My school (unfortunately) starts up again on Tuesday. I have been active on my bike all summer, and the only way I will get any time in the saddle is if I commute by bike. On the commute, there is a somewhat steep climb for about .2mi. On the way to school, the climb is a downhill, where I can hit upwards of 27mph. On the way back, it turns into an intense 5-10min climb. I have a set of panniers on order but in the meantime, I will have to ride with a backpack. I will probably have to ride until Friday or the following Monday with a backpack until my panniers arrive. Any suggestions for being safe, etc that isn't just common sense?

Thanks,
ADogg

While you're waiting on your panniers if you have a rack already bungee the backpack to it. Let the bike carry the weight. It's a much easier ride that way. Especially climbing the 'monster' hill.

Depends largely on the roads and traffic situation. 5-10 minutes for a .2mi climb is slower than walking speed... sounds like an intense climb. Will there be a large shoulder or bike lane here, or will you be sitting in a traffic lane during this ordeal? And the backpack shouldn't be a big deal unless it is overloaded with textbooks. I commute with a backpack every day and it definitely gets sweaty, so a change of clothes is a necessity, but maybe that's not a problem up there in Denver.

I don't have a rack yet. It's coming with the waterproof panniers from nashbar. Maybe it's not 10min. Probably about 5 minutes. I haven't actually done the climb lately, so I don't know. Yes, there's a bike lane there. It is often overloaded with textbooks, but this year I will try to be efficient and only bring home what I need. In Denver, it gets pretty hot, but not in the morning so I won't need a change of clothes. It gets hot in the afternoon, so I will have to change when I get home.


I'm also hoping it will be safe to bring my MacBook Pro in the panniers. Anything I should be worried about there?

Get a padded bag for it if you don't already have one. Then double wrap both in plastic grocery bags. In fact get some small kitchen trash bags and wrap evrything in them even though your panniers are 'waterproof'. Water has a sneaky way of getting past the best of exterior coatings. Full coverage fenders will help alot in keeping the 'up-spray' off of your drivetrain and your feet. Coated wire twist-ties...like on a loaf of bread will help in sealing the plastic bags.

I have a heavily padded bag, but I'm not sure it will fit in the panniers. I'll have to wait and see. The bag is so padded that I can drop my MacBook Pro inside it from 4 feet and have no damage whatsoever to the computer. That's how great it is. I don't plan on doing a whole lot of rain riding, so I don't think I really need fenders.

Assume ever car driver on the road is either dumb as a sack full of bricks, legally blind or distracted by their cell phone, screaming van full of kids or the Big Mac they are stuffing in their face.

I often ride in the street to get places (is that considered commuting?) and know this. I once rode on a busy street in downtown Denver that had no shoulder or bike lane. Cars passed me with about 2 inches to spare. I hated that. Luckily, where I will be commuting, there are bike lanes and shoulders. One of the roads is usually very empty. But, with the new bridge over a creek that connects with the street that the school is on, there might be more people taking this road. On part of this road, the lanes are very wide, but there are no shoulders/bike lanes. This part is also the downhill/climb.

Sure this is satire, but it's also great advice because a lot of the time it's true.

Have fun, be safe, watch out for them because they aren't watching you.

I love showing this picture . I put reflective tape on my bike so I can be seen. If (and I mean if, I don't plan on it) I get hit by a motorist, I will make it as hard as possible for them to use a "I didn't see him" excuse.

Remember that reflective tape doesn't work if the motorist doesn't have their lights on yet (to name just one weakness of reflective stuff). So make sure you have lights that put out light of their own. If you need suggestions, just holler

Also make sure you've got a decent lock and are using it effectively. Here's some information overload on that subject if you need: https://www.mechbgon.com/lock I see a coiled cable in your photo, but hopefully you have a respectable-quality U-lock or chain lock as your primary.

I have a taillight on the non driveside seatstay. You can kind of see it. I also have a headlight on order, so that should cover it.

I also have a braided steel coil lock. I don't really need a U-lock, as I go to a small school. None of the kids there would attempt to break the lock. Some kids who ride to school don't even use locks at all. But I would like a U-lock eventually.

Be aware that your bike will feel a bit different with loaded panniers. This is not normally an issue, but I find that climbing out of the saddle with loaded panniers sets up a rather funny motion.

Good luck

-Gary

I was going to get a lowrider front rack, but the rear rack just seemed to be a more appealing option.

As long as you park your locked bike around unlocked bikes, you should be safe.

Just got back from school. The uphill on the way back was a little difficult, but nothing a little out-of-saddle mashing couldn't fix. The downhill in the cool morning was very pleasant.

Congrats!

Commuting here in NYC is probably a lot different from where you are, but I have a few cardinal rules I follow. Most of these seem like common sense, but somehow I see many, many people breaking these all the time.

-Go the right way on the street. Cars and peds are not looking for someone coming the wrong way.
-Don't ride on the sidewalk, that's for peds--again, cars and peds won't be watching for you there.
-Have a loud bell and lights that you turn on before it gets dark.
-Take bike lanes/paths whenever possible.
-Avoid the "door zone". Be aware that the door zone might come into a bike lane.
-Watch for peds. They'll just walk right in front of you, often wearing headphones so they don't hear your bell.
-Watch out for other bikers breaking these guidelines, they come out of nowhere, especially in the dark.

My commuting for school starts this upcoming Monday. I've got forty miles round trip. I built up a commuter road bike with racks front and rear and a fairly wide gear ratio freewheel(14-34). I haven't commuted since this past march but it'll be nice to get some miles in again.