The Octopus 

Later this month, I will be speaking for an hour on commuting by bicycle at my employer's lunchtime monthly brown-bag seminar series. We're a downtown employer of 400 people; I won't draw a crowd that big, but there is significant interest. I am the only regular cycle commuter in the office although there are a few people who ride in occasionally in the summer.

In general, the goal is to expose people to the idea, its feasibility, benefits, logistics, etc. in order to generate interest. The "class" is aimed at never-evers; folks who may cycle recreationally (but maybe not!), but who have never as adults cycled for transportation.

I've been commuting my whole adult life (college and at all employers since then), so I've got more than few ideas.... But rather than share my ideas for how to structure the "class," I'd love to hear your ideas and thoughts (and brazenly steal them!), and would especially love to hear from anyone who has done something similar. Bonus points for suggestions for materials, references, etc. to use or distribute. So, please fire away, and help me make a few converts! Thanks in advance for all your great ideas and suggestions.

JeffS

That's a long time to talk about commuting, especially to people who don't ride. You'd better hope they ask a lot of questions.

I would start by trying to locate at least one other speaker if possible - preferably from a different demographic.

gosmsgo

Get an LCI to do it.

The last thing we need is more filtering, blowing stop signs and red lights being "taught."

misterE0

I'm a newbie to commuting, but I've found https://www.gmap-pedometer.com/ to be invaluable for figuring possible routes out, then test via car before attempting on bike if you live in an area that is difficult to bike around.

The Octopus 

I'm not sure if this is aimed at me personally (I don't think I know you, do I?), or what it means, or why you would assume I would do such a thing.

My request for advice and ideas is sincere; I would like to hear good, positive, constructive ideas. I'm sorry if my seeking assistance in this forum is inappropriate or unwelcome, and if the tenor of responses continues like this, I'll gladly withdraw the request and seek the advice of others. Sorry to trouble you all.

legit

You may already have this one, but one of the things I always worry about is if there will be a place to put my bike. So I'd say make sure to get across the point of where and how people can safely store their bikes at work.

Along the same lines going over the companies policies might be helpful.

I suppose these are somewhat generic ideas (sorry) but if you make it seem like its not a hassle to ride a bike to work maybe it will help to get some people to start that have only been thinking about it?...

Sorry, not too helpful. Good luck though!
- legit

thePig

You might want to include some videos to space it out - an hour is a long time.
I found a short video that I posted to my blog this morning (since it is bike to work week). It shows this guy commutting to work but also includes lots of interesting stats.

Such as:
- 40% of all car journeys are less than 2 miles
- the average person loses 13lbs in their first year of commutting.

You can see it here - https://www.cyclepig.com/archive/why-...mmute-by-bike/

Hope this helps and best of luck with the talk.

kf5nd

I am convinced that you can't "teach" bike commuting in a one-hour class. Could you teach car drivers how to ride a motorcycle safely in one hour? Of course not.

But, you can do a great job in one hour to raising the major issues and orienting people to the pathway that they need to follow in order to do it safely. You can essentially get them motivated to take the LAB Road One course.

Sounds like you need to become an LCI yourself.

tarwheel 

I did a presentation for a "brown bag" lunch meeting at my office earlier this month. I made a PowerPoint slide show that hits the highlights I wanted to cover, but a lot of the presentation was answering questions. I can probably email you my PowerPoint if you are interested. (I say probably because sometimes PP files are too large to email.) Send me a PM if you want it.

st0ut

To me if i where cummting by bike for the first time would be How can i and how much. ask an LBS to stop in witha few different models at various price ranges. at least 1 should have a full commuting kit like your's for instance. At least one of these should be a Womans Cycle. with a tab or trailer for daycare concerns.

introduce the car / bike commute. for those that feel there full commute might be out of reach.

have a map of the route you take as well as bike path maps and bike friendlier roads

If possible have if you have a female commuter that you know (maybe someone from the LBS) to show this is not only a manly endevor.

sparky221

As someone who is just starting bike commuting, some of the questions I, and friends who I told about my plans, had were:

How fit do you have to be to bike commute?
What clothes do you wear on the bike?
What do you do with clean up at the office and work clothes?
How to effectively lock up a bike
How to carry stuff
Can I use the bike I have?
How do I use the bike I have?
What kind of bike is best?
What do I carry on the bike in case it breaks down?
How to fix a flat (and show how easy it is. most people don't realize that changing a tire and fixing a flat are dead simple)
What routes should I ride?
Riding with cars
Traffic laws & bikes
What about weather? Hot, cold, rainy & Night

That's a start. If you're trying to convert people into commuting, don't underestimate how little they actually know. No one will want to 'ask the stupid question' so try to think of all the 'stupid questions' yourself and address them. I guarantee that someone in the audience has the most basic question and is afraid to ask.

nikirtehsuxlol

Well, I am a new commuter and here are the things I extensively googled.

What kind of bike do I need?
Talk about trying out various types of bikes. Test riding them before you buy them.
What are the basics I need to commute? (I was broke so I have the minimum)
What are some helpful extras?
What do I wear?
Do I HAVE to wear a helmet? (Im assuming you will say YES you should, commuters are supposed to look dorky)
What can I use to carry my shiat to work?
How long will my commute take?
How sweaty will I get? (baby wipes, ftw!)
I had no clue about the importance of a good route! How do you pick a good route?
Look up your laws and explain them. Bicyclists right to the road.
Money saved.
ANd tons of other questions I cant think of right now.

Also, to make it interesting -er talk about personal experiences, joys, frustrations that you have had with your experience commuting. Bugs in your eye whatnot?

A lot of that stuff is going to be rider specific ... but the people might want to know how to figure this stuff out for themselves.

I dont think you'll have a problem at all talking for an hour about bike commuting. I dont know if some of these people are such seasoned veterans that they just automatically know the basics and dont think that stuff needs to be talked about.
But it does.

This site helped me out a lot.
https://commutebybike.com/cats/commuting-101/

dalmore

Bike riding is fun! When was the last time you heard some one talking about how much fun they had driving to work?

Ask the audience if they ever kicked their legs out and said "whee!!!" going down a hill in their car on the way to work? Or took their hands off the steering wheel and held them out in front and pretended to be superman flying through the air?

Ask them if they remember what honeysuckle smells like? What does a rabbit running into the woods sound like?

Ask someone to give you the distance they drive to work. Then ask them how long it takes. Calculate the speed and compare that to biking. It's 17 miles and 45 minutes for me by car - 75 minutes by bike. So when I commute by bike I get 2.5 hours of exercise crammed into a hour! AND I have lots of fun.

lil brown bat

I'd start off by talking -- briefly -- about some of the frequently asked questions and/or perceived barriers. Then, also briefly, talk about the upsides as you see them -- I wouldn't get onto big global issues, just why you like doing it or prefer it to the alternatives on a daily basis. For example, my alternative is a cranky, creaky, slow, and increasingly unreliable and expensive public transit system. By not using it, I get to operate on my own schedule, I go when I say go, if I'm in a hurry that day I can put the hammer down and be in work in 25 minutes (little more than half the time of the transit system), if I'm not in a hurry I can pick any of several scenic routes and/or routes past my favorite bagel place, if I've got errands to run it's a lot easier than taking THIS line to THAT bus to THAT line and paying a new fare each time I have to stop, I don't have to stand up in a crowded subway car, etc.

Then I'd either take questions, or perhaps, ask for two or three volunteers. Ask them where they live (approx), if they have a bike, if they've ridden before, etc. Then quickly sketch out a "solution" for them -- "that's a good location, you can ride straight in on Comm Ave, that bike would work fine for commuting but you will probably eventually want to get some road tires". Also, bring some gear for them to look at -- your bike, the bag you use, etc. Show and tell plus hands-on is the key.

Best of luck with it!

davidmcowan

I've got a powerpoint from when I did this at my work place. PM me if you are interested...

Leiniesred

They are already interested. Better keep it that way.
Describe a typical commute. Add in the details to cover the well written set of questions above.
BRING YOUR BIKE AS A VISUAL AID
Bring google earth maps of your route(s).

"I get up an extra 30 minutes earlier than when I drive in. I put clean clothes and a lunch in my panniers ( and start out pedaling along a route I picked out using online tools and google earth. On the way, I rode past 2 mule deer and I watched a coyote jogging home after a night out on the town. I made my usual stop at the coffee place for a cup of coffee and a short visit with my friend who rides in the other direction. I thought about what I was going to say at this meeting as I rolled along. I filtered up through a traffic jam of angry motorists backed up by a car crash. I had to be warry of right hooks and getting doored. When I got to work, I locked up my bike using my u-lock and went down to the basement where there is a secret shower in our building. I took a shower, put on fresh clothes, and arrived at my cubicle totally awake and ready.

Have a set of examples of the LONG DISTANCE COMMUTERS for the people who say, "I can't ride my bike. It is too far." Also mention mixed commutes, 1 way commutes, and mass transit as options for long commutes.

Talk about lights and safety, but try not to get too evangelistic about it. Just make it clear that safety has to be the highest concern on a bike commute because of how easy it is for a motorist to kill a biker. Offer solutions to safety concerns such as route selection, reflective safety vests, lights, helmets, mirrors, plastic bubble...

Be ready to answer questions about weather and bike commuting. "What do you do in the winter?"

Extol the other benefits of riding to work: Stress management, no need to go to the gym, healthy hobby, saves USA from buying Middle Eastern oil and allowing Bin Laden's family from becoming so rich they could start a war...

Torrilin

Explain a bit about gears. I've found the idea of having 3 different bikes (an uphill bike, a normal bike and a downhill bike) in one very useful. I understand the math and physics involved, but for going out and riding, I *use* the hell out of the "3 different bikes" concept. Explain that if you're not in good shape, it's better to use an easier gear and that they shouldn't feel bad about it. Knowing that a small gear is easier on my knees has made it a lot easier for me to learn to spin. Now I can speed past my partner while I'm spinning in a small gear, and he struggles to keep up in a big one *g*. We're on the same make and model of bike too.

Talk about braking. Most people are smart enough to know that being able to stop is good. But (like a lot of n00bs), I had the misconception that the rear brake was safer. Having Sheldon Brown's advice to go out and experiment so I could use the front brake safely was *very* helpful. I can now do an emergency stop on dry pavement in about a bike length.

Explain that you don't have to be very fit. I found the guideline of "if you can walk a mile, you can bike 4 miles" very encouraging. I got up to that fairly quickly, and now that I'm more experienced, it's easy for me to bike 20 miles. I did need to get used to biking, and the advice to start slowly and only go a mile or two at a go made it easier on me.

Using a small gear, staying at a speed where I can talk, allowing enough time and dressing appropriately means I don't end up sweat drenched most of the time. In the heat of summer, I'll sweat, but then it's hot enough that I sweat just from being outside.

The reminder that there aren't special traffic rules for bikes should also help.

BroadSTPhilly

Whatever you do don't tell them abou these forums. One look at all the wackjobs and nutcases on here (myself included) and they'll never commute. Here is a good blog about it though.


https://bikecommutetips.blogspot.com/...th-amanda.html

samsmeg

I think the intro into bike commuting needs to be showing that you don't have to fork out tonnes of money straight away. You could show how it could be done with the bike they might have now and the simple things that make a commute pleasurable. Keep things concise and make it seem not too complicated to achieve. Keep the bike jargon to a minimum as well perhaps.

Also i think the money saved by riding a bike to work instead of driving is enormous and you should be telling people that its not for people who are just short of money and that it makes your well being richer and purer (i dont know how to describe it, the car is a burden!) and cuts down on stress a lot. Tell them how you look foward to riding into work as well.

+1 for everything else people have said, especially safety!

Good luck, tell us if you see people riding their bikes into work!