Rolled into the driveway last night to see a package leaning against my front door. The new panniers I bought on Tuesday afternoon already showed up (I didn't even pay for express shipping!) Bought a set of Ortlieb Back Roller Citys from ModernBike.com. Have to give props to Modern Bike. Not only did they have the cheapest price, I'm amazed with how fast they arrived.

Used the panniers for the first time this morning. Holy cow they're nicer than my old Avenir Metro IIIs. The Avenir made it nearly 7 years before finally getting so bad I had to replace it. I wasn't sure about spending an extra $70 to get the Ortliebs and almost just bought another Avenir for $40. Well, I think I'm already glad I spent the extra money.

Before I would pack all my stuff in reusable grocery bags, then carry them out and put them in the panniers which always remained attached to the bike. This usually took a few minutes of squeezing and stuffing as the grocery bags would hold more than my pannier pockets. Pretty annoying when I was wrestling with packing the bike in sub-zero temps.

The Ortliebs connect and disconnect so easily it's amazing. Literally maybe two seconds each. Pull on the handle and they release. Set them on the rack and they click into place. I probably saved at least 5 minutes this morning (half when loading the bike and half after I arrived at work.) Last night I just packed the pannier like I previously would have my grocery bag. This morning I walked out and clicked it on the bike. Done. When I arrived at work I locked my bike, then just grabbed the handle and walked into the building with it. The time savings alone was worth the extra money for these bags. So I heartily recommend them for anyone shopping for panniers.

Oh, and my commute was fine.