5 ms·

I ride my bicycle just about everywhere: to the office, grocery store, restaurants, everywhere. It's a great way to get exercise and doesn't cut into your sched

by city41 16y ago

I ride my bicycle just about everywhere: to the office, grocery store, restaurants, everywhere. It's a great way to get exercise and doesn't cut into your schedule all that much, because due to traffic lights you can often get to where you are going on a bike only slightly slower than in a car. Also starting the day after my 7 mile commute is fantastic, my brain is rocking and ready.

euccastro 16y ago
Does your city have a bicycle trail, has only light traffic, or are you hyperventilating on car exhaust fumes? I never really got why would people cycle/jog on busy roads.
- tremendo 16y ago
  Being knocked off my bicycle by a car door finally convinced me, after too many uncomfortably close encounters, that I was somehow invisible to drivers. Today I believe that for my well-being the risks of biking far outweigh any potential benefits.
  - pierrefar 16y ago
    1. You, the cyclist, need to be driving very defensively. Read the road and always assume you have not been seen and take action to do fix that. Here in the tiny streets of Cambridge, UK, I sometimes feel cycling in the middle of the street is the best option. BTW, an equally big risk to cyclists is pedestrians who, by sheer stupidity or collectively having death wishes, start crossing the road without looking. It's worse when it's a group. 2. Get some high visibility gear and get a helmet and pads. I also use two sets of lights: the reds at the back are placed one high (my back or helmet) and one low, and the front lights are angled differently to give me full coverage for a good distance. The cheapest and lightest way for visibility gear is the "jacket" type that you wear over your clothes.
    - arethuza 16y ago
      I used to commute by bicycle about 20 miles a day (total) from the East side of Edinburgh, through the middle of town and out to the West (to the Riccarton Campus) - I worked late a lot so I was often returning in the dark. Best thing I ever did was get an extremely powerful set of lights (Vistalite I think) - they were very expensive but I'm sure they saved my life on multiple occasions. I used to have one light angled so that it illuminated the road with the other pretty much shining into the faces of car drivers - probably not legal but at least I knew I could wiggle the handlebars to shine a light into a drivers face if they were about to do something that would cause a problem. Unfortunately, bright lights can't protect you from other road hazzards - kids throwing a brick at me being an example of what cyclists have to put up with.
billpaetzke 16y ago
Where do you live and where do you work?
- city41 16y ago
  I work in downtown Denver and live nearby. Denver is a pretty bike friendly city.
ptn 16y ago
My problem with riding my bike to the office is that I arrive all sweaty. I can change my T-shirt (I don't have to wear a suit), but I'll still smell afterwards.
- notauser 16y ago
  Thanks to the London bike scheme I can now take a bike home in the evening without having to ride one to work in the morning. A similar scheme would be great in Manhattan, the rides between a lot of high density places (including Brooklyn and Manhattan) are pretty short. At 70k people per square mile they could put in a bike pick up/drop off point on every block. Plus it might give them enough critical mass to shut off some lanes as cycle paths.
- grk 16y ago
  The more you use your bike, the less tired you will be after your commute. It took me ~6 months to go from really sweaty after 7km to barely breaking a sweat. Just keep in mind that you have to take off some of your clothes on the way once you warm up.
  - csytan 16y ago
    Some more tips: - Proper clothing (e.g. dry fit) which helps sweat evaporate faster - Using a more efficient road bike if you're currently riding a mountain/hybrid bike - Pedaling at a lower gear, and higher cadence - Properly inflated tires - A bag with mesh back support, so your back doesn't get all sweaty.
- city41 16y ago
  Showers at work are helpful. In the morning i just wake up, throw on my bike clothes and go, and finish my morning routine once at work.
mkeblx 16y ago
Agreed. 7 miles at a moderate pace shouldn't get you too sweaty either, but you do lose time by most likely having to spend 5 minutes cooling down or cleaning up before actually sitting down at your desk. Also helps to live in a city such as Madison, WI with tons of paved bike paths.
ckuehne 16y ago
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9n_V6XDrL8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9n_V6XDrL8. Couldn't resist.
- RiderOfGiraffes 16y ago
  > Couldn't resist. Try. Yoda: > Do, or do not. > There is no try.

by city41 16y ago

euccastro 16y ago

Does your city have a bicycle trail, has only light traffic, or are you hyperventilating on car exhaust fumes? I never really got why would people cycle/jog on busy roads.

tremendo 16y ago
Being knocked off my bicycle by a car door finally convinced me, after too many uncomfortably close encounters, that I was somehow invisible to drivers. Today I believe that for my well-being the risks of biking far outweigh any potential benefits.
- pierrefar 16y ago
  1. You, the cyclist, need to be driving very defensively. Read the road and always assume you have not been seen and take action to do fix that. Here in the tiny streets of Cambridge, UK, I sometimes feel cycling in the middle of the street is the best option. BTW, an equally big risk to cyclists is pedestrians who, by sheer stupidity or collectively having death wishes, start crossing the road without looking. It's worse when it's a group. 2. Get some high visibility gear and get a helmet and pads. I also use two sets of lights: the reds at the back are placed one high (my back or helmet) and one low, and the front lights are angled differently to give me full coverage for a good distance. The cheapest and lightest way for visibility gear is the "jacket" type that you wear over your clothes.
  - arethuza 16y ago
    I used to commute by bicycle about 20 miles a day (total) from the East side of Edinburgh, through the middle of town and out to the West (to the Riccarton Campus) - I worked late a lot so I was often returning in the dark. Best thing I ever did was get an extremely powerful set of lights (Vistalite I think) - they were very expensive but I'm sure they saved my life on multiple occasions. I used to have one light angled so that it illuminated the road with the other pretty much shining into the faces of car drivers - probably not legal but at least I knew I could wiggle the handlebars to shine a light into a drivers face if they were about to do something that would cause a problem. Unfortunately, bright lights can't protect you from other road hazzards - kids throwing a brick at me being an example of what cyclists have to put up with.

billpaetzke 16y ago

Where do you live and where do you work?

city41 16y ago
I work in downtown Denver and live nearby. Denver is a pretty bike friendly city.

ptn 16y ago

My problem with riding my bike to the office is that I arrive all sweaty. I can change my T-shirt (I don't have to wear a suit), but I'll still smell afterwards.

notauser 16y ago
Thanks to the London bike scheme I can now take a bike home in the evening without having to ride one to work in the morning. A similar scheme would be great in Manhattan, the rides between a lot of high density places (including Brooklyn and Manhattan) are pretty short. At 70k people per square mile they could put in a bike pick up/drop off point on every block. Plus it might give them enough critical mass to shut off some lanes as cycle paths.
grk 16y ago
The more you use your bike, the less tired you will be after your commute. It took me ~6 months to go from really sweaty after 7km to barely breaking a sweat. Just keep in mind that you have to take off some of your clothes on the way once you warm up.
- csytan 16y ago
  Some more tips: - Proper clothing (e.g. dry fit) which helps sweat evaporate faster - Using a more efficient road bike if you're currently riding a mountain/hybrid bike - Pedaling at a lower gear, and higher cadence - Properly inflated tires - A bag with mesh back support, so your back doesn't get all sweaty.
city41 16y ago
Showers at work are helpful. In the morning i just wake up, throw on my bike clothes and go, and finish my morning routine once at work.

mkeblx 16y ago

Agreed. 7 miles at a moderate pace shouldn't get you too sweaty either, but you do lose time by most likely having to spend 5 minutes cooling down or cleaning up before actually sitting down at your desk. Also helps to live in a city such as Madison, WI with tons of paved bike paths.

ckuehne 16y ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9n_V6XDrL8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9n_V6XDrL8. Couldn't resist.

RiderOfGiraffes 16y ago
> Couldn't resist. Try. Yoda: > Do, or do not. > There is no try.