1st Commute Tomorrow
 

I'm looking forward to my first commute tomorrow. My wife suggested getting a bike for my birthday so I can ride with the kids, so I thought that was a great idea, then I thought that since I live close to work I can ride it there. Good way to get some extra exercise and have some fun, not to mention to work off the beginnings of a spare tire I have. It's not a long ride, about 20 mins 3.5 miles, however there is a big hill to climb just before I get there. Wish me luck!!!!!!:thumb:

Welcome aboard and good luck! You'll love bicycle commuting.

Good luck my friend. YOU CAN DO THIS AND YOU GOT THIS! Commuting to work has changed my life. Lost a lot of weight (also due to eating well) and feel great.

Thanks!!! I did the ride late last week just to check out the route and figure out how long it will take. I have made a few other rides to help get more acclimated to the bike and riding again. I can say for sure it has made a difference already. I play soccer on tuesday nights and I could tell the riding was a help for sure. I just hope I don't get sick, my kids have been sick for the last week and I have somehow managed to avoid it, hopefully it stays that way.

I wish you good luck with the commute. I started commuting on my bike on the 9th of January. I thought had it all figured out, then that first day, a mile and a half from the house in the early morning twilight (I didn't have a headlight flashing) a fellow in a little blue car pulled out in front of me and I dropped my bike when I stopped suddenly to keep from hitting him. At mile 6.5 I hit something with the rear tire and had a pinch flat and realized that I didn't have a pump, and I only had one CO2 cartridge for my inflator and didn't get the tire fully inflated, so I had to call my wife, have her get in the car and bring me some CO2. I got to work about 10 minutes late, when I left an hour before work started. Later that week, I had another flat. NOW THE GOOD NEWS. I learned from my mistakes, I have never been late since that first day, I have had two other flats (both on the way home) and commute on average four days a week. I LOVE to commute on the bike, and it helps my weight loss efforts.

Tractor Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Good luck and have fun; and please tell us how it went!

Good luck! When the big hill totally sucks, don't let it get you down. :)

As far as the hill goes i had to walk up most of it, its at the end of my ride and its an 85ft vertical climb over not a very long distance (the path drops down to a lake and then you have to climb back up to the other side). I was thinking about a couple of other routes, one that doesnt have the same climb but is about 3 miles longer (around the lake), the other is just a short bit longer than my current route but its is on roads with heave traffic and arent the most bike friendly but the climb is a little more gradual. Also the path on my current route is not in the best shape with buckled asphalt and part of it is actually a boardwalk. I think once I build up my stamina some more and get more comfortable riding longer distances I will take the long way around.

Hope you enjoy it. Please let us know.

GOOD LUCK! Report back how it went. If it was too stressful with getting into work dont give up! There are tons of ways to tweak your ride and your post ride to make go smoothly and comfortably.

Congrats on the successful commute! Steep hills can really take their toll quickly. Not only do my legs get tired, but I also get winded :-) I think the longer route makes a lot of sense. 5 miles is a nice commute. Pretty soon you'll be looking for more detours. Around a lake sounds like an awesome commute. Better than my four lane divided road for sure.

The good news is that hills get easier with practice. They still suck, but they definitely become do-able. With such a short commute to begin with, you may want to try the scenic route, adding the extra 3 miles to avoid the hill on the way in & then take the short route downhill on the way home.

& Congrats on the first commute. Hope it's the first of many for you.

Good luck.

Don't worry if you have to walk up a hill. There is nothing wrong with that. You might be able to climb it some day eventually but that's not a priority when you commute.

Congrats and good luck with the commute.

I'm in the same boat as you in regards to being a new commuter with short commute and a nasty climb at the end of the ride. I have a 100 ft plus vertical climb in a very short distance which comes right after 1.5 miles of climbing up out of a river valley. So even though the ride to work is basically coasting for 4 miles, the ride home is a bit of a pain.

I'm always running through Google maps looking for alternate routes to at least take the edge off the final climb. Of course I'm mostly commuting for fitness so the adding a lot of miles on the return trip is my goal.

Have great trips! Welcome to the neighborhood.
I commute to commute, not for fitness. :D The fitness is a nice side effect. Since I commute to commute and not for fitness I don't get sucked into cycling shorts, shoes, clipless pedals, or Garmin electronics. In other words, I actually save money by using my basic Schwinn Jaguar 7-speed cruiser...I'd love a Trek Earl, but don't "need" anything else. I got a real eye opener while spending last week in Key West -- lots of commuter/utility cylcing -- some Jamis, some Sun, lots of Schwinn and Huffy coaster brake cruisers - most with serious racks and baskets!! I had a ball. This week it's back to the commute and the weather has been fantastic. Oh, I have NO hills!! Enjoy the ride!

That's one of my favorite aspects of Key West. Such a neat place.

So the first commute was a success!!!!! It was pretty cold this morning in SE Michigan (29F when I walked out the door), once I got warmed up it was pretty nice except for the fact that my hands were very cold. I wore thinner leather gloves but they still froze. My hands get very cold very fast anyways. As far as the hill i made it about half way up before i decided to walk the rest of the way, it was a short walk though and i think soon I will be able to ride the whole thing. The ride home the weather was very comfortable but I had to wear my jacket because I dont have a rack and it didnt really work tying it to my top tube. I think I'll be shopping for one of those tonight, was looking at something called the hybridbackpack, any suggestions are always appreciated!!!!! I use a backpack to carry my laptop and it looked like a good solution. Thanks for all the support and encouragement.

Awesome :) Congratulations!

Use what you have first. If that doesn't work then try to buy something else. Although I'm a big fan of rear racks and panniers. It's so nice not to carry your stuff ob your back.

/Mental note: do not move to Michigan... too cold

I just realized you're from Michigan, we need more Michigan commuters! The only other commuters I see are the DUI's around here :(