Did a recon run on my soon-to-be new commute
07-22-15 | 09:48 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Vain, But Lacking Talent
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 5,510
Likes: 81
From: Denton, TX
Bikes: Trek Domane 5.9 DA 9000, Trek Crockett Pink Frosting w/105 5700
Did a recon run on my soon-to-be new commute
Days away from closing on our first house, so 10 miles into tonight's post work ride and really not feeling it, I thought I'd turn around and run by the house to try out one of the routes I was considering for the daily commute.
In a word: awesome.
This is on the north side of Denton, Texas. I first got into road bikes back when I lived in Denton, so a lot of the roads are familiar. But Denton as a whole has really changed. They've made some good headway into putting really well thought out bike lanes and sharrows when needed.
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
In a word: awesome.
This is on the north side of Denton, Texas. I first got into road bikes back when I lived in Denton, so a lot of the roads are familiar. But Denton as a whole has really changed. They've made some good headway into putting really well thought out bike lanes and sharrows when needed.
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
07-23-15 | 04:11 AM
#2
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 2,977
Likes: 5
From: Columbia, SC
Bikes: 2014 Cannondale Synapse Carbon 4 Rival; 2014 Cannondale Trail 7 29; 1972 Schwinn Suburban, 1996 Proflex 756, 1987(?) Peugeot, Dahon Speed P8; 1979 Raleigh Competition GS; 1995 Stumpjumper M2 FS, 1978 Raleigh Sports, Schwinn Prologue
Way cool! Sometimes I wonder if I were a cyclist and commuter when I bought my current house where I might have bought instead. I'm not really sure there is a much better choice if I wanted to stay in this school district (one is the best in the area) -no kids yet but it is a along point should that time ever come. Apart from a 1/2 mile along a really terrible road, everything else is easy access to a road with a bike lane, and while it may be 12 boring miles I could have chosen a much worse location
07-23-15 | 04:29 AM
#3
Senior Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 7,381
Likes: 219
Days away from closing on our first house, so 10 miles into tonight's post work ride and really not feeling it, I thought I'd turn around and run by the house to try out one of the routes I was considering for the daily commute.
In a word: awesome…
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
In a word: awesome…
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
Kenmore Square, Boston to Norwood over 30 years
Route: Reverse commute from downtown on four different routes of a minimal distance of 14 miles, each defined by a different hill; can expand to about 30 miles to train…
Environment: In order of hill difficulty: Gritty urban, pleasant suburban, pleasant urban, ritzy suburban
Hills: One moderate hill on each route, then smaller hills; estimate only about 1-2 miles flat...
… through one of America’s most charming, interesting, and historic metropolises on residential and light commercial roads (and partially on a bikepath in a park) in the reverse commuter direction early in the morning, during all four (pleasant to tolerable) seasons. For training purposes, I can expand my routes to encompass popular high-level cycling outer suburbs (e.g. Dover, for the cognoscenti)….
Last edited by Jim from Boston; 07-23-15 at 05:23 AM.
07-23-15 | 09:24 AM
#4
Thread Starter
Vain, But Lacking Talent
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 5,510
Likes: 81
From: Denton, TX
Bikes: Trek Domane 5.9 DA 9000, Trek Crockett Pink Frosting w/105 5700
Sounds like fun, Jim. I'll ride it a couple of weeks and then take some time one morning to snap a few pics as well.
07-23-15 | 09:29 AM
#5
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 22,676
Likes: 2,643
From: CID
Bikes: 1991 Bianchi Eros, 1964 Armstrong, 1988 Diamondback Ascent, 1988 Bianchi Premio, 1987 Bianchi Sport SX, 1980s Raleigh mixte (hers), All-City Space Horse (hers)
Days away from closing on our first house, so 10 miles into tonight's post work ride and really not feeling it, I thought I'd turn around and run by the house to try out one of the routes I was considering for the daily commute.
In a word: awesome.
This is on the north side of Denton, Texas. I first got into road bikes back when I lived in Denton, so a lot of the roads are familiar. But Denton as a whole has really changed. They've made some good headway into putting really well thought out bike lanes and sharrows when needed.
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
In a word: awesome.
This is on the north side of Denton, Texas. I first got into road bikes back when I lived in Denton, so a lot of the roads are familiar. But Denton as a whole has really changed. They've made some good headway into putting really well thought out bike lanes and sharrows when needed.
The first part coming out of the neighborhood is awesome because it includes some older, narrow roads with lots of trees and basically no traffic. Then it runs into a major road, but it has a nice dedicated lane for the majority of the high traffic areas. It does go by two schools, but we'll just see how that shakes down in the Fall.
The major road leads into some older, peaceful neighborhoods and finally to the sketchiest intersection of the whole route. It's not ideal, but it's less dangerous the opposite way and I should be going through before peak traffic in the mornings.
So all in all, it's just under 6 miles and mostly downhill on the way in. And better yet, it's very connected to some of my favorite longer routes, so I can always mix it up if I wanted to get some morning miles in during the winter. It's gonna be great!
I didn't bike-commute when I bought my house (8+ years ago, wow), but the location has worked out really well. It's about 6-7 miles from my work, and through a little trial and error, I've found a couple of routes and options that aren't bad for biking.
07-23-15 | 11:16 AM
#6
Thread Starter
Vain, But Lacking Talent
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 5,510
Likes: 81
From: Denton, TX
Bikes: Trek Domane 5.9 DA 9000, Trek Crockett Pink Frosting w/105 5700
I definitely had bike commuting and location in mind when looking at houses, but quite honestly, I ended up not having much of a choice with the current housing market. I detailed it a bit in the Foo forum, but basically I ended up getting really lucky with a co-worker who was selling a rental property. So I'm getting a reasonable price and it's just a huge plus that the location is awesome and that the commuting options are varied. I got very, very lucky in a lot of ways. Life is kind of stressful right now, but it's also very, very good right now. We are fortunate.
