# Okay first time poster and first time commuter!



## Yahwob (30 May 2012)

Well that's not strictly true, I did use to commute but that was almost twenty years ago!

been reading these forums for a while now and circumstances have made me start cycling again, mainly the fact that the car has gone to the great salvage yard in the sky, the funeral is this Friday so I'm off to Halfords at the weekend to buy my first bike in almost twenty years.

This isn't going to be easy as I'm 52 now, over weight and unfit, other than that I've got everything going for me! I'm looking at buying an Apollo Excel Hybrid from Halfords, I'm sure there are better bikes out there but it's relatively cheap and as this will be my first hybrid I can build up to bigger and better things later.

My commute will be from lee on Solent to the Eastern Road in Portsmouth, via the Gosport ferry. It's four miles down to the ferry and then another four miles up from the ferry to my work place on the Eastern Road. The good side is the fact that the route is pretty flat and I do get a break in the middle while on the ferry but I do realise that it's still going to be a slog as I'm so unfit. I'm not sure if the current hot weather will be a good thing or a bad thing, at least I won't be cycling in the dark, wet and wind, on the other hand I will probably die of heat stroke!

The route from Lee to the Ferry is pretty straight forward with a fair length of cycle path on the way, I'm not so sure about the Portsmouth side of the trip though, all the bikehike.coms etc suggest going up to the Rudmore roundabout and then cutting through North End to reach the Eastern Road, I'm a bit apprehensive about the Rudmore roundabout though! Any Portsmouth cyclists have any comments?

So the plan is go to Halfords on Friday, order the bike and accessories, pick it up Saturday or Sunday, ride it around Monday and Tuesday ( bank holidays) and then ride it to work on Wednesday. Hopelessy short preperation I know but that's the plan.

Anyway I thought I'd introduce myself on here and wish me luck


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## Col5632 (30 May 2012)

Firstly  to the site

Good for you for getting back on the bike, only thing i will say is if you can shop around and maybe try a bike out before you buy, the apollo may be cheap but usually you get what you pay for and having owned a apollo mountain bike i can say this is true  only advice i can give regarding fitness is dont kill yourself to start with, take things slow and eventually the fitness will come


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## BSRU (30 May 2012)

We all start somewhere
If your commute is on the road then get rid of the knobbly tyres the bike will probably come with and by some more road orientated tyres.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

You'll be doing 16 miles a day.

Don't get an Apollo-get the Carrera Subway Limited Edition which is £200 at the moment.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

Oh, and as you are buying from Halfords, check bolts are tight


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## DCLane (30 May 2012)

Echo the Carrera Subway. And if you get more cash, the Carrera Virtuoso Race ltd ed is £300 at the moment.

If the commutes the 16 miles a day, try City Jet or Land Cruiser tyres. I've got the Land Cruisers on my Python MTB (£150 unused s/hand) and it's made a huge difference.

Son no. 2 has a Hood Guru from Halfords (£26 as was scratched) and whilst I'd not recommend them normally, it's great for him to learn gears on before he gets a road bike.

Finally, keep going - you'll get fitter, faster and above all, enjoy it.


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## gambatte (30 May 2012)

Hiya,
You'll get mixed reviews with a Halfrauds bike. Personally I've had no dealings, mates have had things go wrong but got good customer service (MTBs though - not with this model.)
Instant thought. Looks to be old tech/basic, but well tried parts. I might be looking to see if I could find something with QR wheels. No need to carry a spanner and more convenient... you know when!
anyway, welcome!


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## ianrauk (30 May 2012)

400bhp said:


> You'll be doing 16 miles a day.
> 
> Don't get an Apollo-get the Carrera Subway Limited Edition which is £200 at the moment.


 

This ^^^
It's a far better bike, well worth the money.


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## Yahwob (30 May 2012)

Thanks for the replies 

yes I was looking at the Carrera first but the Apollo seemed to have decent reviews at £60.00 less but if you think the Carerra is the better deal then I'm happy to go with that. If I buy the Carerra will it still be best to change the tyres? The route I will be taking with be 100% roads.

Thanks guys


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## Beebo (30 May 2012)

good luck, we were all newbies once.

You've done it before so you'll know it will hurt the first week but will get easier after that.

As other have said, get the best bike you can afford, but unless your local halfords has the exact bike you want in stock you may be being over optomistic with the next day delivery time.


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## Col5632 (30 May 2012)

I have a Carerra Crossfire 2 and its been a brilliant bike


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## gambatte (30 May 2012)

Tyres make a *BIG* difference


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## paulw1969 (30 May 2012)

Cannot comment about your bike choice but i would suggest you take it easy to begin with and build up the miles rather than totally wreck yourself from the start......i am a little younger than you, unfit, overwieght and hadn't been on a bike for over 20 years.........i still built up to the 15 mile commute. You will be surprised how quickly you improve. Well done for getting on a bike again....i'm sure you will love it.....


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Thanks for the replies
> 
> yes I was looking at the Carrera first but the Apollo seemed to have decent reviews at £60.00 less but if you think the Carerra is the better deal then I'm happy to go with that. If I buy the Carerra *will it still be best to change the tyres*? The route I will be taking with be 100% roads.
> 
> Thanks guys


 
The tyres are listed as Kenda K885. I think these were on the Subway ladies limited edition bike I bought my wife, but i can't remember as I swapped them straight off due to having what i perceived to be a better pair at the time.

Best thing I would advise is to give them a go - if you are getting a lot of punctures (it's all relative and rather random but lets say 1 every 2 weeks on average) then change them.

I have a Subway (disc brake version) and have put Schwalbe City Jets on them which ad DC Lane says are a cheap light puncture proof tyre. Again, i whipped the original tyres off them and sold them on here. The originals were certainly very thick, but weighed a tonne.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

paulw1969 said:


> Cannot comment about your bike choice but i would suggest you take it easy to begin with and build up the miles rather than totally wreck yourself from the start......i am a little younger than you, unfit, overwieght and hadn't been on a bike for over 20 years.........i still built up to the 15 mile commute. You will be surprised how quickly you improve. Well done for getting on a bike again....i'm sure you will love it.....


 
Absolutely - and if not careful, if you do too much early on then you could lose the enjoyment and not cycle.


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## jonny jeez (30 May 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Thanks for the replies
> 
> yes I was looking at the Carrera first but the Apollo seemed to have decent reviews at £60.00 less but if you think the Carerra is the better deal then I'm happy to go with that. If I buy the Carerra will it still be best to change the tyres? The route I will be taking with be 100% roads.
> 
> Thanks guys


Not sure, looks like it comes with Kenda K885's which sometimes have a Knobbly edge. you really want them as smooth as poss for 100% road riding...bit like this


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

IIRC they verge between semi slicks and knobblies.


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## Arjimlad (30 May 2012)

Bon courage, well done. Your commute sounds interesting and the Go-sport ferry will make a nice break between the two legs. Are they doing duty free on it yet, by the way ?


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## Yahwob (30 May 2012)

No duty free on the Gosport ferry I'm afraid, just continous price increases!


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## HovR (30 May 2012)

400bhp said:


> The tyres are listed as Kenda K885. I think these were on the Subway ladies limited edition bike I bought my wife, but i can't remember as I swapped them straight off due to having what i perceived to be a better pair at the time.


 
IIRC, I think I bought those tires off you, and they were "Traveller City Classic" tires (unless you've bought another subway recently). They have some tread, but I wouldn't describe them as knobblies.

YahWob: From what I've seen in pictures and halfords etc, stock Subway tires are normally mostly slick, with a bit of tread (like in jonny's picture above), however they are fairly wide. You may want to switch to narrower tires to reduce rolling resistance.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

HovR said:


> IIRC, I think I bought those tires off you, and they were "Traveller City Classic" tires (unless you've bought another subway recently). They have some tread, but I wouldn't describe them as knobblies.
> 
> YahWob: From what I've seen in pictures and halfords etc, stock Subway tires are normally mostly slick, with a bit of tread, however they are fairly wide. You may want to switch to narrower tires to reduce rolling resistance.


 
Hov-I have a his n hers Subway, both bought recently. I think the ones I sold you were off my Subway.


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## HovR (30 May 2012)

400bhp said:


> Hov-I have a his n hers Subway, both bought recently. I think the ones I sold you were off my Subway.


 
Ah, okay.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

Can't remember what I did with the ones of the Mrs' bike - must have sold them on here too?


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## cloggsy (30 May 2012)

gambatte said:


> Tyres make a *BIG* difference


Yup! The skinnier and higher pressure, the better 

Good luck with the commuting; it'll be tough at first, but stick with it and it'll pay dividends


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## clarion (30 May 2012)

Echo the recommendation for the Subway over the Apollo.

But whatever you buy, make sure it's properly set up (and I'm afraid you can't rely on Halfords to do this really). See if there is a forum member near you who'd be prepared to give it a look over for the price of a pint or something. If you're new to it, you might get put off by something which can be easily remedied, but you might not know is wrong (bad gearchanging, slack brakes, badly adjusted saddle/bar heights etc.

Easier, and more puncture resistant, tyres are a worthwhile investment, though even the most careful do get punctures, and you just have to man up and deal with them 

Be prepared to buy a different saddle. Everyone is different in this department, and it's very hard to tell what's going to suit you. Don't buy the most padded one in the shop, as that's likely to be, oddly, the most uncomfortable when you come to riding.

Errr, what other advice while I'm pontificating? Oh yeah - don't forget to get a decent set of tools (you don't need much) including a puncture repair kit (don't believe anything anyone tells you about Slime. It isn't worth the hassle. And take a bottle of water everywhere you go.

And keep your tyres pumped up. 

Have you thought about how you'll be carrying your luggage? There's a whole extra discussion to be had on that...


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## BrumJim (30 May 2012)

If you are commuting every day, you will need a decent bike. A Halfords Apollo won't stand up to that sort of abuse. Most of the comments (and all the positive ones) will be made immediately after purchase, whilst still shiny and new. Most purchasers will either never get round to much cycling, or will have a problem on the first or second trip out, will get bored, and ignore it.


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## gambatte (30 May 2012)

Horses for courses. Our lass has an Apollo Corona, which I got her second hand 6(?) years ago. She doesn't drive. It's served for school runs, getting her to and from the allotment. Yeah a cheap bike isn't to the same quality as an expensive bike. heavy parts, old tech etc. But if you know and accept that from the start it's not going to be long before it's paid for itself and you can assess whether cycle commutings for you and whether a hybrids right etc.


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## Pauluk (30 May 2012)

Hi YahWob. I'm 59 and started to commute two weeks ago, 18 mile round trip. After my first day arriving home I was knackered, just didn't want to doing anything other than flake out. Now after a few days I'm fine and I love it.

Be careful for the first few days though, if you need to don't be ashamed to walk with your bike for a bit. I don't know how unfit you think you are or over weight so just take it easy and give yourself more time. Remember cycling on the flat continuously can be tiring because you are peddling constantly with no rest on down hills!

As the previous posters have said, it gets easier. Much easier. So don't get despondent if you find it hard to begin with.

In terms of the bike, its true you get what you pay for and the Carreras are quite good bikes for the price. I have a crossfire and a Crossfire 2. Both have 35mm tires but my commute is only 40% road, 60% uneven ground.

The Apollo may be a good choice until you know you are serious about it so will save money if you decide its not for you. If however you're not easily defeated and you're fairly well committed then go for the best bike you can afford.

I bought my bikes and my wife's Carrera from Halfords. All of them were set up poorly. My crossfire 2 went back 3 times since although I could have done it myself I wasn't letting them get away with it. The third time I went through the store manager. Halfords are variable with there service, they can be quite bad or very very good. Their products are quite good quality though.

If you are new to cycling on busy roads like me ( I've been driving a car for almost 40 years) then look at jonny jeez pdf file on this board and consider getting a copy of Cyclecraft by John Franklin. Invaluable reading.

You'll also get lots of encouragement and advice on here too, so good luck.


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## 400bhp (30 May 2012)

gambatte said:


> Horses for courses. Our lass has an Apollo Corona, which I got her second hand 6(?) years ago. She doesn't drive. It's served for school runs, getting her to and from the allotment. Yeah a cheap bike isn't to the same quality as an expensive bike. heavy parts, old tech etc. But if you know and accept that from the start it's not going to be long before it's paid for itself and you can assess whether cycle commutings for you and whether a hybrids right etc.


 
Thing is, Carerra's hold their value, whereas Apollos don't.


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## Pauluk (30 May 2012)

400bhp said:


> Thing is, Carerra's hold their value, whereas Apollos don't.


 
Not sure I agree. I've seen a couple of seemingly good crossfire's go for less than £100 on ebay (one for £82) and a nearly new crossfire 2 for £199. IMO generally, the more you pay the more depreciation you have to pay finance.


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## Arfcollins (30 May 2012)

Hi Yahwob, I live in Fareham so I know most of your planned route quite well. After you cycle up Queen Street from the ferry there is a shared ped/cycle path that follows the dockyard wall to the Rudmore roundabout, which has underpasses so you won't need to fight the traffic coming off the motorway. Unfortunately most of the cycle path in Portsmouth is north/south, either on Eastern Road or north along the shoreline from the Mountbatten Centre. If you're cutting through North End I'd recommend Kirby Road to take you through to Copnor. I don't know what the traffic is like on it, but it is a nice wide road.

As you live in Lee you may want to chat up Solent Cycles as well as checking out Halfords. I bought my hybrid from their Portchester shop and would use them again.

I'm sure you'll enjoy your ride. The ferry is a real treat on a bright morning, but I'd place a small bet that within a year you'll be tempted by the Fareham/Cosham route. By then you'll be fit enough to make it quicker that way, and just think of all the money you'll save, £740 a year at the moment!


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## Yahwob (31 May 2012)

Hi Arf,

I did think about going right the way round, theres not a huge difference distance wise but I'm a bit put off by Newgate Lane to be honest! Apart from the general lack of fitness etc the other thing I'm most apprehensive about is riding in traffic. I've been reading these forums for a while now and I've read some horror stories!


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## 400bhp (31 May 2012)

Pauluk said:


> Not sure I agree. I've seen a couple of seemingly good crossfire's go for less than £100 on ebay (one for £82) and a nearly new crossfire 2 for £199. IMO generally, the more you pay the more depreciation you have to pay finance.


 
Subway's do, and that is the bike we are discussing.

They generally sell for close to £100 for a bike which is more than a couple of years old.


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## Arfcollins (31 May 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Hi Arf,
> 
> I did think about going right the way round, theres not a huge difference distance wise but I'm a bit put off by Newgate Lane to be honest! Apart from the general lack of fitness etc the other thing I'm most apprehensive about is riding in traffic. I've been reading these forums for a while now and I've read some horror stories!


 
I'll still place my bet! Road awareness and confidence will grow as well as fitness. Newgate Lane is pretty awful but you just have to dominate your lane in the thin bits. I took the longer route home tonight along it (my commute is only from Titchfield to Fareham but I divert if I'm in the mood via Hillhead) and only had one pass that was anywhere close to being too close. When I started commuting I used pavements on some roads that have very few pedestrians, and Newgate Lane is one of those. The only problem is that the pavement on the west side disappears so you either have to go for it on the road or cross over, which isn't easy.


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## Electric_Andy (31 May 2012)

I had a Carrera MTB and it was very sturdy. Just make sure to take it back and get it adjusted when they suggest (6 weeks?) because the brake and gear cables will stretch and need adjusting (as others have said). A good bike though, from my experience. I also put slicks on mine when I got into road riding. I am not suggesting that you ignore other people's suggestions, but I bought the cheapest slicks I could off e-bay ( 26" by 1.35" for £14) and I never had a slip or a puncture in 12 months of riding on roads and trails.


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## Yahwob (31 May 2012)

Thanks for all the commentys guys, tommorow is D Day, car being scrapped and off to Halfords after that.

You don't do Titchfield Hill on your commute do you Arf, if so I'm impressed!


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## Gooner Mad Dog (31 May 2012)

Not going to offer any cycling tips as there are far more knowledgable cyclists on here, but am a commuter since Sept in London doing 21 miles a day on a bike that was discarded in our Westminster basement 20 yr old Cannondale with bull horn bars and now have union jack on back. Ex matelot as well based at HMS Sultan in Gosport twice and driving around to Pompey can take hour total mare, take it easy initially dont worry about times its not a race be safe be seen the speed and fitness will take of itself, 6 months from now you will feel fitter, wiser and sense of achievement will enable to enthusiastically recite cycling commuter anectdotes whilst your glassy eyed audience thinks of his jams, fuel, road rage!!


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## Arfcollins (31 May 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Thanks for all the commentys guys, tommorow is D Day, car being scrapped and off to Halfords after that.
> 
> You don't do Titchfield Hill on your commute do you Arf, if so I'm impressed!


Unfortunately it's there, so I have to. I've cycled to work there for the last 18 months, and it doesn't hurt too much now.


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## Becs (1 Jun 2012)

You could look at it another way - stick with the big fat tyres, burn more calories at any given speed, get fitter faster.


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## Yahwob (1 Jun 2012)

Okay done the deal!

Bought a Carerra Subway Ltd Ed for 200 pounds, a helmet, waterproof jacket, lock and rucksack,. pick it up tommorow. Had an anxious moment when the guy asked me if I wanted to ride it the lenght of the shop but as the route he pointed out was about 30 feet between racks of bikes I had visions of falling off and wrecking as many bikes as I could so I declined the offer  I did sit on it though lol.

I've also asked them to fit some cityjets to it, the tyres it came with were semi knobbly, if that's not a rude description!

Just seen the weather forecase for the weekend and apparently it's going to be raining!!


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## 400bhp (1 Jun 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Okay done the deal!
> 
> Bought a Carerra Subway Ltd Ed for 200 pounds, a helmet, waterproof jacket, lock and rucksack,. pick it up tommorow. Had an anxious moment when the guy asked me if I wanted to ride it the lenght of the shop but as the route he pointed out was about 30 feet between racks of bikes I had visions of falling off and wrecking as many bikes as I could so I declined the offer  I did sit on it though lol.
> 
> ...


 
Get the tyres put up in the for sale forum and get some money back.


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## Arfcollins (2 Jun 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Okay done the deal!
> 
> Bought a Carerra Subway Ltd Ed for 200 pounds, a helmet, waterproof jacket, lock and rucksack,. pick it up tommorow. Had an anxious moment when the guy asked me if I wanted to ride it the lenght of the shop but as the route he pointed out was about 30 feet between racks of bikes I had visions of falling off and wrecking as many bikes as I could so I declined the offer  I did sit on it though lol.
> 
> ...


Looking forward to the report of your first commute Yahwob!


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## Yahwob (2 Jun 2012)

Okay done it! Picked the bike up this afternoon, funny thing was when I was waiting for the bike to be bought out to the shop floor there was another guy waiting for exactly the same bike although he had kept the knobbly tyres on his bike, shows how popular the Carerras are. The Halfords guy went to see if it was ready he came back and said it would be another five minutes as they just discovered it had a puncture! That could of been a bad omen but at least they discovered it before I picked the bike up and started off!

Anyway I then cycled home and from Halfords Gosport to my house is near as dammit the first leg of my commute, it took me 25 minutes with a fair bit of free wheeling. I was quite pleased, it wasn't anywhere near as bad as I thought it might be bearing in mind I havn't been on a bike for 18 years! I blocked the traffic out of my mind lol although around 50% of the route was on a cycle path.

Overall I was ver pleased, I will go out over the weekend a few times and the first real commute is next Wednesday morning. Feeling a lot more confident now


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## musa (2 Jun 2012)

Well done. You'll look like a madman. At my workplace I'm only the one left who comes by bike. One guy has left and the. Other is subject

Never mind. More mileage to come


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## Yahwob (6 Jun 2012)

Okay did it, my first commute.

Was lulled into a false sense of security on the way in as I did the whole eight miles in 67 minutes. Might not seem good to most of you guys but as it was my first commute for 20 years and there was a 15 minute break in the middle on the ferry I was pretty pleased 

However my happiness was short lived as the ride home was much harder! I must of had the wind blowing me in this morning because it was defintetly against me on the way home! Also the route I take through Portsmouth is a bit dodgy with having to cross over some major roads against the traffic so more than once I got off and walked across at the nearest lights lol. Also there's a section of the route where I'm cycling along the dockyard wall on the pavement which I'm pretty sure doubles as a cycle path to and a fair few pedestrains were coming up from the dockyard giving me dirty looks as if I had no right to be there and they certainly wern't making any attempt to make it easy for me to pass, at one stage I had a small collision with a bus stop! The trouble was the side of the road I really needed to be on was impossible to reach.

Anyway took me 80 minutes to get home which I guess still isn't that bad but seemed a lot more effort than the ride in and knackered me out lol.

Might have to look at tweaking the Portsmouth side of the route but other than that though I'm quite pleased


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## Arfcollins (6 Jun 2012)

Yahwob said:


> Okay did it, my first commute.
> 
> Was lulled into a false sense of security on the way in as I did the whole eight miles in 67 minutes. Might not seem good to most of you guys but as it was my first commute for 20 years and there was a 15 minute break in the middle on the ferry I was pretty pleased
> 
> ...


Well done. Don't worry about the wind as come the winter you'll have a nice brisk easterly to take you home!


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## DCLane (7 Jun 2012)

Well done - the first few are always the hardest.

It gets easier as you keep going.


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## clarion (7 Jun 2012)

Good one.

Just keep at it, and you'll get the habit.


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