I STILL wish i had money for a bike to start commuting..... found this on craigslist, not sure if its a scam or not.

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/bik/844492305.html

youll find something eventually, when i first started commuting i rode a free bike basically a bike that someone had discarded and i brought it back to life...i commuted last year on an 80 dollar singlespeed conversion i found on craigslist...it doesn't have to be something expensive

Besides, no matter what you get, if you are a real commuter you....must....upgrade. It starts as soon as you get your commuter bike, no matter what it is. Then you think, dang I wish it had... So yea, just find something safe and solid. Get a helmet and ride.

I'm not necessarily looking for something expensive. But i'd definatly like a quality bike. I'm starting to look at Garage Sales!

Today's Commute
 

The bike lanes were full..............
................................................... of dead armadillos and car parts - not encouraging.
I only have a 7-mile commute but even this late in the year, the heat and humidity here can be wicked and as a result i arrive at work stewing in my own juices. I ride in shorts and a T-shirt and change upon arrival and I have some body powder stashed in my desk but does anyone else have any other tips for reducing one's aura after a ride in?

Hello everyone. I just found this forum and decided to post some. I have been commuting on my bicycle all summer in Amarillo, TX. I have been recording the days on my work outlook calendar and today was day 51. I think I missed a couple days, but those are what I know I have done.

My commute is 5.5 miles each way and it normally takes me between 20-30 minutes to make the trip. I am getting motivated to do the winter commuting this winter, but only on the non snow/rain days. I am trying to figure out what I need to wear etc.

You could try reducing the aura instead.
Something like wearing breathable fabrics if the shorts and t-shirt are cotton. Gym shorts and a synthetic exercise shirt would do the trick provided that they have an anti microbial treatment. Most do I believe.

True. Sad but true. Starting with a free bike at least means you have plenty of upgrade room before it starts getting pricey...

Jared, that bike doesn't look like a scam to me, but if you can afford a $900 bike, you need to quit whining and start commuting!

Tonight was faster than my fastest 5 am commute ever. I dunno why. I really have not felt very good all day, but about a mile in I noticed I felt pretty good. Just a nice, fast ride. Beautiful day too, warm, but not too warm. Close to perfect.

too many flats?
 

Where (on the road) are you riding? If you are in the breakdown lane, where all the debris is, you will get LOTS of flats. I made that mistake my first year of commuting. Took 7 flats the first year. After that I started to move closer to the traffic lane and didn't get as many (maybe 1 or 2). Sure it takes a bit more nerve, but you will stay out of the crap on the side of the road and get fewer flats.

I starting bike commuting in May and I am on my third bike. All three where free! I also converted all three to Single speeds! I sold them for $100 and $80 on craigslist. I would love to have a nice road bike someday but I am not going to let a little thing like money slow me down! Even though my commute is only 9 miles round trip I probably save over a hundred dollars a month by riding. It is addicting and now I hate driving to work. The Winter is really going to test my bravery and dedication!

Awesome ride home, i was just into it, i wish i could ride like that all the time.

I learned after my first flat. When I first started I would ride on the right side of the fog line (white line on the right). All of the tiny shards of glass get pushed to the shoulder of the road. Before when driving I always wondered why some cyclists didn't move over more but now I understand.

Now I ride right to the left of the fog line. If the road gets real narrow for me on the country road I ride I will move right when cars are passing me (I can see there headlights reflecting in front of me a half mile before they even get to me). 90% of the traffic goes around me but some people insist on staying in their lane even though no traffic is coming toward us and there is no double yellow line in the middle.

I was almost hit the other day by a van that I am sure didn't even see me.

Another tip that I have found useful is to use the vehicles headlights to see the tiny pieces of glass reflecting off the road. I am then able to avoid them. It's like a little game!

Over all had a good commute today. The moon was to high to watch so I just glanced every once in a while. The kiosk said 41 degrees but I don't think it was that cold. I've been wearing a windbreaker lately over a t-shirt but don't like the slimy feeling after I start sweating. I will try the wind breaker the first rain. I might spray some rain x on it and see how it works for keeping me dry. This morning I wore a long sleeved polypropylene shirt that was issued in the military. It worked great. The ride home was good but to short. I might have to start finding a longer route or just gear my SS higher.
I will definitely have to invest in something to put over my head and a good pair of gloves. And maybe a set of fenders.

I was all set for a nice 15 mile rode to Woodbridge after work, and went to go and change and realized... I forgot to pack bike clothes! The ride became a train ride with a few miles or riding at the end. Grumble grumble.

I woke with hay fever, could barely open my right eye, so I worked from home. Had a conference call at 10 AM. When I completed that I took two Benadryl. They worked quickly and I was out the door and to work 3PM. My was fine, that is until I got to work. I stayed at work until 7:30 PM so I rode home with lights on. Half way home my front light went dim so I switched to light #2. That worked for about 1/4 of a mile and it went out on a down hill turn (Eeeck!). As quick as it went out it went back on. I rode the rest of the way home safely.

Had a nearly perfect ride home as the old bike was purring like a kitten and those 630:20 tyres were making a joyful noise on the pavement... and then... thump thump thump.

My bikes don't go thump thump thump.

When I checked I found that the relatively new Avocet on the front was preparing to blow itself off the rim and when I got home I checked and found that the rim tape had slipped sideways under the bead...

I'm thinking I dodged one today as there were stretches where I was easily hitting 55kmh and a blowout would have been painful.

Anyways... the wheel now has new tape and it should all be good for tomorrow.

This is not my usual commuter...

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/gransport5.jpg

what bike is that?

1973 Raleigh Gran Sport.

I thought it looked similar to my peugeot. I think my bike is a '72. I have to do a little more research!

Lucky for me nothing bad happened, I was worried because my mom has a deathly allergic reaction if stung!

First commute in about 10 days. I rode the annual MS ride last weekend and it took a few days to recover from the 150 miles over 2 days. Fine ride in, though my legs are still a bit tired. I saw another commuter in the darkness, heading the other way. He had a nice bright headlight. Will be riding Cycle NC next week, so may not be commuting much for a few weeks after that.

Mid 30sF. Sunrise. Clear. Decidely fewer cyclists out this morning. Wimps! :p For some reason I had no energy, but it was a nice ride anyway. I passed one young woman who was bundled up. I said hi but she didn't respond. Probably thought I was lookin' for a date.

There was a piece of squirrel tail on the MUP. :eek:

It was cool enough on my ride (mid 40s probably) in that I was wishing for something light to cover my ears -- and, although I didn't feel it at the time, my feet were decidedly cool when I got to work. I think I'll head over to Chinatown on my lunch hour, swing by the fabric store and get some of that stretchy microfiber to make some beanies out of. Probably a residual effect of childhood ear infections, but I get spike-in-the-ear symptom when temps are relatively high.

Oh yeah, today is talk like a pirate day, yarrr.

Was a bit brisk, but cranked it up the first mile and was nice and toasty after that. Tried riding a little more to the left in the lane when I got to the real narrow part of my commute and found that was buzzed a lot less.
Matter of fact just once by this idiot or nearly clipped me then turned into the coffee drive-thru 20 fee later, freaking aholes.

54 deg, but the windchill decidedly cooler, especially when you're riding into a head wind. Almost bailed out this morning, but decided to give it a go. My long sleeve shirt and fleece jacket helped.

It was clear and 51 out today. I need to get some more cooler clothes I suppose I just bought one of those walmart under armor knock offs and need a couple more in the rotation. I also need to get some more reflective stuff since it is dark when I first start out. I do have lights on my bike that came with the factory, so that is helpful.

I'm expecting some deliveries that are too big to carry on bike, so I took the car. Still, 4 days out of 5 on bike is not bad for my first week. Hopefully next week I can make it 5/5.

45 degrees when i left the house so i wore gloves and threw a sweater on and a windbreaker...i saw one guy speeding down the road on a bike and he was wearing shorts and then i thought i was overdressed but i think i wore just enough...the ride felt a bit slow because of the extra weight

need to look into some neoprene booties soon...not too soon though

I was wearing shorts this AM. Where did you see this guy? :)

I rocked a light poly-pro under a capilene T and was pretty comfortable except on the big downhil at the start of my ride. I definitely need some gloves, though. I've always had cold hands and feet, so maybe some booties eventually as well.