First Commute by bike today
 

So, today was my first commute by bike day and I think it went pretty good. I started commuting by bike today on my new Brompton folding bike. I rode about 5 blocks to the bus stop, folded, got on bus, then rode about 1 mile to work from the bus station in NYC. It's not that much biking, but it was fun and made my commute more enjoyable. As I build up my stamina, I am thinking about taking a different bus to the GWB bus terminal and ride 8 miles to work instead of 1 mile. However, I have to first build up stamina as well as find a place to shower :).

James

One step at a time, that's how I did. Congratulation! :thumb:

Every block counts. Congratulations!

Good for you! I'm pretty new to it too. Feels great, doesn't, it?

That's a great way to commute! Allows you to do more as you can do more. Nice job!

It really is fun. It's a bit crazy to cycle in NYC but I'm enjoying it quite a bit. I did quite a few miles here today in this glorious weather.

Congrats! :thumb:

Congrats! The first time is always memorable. :thumb:

No shame in combining public transit with biking. I do it too. My commute is long-65 miles. Twice a year I ride all the way home. Summer Soltice so I have max daylight to make it, and around winter solstice, when we get off early for the holiday. When I started, the five mile from the train station to work took all I had. You'll get there. (I did thirty today to a train station halfway home.)

Awesome!

I commute 44 miles round-trip twice a week and commute locally for the most part as well. Sometimes if the weather is not the best I will bike/bus (or train at times) to get where I'm going.

You will get stronger.

Keep up the great work!

Manny

Congrats! :thumb:

Have fun !
Enjoy the autumn weather.

No shame at all - welcome to the commuting club, ever1ast15! My one way commute is just shy of 14 miles, so I'm doing about 27.5 miles a day. Early on I had tried to combine some strategic public transit to get me up some big hills and let me just cycle the enjoyable parts while I built my stamina up. My experience though was that even in my first days of commuting, these transit sections actually ADDED total time to my commute :cry: Presumably New Jersey has better transit than Vancouver BC.

Whaaaaaaaaaaat? Your handle suits you then... how do you split it up?

Nice work :) What kind of elevation do you have on your route? Is it a nice commute, away from heavy traffic? How long's it take?

7 mi by cage at 0:dark30 to the home side station, 55 mi by train (SoCal Metrolink) then five miles from Tustin Station to work in the AM, and 9 1/2 mi to Irvine Station, or 19 mi to Laguna Nigel Station, or 24 miles to San Juan Capistrano, or thirty to San Clemente after work.

If I take a route that passes all of those stations it is less than 1k ft climbing. A route that I usually take to San Clemente bypases Laguna and Capistrano, and is a little hillier, but more MUP, (fewer traffic signals) so faster.

http://www.strava.com/activities/89793142

I'm about 50 lbs. overweight (225 lbs) I just started commuting 2 months ago, (10 miles each way), and have logged about 550 miles in that time, along with some weekend recreational rides on bike paths. Originally the 10 miles took me 55 minutes with lots of free wheeling down hills for recovery and an average top speed on flatland of a slow 12 MPH, and 2 months later it now takes about 37 minutes without any free wheeling recovery needed, and I can now ride vigorously for the entire duration and an average top speed of about 17 MPH. I have lost about 10 lbs without changing any of my eating or adult beverage drinking habits. So I would recommend you don't take the bus anymore, give yourself enough time to not be pressured and just ride the 8 miles, as vigorous as is comfortable for you right now, and your stamina will increase gradually.

I find that if I shower right before my ride, and change ALL my sweaty clothes once I get to work, I'm fine and smell OK throughout the day, the smell after the ride home (where I push even harder) is another story. Funny thing is, I happen to have a shower available at work, but don't use it.

BTW: Congrats, and keep reading this commuting forum, there's a vast wealth of knowledge here.

Congrats, ever1ast15! However you work a little bike-riding into your commute, it's a good thing. :thumb:

Pardon my ignorance, but what's "by cage" and MUP?

Nice one! I remember that the first day I commuted by bike it took forever to come up with a plan, figure out what I would need for the day... after you get in the groove it takes about one minute! I use baby wipes instead of taking a shower, and I think it works great.

Cage, aka "shiny metal box" is a car. MUP is Multi-use path. These are what we used to call bike paths (and I wish still did). The ones I take are not too bad as far as being overpopulated with dog walkers, strollers and roller bladers. Joggers are usually ok, except for one section where a local high school track team thinks they are entitled to the entire path.

Nice :)

These things can be both a curse and a blessing, huh? "If you build it, they will come". Sometimes it's almost better not to make it so friendly and accessible; limits use to primarily serious users who observe common courtesies.

Along a similar vein, I love to snowshoe, but the trails on the local mountains here in Vancouver are crazy over-crowded on nice days and early evenings. If there are others on the trail and I need a headlight, I use my red lamp as it doesn't kill others' night vision. Drives me crazy when people shine their multi-hundred lumen headlamps in my face as they pass, rendering me unable to detect subtle contours and such for a while unless I, too, turn on my high-beam. For that reason, I tend to not hit the trails until late at night when there's nobody else there... or if I go on the weekend, I go back-country where there aren't discourteous weekend warriors. :)

Congrats, a solid start!

Congrats on starting! I just started commuting in June, it's a great feeling and it's made a substantial difference in how I feel and overall health. I was hooked after the first ride.

I started by throwing the bike on the car and having my wife drive me to work for about a week. Sounds like you can ride and take the bus to work then ride the whole way home. That stamina will build up before you know it if you're putting in 8 to 9 miles/day by riding the whole way home.

Go baby, go!

Next thing you know you might be so addicted you will be riding the 8 miles in every weather condition imaginable and your friends and family will be trying to stop you from heading out in the storms! Glad you are enjoying your bike!

Yay! Keep it up. And welcome :)


Very true. I just made one of my bikes fender worthy and I have a rain jacket coming to me in a few days. Yes!!!