Commuting - Hi!

Hello to all!
I am a new poster to this board and I'm really glad I found it. I recently bought a Trek 7100 bike, and am using it to commute around Bellingham WA. I intend to change out some of the stock parts, but I really could use a little advice other than what the guy in the bike shop might tell me I "need" to buy. I have already put on a rack and water bottle, next I would like some pedals.... I'm actually eyeballing some BMX pedals that are bigger-looking than others I have seen yet made of metal. Anyhow, I wanted to introduce myself to anyone who might be interested, and hope to get some good tips/ideas/info from here.

KC

I am a new poster. I have already put on a rack and water bottle, next I would like some pedals.... I'm actually eyeballing some BMX pedals that are bigger-looking than others I have seen yet made of metal. Anyhow, I wanted to introduce myself to anyone who might be interested, and hope to get some good tips/ideas/info from here.KC[/QUOTE]

Welcome to Happy Bikelandia!

I don't know about the pedals, but I'll sugest that you get a couple large waterproof panniers, so that you can cary everything and anything you might need at work and for your ride. You might also want to invest in a Bionicle to tape to your handlebars, so everyone knows that you're a super cool bike commuter.

There have been many threads on this topic, so if you scroll through the old ones you'll get a bazillion other good ideas, from commuters more worthy than myself.

Hahaha my kid LOVES Bionicle. Well I've been reading other posts for a while now (an hour?) and yeah there is TONS of good info here! I guess I left out the fact that I have a daily commute to work round trip of about 13 miles five days a week. And of course the riding I do for fun also which is.... well I dunno what it is cause it's for fun. I can't decide if I want to get panniers or this bag that is specifically designed to clip to the top of my Trek rack. I don't need to carry a whole lot, and I know for sure I'm geting a folding basket for trips to the store. So still I'm mulling over the pedal issue because the ones my bike came with are junk and they roll around under my foot when I pedal like I'm walking on baseballs and the BMX pedals I looked at seem like they'd work just fine. I am no purest. I don't need perfect I need functional and not so sore feet. Also I noticed my butt (tailbone) is sore lately. I wonder if a big fat seat would help? (not my seat haha) I saw one for sale at the bike shop and it looked like a couch, but it also looked comfy.

try using a knapsack or bookbag before you dole out the cash for panniers.Oh, and welcome

Welcome to the Forums. I believe it is general consensus (sp?) around here that big, fat "comfy" seats are not very comfy in the long run. When you're riding, your weight is supposed to be on the two bones up your er... um... behind. A relatively narrow and hard seat helps to achieve this.

Some soreness is to be expected at first, but you can try and reduce that by wearing padded bike shorts (they also have no seams down there to reduce chafing). Regarding underwear with bike shorts, search the Forums for "Underwear Nazi", read and weep! :D

You will adapt to the seat and vice versa, so whatever you do, do not change saddle after every ride. Give it some time.

--J

typos

Hahaha my kid LOVES Bionicle. I'm mulling over the pedal issue because the ones my bike came with are junk and they roll around under my foot I don't need perfect I need functional and not so sore feet. Also I noticed my butt (tailbone) is sore lately. I wonder if a big fat seat would help?

One of my boys left a bionicle outside last fall, so I scooped it up and taped it to my handle bars. Kids are always coming up to me and talking about it, though I have no idea what they are talking about. Aaron vows to reposes the toy, but he hasn't yet. He only has twentyfive thousand other ones. When we go for rides, I still worry that he'll yank it off of my bike.

For pedals, I have pretty standard ones, with toe clips. There is so much more power delivered to the crank if the feet are anchored to the pedals somehow. Your bottom will probably toughen up and get used to the bike seat pretty quickly. Don't change to the giant fluffy pillow yet.

Welcome guys

I had a great post of pros and cons for each type of setup....but i somehow managed to go back apage and lsot it all....here we go in a nutshell:

messenger bags:
somewaht pricey (about $80 for a good one), great for short trips or frequent stops, very uncomfortable for long rides of when heavily loaded.

Rack + bungie cords:
cheap ($40 or less), great for holding firm hard objects that would be uncomfortable in a messenger bag or backpack, but bungies arent the world most reliable fastener, and the storage space is restricted by the bungie cords....fastening them to achieve adequate tightness is also very annoying.

panniers:
Can be very expensive by themselves, some being over $100 (mine were $35 cheapies), they DO require a compatible rack to mount them to, so add some more cost there...and you often have to adjust the angle of your rack so your heels dont strike the bags. In return, you get HUGE amounts of storage, no worries of anyhting falling off, and basically the best possible setup for distance riding.

Actually this weekend I am going to re-adjust my rack so I don't rub my heels on the bags, tonight was my first major ride with them, and I love em! The ones I bought were made by Avenir (They are the original equipment makers for Diamondback and Raleigh accessories, actually some pretty decent stuff for an OE brand).

pyramid makes some pedals that are both clipless and platforms. i can't find their site though. add some sixsixone launch shoes and you'd have a good commuting setup. http://www.mmasports.com/webfiles/661/661index.htm
i also like the tiburon.

Hello fellow Bellingham citizen....

As ****ty as the roads are around here, I'm not so sure I would spring for the big-ass (ahem) seat. Like Juha said... go for the hard seat with padded shorts (check down at REI).

As far as panniers go, if you don't mind looking like a dork, these are nice: http://cobbworks.com/
Waterproof and they can hold a good lot too, if you like to do shopping by bicycle.

Also, with all the college students about, it may be wise to invest in a rear-view mirror of somesort.

-Nicholas

For good utility bike pedals, check out MKS. Their Sylvian Touring model does everything a pedal should. You can attatch toe clips for extra efficiency and safety.
For shopping panniers, get ones with a large main bag, not lots of zippered compartments. A quick-release mounting and an extension collar are useful. I use Carradice, which are excellent but expensive.
You may need lights, lock, helmet and gloves.

Hey thanks a lot for all the responses! This site is pretty cool and so are the people on it. Heck I'm even thinking about throwing down a donation for the site.... You can't get this much info anywhere else. Reddeno: are you doing the ski to sea this year? I wanted to but I just had oral surgury yesterday and my endodontist said no way.

what's the difference between the delux and the regular bucket?

campkev - No, I'm really quite out of shape because I haven't been biking much since moving to Bellingham--most of my previous biking was commuting and now I live only .75 mi from WWU (10 minute walk). But, it looks like an absolutely awesome event--combines all my favorite sports :-) Ah, well...

MERTON - This page describes the difference (something about heat-treated aluminum hooks). http://cobbworks.com/orders.html

-Nicholas

WTF is a Bionicle??? Name sounds like a heartrate monitor, but it tapes to your handlebars? I'm so confused.

Seely here ya go.... uhmm you may be sorry you asked LOL

www.lego.com/bionicle/

Those Bionicle dealies look sweet!!! And Legos were by far my favorite toy as a kid too! Hmmmm....

man..I loved legos....I'm still too tempted to get some minidstorms....but that's all to make a device that keeps my glass of mtn dew full while im at the computer ;)

Get some bear claw bmx pedals, mine cost $15 7-8years ago and still do the trick, a couple dents as they're on my mtb but they still work great and come in a half dozen colors too. If you slip off the front of the pedal while mashing it will whip around and swat you good. I had a half circle of dots on my calf for over a month when I did it, only happend once though. My dad bought these $80 odessy black widows (for his 20 miles a year) I dout you would ever slip off of them but man it would hurt- sharp I don't even like to hold on to them to turn the crank during maintainence but they have no resistance and are stiff as can be, give em a spin and they keep spining for a long time.
I was thinking about the ski to sea myself but just can't fit it in.

http://www.xoutfitters.com/bmx/pedals/victor_beartrap_sm.gif
these are what I use on my mtb still $15 and very durable still smooth too. Bear cage I think they're called, mine are Blue though.

Those pedals are pretty close to exactly what I am looking for :)
Note the crappy stock pedals.... They must go....Quickly
If you're interested, here's a pic of my baby... :love:

I had to replace my stock pedals as they had gotton so busted up as to be nearly usless and they had that same baseball underfoot feel as they fliped over occationaly with my foot on them (I still don't know how that happened).

Those pedals are pretty close to exactly what I am looking for :)
Note the crappy stock pedals.... They must go....Quickly
If you're interested, here's a pic of my baby... :love:
If you're interested, I have some pedals with toe clips and straps that I took off of my 7500 FX in favor of some clipless pedals awhile back. I only used em for a couple weeks. You can have em, maybe just reimburse me for shipping...
They were the stock pedals in the picture below. By the way.. nice bike... looks perfect for commuting!
http://www.trekbikes.com/images/bikes/2004/citybike/large/7500fx.jpg

Bpohl:
Dude thanks so much for the offer!!!
I gotta say that's cool offering a complete stranger your gear like that!
I just bought a set of pedals today and had them installed at my LBS so I will take a pass on your pedals, but man I wish I had seen your post before I went shopping!:(