Commuting - Long distance commute coming up

In the start of september I will hopefully be cycling a 54 mile round trip 2-3 times a week to my Apprenticeship which will be from 9-5. I've had experiance with my 18 mile RT school ride but what tips can you guys give me regarding useful equipment on longer rides and is it really necessary to use a modern bike (90's onwards) because i have a 1975 dawes super galaxy ready to go??? I have a basic cycling kit- shorts, long sleeve, short sleeve etc already and spds, oh and rear rack and Arkel pannier. And any other special/particular advice would be appreciated! I'm really excited about it!

Sam

I assume you've already got a water bottle. You might consider another for a trip that long.

Make sure that you've got basic tools for fixing flats, tightening loose things, etc. It's not fun being halfway and having an unrecoverable error.

Carry a cell phone and have someone you can call because you will, at one time or another, have an unrecoverable error. If you're on a bus route, then carry enough to ride that if you have no other alternative.

Other than that, just be prepared to sweat a bit. I hope your employer has a shower you can use :)

when i did the longer version of my commute i was right at the 50 mile mark round trip and a nicer quality bike is defintally nice. if you are comfortable doing a 50-60 mile ride straight through on your bike as is you should be fine though. Other than that water, tools and a big lunch are all nice things to have on your commute.

Visibility! Make sure you are seen! Also, you might consider a test run on a weekend day to get familiar with the route and the physical requirements. Bring quarters for commercial pumps and bring your own pump and two tubes. I got 2 flats last week and I only commuted 3 days! ugh Gatoraide and snacks. Don't run red lights and stops signs!

I have a 66 mile RT that I do from time to time. These days I mostly work from home. When I do ride into work I do it on my nice carbon roadie. But I have also ridden it on my old Trek 950 mtn bike with slicks. As long as you are comfortable on the bike for a few hours any ride will do.

Shower immediately before your ride. And hopefully you have showers (I don't).

Otherwise I plan it like I do any longer ride.

-D

Thanks for the info guys, I will let you know how I get on!

I would make sure that you do the route a few times before your internship starts to build up some endurance and make sure your body can handle it. Also, get familiar with the area you will be biking through; figure out where the police stations and bike shops are on your route and even some pubs in case you need to wait out a storm.

I'd also bring the bike in for a tune-up and replace the tires if they are starting to get worn. Definitely carry all those repair essentials (spare tubes, levers, multitool, patch kit) and I would definitely recommend having a CO2 pump, especially if you are running high pressure tires (trying to bike when your tire pressure is low is kind of hard). Make sure you have some snacks with you, a water bottle (or two), and if you don't have them already, lights for your bike (especially if you are biking at dusk).