Commuting - First Bike Commute Was Brutal !

ok, so after the first day of my commute I would say it was brutal. I started out going to work around 6:10 in the morning I was going at a good clip the biking was really nice. I averaged about 15 miles an hour. So 17 miles later I arrived at work around 7:20. I thought wow not too bad i mean it was a little long but not that bad.

So anyway, on the way back I noticed they said wind was going to be 24 miles an hour out of the north. WOW what a killer. I pedaled with all my might an averaged a total of about 8 miles an hour. It took me over 2 hours to get back home. As i was pedaling home i was completely spent. I had to get off my bike a few times to get rest. All an all I would say the return was one of my hardest times biking ever.

So in question what do you guys do about wind ?? I mean i have an 18 mile commute 1 way it appears it can take me 2 times as long to get there or return.

Any ideas on how I can make this less brutal ??

Thanksk

Jay

It sounds like you would've benefited from having some energy food along with you, like some Clif bars and some energy drink.

How good is your technique? You said that you pedalled really hard, so try to keep your RPM's up high enough that you aren't making it a major muscle workout. If you were in your lowest gear and still had to muscle the pedals around, then consider getting some lower gearing installed.

Also, aerodynamics obviously comes into play when you've got that high an airspeed. If your bike has several hand positions on the handlebars, try using the lowest one when you're going into the worst of the wind, and maybe sit up a bit more when you're not going head-on into the wind. If your bike is a mountain bike, and it doesn't have bar-ends yet, you could add some fairly long ones and aim them out nearly flat, to let you hunker down out of the wind a bit. That wouldn't cost much. If your bike is a road-style bike, then consider an add-on aero bar, they can be worth their weight. But be careful, you don't have as much steering control, so choose your useage in places where a little unexpected veering won't put you in danger.

If your bike has lots of unnecessary air drag, see if you can reduce it a little. For example, my commuting bike is an old mountain bike. It plows a pretty big path through the air with its 1.95" tires and its full SKS fender set. If I wanted to reduce the bike's air drag, then removing the fenders is a safe move now that it's the dry season here (semi-desert climate), and I could also put on some 1.25" road tires and chop some air drag off of it that way.

Not much you can do about wind other than stay low and pedal. Do you have drop bars on your bike? Are 20+ mph winds common around you? If your commuting traffic allows it, aero bars could be a good option for prevailing winds. Also, if you don't ride that much now, a 30+ mile round trip commute will quickly get you in better shape to handle that wind.

Yes, do down shaft and spin. That's what I do in head winds. What type of bike do you have? Road, MTB? If you have a road bike them get as low to the top bar has you can and down shaft. Keep the feet in a high RPM. that's what I do.

Headwinds are like hills, they make you a stronger rider, embrace the challenge..... or wait untill a stronger rider overtakes you and suck their wheel all the way home :p

Thanks for the reply. I have a road bike an usually go as low as possible. I might try to get the triathlon bars to get more comfortable. At 2.5 hours for the commute my butt was killing me.

Anyway, one last question, does the wind usually slow you up by an 1.5 hours for 17 miles ??

Is this typical ??

thanks

Jay

Here's another idea: when you get up, check the wind conditions and the forecast.

If it looks like it'll be a headwind on the way in to work, or just windy in general, then you could drive halfway to work in your car, park it, and ride the rest of the way, resulting in about the same riding time even if you're going just 8mph. If it turns out not to be that slow, then you can add a side loop if you want some more distance. :) Likewise on the way home, you can head straight for the car if you're tired and/or it's really windy, or you can take a longer route to the car if you want more distance.

edit: or maybe public transit instead of the car, I forgot about that option.

a recumbent with fairing would be another way to deal w/headwinds!

great work through the wind, a real. invisable contender!

do you have mass-transit option for parts of commute?

fuel up, use correct bike, and be safe, as others have suggested!

tomg

I think wind is mentally more difficult than hills. At least with hills, you can see that you are making progress up them. With wind, it can be an insidious, sucking drain if you are not up for it. I often had steady winds from the south as I commuted south (home from work) in Anchorage. I found that relaxing, slowing down, keeping low and grinding it out was the only way to do it. You won't make good time, should not try to time-trial to your destination, and take some cold comfort in the fact that the wind will make you stronger and burn a few more calories. Sometimes I also howl at it to blow off steam, too.:rolleyes:

I have a 17 mile commute, and usually have a tailwing in the morning and a headwind in the evening. When I look at my time when I arrive at work I tell mysaelf how fit I am getting. When I face the headwind coming home I just change down gear so I can keep a comfortable pedaling speed, and resign myself to a slightly longer ride. The variation in my ride is from 65 mins to 90 mins. Trees along the path can moderate the headwinds so you could adjust your route to find a more sheltered ride.

I forget who's sig it's in, but it says something like "wind is like traffic for the bicycle commuter. Just downshift, go slow and relax." Pretty good analogy and advice.

No trouble with wind on my recumbent trike.

I think the best option for a DF rider has already been mentioned: stay low, and spin.

... Trees along the path can moderate the headwinds so you could adjust your route to find a more sheltered ride.

I'll echo this. I ride past an airport on my usual route, and it's always windy there. If the winds are significant enough to be mentioned on the weather forecast, I take residential routes where the confined side streets with trees and homes do a nice job of cutting the winds down.

In the end though, all we can really do is downshift and spin. You'll either get used to it, your fitness will rise to meet the challenge, or both. Probably both.

Yup, winds are a killer. My first year I just hated them. But I hit at least a 5 MPH headwind almost every day on the way home, and many days it's 15-25 MPH. So I decided to treat it as the gift of extra training.
It's particularly brutal in the winter; cold, slippery snowy icy roads, uphill into a 20 MPH headwind that drops the wind chill well below zero and blow road salt dust into your eyes. In the winter the treelines don't block the wind from the road much.

Anyway, one last question, does the wind usually slow you up by an 1.5 hours for 17 miles ??

Is this typical ??


...the other thing to consider is the possibility that in addition to the wind slowing you down on the way home, this is also your first attempt at commuting and I suspect your body might not be quite in-shape yet; when you're not conduitioned to do that kind of mileage in a day, the second half is going to be harder on you because your body hasn't really rested all that much in-between. Just a thought.

Thanks for the reply. I have a road bike an usually go as low as possible. I might try to get the triathlon bars to get more comfortable. At 2.5 hours for the commute my butt was killing me.

Anyway, one last question, does the wind usually slow you up by an 1.5 hours for 17 miles ??

Is this typical ??

thanks

Jay

TBH yeah, that's about right. Strong winds can slow me down by half or more.
I think Joe Dog hit the nail on the head by saying that wind is more mentally draining than hills because you can't see your progress.
You just have to accept a slower pace sometimes, but the conditioning you get in return will make it worth the extra effort.

Any ideas on how I can make this less brutal ??

Thanksk

Jay
My commute is often about the same as yours, 34 miles round trip, if I take the scenic route home. :)
There's nothing you can do about the wind except check www.weather.com for the hourly report in your zip code area, it's often quite accurate about wind speed and direction. On those windy days, you might try something different, or just be prepared for the battle.

Don't forget, this is your first commute. Unless you are already an avid cyclist, it will take time to build up your cycling legs for this trip. In the mean time, try not fighting the wind, just ride easily. Be patient and enjoy the ride.

:D

A 20+ mph headwind does happen on occasion but I don't think it is common in most parts of the country. Sounds like you probably had a good tail wind going in which exagerated the difference.
As for dealing with headwinds aerodynamics plays a much bigger role than it does on calm days. Anything that impoves aerodynamics will reduce your effort. Wear tight fitting clothes, stay low, and keep your luggage behind you. Panniers and backpacks will increase the drag more than seat bags or rack trunks. If you really want to go all out a low recumbent or velomobile is much more aerodynamic than an upright.
Over all unless you are in an area like North Dakota that has constant high winds, a hard head wind will affect only a small minority of your commutes.
Craig

I had frequent 20+mph headwinds this winter.
Here is how I deal with it:
1) Downshift.
2) Assume the most aero position possible in my drops
3) Pedal like a mad man
4) LEAVE EARLY

optional:
5) take my time and accept the beating I am recieving like a man.

Yep, wind is tough. Just have to accept it. I was against a pretty strong headwind last night on the way home. Like Cyclaholic says, embrace the challenge. Learn to appreciate that it is making you stronger. Turn the cycle computer off. Then you won't know how slow you are going.

I'll give the answer I always give to this question: *click* *click* (<--- the sound of resigning oneself to the headwind by gearing down). It sounds like you were trying way too hard and probably could have had a more efficient ride home if you paced yourself a bit better.

An 18-mile commute is a lot to do on a daily basis, especially when starting out. I would recommend trying it every other day, using the off day to pre-position your clothes. Then you won't have to carry them. Your ride home at night is your exercise allotment for the following day that you plan to take off.

You should get into good enough shape soon to make that commute in no more than 90 minutes each way, even with some adverse headwind, and maybe with neutral wind you might be able to get the time down to 75 minutes or something like that. (It's pretty hard to average much better than that in most commuting situations, since you have stop lights, stop signs, etc.)

... Sometimes I also howl at it to blow off steam, too.:rolleyes:

I yell at it from time to time. Especially when it gets over 40 mph and gusting. I use the Forest Gump scene in the hurricane on the shrimp boat as incentive. I yell at the wind things like "Is that all you got!? Come on what kind of a wind are you anyway you 'wimpy thing' ( I substituted the real word I call it for list etiquette ). It seems to help motivate me to shout a challenge at it as it gusts. And yup, I'm usually pretty whupped by the time I get home after just 10 miles on my longer way home commutes around our town. But I have been at it awhile. And I am pushing it. I agree with the others about just taking it easy for a while until you adjust to commuting. After about a year of just getting built up for the rides I started to push harder against the wind. But that is me.

Get stronger.
Carry some Snickers bars with you - eat 1 every 1 hour during your ride.
Get a bike puter with 2 sensors - 1 for cadence and 1 for speed. Keep cadence above 90.
To h@ll with average speed, it is about the spinning and not having to drive a car.

Atleast the wind keeps you cool, while going directly against it is not fun, you have to admit when your hot and sweaty nothing feels better than a nice breeze.

Maybe next time the wind will be behind you.

Week 5 for my commute. I'm getting strong and it is getting easier. I ride 3x a week to give myself recovery days. I don't ride back every time the whole way. I can get on public transit with my bike for over half the ride home. For me it is growing process and I am on no one's timeline to improve.

This is why I prefer road bikes for commuting...get aero and keep on pumping.

For a mountain bike, I just use my weight a bit to build up speed into a higher RPM, then just spin the gears at speed and hope for the best.

Wind is the ultimate equalizer for a large rider....for me it's the difference between 15-16mph on the mtb and 9-10mph....on the roadie it's the difference of a 27mph sprint and a 20mph sprint.

So here you are fighting the wind, your half way with your commute, and then you get a dreaded flat tire.

Stopping you realize, you don't have a pump handy, and you don't have a spare.....doh....

Thanks to all , advice taken.

Jay