Commuting - Brand new commuter...

...Or at least, I'd like to be. I'm staying with my parents in Portland, OR for the summer, and it seems to be a great cycling town. I'd like to commute from their house in Gladstone to school in Portland, a distance of about 15 miles. I'm a runner already (30 mpw), so I'm in decent shape. The route is a trifle hilly, which unnerves me a bit. I'm just unsure how to actually jump into this. I'd probably just bike one way and catch the bus home - it'll be hot by afternoon when I want to leave. So I suppose my questions are, do you think this is doable (how far do you all commute, anyway?), and what do you wish you had known when you first began commuting to work/school? Thanks! :)

Due to night blindness and the early working hour I hitch a ride to work in the mornings, then ride home in the afternoon. Distance is just under 16 miles which I cover in anywhere from an hour to an hour and twenty minutes depending on conditions (mine, the road, weather, wind, traffic, etc.). I could go both ways if I could ride in the daylight on the way in. I'm 53 and just started riding a few months ago after not having ridden in over 5 years. I changed to a recumbent since the road bike was killing me after only a few minutes. Best decision I ever made. There are others here on the forum that probably do in excess of 60 miles a day round trip. (In my younger years I routinely did 22 miles each way Monday through Friday). Start easy first, do some conditioning riding in your off hours before you take the plunge. You don't want to be half way to work then have your legs give out. There are ways to deal with the heat, like water soaked neck wraps. In a nutshell I'll say it is doable with some conditioning first. Make sure you take a good route and be aware of traffic issues. Good Luck!

'bent Brian

As a brand new commuter I would recommend the following:

1. Ride the ride on a Saturday or Sunday. Traffic is lighter on those days, there's less stress, you can find side roads to use, and you become familiar with your route.

2. You don't have to commute by bike every day. I don't. I usually ride my bike two or three times a week. It may go up with time.

3. My route is about 8.5 miles each way. Half is through neighborhoods and downtown Minneapolis. The other half is on a dedicated bicycle trail. Takes me about 30-40 minutes depending on the same things bnet1 mentioned (my condition, weather, wind, traffic).

4. I can't imagine the heat in Portland is stifling, you may want to ride home in the afternoon and catch the bus in the morning. Going home you usually don't have to be there by a specific time so you can take your time.

You can work up a sweat in 16 miles. Do you have a place to shower at work/school? If not, be sure to look at other threads about cleaning up in the bathroom. There's lots of advice on here.

With your running, the aerobic demands won't be too bad. I switched over this spring after a running injury and even after a few weeks off from injury I was able to surprise a few long time biking buddies ;) I noticed it most in my back and butt ;) As mentioned do a test ride on a weekend when you have no pressure to figure out route, where to be cautious and times. Make sure to carry spare/ repair kit.

The bus idea is great, but really the heat isn't too bad once you acclimate. It's amazing how well evaporative cooling works when you're moving! Start slow and build up. I do about 12 miles one way and started out with 2 days a week, now I usually do 4 days.

I say just do it.
I started riding to work this spring after I couldn't explain to myself why I was driving to the gym in the morning to run or ride on a stationary then driving to work. At first I was worried about traffic, where to put my bike, what people would say, yada yada on and on. But one morning I just got on my mountain bike and have been doing it ever since. I found the traffic is not a problem, my employeer was glad to give me a spot in the building for my bike (I was freeing up a parking spot), and most people don't even notice me riding in. Also, I recommend waterproof panniers or trunk.

I do 17 miles each way, 3 days a week if the weather is nice. I'm 62 and it takes me about 1 hr 15 mins, but it is mostly pretty flat. The easiest route is the one with the least intersections where you have to slow down and break your pedalling rythm. If you start early in the morning you will have less traffic and you will have time to cool down at the end of your commute.

Congratulations on taking the first step! I have been riding to work since 10/03 and even donated my car to World Vision (http://www.worldvision.org) . I did exactly what the others suggested. I road on a Saturday morning the route I would take to work. I even had my wife be my sag wagon in my future car donation. I made the 9.5 mile route (home to work) in approx. 45 min. I also drove my car the route to get a mental picture of the amount of traffic I would be dealing with. I worked up to doing just one ride a day to going both ways. My wife has a rack on our only car to take my bike home. Now I am pretty much a regular. I do about 80 to 100 miles a week depending on the weather. I have a few web sites that have a good amount of commuting information. First is the St. Louis Bicycle Federation (http://stlbikefed.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=120) and the second is Trailnet (http://trailnet.org/bw/index.htm). Once you get over your initial fears and get your first ride in you will be glad you did. Most important of all keep it safe and your rides will go smoother.

In cycling,

kb0tnv

Ah, so much to learn, yet everyone eventually adopts their own preferences. I commute 25 miles, round-trip every day in Portland, and you can too!

You will learn much as you go, but you can benefit by checking others' experience with traffic and commuting-specific hassles right here in this forum. Offhand, my first thoughts are:

At a minimum, make sure you carry a pump, spare tube, tire levers, and patches. Also, if you don't already know how - try removing/reinstalling a tire/tube at home before needing to do so on the road.

Get a rack and some panniers to carry your stuff. Some prefer a backpack of some sort, but I think your distance and inexperience prescribe panniers for reasons of comfort and ease of use.

As mentioned, map a route and ride it on an off day to familiarize yourself with it.
You may need to try it one-way a few times and work up to every day/both ways.

If you continue into fall/winter, get fenders, something to cover your feet (the wind chills immensely), and some wet weather riding gear.

Learn some rudimentary bike maintenance (if you don't already know) and keep your bike clean, lubed and well tuned. The more mileage you subject your bike to, the more money and hassle this preventative maintenance will save you.

Enjoy.

...Or at least, I'd like to be. I'm staying with my parents in Portland, OR for the summer, and it seems to be a great cycling town. I'd like to commute from their house in Gladstone to school in Portland, a distance of about 15 miles. I'm a runner already (30 mpw), so I'm in decent shape. The route is a trifle hilly, which unnerves me a bit. I'm just unsure how to actually jump into this. I'd probably just bike one way and catch the bus home - it'll be hot by afternoon when I want to leave. So I suppose my questions are, do you think this is doable (how far do you all commute, anyway?), and what do you wish you had known when you first began commuting to work/school? Thanks! :)

Augie,

I ride the route you're talking about. Checkout the Springwater Corridor on the web for maps. You can take River Road from Gladstone north to Tacoma St. and then west down to the Corridor. The lower end runs from just south of Oaks Park and crosses the steel bridge in dwntn Portland. It's all along the Willammette River.

If you aren't used to riding that distance yet, work up to it with afternoon and weekend fun rides. Because of a surgery and then a cross-country move, I went almost a year without riding at all. When I first started off towards my new workplace in Minneapolis, on bike, I only got about a mile and a half before I realized that I wouldn't easily make the 7 miles to my destination, so I turned around and got the car. Within a couple of weeks, I was riding to work every day.