I'm a novice commuter, I'd like to do a little reading to help me with clothing, accessories & safety. I live in Chicago and would like to commute 3 days a week, 10 months a year. I'm going to gradually build up to a 17 mile one way commute.

I see numerous books at Amazon, are any of these recommended? Any other suggestions?

1.The Essential Bicycle Commuter by Trudy E. Bell (Paperback - April 8, 1998)

2.Pedal Power: The Quiet Rise of the Bicycle in American Public Life by J. Harry Wray

3.How to Live Well Without Owning a Car: Save Money, Breathe Easier, and Get More Mileage Out of Life by Chris Balish

4.The Art of Urban Cycling: Lessons from the Street by Robert Hurst and Marla Streb

5.Urban Bikers' Tricks & Tips: Low-Tech & No-Tech Ways to Find, Ride, & Keep a Bicycle by Dave Glowacz

6.The Art of Cycling: A Guide to Bicycling in 21st-Century America by Robert Hurst and Marla Streb

7.Bicycling Magazine's Bicycle Commuting Made Easy by The Editors of Bicycling Magazine

8.Bicycle Commuting Book: Using the Bicycle for Utility and Transportation by Rob Van Der Plas

9.City Cycling by Richard Ballantine

10.The Complete Book of Bicycle Commuting by John Stewart Allen (Hardcover - Sep 1981)

11.Effective Cycling: 6th Edition by John Forester

Michael

both books by robert hurst
he is a realist in this day and age
S

I'm currently reading The Art of Cycling: A Guide to Bicycling in 21st-Century America by Robert Hurst and Marla Streb. It has good info in it, some of which you'll figure out on your own quickly, and some common hazards. It's worth the read, but it is pretty bland. I can only read a few pages at a time before I've had my fill on what kind of cement a street is made of, etc.

You have the best reference you could possibly want right here. No books needed. See, I just saved you $19.95. Your welcome.

The net and books are not mutually exclusive. This forum is a great resource, of course.

Michael

I have read quite of few of the books on your list (go public library!), and the most useful to me, by far, has been Effective Cycling. What I liked most about it is that it offers real-world, detailed strategies for thriving and surviving in traffic.

Urban Bikers' Tricks and Tips by Dave Glowacz is useful if you ride in the city, but some of his advice regarding retaliating against troublesome motorists could get you into trouble. It was an excellent read overall.

It's not really a rocket science. Searching this forum would answer probably 98% of all the questions. Which is probably more then those books would cover.
General steps:
1. Get a bike (plenty of threads on those)
2. Get some equipment (again plenty of threads)
3. pick a route you are comfortable with
4. start riding and use common sense.

UD

If you think that's bland, you'll love the section on Nitrogen Oxides.

Robert

LOL.

I ordered your book from Amazon today. If that boring stuff helps keep me safe, I'm all for it!

Michael

Robert: ROFL! I'm gripped with anticipation! It's good info, just hard to sex up cement types I'm sure . I can only imagine what a delight researching city codes and whatnot was for this book.

Blue Book of Bike Repair?

Any sort of repair books will def. be helpful!

#5 and #6 for safety, #1 and #7 for equipment. #11 is caustic vitriol.

I went with;

#6 "The Art of Cycling: A Guide to Bicycling in 21st-Century America"
Robert Hurst; Paperback; $11.21

#7 "Bicycling Magazine's Bicycle Commuting Made Easy"
The Editors of Bicycling Magazine; Paperback; $11.98

And I found "Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance (2nd Edition)"
Lennard Zinn; Paperback; $16.47

I'll have to write a review.

Michael

Even tho' it's a UK publication and therefore back-to-front, so to speak, several US forumers have spoken well of Cyclecraft by John Franklin, pub. Stationery Office. Have used it myself in teaching adults to ride in traffic.

Hahaha now that was funny.

I just finished The Art of Urban Cycling, and the only thing I didn't like about it is that it tries too hard to be funny. It seems like every couple of sentences there is an unnecessary bad joke thrown in there. It makes the book read more like something you might find on the internet than a published book. Honestly, it annoyed me a lot in the beginning but I got through it.

Question: Is the Art of Cycling the newer version of the Art of Urban Cycling?

Meh! "Unnecessary bad joke" I loved his bad jokes - leave our Robert Alone!

Actually I honestly found him funny and the writing pretty laid back, guess its up to individual tastes.

+1 on Effective Cycling. It was highly recommended reading by the club I belong too. I'm reading it now and find it full of very practical techniques that can be applied to cycling in traffic. It's not a book you read from cover to cover. The author recommends certain chapters that you start with so it's more like a reference book to learn new skills or refine your current skills

Yes.

I really, really liked "The Art of Urban Cycling", including the humorous style. That made it an easy read as well as informative. I quote the part about "hoard responsibility ... and use it more wisely than those around you" all the time, as well as "Don't leave your fate to the planners, the pedestrians, the police, or the paramedics. Definitely don't leave your fate to the drivers." Haven't read the newer one.

I can appreciate your desire to read up on cycling, but I'm wondering if these books will effectively answer your questions you may have as you start out. As several others have pointed out, your best resource may be right here in bike forums.
Personally, once I had established a safe and efficient route, many of the remaining issues of equipment tips and efficient ways of handling work clothing, gear, etc. I found right here.
Incidentally, as a fellow northerner, if you have yet to experience winter riding/commuting, be prepared for an absolute blast!
I love reading. Yet some of the more technical aspects of the sport achieve more meaning after some of the practical basics have been established. The exception of course is a decent repair manual such as The Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair. I'd get that right away.

I'm with Knobster. Why waste the money when you could go to your library and read what they have; talk to bike shops; talk to us. Or, if you're a consumer, go to a used book shop and recycle.

It is the same, only different. It has about 60% more completely unnecessary and jarringly bad jokes.

Seriously, now. I'm going to get serious here. It is just a second edition of the same book. There are a few new sections and some more recent stats, etc. Dudes in Connecticut wanted to change the title. It is pretty hard to get a new copy of the first edition anymore.

I ordered it too!