Commuting - When I reach the end of the road...

When all is said and done and I've finished my course, will bicycle commuting have made any difference to me? I mean, what's the point?

Why not drive like everyone else? What special reward should I expect? Is it really "all that?"

?

All I know is that ever since I started riding daily I am a much happier and relaxed person. The ride home gives me a chance to leave the day behind and center myself. I enjoy it and I stay fit and healthy. I get to learn new things and meet people I never would have had I not started riding. I'm also doing my part to cut down on pollution.

So you ask what's the point, will it make a difference? To me riding makes all the difference in so many different positive ways.

Maybe it makes a difference, maybe it doesn't. To be honest, I'm having too much fun to care.

IF by making a difference, you mean that we are all gonna die anyhow, then the answer is NO; but if you mean will it make the time we do have any better, the answer is YES.

I think you already knew this, so I'm guessing you're just trying to catch up to Chris.

Pete,

You are listed as having over 2000 posts on a bike forum and you are asking us why we commute on a bike?? I don't get it. Are you asking a rhetorical question, or are you against commuting, or what? Maybe you know the answer and you want to see what people will say about it. Seems like a strange question to me, but I will answer it anyway. The pollution I save by riding my bike is a mere drop in the ocean. Besides the obvious health benefits, I ride because I enjoy it and because I am doing something that 95% of americans can't, won't or don't. In my own way I am showing people that I am an individual, and that I don't necessarily follow the herd all of the time.

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, know what I mean? :beer:
-BT

It sounds like Pete finally saw the commercial on tv about the guy who reached the end of the internet.:crash:

The end of the Internet is here. (http://www.numbskull.com/)

:p

Pete, it's not the destination, it's the journey that counts.

We're all going to end up the same way, but you might as well enjoy the ride (pun fully intended).

When I was commuting by bike, I did it:

1. Because I didn't and don't have a car (and don't want one).

2. Because it was a lot more convenient than the bus, often.

3. Because I didn't have to listen to religious nuts spouting off on the bus, if I was alone on my bike. I could spout off to myself.

4. Because I enjoyed riding my bikes.

5. As a form of protest against the appalling over-use of motor vehicles in this world (closely related to reason no. 1).

6. Because it made me feel better when I was at work.

7. Because it also made me feel better when I was at home.

8. And because it sometimes made me feel better in between home and work.

Now that I no longer commute, I stare at the computer monitor a lot, and post things like this.

Will it have made a difference? Of course--every action we undertake makes a difference that reverberates through the rest of our life and through the whole world.

But it's really of not the slightest interest to me what difference it makes.

I like running up the three flights of stairs in the factory where I work and waiting for the huffing and puffing co-workers, at my age level and much younger, to catch up and then have to recover. I just feel better.

I think bjlaw just summed it up perfectly. I used to be really fit 6 or 7 years ago when I lived in Scotland at Uni and biked alot, off-road and on. I hit the big 3-0 this summer and I'm renovating the bike in anticipation so when I get to 30 and give up smoking for ever and ever, I can jump on the bike, join the local club, and get really fit again :) .

Originally posted by Astra
I think bjlaw just summed it up perfectly. I used to be really fit 6 or 7 years ago when I lived in Scotland at Uni and biked alot, off-road and on. I hit the big 3-0 this summer and I'm renovating the bike in anticipation so when I get to 30 and give up smoking for ever and ever, I can jump on the bike, join the local club, and get really fit again :) .
Why wait for your birthday? Do those things now, and when your birthday comes you and your club mates can go on a long bakery ride or ATM-ride or some other themed ride to celebrate!:D

Originally posted by Pete Clark
When all is said and done and I've finished my course, will bicycle commuting have made any difference to me? I mean, what's the point?

Why not drive like everyone else? What special reward should I expect? Is it really "all that?"

?
Pete, you love to stir things up don't you. ;) ;)

I don't know if I will have made a difference in the overall scheme of things, but I will know that I didn't contribute to environmental or social problems.

Originally posted by Betsy Girl
All I know is that ever since I started riding daily I am a much happier and relaxed person.

Like Betsy Girl, when I ride I feel MUCH better at work and my wife says I am a much happier person at home. :eek:

As aerobat says, we're all going to end up the same way. I hope I'm riding when that time comes for me. :)

JonR - a good point if it wasn't for Shimano. As well as my wages, I'm gonna need all my birthday money (thank god for my wages, parents and a wealthy grandma) to get the bike back upto scratch. At the moment it's a twenty one speed mix of Shimano XT, Suntour XC Pro, Shimano LX, Unknown Campagnolo rear derailleur some of which is seriously on it's last legs (student budget maintenance*)... Basically, if anything goes really wrong on the bike, I'm going to have to make the move to 27 speed which means new rear hub and cassette, B/B, cranks, derailleurs and shifters - all of which is gonna be bl**dy expensive.

The good news is the cost of repairing the frame. It's a custom fillet brazed steel frame and the drive-side chain stay has been gouged by the chain so many times (see previous*) a small crack has appeared. The brilliant news is that it's only £47 to have the stay replaced after which it'll need a respray. It'll be shot blasted down to the steel, etch dipped and etch primed, several layers of colour with a bake in between each one, all new decals and several coats of laquer (all baked) so it'll look brand new again (the paints knackered at the moment, mainly battle scars form Scotland but it's been bashed around in my parents garage for 7 years !) - the good news is that a single colour job is only £53 for frame and forks (Project 2s). I'm using the bike in a couple of weeks on holiday but then it's upto Newcastle-upon-tyne for a restoration :) !

Originally posted by Astra
Basically, if anything goes really wrong on the bike, I'm going to have to make the move to 27 speed which means new rear hub and cassette, B/B, cranks, derailleurs and shifters - all of which is gonna be bl**dy expensive.
Sadness, sympathy, and frustration are the emotions I feel upon reading this.

There's no reason on earth except CORPORATE GREED that you, or any other rider, should have to endure the insult of unnecessary "upgrades"--which themselves will cause even more problems down the road.

Out of 21 speeds, probably eight are the most that ever get used with any frequency by ANYBODY. I know some will disagree with me, but many here will also be of my mind that anything over 21 speeds is simply not necessary, and a potential source of grief for real-life, day-to-day commuting or shopping, etc. cyclists. I could get by very well with ten speeds if they were properly chosen.

It is indeed sorry business to see the bike-component makers following the same sweet, poisonous path of greed that automakers have been traveling all along.

The consumer--the cyclist, in this case--is the one who pays the price.

JonR - I couldn't agree more mate ! I was well pi$$ed off when I thought, 'Hmm. I'll fix the bike up and get it on the road again', hit the internet and found out a 21 speed XT kitted bike is practically unrepairable :mad:. Oh yeah, about the gear thing you mentioned - TOO TRUE ! Who in the hell needs 27 bl00dy gears !!!

Because biking is my drug!!! :eek: :eek: :eek:

When occasionally taking the bus, I’m reminded of other reasons, like not having to breath in someone elses sweaty armpit.

Originally posted by Pete Clark
When all is said and done and I've finished my course, will bicycle commuting have made any difference to me? I mean, what's the point?

Why not drive like everyone else? What special reward should I expect? Is it really "all that?"

?

The fact of the matter is, it doesn't matter whether or not it matters. Seriously. I hope that you ride because you want to like I do. If you ride as a protest against something or someone then don't even bother. You won't get any special reward from an external source; in fact sometimes I feel that everything is working together to make my riding as difficult as possible. And yet I continue to do it. I love it. The minute I don't enjoy it, I can and will stop doing it, no remorse no regrets.

Now, to drift off topic...


Originally posted by Astra
JonR - I couldn't agree more mate ! I was well pi$$ed off when I thought, 'Hmm. I'll fix the bike up and get it on the road again', hit the internet and found out a 21 speed XT kitted bike is practically unrepairable :mad:. Oh yeah, about the gear thing you mentioned - TOO TRUE ! Who in the hell needs 27 bl00dy gears !!!

Hey, I like having some more redundant gears!........not. I still use 7-speed stuff. I intend to still be using it in 10 years. You should still be able to find parts which will work, though you will have to be circumspect and a little more determined. Naturally bike shops aren't going to encourage you but you don't have to let that stop you. Heck, even 6-speed freewheels are still available (albeit they are not top of the line) and I have no trouble finding 7-speed cassettes. I use thumb shifters - they last forever. Rear derailleurs are usually backwards compatible so no problem there. Hubs/Wheels are the most difficult but they are always out there if you look. Of course if they are of any quality these parts should last for a long time, that's part of the reason I prefer them. For me it's about 50/50 technical reasons vs pig-headed stubborness. Ok, 40/60. But that's it.

Here is a picture of a 95-percent original, one year newer, larger-framed, much better-looking twin of my all-time favourite commuting bike, my 1959 Capo. I spread the rear triangle to 126mm and now run a 7-speed freewheel, giving me 11 smoothly-running gears, and two additional usable gears, covering the range from 42 to 100 gear-inches pretty much in 6-percent increments. The 3x7 setup on my mountain bike, with 18 usable combinations, nicely covers the 4:1 range from 24 to 96 gear-inches. Friction-shift 2x7 or 3x7 gearing is a reliable, economical, mature technology.

Originally posted by bjlaw
I like running up the three flights of stairs in the factory where I work and waiting for the huffing and puffing co-workers, at my age level and much younger, to catch up and then have to recover. I just feel better.

Of all my environmental, economic, enjoyment, energy, and health reasons for cycling, that one is perhaps highest on my list. In true "Breaking Away" style, I was a hopelessly unathletic, klutzy child and youth with unstable kneecaps and a curved spine who can now run, walk, or bike circles around the former jocks I meet at my high school reunions. My large-muscle hand-eye coordination still sucks, but I have a great cardiovascular system, which I owe to my diet and my passion for cycling.

Originally posted by JonR
Out of 21 speeds, probably eight are the most that ever get used with any frequency by ANYBODY. I know some will disagree with me, but many here will also be of my mind that anything over 21 speeds is simply not necessary, and a potential source of grief for real-life, day-to-day commuting or shopping, etc.

Sorry Jon, but I have to disagree here. One of the places I often ride has a 1.2km, 22% hill. Admittedly, it's not a commute or a shopping ride, but it's a nice ride anyway. I like having the extra gears there. If you don't want to have them, nobody is forcing you to buy a bike that has that many gears.

Originally posted by Chris L


If you don't want to have them, nobody is forcing you to buy a bike that has that many gears.
But soon there will be no alternative available! I don't deny that lots of gears should be at the disposal of cyclists like you, Chris, who thrive on difficult challenges and actually can use them, but I still say it's not fair that EVERYBODY including the great number of everyday commuters and basic-transportation cyclists, will be forced to spend lots of money for more trouble-prone, exotic stuff than they will ever need, and which they didn't want in the first place.

Once again the comparison to the software business cries out to be made, so I'll make it in this sentence.

Greed, greed, greed. Pure and simple.

Originally posted by JonR

But soon there will be no alternative available!

That will depend how many people want gears and how many people don't. Yes, it is driven by greed, but if there are a lot of people who want bikes without gears, that's what will happen. And I must say that they haven't been causing me too many problems of late. Heck, it's been around 7,000km now since I even had a flat tyre! :eek:

Originally posted by Chris L
And I must say that they haven't been causing me too many problems of late. Heck, it's been around 7,000km now since I even had a flat tyre! :eek:
Yeah, but next time you have a flat, see how much good those 46 gears do you THEN! :D

I rest my case.

I've got by on 10 and now 12 gears for years.

All the additional number of gears does is allow you to have the same spread with closer ratios or a greater spread.

I run a 48/36 front, with a 12 to 28 rear (6 speed) and have found it to be fine.

I've never had to get off on a hill, but if bottom isn't low enough think I would get off and walk as it would be just as fast as pedalling.:)

Oh, and I use friction shifters (Campag) as they are the easiest things to adjust and fix on tour.

Originally posted by chewa
Oh, and I use friction shifters (Campag) as they are the easiest things to adjust and fix on tour.
I like friction shifters much better than index shifting. When I ride my road bike with the downtube-mounted friction shifters, I wish I could have something that nice (and that dependable) on my MTB.

Originally posted by JonR

I like friction shifters much better than index shifting. When I ride my road bike with the downtube-mounted friction shifters, I wish I could have something that nice (and that dependable) on my MTB.

But you can. I use thumb shifters (Shimano XT) which are friction on the left and switchable index/friction on the right. Unfortunately, they don't make them anymore but you can find used ones if you look really hard.

Originally posted by bikerider


But you can. I use thumb shifters (Shimano XT) which are friction on the left and switchable index/friction on the right. Unfortunately, they don't make them anymore but you can find used ones if you look really hard.
Ask Sheldon.

:angel:

www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/derailers.html#shifters

click on shifters.