That's one point of view. On the other hand, for a quick trip, I tend to favour arterials, especially if:
- there is a wide outside lane so that cars pass easily;
- there are few "right lane must turn right" situations.

I am allergic to curbs, dismounts, or walking the bike. After all, if I wanted to walk, I would leave the bike at home and walk!

Another reason for avoiding back streets is the lack of safety when crossing the arterials. I hate being at intersections when I have a stop sign on a quiet street... and I have to wait a long time for an opeing in heavy cross traffic.

In many places, I find that an older street – the 1950's version of that arterial – is often the most enjoyable. It is fairly direct, doesn't require me to stop too often at crossings where the other guy has priority, has houses and stores close to the road, and often even has nice houses rather than ultra modern squarish constructions.

Great post, except I disagree with the whole walking your bike bit. If you can't ride at walking speed, then you should get out and practice. I see nothing unsafe about riding on sidewalks to avoid a short bad road stretch, as long as you yield to peds, and use extra care when reentering the road.

I absolutely hate it when some moron tells me I have to walk my bike over the simplest of obstacles. Most days its more likely I'll fall while walking as opposed to riding.

Jagged and Michel make good points, but they both come down to the fact the the best car route may not be the best bike route. Some people hate heavy traffic, but will put up with frequent stop signs on side streets. Others can deal with traffic, but hate being on roads with tons of stop signs. Some swear by bike lanes, others swear at bike lanes. Try various routes to work to see what works best for you.

Before your first commute, try the route on the weekend. That way you are less likely to get an unpleasant surpise when you have to get to work bya specific time.

That route finding info is great. I started (re-started) my commuting a while back but dropped out just because it was so unpleasant. I rode along a high-speed road with a lot of diesel trucks, no bike lane and only a very narrow shoulder area. This road was right next to the freeway so it was noisy and there were so many fumes trapped in an inversion layer I couldn't breathe. So I dropped out.

Then they closed that road and by following the detour on my Vespa I discovered an idillyic, oak-lined paradise of a street. It crosses rushing creeks, has fragrant hedges instead of fumes, seems wider and traffic is lighter and slower at 30-35mph. I restarted the commuting again. If they ever re-open the other route I won't go back.

So yeah, sometimes the route makes all the difference in keeping you on the bike.

The final block of my ride to work is a one-way street going the wrong way. I'll admit that I sometimes ride on the sidewalk for that block--generally when I don't see any pedestrians, and I feel that it is safe. Being nice to pedestrians is especially important for me on that block, because some of those "pedestrians" are likely to be my coworkers.

But I think it is important to let newbies know that there are dangers associated with sidewalk riding, and that streets are generally safer. So, planning several blocks of sidewalk riding into your route is a bad idea. (Also, in Washington, D.C., it is illegal to ride on the sidewalks in the downtown business district, though legal elsewhere).

Michel, I also like arterials when your two conditions are met. But newbies who are afraid of traffic should consider the "road less travelled," even if it does have lots of annoying stop signs. As always, the sole criteria for route selection should not just be speed. In selecting routes, one should consider what is the fastest, safest, and least stressful route. Opinions about safety, and tolerance levels for stress, will of course differ.

The subject of sidewalk riding has been debated. It can go on for pages. I'm not telling anyone to "shut up," but perhaps it would be better to add more detailed sidewalk-riding comments to the thread called "Riding on sidewalks", which was started by the guy who runs these forums.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=43646

I just joined the forum and thought this would be a great thread to get in on. I wish it was around 18mos ago when I started commuting. I could have used the advice.

My commute is 31 miles round trip. It is mostly on a bike path along the scenic Potomac river (I'm still waiting for the day I spot a floater :eek: )

I ride a Trek 520 touring bike. I have logged over 2000 miles so far. I am in the process of getting the last of my gear together. I ride with panniers (plan to upgrade to some Ortleib panniers from the Performance ones I use now). You can never carry too much gear as I learned when I got double flats and only had one spare tube and no patch kit. Luckily I made it to within 1 mile of home. I carry my rain gear almost all the time. In the summer I am able to slim down to one pannier - which suprisingly doesn't make me off-balanced. I carry my clothes, my work papers, my lunch and my tools in my panniers. I have a Jet Lite, helmet mounted and a blinker on my seat post. I plan to get a reflective vest for winter riding since my winter jacket is not too reflective. I have almost become a hood ornament for a bus, and one for a car. I don't know who was more scared me or the bus/car driver. I am still looking for lighting system that can be seen easily from the side of the bike as this is the direction from which I was almost T-boned both times. If anyone has any ideas I would appreciate it.

Any suggestions on a good pump to carry would be appreciated. My mini-pump can't pump beyond about 45 psi and I ride 700x35, usually at 100 psi.

Good luck to anyone planning to ride. It is the best decision I have ever made (other than getting married - my wife is looking over my shoulder).

The idea of using "the road less travelled" can be a good one! ;)

That is--if you have any!! :D

Where I live, to get anywhere you WILL have to travel the busier roads since the neighborhood ones ALL lead to them AND if you want to do more than "ride in circles", you'll be forced to use them!! :eek:
The ONLY choice is to learn how to hold your own in traffic--it CAN be done.

Just "think like a vehicle" (you are one), keep alert, and be wary! Remember the old public service announcements about driving and you'll be OK (i.e.: always look out for the other guy, because they may not be looking out for YOU). Also keep your equipment in top shape--you don't want a breakdown at a critical moment!!

The life you save may be YOUR OWN!

Maxaral, it sounds like you're well-equiped. As to pumps, the Topeak Mountain and Road Morphs are great pumps. I use the Mountain Morph and have gotten tires to 120 psi.

As to lights visable from the side, there are lots of options, a lot of high-end blinkies and taillights have 180 degree coverage. Here are some choices:

• I haven't used it, but a lot of people like the Cateye LD1000 10 LED (it's bright, but it eats through batteries faster than any other blinkie I've seen);
• Many blinkies come with straps you can put around your arms;
• Niterider sells a tail light that works off of Niterider batteries;
• For a few bucks, you can put "tire flies" on the stems of your tubes;
• The reflective vest and jacket are good ideas, I think they make you a lot more more visible than a front LED;
• Make sure your spoke reflectors are clean (if you don't have them, get them);
• Get a headlight that's as bright and long-lasting as you can afford (an HID if it's in your budget).

I agree that this is probably the most dangerous situation at night. I look at this issue from the motorist's viewpoint. I assume that you were nearly t-boned by motorists failing to see you as they pulled out from sidestreets or driveways. By the time they see your sidelights, it is probably too late for them to avoid you. I think you need brighter headlights, so motorists will see you before they pull into your lane. I wonder if the helmet mounted light is always pointed in their direction. A bike mounted head light might be more visible to these motorists. (I really don't know for sure, since I've never tried a helmet mounted light.)

I also pull way to the left of my lane--or even into the left lane--when I see a car getting ready to come into my lane from a side street (you can usually do this easily at night). Not only does this maneuver make it easier for them to see me, it also gives me a little more distance and time for emergency swerving or braking.

Thanks Roody. I think you are onto something. I like the helmet mount because I can see into the curves of the trail I ride, but on the road, motorists can't see it so well when I look away. I have been thinking about adding a bike mounted light so I have a fixed headlight. I am learning the hardway that I can't be the stubborn one, since I'll lose when it comes down to a game of chicken with a motorist. Not all motorists think we have a right to use the roads... :mad:

Thanks D.C. I will probably check out the Topeak road morph since I really can't stand riding on mushy tires.

I will also be getting myself a reflective vest for side visibility. After forking out the cash for the Jetlite I really don't want to spend much more on lighting. I might try what you and Roody suggest and get a bike mount light. I might even cover myself in blinkies...

A lifesaver I have found for commuting is Downy Wrinkle Releaser. I leave some in my locker at work. You spray it on your clothes when you get to work, tug at your clothes, and voila! Wrinkles are removed. I've been using the stuff for the past 3 years and swear by it. Also, I found that if I roll my clothes before putting them in my panniers rather than folding them, it will reduce the number of wrinkles. I usually throw them into the dryer while I'm packing my bags in the morning to reduce the wrinkles.

Have you tried adding blinkies that are visible from the side? I have two spare blinkies that I carry in my panniers and I clip them on the panniers when the visibility is low (foggy or raining).

Pump? I have a Blackburn FR-1 frame pump (good for 160 psi) and a Performance Hurricane mini pump. The Hurricane is nice because the hose pulls out and it works like a small floor pump.

I have heard of people who indeed use yellow blinkies on both sides of the headtube.

As for head-mounted headlight, there is one advantage and one major drawback.

- Advantage.
Right there if you need to look sideways, whether it's to see what is the other side of that tight turn or to warn an enterprising motorist that you exist.

- Drawback.
It turns with your head. I quite often turn my head while riding: to see on the side, take a broader view at traffic behind me (i.e. change the angle in my mirror), cut the wind, relax my neck muscles, etc. Yet in most of these circumstances I don't want to turn the light beam. So think about where and how you ride before going with one.
In my case, a good helmet-mounted light would work with an instant-on switch so I would turn it on only when I need to flash in the eyes of a motorist or when I turn on a winding trail.

Great info! I can't wait to be able to ride to work daily. Right now I only manage to ride back from lunch about three times a week. That will only last till it gets hot as I won't have time to shower when returning from lunch. (Gets VERY hot in Florida in the summer!) Anyway, summer will allow me to ride full time when my wife and kids are out of school. I've been looking at a Trek 7500FX that I think will suit my purposes nicely. :) I think the gas savings alone over my truck will pay for it in short order!!!!!

In my seat bag I add 50 cents in case my cell phone is dead I and need to use a pay phone. The $20 can also be used as a tire patch if needed.

Also, keep an area with all your cycling materials. This helps avoid searching for knee warmers or gloves in the morning.

Air up your tires the night before. Set everything out you need.

If you use Oakely M Frames or Half Jackets, two pairs of lenses are nice. In Kansas, I might have overcast in the morning and full sun on the ride home.

I keep ride with an extra tube and a CO2 bottle, but keep a spare tube, floor pump, chain lube and rain jacket at work.

I also drive once every two weeks to bring clothes, socks and underwear to work, rather than bring my clothes everyday.

Bandit,

The 7500FX is an excellent bike. It should work well for you. I find that just wiping off with a towel and baby wipes works for me. But I work on aircraft for the military, so I am always dirty and smelly.


Also, the Bell nightstick lighting system is excellent. The upper models come with bike and helmet lights.

I use a helmet mount. I like this because I can look the motorist right in the eyes. He can't miss me, in fact I surprise him. Also you can get a white blinkie for to mount to the front of the bike which has about a 180 degree visibility. I think Alfred E and price point have 'em.

Check this highly informative website by someone who rides year in, year out:

www.commuterdude.com

Corsaire :D

Somebody may have already suggested this, but the best way i have found to keep things dry in my not-very-waterproof panniers is to put them inside a plastic bag before loading them in the panniers. So far, nothing has gotten even a little bit damp using this method.

A comment about routes: be CAREFUL crossing train tracks. Cross at a 90 degree angle no matter how inconvenient, and on skinny tires I go nice and SLOW. Learned this the hard way on an unfamiliar route.... the indentations were ridiculously deep, and it was dark... I was flipped on my side at 17 mph... the road burned all the way through the heel of my glove and it took a couple of months for the road rash on my knee to heal. I figure I was lucky. Definitely wear gloves.

Along those lines, take it easy until you know your preferred route like the back of your hand.

I have a homemade 20W halogen headlight. The 12V lion battery (designed for portable DVD players) is wired to a $5 xenon amber strobe I got on ebay. It is an excellent tail light, can be seen from the sides at at a distance. Cars don't know what you are, a garbage truck, snowplow, open manhole... they keep their distance.

The other morning I had to drive in :( and a cyclist had no LED lblinkie, nothing. I couldn't see him until I was about 20 yards away and I was doing 45. Freaked me out, I wanted to say something but figured he'd take me for a jerk motorist.

Owwwie! That hurt just to read about it.

This works well for me. The suggestion I was given was to get a couple of the body bags vets use. These are very durable as well as being waterproof.

As far as waterproof bags go, I snagged a small kayaking sack to stuff my clothes in before they go in my Topeak trunk.

Now, I just leave my clothes at work - 100% chance of them being dry when I get there. ;)

Instead of packing tape, the very cheap ($20.00) waterproof Downpour Cycling Helmet Cover from Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC website) keeps your head warm and dry in cold, wet rain. It fits snug onto any standard helmet, has relfetive surfaces, and if it gets sunny on your ride, removes with a simple tug, and folds in to a tiny ball you can stuff in any pocket. The best $20 I have ever spent.

A vespa?? and you ride recumbant?? i'm in awe of you :B

Here is my set up .... your's will be different depending on your situation.

22 mile round trip commute. Didn't have a lot of route alternatives, but I love the most direct route, which is a main artery 4 lane divided hwy with median and a 60mph speed limit. Really wide shoulders with limited access so I don't have to worry about traffic entering the road from parking lots/driveways/assorted side roads or parked vehicles. Only bad spots are 2 high speed off/on ramps. Lots of riders insist on their rights going thorugh these. I just come to a stop if there is any traffic and just wait for the gaps ... I never wait more than a min or so.

Because of the high speed nature of my commute I wanted a cyclo cross bike (Surly Cross Check) with drop bars for the different hand positions and ability to get as low as possible when there is a headwind, or the downhills. My route is nothing but hills and commute speed varies from 8mph to 45 mph each trip. Fenders and a rechargable light are must haves for regular all weather commuting. I have a 10 watt halogen rechargable and will be upgrading to 20 watts before next winter. My canti brakes are adequete but V's or discs would stop better ... esp in the wet. I have gradually moved down to 23mm tires as my road conditions are so good. I use kevlar tires and still run the inner Mr Tuffy strips ... a few oz of weight with my overall commute setup doesn't mean as much as not having to deal with flats!

Other Equipment ... I like a mirror. Tried the helmet mounted ones, but they are awful small and was always moving my head around to get the right angle. Went to a full sized one that velcro's around my brake hood and love it. That vibrates a little more but you can still easily tell if something is coming up from behind. (Side note I love the looks I get from weekend roadies on group rides with my fenders/mirror/headlight & wireing! ;) ) I carry a full size Zefal frame pump.

I haven't seen anyone mention a saddlebag as opposed to panniers. I use a Caradice Nelson Longflap and it easily carries everything I need for the commute and nothing has gotten wet, even in downpours. I like the bags weight distribution right under the saddle and feel the aerodynamic hit is lessened. It is also very easy to remove for a weekend group ride. It has 2 sidepockets ... one has 2 spare tubes, tire levers, patch kit and multi tool. Other one carries wallet, keys and cell phn. I leave shoes, towel and clean up supplies at work and carry the rest of my clothes in a plastic grocery store bag. I leave a rain jacket, arm/knee warmers etc in the bag depending on weather. Takes like 1 min to roll the days clothes up and put in bag in the am. I bring 5 or 6 frozen lunches in with me in the bag once a week and the occasional work files are no problem.

I always wear glasses for eye protection ... if it's dark on one of the legs I wear clear. I splurged for the more fashionable $5 saftey glasses :D I also wear gloves to protect the hands if I ever go down ... plus my hands don't slip on the bars when they get sweaty. I almost didn't mention helmet since its so obvious ... ;)

Figure out what works for your conditions and enjoy!

commute cold so you arrive less sweaty..
try arm and leg warmers so you can take them off half way...

I figure that riding is better than packing into the germ tube (ie bus/train), and takes same amount of time...

If the link works:

this kind of plastic storage bin (i used a 14 gallon one, it's about 12 inches wide, 16 inches tall, and 18 inches long) attached to the top of my rear rack with bungee cords. the bungee cords thread are held to the plastic bin with some stick-on plastic hooks (sticky part reinforced by screws through the lid, with superglue as a seam-sealer.)
it's supported from underneath by a light piece of wood which is securely zip-tied to the rack.

It really keeps my stuff dry when I ride in the rain.