DPURunr05

For commuting purposes, I've been looking at some options in terms of getting out to Downers Grove from N Aurora. Unfortunately, I can't use the prairie path unless it is bone dry because I'm using my road bike (I had the unfortunate experience of trying this when it was wet and ended up sinking and having to clean a whole bunch of crud off my divetrain/wheels).

There seem to be two main possible routes -> Ferry-Warrenville Rd->Downers, and Moliter->Diehl Rd->Downtown Lisle->Downers.

Does anyone have any preferences, or have you ridden these? I've heard of folks riding Warrenville/Ferry on the weekends, but not during rush hour...

I am fairly comfortable in traffic, but I also try to be realistic and as safe as possible.

Any opinions (are there other routes I'm potentially missing)?

Thanks!

bobrobertson

If this is going to be a regular commute then I would strongly encourage purchasing a used mt. bike or cyclocross bike and riding most of the western half on the bike trail. A wider semi-slick tire, e.g. 35mm, will increase your speed and should keep you from sinking in sloppy trail conditions.

I've included a link to a map with some rideable sections east of Route 59. Although several roads, e.g. Ferry, Diehl, Liberty, are rideable on the weekends I'm not sure how suitable they would be for commuting. I think you'll probably have to get creative, i.e. sidewalk, parking lot, and trail sections, to find a moderately pleasant and safe route.

You might also want to ask members of the Naperville Bike Club for suggestions.

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UT...8,0.16119&z=13

garage sale GT

Find a shop that sells the chicagoland bike federation map. It shows color coded routes to indicate which ones they feel are rideable.

nixternal

Warrenville Rd and Diehl Rd during rush hour are a bit hectic. I would probably feel a bit more safe on Diehl than I would Warrenville. I have only ridden these roads on the weekends but I have driven them on the weekdays and during rush hour. Thing is, there is no straight shot. You can do it by snaking through and adding on probably 5 miles at most cutting through some neighborhoods. Now it also depends on the times you are going to be riding. Prior to 8am these roads aren't all that busy, with exception to Warrenville around the 88 corridor.

DPURunr05

Thanks everyone. With neighboorhood streets, it would take me up to about 32 miles one way (in terms of where I'm trying to get to; it's actually in Oak Brook)... so I'd need to do the drive in, bike home, bike in in the morning and drive home, which is fine. Ultimately though I would really like to path it in, because I can get on the FRT, take it to the prairie path through Wheaton to Lombard and then down into Oak Brook on the neighboorhood streets. I'd love to pick up an old mtn bike, etc, and fix it up, but at the moment, I'm trying to save money and would prefer to stick with one bike... but perhaps that's an option.

The problem is mainly the sinking tires on my road bike. It has clearance for 28mm tires and I've been considering throwing some fenders on and picking up the vittoria randonneur cross tires... anybody have luck with a road bike with 28mm on the limestone trails around here?

Thanks.

bobrobertson

I purchased a used Klien Pulse mt. bike on eBay for $300 to use as a beater/trail bike. Given the distance of your commute and the price of gas (and tolls) it wouldn't take too many bike trips to recover the cost of a commuter bike. I think that 28mm would still be too narrow to prevent sinking in rain-softened sections. and that 35mm tires on a cross bike would be ideal for a mixed trail/street commute. Don't forget that you also have to consider the extra maintenance and wear caused by riding on wet trails - if you really wanted to economize then you might consider building up a single-speed. Chicago has an active bike classifieds section on Craigslist that might be worth looking into.

HTH