Commuting - DFW Commuters?

Noob, here.

I'm just wondering if there are any North Dallas commuters. I've currently got a commute of 4.5 miles within west McKinney, but I never see anyone else around that area.

If there are some DFW people here, I was wondering how you handle the commute in the summertime (you know, when it's 105 at 5pm)?

Xyn

Wow, west McKinney. Super blocks and cul-de-sacs.

tcs

If there are some DFW people here, I was wondering how you handle the commute in the summertime (you know, when it's 105 at 5pm)?

I just sweat. It is nice having a job where I don't have to look all that nice.

Not to detract from this kickin' forum, and come introduce yourself over here:'
http://www.dorba2.com/forum/52

I live in Allen and commute to Richardson. As for heat, 2 insulated 24oz water bottles, a wet jersey (doused on the way out from work), and some speed (airflow on the bike), and you'll be fine!

Fort Worth commuter. I arrive early and stay at my office a little later and avoid both heat and traffic that way. The sun isn't beating down on you so even if temps are still high, it's not as stressful. My ride home is over an hour with plenty o' hills requiring significant effort. I take 2 large water bottles with icewater and I will stop in the shade a couple of times to gulp on the last 1/3 of the ride. I wear wicking bike clothes and a skullcap under the helmet.

I have a route where the sunrise/sunset doesn't get into a car driver's eyes which would make me virtually invisible on the bike. That was actually a factor when I bought my house - making sure I wasn't driving or biking towards the sun on workdays.

I see very few bike commuters -- it's kind of a shame, as all the evaporative cooling you get on a bike makes it more pleasant than it sounds.

My commute is NE Dallas to NW Irving.

Lots of water, Gatorade and coffee and no cotton clothing.

Fort Worth, too. 22 mile roundtrip. I ride slower when it's hot. And jump straight into the pool when I get home.

I commute in Richardson.
My ride in is the hot part of the day...4:30pm. I just ride slowly (10mph) and carry an insulated polar bottle.
I try to arrive 15-20 minutes ahead so I can stop sweating before toweling down and changing for work. The commute home is time for speed and fun, since it's after dark and cooled off some.

I commute from Allen to McKinney every work day. My ride is only about 5 miles each way. Welcome to the forum. I work at the Medical Center of McKinney.

Thanks for all your replies! I was beginning to think there were no people commuting around the DFW area at all. LOL.

Okay, note to self:

1. Ice water in an insulated water bottle.
2. Wicking clothing (no cotton).
3. Go slow (which sort of removes the old 'create a wind by riding fast' mantra).
4. Stop if I need to (in the shade).

Anything else?

Xyn

Smile, breathe, decompress.
My commute allows me to do all three after a crappy shift.

I normally comute from Arlington to Grand Prairie (just under 10 miles), and once I got the majority of the drivers "trained" ie- they are used to seeing me there, it has been painless. Of course, I have not been on the bike in just over a month because of Dr's orders, so I will end up having to retrain all the drivers. I never see any other commuters on my routes.

I'm not commuting now (the office is remodeling and the showers will be gone until October, but there will be more of them afterwards, with a gym! :-) ) but I did ride quite a bit last summer from NRH to Southlake and back. I started taking a different route in the PM to deal with the heat and with cagers. They don't seem to mind me taking up a lane at 7 or 8 am but at 5:30 they are livid. So it can be done. Make sure you get extra rest and take it easy, especially on ozone action days.

Oak Cliffer checking in. My commute is 3 1/2 miles one way. I go down Polk and down Centre street to my job. Today I went flying down Jefferson since there is no traffic at 5:45 in the morning.
I leave the office at 5:00 PM and it gets hot! Just shower when you get home. I usually go around the park before going home. Maybe it builds up my heat tolerance but I don't sweat as much on the bike. It's when I get off! Drink plenty of fluids.
Heat don't stop me but freezing temps sure will.
Cagers in Oak Cliff are pretty courteous to bikers. I respect them in turn and don't do any stupid manouvers around them.
Ernest

especially on ozone action days.
Good point. The ozone doesn't bother me, but there's plenty of folks who are bothered. And McKinney is one of those cities that seems to get t ozone worse than other communities. The south wind pushes it all north of Dallas/Richardson/Plano/Allen...right into McKinney.

Here's a link to keep an eye on it:
http://www.nctcog.org/weather/radaranimate.asp?T=3

Just a plaino' Plano commuter here. 20 miles round trip into Denton County. I've managed to find a route amongst secondary roadways, except for a couple of miles on W. Parker so traffic hasn't been much of an issue. I ride in @ dark thirty and leave about 8p.m. I don't have to deal with the heat so much.

Ride safe out there fellers.

...I go down Polk and down Centre street to my job. Ernest

I used to live in Oak Cliff when I was a kid (a looong time ago). IIRC, Polk has some pretty good hills.

Anyway, the Sherman/Denison area is not exactly DFW but we do share the same heat. Before I leave work I will drink lots of water. I usually don't carry a water bottle except when the heat is extreme (105 is not extreme) When I do carry a bottle, I will put a wet cotton shorty sock over it...it keeps the water nice and cool. I use this to squirt myself and to get the sweat out of my eyes. When I get home and take off my cycling clothes it's like taking off a swim suit after climbing out of the pool...but not quite as refreshing. I then get a big class of iced something to drink and then I hop in a cold shower. Now I'm ready for anything.

BTW, I've only seen two other commuters up here...one looks to be a DUI'er and the other is a businessman complete with slacks and dress shoes. Neither has ever returned my waves.

Mikey

I used to live in Oak Cliff when I was a kid (a looong time ago). IIRC, Polk has some pretty good hills.

Yeah, Polk at Clarendon. Good hills on either side of Clarendon, I hit those with a passion. The one on Rugged by Bishop Dunne High School is another good one I like to build up on.
Ernest

Yeah, Polk at Clarendon. Good hills on either side of Clarendon, I hit those with a passion. The one on Rugged by Bishop Dunne High School is another good one I like to build up on.
Ernest

the memories are flooding back :thumb:

Irving to Carrollton (14 mile round trip).

Switching to panniers helped lots to keep me less sweaty when I arrive at work. If you have anything on your back I would suggest maybe getting a rack trunk bag, panniers, or something similar. This way you get good air flow on your way in and can cool down more easily.

Once I am at work I just sit in my office with the door locked in my boxers and look at bike forums for about 15 mins while I cool down after my cold washrag wipe off. Probably too much info, but it seems to work well.

On the way home when it is insanely hot, I am headed straight to the shower anyway so I dont really care about the sweating, just top off a bottle before you leave the office and you will probably be fine.

My goodness, that gave me a huge laugh :roflmao2:... sitting in one's skivvies in the office cooling down. Unfortunately, I'd get in serious trouble if I tried that given that I have a cube with half walls instead of an office.

I'm loving the fact that there are so many people who do this here.. I honestly haven't seen anyone do a commute by bike even when I drive in.

The good news for me is that I have no hills on my commute ... the bad news is that I have no hills, which means that I'll need to get a little more creative on treks home to find some.

Thanks for all your replies!

Hey Big E and Mikey,

Another Oak Cliffer,
I commute from Kiest/Hampton area to Mid downtown.
Through Kiest park, past the same pack of wild dogs every morning.
They gather around the have-a-heart trap the park staff place out to catch them.
Down Rugged, over to Edgefield, to Kings hwy. Eventually onto the bridge at Zang
and then me and the buses race up Commerce all the way to Ervay.

Big E, I met you at the party for the new bike shop on Tyler, I'm an associate there.
Come by whenever, our grand opening is this weekend.

Heck, you're all invited. I hope it's okay to mention the shop, I wont mention the name
here just in case that breaks some forum rules.

Hey Big E and Mikey,

Another Oak Cliffer,
I commute from Kiest/Hampton area to Mid downtown.
Through Kiest park, past the same pack of wild dogs every morning.
They gather around the have-a-heart trap the park staff place out to catch them.
Down Rugged, over to Edgefield, to Kings hwy. Eventually onto the bridge at Zang
and then me and the buses race up Commerce all the way to Ervay.

Big E, I met you at the party for the new bike shop on Tyler, I'm an associate there.
Come by whenever, our grand opening is this weekend.

Heck, you're all invited. I hope it's okay to mention the shop, I wont mention the name
here just in case that breaks some forum rules.

Great! I'll be there. I'll bring my Motobecane Nomad. She needs some work. :)
Ernest

PS: The other day, I saw the most beautiful reddish-brown fox cross Kiest and vanish into the trees along the park.

I commute in Dallas, north of Belt Line (most people call it Richardson, but it isn't).

Lately, I've been wearing swim trunks instead of gym shorts for my commute. When I get home, I pull the bike into the garage and literally walk out and dive into the pool.

Mine is from Frisco to the Galleria area in Dallas, about 40 miles round trip. Mornings aren't a big deal since it's still cool enough, and as long as you're moving and getting some air flow, the afternoons aren't bad either, even when it's 100+. I take one bottle of ice water before I leave work and it's plenty. You might feel like you're being cooked alive if you have to stop at a light or have to go real slow, but other than that, no problems.