling to work

[tuxedo_cat]

I didn't see this thread revived in this category -- originally started by cc_alan here -- so let's get this discussion rolling!

I am moving to a major city for a new job this fall, after being in a mid-sized city where I have had the luxury of being able to rely on off-road bike paths for most of my commuting needs. Any general advice that forumites would like to offer about how to keep safe biking in a big city with lots of buses?  I will definitely go back to using my little sunglasses mirror so that I can see the traffic behind me. . . and I'm looking at ways to commute along parks and waterways which are more likely to have real off-road bike paths.

And since I'm going to be making a more decent income, I am thinking about *finally* buying a beautiful road bike for training rides (I have been riding a 40-year old Nishiki I bought for $50 off an old boyfriend for years).  I am quite taken with Bianchis and could probably buy one new.  But I also have an awesome local bike guy, who might be willing to build a custom bike for me with a Bianchi frame for far less than I would pay for one new.  Anybody have any opinions about all that?

Whether or not you have answers to those questions (I'm hoping octo drops by : ), tell us what your cycling experiences / questions are!

[fast_and_bulbous]

Oh boy, one of my favorite things to do is bike and I'm glad tuxedo_cat is reviving this thread!

I'm back in pretty good shape, 14 miles round trip to the office, mostly on tree-lined paved bike paths and rails trails. My commute goes by so fast, even up those hills, now that I'm regularly biking. Sometimes I wish we didn't have winter here where I invariably lose my biking fitness because I can't get myself to use the elliptical trainer nearly as often and hard as real biking.

I am in a city with lots of buses but it's also one of the bike-friendliest cities in the US. I avoid busy streets but begrudgingly use them when necessary, but only streets with dedicated bike lanes. I would never bike in a big city on a road with no dedicated bike lane - I hope that's not your situation t_c!

I got a new bike when I moved to my new job a few years ago. Man they have improved quite a bit since the 80s (my old Schwinn that weighed more than I did rolls in its grave). Now e-bikes are all the rage and it's weird to have somebody silently cruise by you with very little effort - but so far I haven't seen any major issues with e-bikers vs. bikers.

t_c, do the buses where you are at have bike racks on the front of the bus (outside) where you can hang them when you get on? They have that here, and although I've never used this facility, it's a convenient way to get through parts of the city that are not bike friendly, and then exit the bus where it is better and bike from there. The buses here can hold two bikes.

So I would say, if you can take a path that is not the most direct path, but is safer and more pleasant, do it! I can shorten my round trip by 4 miles by taking a stretch of busy road, but the current route is safer and much more enjoyable and I get a bit more exercise.

[tuxedo_cat]

I am in a city with lots of buses but it's also one of the bike-friendliest cities in the US. I avoid busy streets but begrudgingly use them when necessary, but only streets with dedicated bike lanes. I would never bike in a big city on a road with no dedicated bike lane - I hope that's not your situation t_c!

< . . . >

t_c, do the buses where you are at have bike racks on the front of the bus (outside) where you can hang them when you get on? They have that here, and although I've never used this facility, it's a convenient way to get through parts of the city that are not bike friendly, and then exit the bus where it is better and bike from there. The buses here can hold two bikes.

So I would say, if you can take a path that is not the most direct path, but is safer and more pleasant, do it! I can shorten my round trip by 4 miles by taking a stretch of busy road, but the current route is safer and much more enjoyable and I get a bit more exercise.

Thanks for all these pointers, f&b!  Yes, the buses in my current city have those racks and they also have them in New City. . . my only worry is that some day I may violently throw out my back hoisting up my old mountain bike  (this chicken is not so spring-y anymore). A lot of the bus drivers here are kind enough to lower the front of the bus for me when they notice that the rack is well above my knees--not really expecting that kind of attention in a much bigger city.

Before I move, I've been using Googlemaps to try to suss out where the bike paths are actually in the green part of the parkways -- and yeah, I would never try biking on a city street without a designated bike lane.  I'm nervous even when it's there, since plenty of drivers don't respect that space.  I'm not above switching to the sidewalks on a busy road so long as there aren't any pedestrians. I guess I should find out what sort of fines I might face for that in New City.  And in response to babyonboard:  yes, the advice to "hog" the lane has been suggested in the previous incarnation of this discussion thread : )

As for the new bike: this would be a nice light road bike for training.  Every summer I try to find some kind of triathlon-type event to participate in. . . at this point I'm looking mostly for ones that offer an aquabike option, since the running part is not really wise for me at this point in my life.  I just think Bianchis are pretty, so very technical motivations behind that choice!  And I don't need to spend a bazillion bucks -- $1K would seem like a big indulgence for me.  But wow it would be fun to find out just how fast I could go on a decent bike!

The main reason I was thinking about having my local bike guy build a bike around a Bianchi frame is that he has been an amazingly supportive resource for me with both of my crappy old bikes for 6 years.  And since he knew I was living on very reduced income, he always charged me incredibly reasonable rates for all my repairs.  I was thinking that if I were going to spend a bucket of money on a new bike, I'd like to finally be able to pay him a whole lot more for it before I leave town.

[octoprof]

We have moved to far from my job for cycling to work (but we LOVE where we live). So I have to come up with a plan for getting some cycling in this fall. Sigh.

t_c, do the buses where you are at have bike racks on the front of the bus (outside) where you can hang them when you get on? They have that here, and although I've never used this facility, it's a convenient way to get through parts of the city that are not bike friendly, and then exit the bus where it is better and bike from there. The buses here can hold two bikes.

So I would say, if you can take a path that is not the most direct path, but is safer and more pleasant, do it! I can shorten my round trip by 4 miles by taking a stretch of busy road, but the current route is safer and much more enjoyable and I get a bit more exercise.

In my last city the buses had the racks on front and I used them all the time.

I also second taking a safer path rather than a shorter path.

[mamselle]

I forget if it was the old CHE or the new (this) thread, but someone was dealing with leg cramps and I kept meaning to post a couple useful discoveries, since I've had cramps from dance class at times.

I was in France a year and a half ago, getting out of my bed in the youth hostel, when my inner right leg (sartorius) grabbed and hurt!! Its neighbors quickly joined in... I started doing the stretches and swings that usually, finally, will convince the muscles to let go, but it was taking a long time.

My 80-y.o. room mate saw me, and ferreted around in her backpack, pulling out what looked like one of those big Band-Aides in a 6x8 package. She got out her sewing scissors, cut open the wrapper, and handed me a floppy wet adhesive thing to apply to my leg. I was dubious, but within 4 minutes, the grabbing stopped.

She gave me another one, saying she had a standing order for them, they were covered by her health plan, it was no big issue. I ended up using part of it a week or two later on a different spot, different leg, and was very grateful.

I was also, a month or so later, aware that although I'd been doing a lot of things that would usually trigger leg spasms, they'd stopped.

I started checking the ingredients of the second package, and found it was a 5% lidocaine patch, which made me think maybe the numbness had "taught" my muscles to relax and not grab.

About a year later, (last spring) I'd run out (having cut it up in smaller pieces and given away a couple pieces to friends, besides using small bits myself on different spots) and the grabbing sartorius kicked in again.

I started checking around; turns out the US doesn't have 5% patches available across-the-counter without an Rx, but there are 4% patches (CVS calls them "pain relief patches") and I got a box.

Again, they've shut down the usual tension patterns, I'm getting a new odd little "hinting like it wants to grab" feeling in the back of the left leg (after swing dance last night when I did, literally, kick up my heels quite a bit), but it's yet to go into full-blown spasm (and no impaired mobility).

I'd  been avoiding dance classes for this reason, most recently...now I think maybe I'll try to go back.

I tried to buy the patches in France last time (Feb, again) but the place I visited didn't have them; she did have some sublingual Mg-and-something else  (K?) pills which helped, with lots of water--I had not realized the tie between cramping and dehydration before--until I found the 4% patches (which work just fine) here.

So, long story short, this panoply of armaments against cramping can be added to bananas, which I was aware of, and eating, but not getting much coverage from.

In checking further, France may have also gone to 4% which was why when I requested patches at the pharmacy there in February, she said she didn't  have them....I asked for 5%...

M.

[KevinMcCabe]

Get proper gears like waterproof jacket, and good gloves for colder season.

Safety first, high visible vest, helmet and lights.

Also, register your bike with police bike registry. Invest in a good D lock. Always keep it indoor.

[KevinMcCabe]

Oh I forgot to say. If you are spending a bit of money on your bike, then get it insured. They get stolen quite often in larger cities.

[mamselle]

Welcome, KMC!

(If that's your real name, you might want to see if the mods can help you change it, this being a pseudonymous forum and all...)

M.

[downer]

I have some experience biking in Manhattan and Brooklyn. There are quite a lot of bike paths in the street, and they are safer than the streets without them. But a lot of the time cars, trucks and even buses ignore them. In Manhattan, the pedestrians are often in your way in the more touristy areas. You also have to be on the lookout for all the motorized bicycles used by food deliverers. I saw a cyclist yelling at such a delivery person just the other day for being in the bike lane. The bicyclists also run a lot of traffic lights, which makes the journey faster, but I have one friend who has got a couple of tickets doing that.

I think that experience and trial and error are the main guides: finding the right route at the right time of day. I find it pretty hard work, but people get used to it and will often prefer it to taking public transport. There are of course apps for the best cycling route for some cities.

[larryc]

Hi friends! As of last fall I am one of those ebike cheaters. I bought a Giant mountain bike with front suspension and had fenders and a nice set of rear panniers added.

It was a really good choice for me. My commute is gorgeous but 20 miles each way, I was hardly ever doing it until I got this machine. The mountain bike style also means that I can explore the dirt Forest Service roads and gravel rail trails in my area on the weekends. In fact my usual commute does have a half mile of heavily washboarded dirt that would be a pain on a regular road bike.

I'm almost 60 and I'm riding more and in better shape than I have been for years. If any of you are tempted by an ebike, go for it.

[fast_and_bulbous]

I have been thinking about e-bikes as well, although I'm still quite fine with my current commute. An ebike would be nice for longer trips into the country. But I'm stubbornly sticking to leg power for now. But the day will come....

[fleabite]

tuxedo_cat, congratulations on the new job. I cycle nearly daily in a major urban area. My best advice is to slow down a bit and cycle defensively. I'd rather miss a light or give someone a right-of-way to which they are not entitled than annoy someone who could squash me permanently. Also, use two locks of different types (opportunistic thieves are likely to go for easier prey) and take off anything easy to remove and bring it inside with you. (I'm feeling a little burned at the moment after someone stole my decades-old Vetta seat, which was not even quick release. The caps at the end of my Shimano pedals appeared long ago, but that hasn't impaired their functioning and has probably saved me from having the entire pedals stolen.) All that said, I have had many happy years of big-city bicycling, and I hope you will have the same.

[tuxedo_cat]

Thanks for all the ongoing advice, all!  The bike I'll be using to commute is an increasingly hideous old thing that I bought used for about $75, but it's still cranking along pretty well.  I won't be able to bring it up into my office, so I'll just cross my fingers that a U-lock in the front tire and frame will discourage anyone from bothering.

About e-bikes: our city recently replaced all the regular bike-sharing cycles with e-bikes, which at first I thought was kind of a bummer.  Except that it seems very likely that many more people will be likely to try them out, and perhaps develop greater bike enthusiasm, which seems to have been larry's experience?  It would be interesting to see the stats on that. 

tuxedo_cat, congratulations on the new job. I cycle nearly daily in a major urban area. My best advice is to slow down a bit and cycle defensively. I'd rather miss a light or give someone a right-of-way to which they are not entitled than annoy someone who could squash me permanently. Also, use two locks of different types (opportunistic thieves are likely to go for easier prey) and take off anything easy to remove and bring it inside with you. (I'm feeling a little burned at the moment after someone stole my decades-old Vetta seat, which was not even quick release. The caps at the end of my Shimano pedals appeared long ago, but that hasn't impaired their functioning and has probably saved me from having the entire pedals stolen.) All that said, I have had many happy years of big-city bicycling, and I hope you will have the same.

Thanks for this survival advice, especially the defensive approach to traffic.  I think I've gotten used to being a little careless in my current city, which has far less traffic, and far less insane drivers.  But thanks for the good wishes.

I chatted with my local Bike Guy about paying him to build a bike for me -- he was completely uninterested : )  Oh, well!   I guess that means I have new question:

What is the best time of year to get a good discount on a new road bike?

[ergative]

Re-upping this because I've started biking to work more in earnest, now that I'm farther away from campus in our new place. I hauled out my bike from the closet, which I hadn't ridden in five and a half years, and, astonishingly, once I reinflated the tires it ran perfectly. Gears all work, tires hold air pressure, brakes are fine. I'd planned to take it to the local bike shop for a tune-up, but scrapped that plan when it became clear that the bike just didn't need it.

Currently biking to work takes about 45 minutes at my pace, which is comparable to the bus when the bus is speedy, but quite a bit faster when the bus gets stuck in traffic or decides to break down or not show up at the stop. I've found a pretty good route that's mostly bike lanes or pedestrian paths along the river (that bit's quite nice, actually), and I'm enjoying the knowledge that, if I keep this up, I'm going to be quite fit before too long. But I'm also keenly aware that, unless I get some much better gear, I'm going to have to stop when winter comes. Winter isn't too cold or icy here, but it's dark and rainy and windy, and that's just grim.

Today's discovery was about drag and wind resistance in baggy clothes. I could feel my sweatshirt's glorious comfy baggy sleeves flapping away in the wind. I'm going to need to steal Absolutive's fleece, maybe. I usually don't like close-fitting clothes, but I need to keep warm, and it seems silly to be fighting my own contribution to air resistance.

Tuxedo_cat, did you get yourself a better bike, or are you still on the dinosaur?

[Sun_Worshiper]

I'd love to do this. I have a nice bike and am close enough to campus that I could do it. But I'd be a sweaty mess.