Suggestions for 3 mile commute
 

Hello all,

Just moved to the Bay Area and even though my car gets upwards of 35 mpg it's no longer worth driving three miles to and from work. Now, please keep in mind that the last bike I had was a freebie that my father got me with his airline miles about 8 years ago and it lasted about a couple months before things started breaking off. The bike before that was a Huffy when I was about 5.

So the question I ask to you guys - what kind of bike would be best for me? My commute (For those of you who know the area) is just going to be three miles up El Camino Real road (extremely busy 3-4 lane each way road). I'm also moderately tall (At least for this area) at 5"11 and have a completely average build at 160 lbs.

I'm really looking forward to cycling to work every day and possibly getting into the cycling community (Sharing commutes, GPS, etc...) but the hurdle of what kind of bike to get is a big one, which is why I'm asking for help.

Start by reading the Advice for New Commuters thread.

It used to be easy to find when it was a sticky. Now you have to look in Commuters Useful Threads...

and then come back.

In the meanwhile, you will need to answer some questions.

Budget?

Flat or hilly, (prob hilly, eh?)

What do you carry to work with you, and do you think you want racks or messenger/back pack?

does speed matter to you or comfort?

Do you have an interest in working on your bike, how much maintenance do you want to put into it?

I am a cheap, lazy comfortable slow old man with a flat commute who rides in work clothes and doesn't like to sweat. See signature.

The best bike for you is the one you are most comfortable on. The only way to find out which one is comfortable is to take them for a spin.

If your commute is only 3 miles on mostly flat terrain, any bike will do. Go to your local bike shop and get advice on what size is best, then check them all out.

good point about the local bike shop, mine turned me on to my bike after answering the questions and they were spot on.

Which 3 miles on E.C.R. do you ride? In a lot of areas there are much nicer parallel routes. I commute from Downtown San Jose to Sunnyvale. Much of my route runs parallel to El Camino Real.

My opinion is that for 3 miles, you can probably commute on most any bike you want. My wife rides a pink cruiser bike 2 miles to the library and it works fine for her.

A few things that you might want to think about:
One really nice thing about the bay area is that you can take your bike on any of the public transit modes - light rail, caltrain, bus etc - but in some cases it will involve lifting your bike, and it looks like you may not be the beefiest of men, so a really heavy bike may not be the best option.

As far as local clubs for recreational rides, I like ACTC.ORG - they have organized rides for everything from a fast double century or long tour to a leisurely ride to a place known for it's pancakes.

In road bike sizing, you would probably need a 54 or 56cm bike. If in doubt, go with the smaller size. In mountain bike sizing, you would probably need about a 19-20" frame. For commuting you probably want a bike that can easily take a rear rack and that has some fairly decent tire clearance.

If you're 'ok' with buying online Nashbar.com has a pretty big sale going on for Father's Day. Bikesdirect.com is another place you should check out. Note that to buy online you should be at least a little bit experienced with bikes, or otherwise mechanically inclined and willing to learn.

For a commute as short as 3 miles, almost any bike would work without any trouble. By far the most important thing to worry about is that the bike is a good fit for you (as far as sizing).

Where on ECR? Which city?

For three miles, any bike will do. Go to the thrift store or a flea market or Craigslist. For your height, a 56 cm road bike or 18 inch (or Medium) mountain bike will likely fit well enough.

Like @Saurwald mentions, there are likely parallel routes that are a little bit nicer. There are good bike maps available for both Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. Santa Clara bike map is available at vta.org website. I think San Mateo's is available as paper only, and you have to pay for it (something nominal like $1 IIRC)

Don't forget Google Maps as well -- enter your start and destination address, click bicycle icon and you'll see bike routes in green on the map.


FINALLY, VTA and SamTrans both run buses along ECR. VTA it's 522 and 22 buses, depending on where your stops are at. I'm not as familiar with the SamTrans routes.

as noted at 3 miles almost anything, but you might get hooked so think beyond just the 3 mile commute

lots of good shops in the area

My favorite is Willow glen bikes (not the cheapest but great service)

but you have also have REI, the off ramp (santa clara), wheelaway, hylands for starters

and for used

from craigslist a sampling of whats out there used

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/2446866738.html

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/2446270579.html

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/2446219729.html

I know I'm going to flamed for this, but you don't really need a bike for the work commute. You're in walking distance. However, a bike will cover the same distance a lot faster.

First off, wow! I was not expecting this many people to actually reply to my question. :D I have a feeling I'm going to learn a lot here. Now... to replying to everyone at once:

Ah, thank you! Totally skipped over that when I made the initial post on my phone, now that I'm back from work (Swing shift) now that I've gone through it I've kind of got a feel for what I'm going to need.

Okay! I'm back. :)

Budget is up to $500, I may be willing to go over that but any more than that and it's going to have to be a "Save for a little bit" affair.

The commute is actually going to mainly be flat! Definitely should be a much easier ride than having to go through something like SF on a day to day basis. :)

Stuff that I carry to work can go into a backpack like my tools, notes, and lunch/dinner, so I don't think I'll need a rack. However, I will be biking at 2:30PM to work and then 11:30PM back home so I'll need LED flashers so I don't get a ticket.

Maintenance?! Isn't that the fun part of owning a bike? :P I'm a huge car junkie and am always tinkering on it so how much harder could I bike be? :rolleyes:

Speed over comfort? I don't know yet actually, I guess I'd have to check the roads a little better to see how bad they are but comfort might be the way to go.


Noted! There's a local bike shop that I ventured into and then directly out of when I saw that the prices on most of the bikes in the store were upwards of $2000... D: I might need to look around for some other bike shops or need help scrounging around craigslist for a good deal.

I'm going to be going from around Rengstorff Ave in Mountain View up to Page Mill Rd in Palo Alto, so there are a couple different ways to get there. If I want to avoid El Camino the commute can is another mile which isn't that big of a deal. The girlfriend is extremely worried about me being hit by a car if I take ECR, so I'll probably take backroads.

An added plus is my company actually gave me a pass on my badge that allows me to use all public transportation on the entire Peninsula from SF all the way down to SJ. :D

Thanks for the links to those online sites, definitely giving me an idea of what I should be looking to spend for a bike. Seems like $300-$500 is the sweet spot for most of the ones that I'd be interested in. That will surely save itself in car maintenance in a few months.

Also, thanks for the sizing specs!
Wow! Thanks for all that, definitely helpful I'm probably going to spend a little time on CL and see if I can't find anything that I like, if not I'm probably just going to size up a bike and either get one from a local store or buy one online.

About commuting on ECR, I think my girlfriend doesn't want me on it either and it'd probably be best if I stay off of it and just ride streets parallel to avoid getting hit.

Thanks again, especially for the cycling maps. :)
Definitely going to have to scrounge around on CL now - I'm guessing there's a huge used bike market. :D

Exactly - walking would totally be possible, but I'd much rather only have to take 20-30 minutes to get to work and spend more time at home than spend 45 minutes to an hour walking.

3 miles is towards the shorter end of a worthwhile bike commute but its still more fun than walking.
You dont need anything special but it should be cheap, practical, low thief appeal, reliable.
A standard hybrid style bike is fine. You wont get there any quicker on other types of bike.
You dont need front suspension but its hard to find a hybrid with a fixed fork these days.
Make sure you have threaded eyelets for luggage rack and fenders. For 3 miles I would use a backpack BUT with a luggage rack you can do heavier shopping trips.
Upgrade the tyres to the most puncture resistant you can find, such as Schwalbe Marathon Plus. I wouldnt bother with a repair kit for 3 miles, you can walk your bike to work quicker than change a Marathon Plus tyre.
I like a grab and go city bike with all the accessories secured to the bike so I dont have to strip it down at every stop. Some people remove their wheels, seatposts, lights etc at every lockup.

I actually may have just lucked out: My mother informed me that she might be willing to sell my dad's old Centurion Cavaletto ( http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/467/img5885bi.jpg )

I'm still thinking about getting a new bike that isn't 20 years old on bikesdirect though, I guess we'll have to see how things pan out.

Thanks for the suggestion on the tires though! I definitely don't know anything about tires and what is good for what.

Cross-check = awesome versatile commuter and this seems like a pretty good deal in around your size:

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/bik/2449075410.html

-Dean

One thing many of us commuters with a short commute do is- take the long way to work and back home again. I have a four mile round trip, but my average round trip through out the year is 16 miles. Commuting is a great way to get into cycling.
If the Bay Area is the San Francisco Bay Area, you are in cycling paradise. I lived in south San Jose for five years. Lots of great roads. My commute down there was thirty round trip with many added after work diversions.
Have fun!

So I went to the local bike shop (TheOffRamp) and talked to one of the guys there and we chatted for a while and he tried his best to catch me up on how many things have changed in the bike world since I've last been on one. He also showed me a pretty nice bike that has actually started to grow on me. A black Giant Escape 2. I got on it and rode it around a little bit and it was surprisingly comfortable! I wish there was some sort of way to borrow it for a day, but I don't think he'll let me. :P I've also been looking on bikesdirect at their selection and they seem to have better pricing, but without actually getting to sit and ride on them I'm a little tenative to spend a couple hundred dollars and then not like the ride quality.

Any thoughts or opinions on the Escape 2?

Thanks again for all the input guys. :)
That's one of the things that I'm trying to take into consideration. I know that once I get the hang of riding again I'm probably going to go nuts and ride everywhere, but for the first couple of months it'll probably just be to and from work.

That looks like a good starting point!

I used to work about 3 miles from work. Sometimes I'd walk, but that took up more of my time than I liked. As you say, a bike covers the same ground much faster.

You can take Cal. st. past San Antinio left on Del medio right on Miller take you over the foot path to Wilkie way then work you way back to Park ave. to Page Mill/Cal ave. Also, Caltrains allows bikes so you can alway hop on the train going but not going home since your are working late. Cycling clubs like another poster said ACTC and Western Wheelers since you are Mtview/PA.

That actually looks like a really nice bike. I would go with that if you can get it for a good price.

I'd ride the Centurion and do the maintenance on that while deciding if you like commuting. You can then take your time and choose the type of bike you want to buy in the future. It's a win/win situation.

I ride a 3 mile commute on an old road bike very similar to that centurion.

My bike is probably older, and is a 10 speed. I can hit 23mph according to runkeeper, and I average just under 4 minute miles, with stopping for cross walks included in that. I get to work in 11 minutes door to door usually, when I used to drive to work, it took me longer sometimes! I didn't ride a bike for about 11 years before 3 months ago, when I got my mountain bike to play with on trails in the canyons off PCH in socal on the weekends, so I'm by far not the strongest rider in the world.

A short commute like 3 miles really doesn't take a special bike, I rode my 40lb mountain bike for a couple weeks before getting the road bike, all I notice is I have to work less to go fast, mainly from the tire difference.


For me, the cost to drive to work was roughly $100/month just counting gas. My car gets mid 20's mpg on the highway, but on the short commute it never actually warmed up to get out of the 'dumping gas to warm the motor up' mode (open loop), and was actually returning closer to 16mpg, but even at that it was not huge money to drive to work.

So for me, I did NOT want to spend a lot of money that would take several months to pay for itself on a bike just to ride to work as a replacement for driving. Most others will not look at it this way, and I understand that.

I found my bike at the LBS, and it was a trade-in, my LBS offers customers $50-$100 trade in discount for buying new bikes. I walked out with my bike, 2 new tubes, and a new take-off giant seat, for $91 with tax. As I'm very tall (6'5", this 68cm road bike was about $2000 cheaper than a new bike that actually fit me.