A 45 mile commute isn't gonna happen. If a person road at 30kph it would take 2hr 24mins one way with no stopping, for traffic lights. To start work at 9AM the rider would have to leave at 6AM and get up even earlier. Then they have got to get home still, another 2hrs and 24mins. I have done a 90km RT ride to work once and that was enough to convince me to find another solution. Rides of that length take too much out of the system. Not to mention that a fair amount of the ride would be in the dark.
I would suggest riding in to work Tuesday and Thursday and organising a lift home via some other mode of transport.

I ride to work 45km one way and get a lift home. My wife works around the corner from me. She drives in and takes my bag of clothes in the car. I ride to her work, pick up my bag, ride over to my work and lock up my bike, and have a shower and get changed. At the end of the day I grab my bike and put it in the car, and get a lift home. This way I can ride in Tue, Wed, Thurs and get in 135km without feeling stuffed at night time. There is a solution for every situation.

Good luck.

Mark

I have the same commute distance as FOG, unfortunately the Santa Cruz Hills add a bit of excitement to a commute ride. Anyways if FOG or I got up at 4:30 am left at 5:00am biked at an average speed of 16 mph it would only take a little over 2 hours! Then you have to eat, shower, and work until 5? Change and bike home - you would be home by 7:30 - 8:00 eat dinner and if you are in bed by 8:30 you could get a full eight hours of sleep - we would need it.

Sure, it would completely destroy your days, nights, and bike...but how good would you look in your new biking clothes? Or think about all of the stories you would have of cars and trucks running you over or the time you were flying down a mountain road at 5:30 in the morning and your halogen lights went out. Good times!

I understood that FOG wanted to make the long commute. He did not write that he does not want to commute.

Yesterday I saw in the news that in Spain the racer cycled 150 km for 3 hrs 37 minutes.

Of course it is different. But this racer is also just a man.

A lot depends on the route. If it is the bad surface with a lot of traffic, open to the sea winds - forget about it.

But if it is the good road, where one can maintain 30 km/h and enjoy it, then why not.

I was on the tour along the North Sea Cycle Route and Denmark National Cycling Route Number 6 earlier this month. On this Route nr 6 there are stretches, which are surrounded by the trees from both sides, and the asphalt surface is ideally even, no traffic worth mentioning. On such roads I am sure I could make 64 km commute one way 2 - 3 times per week.

By the way, getting up early in the morning, like at 05:00 is fun. It is the best time. In summer there is the natural light already at this time. The secret is to go to bed early, so that one has 8 hours sleep time. I usually start to read non-fiction book, when I am in bed and soon I am asleep.

I agree, discpline is the key. While this may be going off Fog's initial question it still has some bearing. I am in bed religiously by 22:00, I am up at 06:00 to take out the pooch and ready and feeling 'alive' at 07:30 in time for my 10 mile commute. I drink 1 coffee and have some carbs for breakfast along with a big glass of water. On getting to work I take a bunch of vitamins, creatine and BCAA's. I then have a huge bowl of Oatmeal to fuel my lifting session at lunchtime and 2 cans of tuna. Post workout is pretty much the same along with loads of water. Around 3 I have my coffee 'treat' then back on the water for the ride home at 17:00.

Looking after the damage you cause daily is probably what will make or break your determination to do such a long commute. Feeding the machine is the most important thing IMHO. Weekends I dont go anywhere near the bike except to give it a clean, lube and check over. Come sunday evening my legs are starting to feel ready for the coming week, Friday nights they are pooped just walking upstairs

Good luck with the problem Fog

Si

Thanks to all for the advice. As of this mon=ment, I cannot see my way clear to try the commute, or even a reasonable subset of my commute by bike. It is just too complicated. I don't have the level of fitness required for a 92 mile-a-day round trip, and there is not good intermediate method. From time to time I see shattered glass in the park and ride from which I take my commuter bus, bearing silent witness to the fact that a car had been broken into. I can only infer that any bike reasonably equipped for twilight travel and moderate speeds would be a pile of trash if I were to park it there for more than a day or two. The other suggestions about carting the bike a significant portion of the way to work are intriguing, but would leave me with some of the worst traffic on my commute, which I currently glide by in a commuter bus using High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes. Although I am no wild-eyed environmentalist, I see no reason to inconvenience myself in an effort to pollute the environment.

In mid-September, I'll be starting a two-day per week commute of approx. 21 miles one way. It is all paved bike trail, except for roughly the last mile, which will be downtone streets. I'll be commuting on Monday and Wednesday.

This seems almost the outer limits of what is practical. If the one way mileage was 25, I don't know if I would have considered it. Or, if I needed to commute more than two days, this may have caused me to question whether it was going to work.

A one way of 40 miles seems excessive and impractical for one to maintain for any length of time. I agree with the other postings about trying to break up the ride in half.

Best of luck and I hope you find a way to make it work.

Hmmm I will be starting a one day a week commute this spring of 28 miles each way..............I figure it is good training! However I will let weather dictate the day, either Tuesday or Wednesday, the new office will have a shower.........so I will pack my bag and clothes in the day before.
My $0.02 worth.
DJ The Balloonman

I would have to say that the mileage one can handle is dictated by the person's ability. I have a hilly 22 mile commute that I can handle fairly well 2 - 3 days a week. Any more than that just drags me down and I feel like I'm spending all my time on the bike. 40 miles one way seems reasonable, but to ride 40 miles, work 8+ hours, then ride the 40 back home? 5 days a week? That seems like an awful lot of time on the bike. I'd burn out.