Commuting - Another newbie's first commute

I also had my first commute yesterday. It seemed like going to work was harder on my lungs than coming home, but coming home had crazier drivers than the morning commute.

All in all I enjoyed it. Not sure I can do it daily just yet. I need to work up to that.

As a novice, will changing my mountain bike tires to street tires make that big of a difference on the rolling resistance?

Glad to hear you had fun! Keep it up, you'll get used to the riding quicker than you think :) How long is the commute?

Oh and slicks are always nicer than knobbies!

Glad to hear you had fun! Keep it up, you'll get used to the riding quicker than you think :) How long is the commute?

Oh and slicks are always nicer than knobbies!


It's about 4 miles to my job. I've never noticed how many hills and valleys there are here in Atlanta. :D
Seems like it took about 30 minutes to get there, which is half the time it took when I walked home, but the same amount of time it takes to drive, find a parking spot, and walk to my office from the parking spot.:rolleyes:

I'm feeling it a little bit this morning. Lots of work to be done.

Good job! My ride is only a little longer than yours. Not to worry, pretty soon it won't be long enough. :)

Glad to hear you had fun! Keep it up, you'll get used to the riding quicker than you think :) How long is the commute?

Oh and slicks are always nicer than knobbies!

+1 But consider the amount of debris on your route, you may want to trade some speed for puncture resistance.

I say go with the slicks. I ride down broad street in Philly and I have actually had less flats since I switched to slicks and the ride is way quicker.

HAHA! I had my first commute yesterday too! Mine was only 7 miles each way, but I'm feeling it today thanks to the stiff headwind I had on the ride home. There was a good gust that I swear felt like I stopped dead in my tracks.

Good luck with your future commutes!

It's about 4 miles to my job. I've never noticed how many hills and valleys there are here in Atlanta. :D
Seems like it took about 30 minutes to get there, which is half the time it took when I walked home, but the same amount of time it takes to drive, find a parking spot, and walk to my office from the parking spot.:rolleyes:

I'm feeling it a little bit this morning. Lots of work to be done.

It's amazing how little a person notices the terrain the drive everyday when in a car. That's one think I like about bike commuting. There a dips and hills I never really thought about when I drove.

When I first started commuting my ride was 4 miles. As I said before you'll get used to it pretty quickly and as someone else said pretty soon you'll be looking for longer routes (especially on nice spring days)! I'm glad my ride is longer now, that's for sure :D

villageidiot:

If you're not sure about being able to make it both ways every day right now, consider taking city buses to work, and riding the bike home.

In a couple of weeks, you'll start to feel more comfortable with your ride; in a couple of months, it'll be routine.

Good on you for enjoying your commute. I am relatively new to commuting also. (Just about a month now) It only gets better as you work out the details of packing, route familiarity, fitness, etc. I am still trying out new ideas and adjusting gear every week. Plus you get to look forward to the ride home all day long.

Congrats peasey and villageidiot on starting commuting. Make sure your lit and visible and most importantly, have fun!

I promise if you keep it up 3-4 weeks a couple of times a week it will get easy, and you will miss it the days you drive. you will also get a lot faster then 4 miles in 30 min. Slicks are nice but not necessary. I would recommend if you do go to slicks, but still want to do off road get a fatter slick so you still have the area to avoid pinch flats.

Thanks for all of the words of encouragement and advice. I've no doubt that this will get easier. Especially after I steal the tires from my wife's Schwinn Voyageur Comfort Bike. I would just steal her entire bike but I'm not sure I like the twist shifters that she has.

Has anyone tried the Conti Traffic tires? They look like a good compromise.

I also had my first commute yesterday. It seemed like going to work was harder on my lungs than coming home, but coming home had crazier drivers than the morning commute.

All in all I enjoyed it. Not sure I can do it daily just yet. I need to work up to that.

As a novice, will changing my mountain bike tires to street tires make that big of a difference on the rolling resistance?

Hey, congrats. Work up to it, no hurry, just enjoy the ride. Slicks vs knobbies on the commute? Definitely. I'm running a Specialized Nimbus on front, Panaracer Hi-Road on rear and I get burned by road bikes like I'm standing still. Good way to get training miles in and some saddle time. Stick with it, good for the soul.

It's amazing how little a person notices the terrain the drive everyday when in a car. That's one think I like about bike commuting. There a dips and hills I never really thought about when I drove.

When I first started commuting my ride was 4 miles. As I said before you'll get used to it pretty quickly and as someone else said pretty soon you'll be looking for longer routes (especially on nice spring days)! I'm glad my ride is longer now, that's for sure :D

+1 I started 361 days ago commuting. At first I planned on riding as much as was reasonably possible and figured I'd take the car with bad weather. During the first few weeks I could REALY feel my legs. Depending on the wind I'd really be huffing when I got to work or home. Now I look forward to having to go to one of our remote office... what a great excuse to ride an extra 10 miles.

During the past year I've learned a great deal from reading and participating in discussions in various forums. I slowly added gear for both the bike and my body. I went from being a fair weather cyclists to one that rode through the whole of a Buffalo NY winter. I only had the leave the car home about a dozen times during the entire winter due to weather (either severs wind or too much snow in the road). I had no idea one year ago that it was actually possible to ride through Winter and actually ENJOY it.

Be forewarned... cycling is addictive! I figure its a good kind of addition:D
I am still working to get my wife out more often. I bought a simple tandem so that I can help her build up some endurance as she suffers from Asthma and you have to build up the endurance slowly so as not to trigger an attack. I also want to show out 7 year old daughter that riding is FUN. There are far to many stationary activities in the lives of children. There isn't even recess anymore:eek: That was always the best part the school day. You'd run around with your buddies and burn off some extra energy. The schools wonder why the kids get a bit crazy during the day.

Just take it one day at a time. Before long you'll find the ride much easier as your body adjusts to the ride.

Happy riding,
André

+1000 to slicks. I swapped the stock 26x2.1 knobbies on my MTB with 26x1.5 Nimbus Armadillos and it transformed the bike. Now I'm selling my Trek FX because I like the MTB more.. :)

Started riding in January. 4 miles from the train station to the office. A few times a week in the evening I'll ride to the train station one stop farther away to double the miles, or get off the train one station early so I can ride longer. I get off at SJC station, cruise down the culvert bike path and enjoy a few miles along the coast highway (PCH) near Dana Point as the sun sets. Perfect.

Yes, street tires (look at the PSI, a lot of resistance is in deforming the tires, and a lot of in the tread) will make your commute easier; especially as a novice. Because you're going slower more of your energy is fighting friction, where a faster rider would have more concern about aerodynamics than you will.

Congrats.

As an asthmatic I find the mornings more difficult in general and definitely so on a bike. But I feel better after I clear the crap out, and I clear it out faster if I ride.

+1 more for street tires. You don't necessarily have to go with slick tires especially if you have some off road to go through. But if 100% of your commute is on cement and/or asphalt then slick tires are the best way to go. The thinner and higher the pressure the faster and easier it gets to pedal the bike.

Don't worry too much about the drivers. I'm not saying ignore them, but if you stay predictable and visible the cars will not pose too much of a danger.