Living Car Free - Grocery shopping w/o car...

While we are very far from car-free, my wife and I have committed (recently, this year) to running as many errands as possible without a car. Grocery shopping is major one, it is a regularly-ocurring vital errand. Grocery stores happen to be spaced strategically, so in any somewhat dense city, you are always within a mile or two of a grocery store, so its easy to get started.

Somethings we found out....

1) Its easier to deal with loads that are mounted in front of the bike rather than on a rear-rack.
2) Outdoor farmer's markets are a great way to get fresh (and often organic) local produce.
3) Instead of one marathon grocery shopping session, its necessary to go several times a week: Sat-morning farmer's market, Sunday-morning farmer's market, Mid-week safeway trip, emergency recipe ingredient runs (that's for me).
4) The safeway parking lot can be a dangerous place since motorists are not used to bikes.

Recently, my wife brought back one of the most useful pieces of conference swag ever: A thermally insulated backpack. For milk, eggs, and fish, it is indispensible. I put some "blue ice" in the compartment and wear it on my back to the store. After check out, I put the perishables in the compartment and am good to go.

I just got a HUUUUUUGE new messenger bag and am quite happy to report that it fits 2+ weeks of groceries. (The "Heavy Gear" by www.under-the-weather.ca) It's quite handy to just load my groceries into my own bag and wow the baggers at what I can fit.

Thanks for the tip on insulation, though-- maybe something like one of those insulated lunch sacks with blue ice in it is what my sadly soupy ben & jerry's needed.

i use the trek grocery pannier

http://highgearcyclery.com/site/images/library/large/trek_03tk54118_04_m.jpg

great for bulky groceries like soda, milk, boxes of things, and i use it for other bulky errands, shoe box, a bunch of books from library - works great - that combined with trunk rack works great for me

I almost never go specifically grocery shopping by bike.If I do go specifically just grocery shopping the stores are close enough that I can walk to them with a medium sized external frame backpack that I usually end up tieing quite a few extra bags to.Ultralight backpacking it is not but it is actually fun in a challenging kind of way.More often though I just stop by the grocery stores on bike on the way back from most/many rides so I also usually follow the multiple trips to the grocery philosophy.Also allows you to get what is unique or is well priced at each store .I always have a duffel bag bungied to my rear rack and this works so well for groceries ,etc. and even touring that I haven't bothered purchasing panniers.I often tie a few grocery bags to the side as well and its so fun to watch some of the faces as I speed off with with what looks to be a severely overloaded bike.But it actually gets my adrenaline flowing I usually bike hard and fast(given the load)in this situation.I guess I pretty much know how much I can carry but have never purchased groceries I couldn't somehow attach to the bike and have fun riding. I do wear a daypack as well for perishibles,dayhiking and things I want quick access to.On longer rides I usually attach the daypack to the rack above the duffel. So in summary I guess most of my rides and even what I carry on them are multifunctional.

I do all of my grocery shopping by bike. I tend to make more smaller trips, but I can carry three full grocery bags worth in one trip, and do often. I have double baskets on the rear of my bike and that's fine for small trips for a few items. For more, I use heavy canvas shopping bags--the local market here sells them for about $5 apiece, they are very sturdy and hold a full bag of groceries--and hook them onto the sides of the baskets with S-hooks. If I need to I can strap on additional items to the top of the rack between the baskets. It works very well. I'm thinking of getting a front rack or front detachable basket of some kind, because I agree that having some weight in the front would make the load feel more balanced and the bike would handle better--but it's a short ride for me, anyway, I live about a mile from three different markets and a weekly farmer's market. Eventually, I think I'd like to get a trailer of some kind. But in the meantime, I actually get a kick of out seeing how much stuff I can manage to get home on my bike . . . I'm easily entertained. :)

There is one market near us that has some very desirable items, but a great shortage of parking spaces. I have been going there with our InStep child trailer, and found that it can easily hold a full load of food for our family of three. It is quite difficult to drive there.

Paul

3300cubic inch messenger bag, holds about $40-$60 worth of groceries, more than $100worth if you dont like to cook and buy everything precooked/made.

I just got home from the grocery store, todays haul:
3 green peppers
2 red peppers
5lbs ground beef
1 box lasagna noodles
1 taco kit
1 head lettuce
2 tomatoes
2 jars spaghetti sauce
2 bags wheat buns-- 8each
1 roll paper towels
1 jar parm cheese
1 big can of raisins
2 2liter bottles of mt dew
total $39.04, total weight-------20lbs maybe and had room for about $20 more of groceries

I hit the grocery store about once a week to ten days and buy about $40 at a time, messenger bag works great.

While we are very far from car-free, my wife and I have committed (recently, this year) to running as many errands as possible without a car. Grocery shopping is major one, it is a regularly-ocurring vital errand. Grocery stores happen to be spaced strategically, so in any somewhat dense city, you are always within a mile or two of a grocery store, so its easy to get started.

Somethings we found out....

1) Its easier to deal with loads that are mounted in front of the bike rather than on a rear-rack.
2) Outdoor farmer's markets are a great way to get fresh (and often organic) local produce.
3) Instead of one marathon grocery shopping session, its necessary to go several times a week: Sat-morning farmer's market, Sunday-morning farmer's market, Mid-week safeway trip, emergency recipe ingredient runs (that's for me).
4) The safeway parking lot can be a dangerous place since motorists are not used to bikes.

Recently, my wife brought back one of the most useful pieces of conference swag ever: A thermally insulated backpack. For milk, eggs, and fish, it is indispensible. I put some "blue ice" in the compartment and wear it on my back to the store. After check out, I put the perishables in the compartment and am good to go.

Check out the BOB trailers. You can shop once a week or less. Easy to handle too.

4) The safeway parking lot can be a dangerous place since motorists are not used to bikes.


I'm discovering the same thing about the parking lot of the Publix grocery store where I shop. Sometimes I think the 75 yard ride accross the lot is more dangerous than the two mile ride to get there. People seem very surprised to see the bike.

I don't do the big huge shopping trip once every 2 weeks anyway, I like to shop "little and often" so even my "stock up" trips can be done with a decent messenger bag or hopefully, someday, a bike I've set up with panniers.

I confess--I do supermarket shopping with friends who drive once in a while to get larger items, canned goods, milk jugs and frozen foods. Even the Amish will accept rides from neighbors! I give them gas money, or buy them a treat if they don't like to take money.

Otherwise, like lilHinault,I like to shop European style. I go to several small stores almost every day--bakery, farmer's market, produce store, butcher shop, etc. There are a few of these stores left in most US cities. They're fun, convenient, and locally owned. I carry stuff home in my back pack.

If I lived within two miles of a grocery store, I'd leave the bike home and get one of those good sized personal shopping carts. Take off the stock axle and wheels, and put some 12" bicycle wheels and tires on it. Many people drive over 30 minutes to get to a super savings grocery, so a 40 minute walk with milk shouldn't be any problem. Unless you have a trailer for your bike, you can't haul as much as the grocery cart. Some of the good ones are BIG.

I got a bob yak, and it hauls ALL our grocieries. Tons of stuff fits in that puppy. Plus, wear a backpack to carry fragile stuff if you like. And why not throuw a pannier on as well. Hell, you could carry the food for Napoleons army with a trailer, panniers and a backpack. Go shopping once a month if need be!

I live right behind a large corporate supermarket, and I hate to go there. I don't think I've even been in the thing for 2 months.

Made a beer run today, corner liquor store's great for that, more like a walk, up to the end of the block. God knows what country the people running it are from, India or Middle East or something, but they're nice people and often we have a nice chat about the weather or something (supposed to rain this weekend, who'd have thunk it?). There's a pretty decent mercado/carneceria a street or so over, a farmer's market down from that, and a really killer farmer's market that meets up at night, at the intersection of Lawrence and El Camino Real. I learned about that one from a bike-only friend, we agreed to meet there, and I told her she'd get there first, before me in my car, and I was right - she was waiting for me as I came in.

And there's Trader Joe's which is as close as the Bay Area gets to a real health food store, that and Health Food For Republicans AKA Whole Foods, look up *their* pedigree, that place gets the Dick Cheney seal of approval, but I digress, both are close by.

(more digression: I'm a Repub and vote Repub becaus I see the current Dems as WORSE! KohnKerry makes Bush seem like a Pacifist, and the most Stalinist systems I've seen set up in the US have been set up and maintained by Dems. And what makes "ethnic" markets so great is, they can get away with far more rightism - they only hire their own, they keep unions out and prices low, and if they don't like your looks, they don't serve you, what're you going to do? Sue a POC?? Come on, it's impossible! And if I don't know what gobo or bok choy is, that's MY problem. No namby-pambyism there, and I'm free to shop or not to shop. I choose to shop, in preference over the more "american" places.)

God knows what country the people running it are from, India or Middle East or something, but they're nice people ...

"but"?

Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but that's a curious choice of words.

Keep politics out please. There's a whole forum for that.

As far as the original subject, I find that a trailer does wonders to help do the grocery shopping (and carrying other big things). I can fit more then 2 weeks of grocery for 2 ppl and 3 cats (Big cat food and litter bag) in my burley nomad trailer. No doubt one could fit enough food for a week for a family.

I bought a Norco 5 speed trike (modified to 15 sp) for my wife a year and a half ago when we eliminated our car entirely and I wanted to encourage her to shop by bicycle. We have three grocery stores only five minutes away by bike. Unfortunately, I thought she was simply unsure of her balance and figured the trike would solve that, but discovered she is/was terribly intimidated and fearful by/of traffic. So, now I ride the trike and have done the bulk of the shopping during that time. My only issue was the look of the bike. It was too mundane, too boring and well...too old-lady looking with a seat wide enough to support an elephant and completely devoid of any personality. You must understand I ride unusual bikes: a super=stretch custom beach cruiser, a full beach cruiser and a chopper and I am accustomed to positive attention on the road, not negative. Recently, I installed chrome springer forks, cruiser bars and a custom cruiser seat to improve the looks (and ride!) and now I am eager and anxious to ride the bike as often as I ride my others. With a large capacity basket in the rear, a modified basket in the front, I can carry up to 10 or 12 bags. For $700.00 (+$300.00) it was a steal and the mere thought of shopping by car now makes me ill when I could be riding my tricked trike.

I don't have a problem with grocery shopping as much, but I do have problems with carrying all them dang bags and my bike up four flights of stairs. I really do like living in the DC area, but their lack of elevators in their buildings (and how they get around the ADA laws) is beyond me. :-/

Koffee

my bike buckets work great for groceries. i can fit two weeks worth of groceries in my two buckets and messenger pack. i also buy veggies weekly and other little stuff as the need arises.

My wife and I ride like 5 or 6 miles (roundtrip) to Target for cheap cereal and kitty litter. Other stuff, like milk and veggies, we get at closer corner marts.

For our bike grocery runs we just use our big EMS (eastern mountain sports) bags, and pack em full. I can carry an 8lb. thing of cat litter in my bag. heh...

click the link for a pic of our madness
http://flickr.com/photos/sethw/12690691/in/set-162608/

I don't ride that bike anymore - no more panniers or rear rack :(

boring and well...too old-lady looking with a seat wide enough to support an elephant


Why did you buy your wife a bike with a seat wide enough to support an elephant??? Maybe she doesn't ride it cause you hurt her feelings. You insensitive brute! =) (just kiddin')

A friend of mine has a very dumpy bike, she tends to rescue bikes from the dumpster and fix 'em up, which of course is totally cool. And she just has wire baskets on the sides, very cheap and simple, dump those groceries right in, maybe put one of those free newspapers on the bottom for cushion, and two bags of groceries are plenty - that can be 2 weeks' groceries for a single person. It's amazing how much a simple setup can carry, and easily without a lot of hassles.

I also use a trailer for grocery shopping, I think it's called the revolution. It really is not much more than a large ice chest with big wheels, but it does a fabulous job hauling the weekly grocery stock. It also has a lid which keeps things dry. For extra space, I have a foldable wire basket attached to one side of the rear rack (I do not have a basket on the other side because that is where I clip my bike briefcase on my commute each day), and of course there is the rack itself. Honestly, it carries all that is necessary for two people, two freeloading cats and a demanding basset hound. The grocery is at most only three miles away.

my partner and I use a Bikes at Work 32" trailer for our groceries and other provisions. We cook all our meals, and buy wine by the case, and have three cats, three chickens, and an active garden, so we tend to pile on the goods when we make a run.

This trailer was THE piece of equipment that finally allowed us to get rid of our car. We've used it for most of our big shopping since we got it in 2002. It's an aluminum frame that is designed to carry two 18gal Rubbermaid containers.

Ours is the smallest one made by BAW, yet it's pretty big, and heavy, compared to all of the other ones we looked at. It offers a 300lb capacity and handles very well, especially when loaded. It requires a large rear wheel (i.e. an MTB XC wheel) to safely pull a very heavy load, but 700c wheels work for <100lb loads. We have a hitch on each of our cargo bikes so we can take turns being the Beast of Burden.

It's also handy for carrying bicycles (disassembled), folding bicycles, and the luggage of visiting friends when I go to pick them up/ drop them off at the train station.

edit: www.bikesatwork.com

Hmm that Bikes At Work model 32 looks good! But wow bike trailers are expensive, guess you get what you pay for!

yup. if bikes-at-work has an equal, I haven't heard about it.

There are quite a few interesting models. I think the Burley Nomad and Burley Cargo are quite interesting for less bulky items (though the Cargo seems to approach somewhat the Bikes at Work's concept).

In the same line as the Bikes at Work trailerhere is another similar Canadian alternative from http://www.cargotrailer.ca/

I haven't seen or used any of these trailers, so I can't have a definitive judgement.

Those Canadian cargo trailers look great. A similar construction and hitch mechanism to the Bikes at Work.

Check this out from the UK
http://carryfreedom.com/
another simple, solid-looking design.

I may be wrong but I don't think the Burley Cargo model is available in the States. It's not even listed in their web site, although I saw it was available at Urbane Cycles in Toronto. The Nomad seems to be a good medium-duty all-purpose trailer--great for groceries and general cargo. I like how it folds up.

edit: oo! oo! how to build your own trailer: http://www.re-cycle.org/trailer/instructions.html

I'm discovering the same thing about the parking lot of the Publix grocery store where I shop. Sometimes I think the 75 yard ride accross the lot is more dangerous than the two mile ride to get there. People seem very surprised to see the bike.
wait till the day you forget you bike lock at home and bring your bike in the store! (I did this) You'll
get some very black looks. (Don't know why because the store I shop at has a stupid grocery card
designed to look like an AUTOMOBILE!!!! It's for the kiddies, naturally.)

also I have one of these http://www.jandd.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=FGBP
it's not only great for grocerries it's great for hauling around weird shaped stuff

I can bike from home w/in 5 minutes to either New Seasons, Wild Oats and Safeway. The farmer's market is once a week 3 blocks from where I work. I'll carry smaller loads in my Timbuk2, but I don't like to carry that much on my back, so my hybrid is set up w/ a Topeak rear basket, which holds a pretty good load - about 1.5 full grocery sack. For a trip to Trader Joe's, which is about 15 minutes away, I still drive about once every two weeks, and usually bring home 4+ heavy full bags...more trips, smaller loads is the key on the bike; less trips, larger loads for the truck.