The Commute

[TheMooseler]

Right.

Today was my first time back on a bike for around 10 years. The reason is because my old banger failed its MOT and has been sent to the big scrapyard in the sky.

Tomorrow is my first commute, a 5 mile trip into Leicester. Any tips for a complete beginner?

The bike itself is an Apollo Corona that I have borrowed off of my old dear.

ANY advice will be appreciated.

Edit: My trip today was to the petrol station to fill the tyres!

 

[Andrew_P]

First tip get a pump! Second tip get a spare tube or two and take them and your new pump on your commute.

Other than that slowly but surely allow a bit of extra time etc

 

[TheMooseler]

Will do, popping into halfords on the way back, need a helmet too. Two of my workmates were knocked off within a week of each other this summer.

 

[MikeW-71]

Allow plenty of time. My commute is about the same and the first time I tried it it took me 45mins, and I was shattered. If you do it regularly, it will get faster very quickly

Don't ride in the gutter or drivers will ignore you. Check behind you regularly. Get some lights if you will be riding in anything but daylight.

 

[lee1980sim]

Get some lights too its dark y'know

 

[Kies]

Lights,gloves,helmet and possibly a shower proof jacket as the weather forecast this coming week predicts lots of rain.
A decent track pump for home.
For the commute - spare inner tube,a small pump, tyre levers. 2 front and 2 rear lights.

Ride out of the gutter and try to avoid sudden movements. Look behind you often, and always before changing direction (e.g right turn)

Lots of info in the commuting section, but above all - E N J O Y!

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

^^^^ What they've said. Lights wise, can I suggest this and this as they are very bright for not very much money.

 

[Sweeney]

Good luck, as the others have said, allow plenty of time as it may be harder than you think but will only get easier.

 

[boydj]

Make sure your tyres are pumped up good and hard to avoid pinch flats.

 

[big bike campaign]

I think Kies has done a pretty good job and covered it well, Red lights apply to CYCLIST too and be extra careful at junctions as most accidents occur here!

 

[TheMooseler]

Thanks a lot guys, particularly the tip about keeping out of the gutter, I wouldn't have thought of that.

There are a lot of bus/cycle lanes on my route and I tend to work funny hours so should also avoid the main bits of rush hour at least a few days a week.

I've done a lot of running in the past so have stuff like lightweight, reflective jackets/base layers/hats/gloves etc that should come in handy.

As I went out for a quick ride today to fill the tyres and see a friend to test it out I covered about 4 miles and whilst there was a burn in the legs. I seemed to recover fairly quickly. That said I wasn't exactly racing and tomorrow is a hillier route!

I certainly don't have the same confidence in taking corners as I did when I was flying around on two wheels as a 12 year old!

Again, thanks for taking the time out to reply, if anybody has any tips on technique or how to keep speed up, how to use gears properly then I'm all ears!

Also.... What's a "pinch flat."?

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Also.... What's a "pinch flat."?

It's a puncture usually caused by the tyre pressure being too low. You hit a bump/kerb/rock etc. and the tyre compresses completely pinching the inner tube between the bump and the wheel rim. It causes a distinctive double hole in the tube and because of this is also sometimes called a "snakebite"

Just a thought: you mentioned the legs were burning a bit. Have you set your saddle high enough? It's quite common for new cyclists to set it too low, making the bike hard work to ride.

This is what I've said about it to other people:

An easy way to get the saddle somewhere near the right height is to set it so that your leg is straight at the bottom of the stroke with the heel on the pedal. When the ball of the foot is put on the pedal the knee will then have roughly the right amount of bend in it and the height can be fine tuned to suit from there.

 

[MikeW-71]

A pinch flat is what can happen if the tyre gets crushed against the rim. Usually happens by hitting a pothole, so keep an eye out and avoid the big ones. Cornering confidence will come back

Change gear to keep up a comfortable pedalling speed. Somewhere between 80 and 100rpm is what most people settle on. It may take a few trips before you work out what to use where properly.

 

[TheMooseler]

Thanks, just been downstairs to "measure" myself with my foot at 6 o clock.

Raised the seat up a bit to match your description Rickshaw Phil, I'll see how it feels tomorrow morning!

As for the gears, I suppose you're right! I'll just have to get used to it!

One thing I did feel was the wasted energy going through the front suspension. Hopefully I'll get hooked on this cycling malarkey and give this one back to my mum and get a 'hogg of my own!

 

[harrow1977]

I was in the same position as you, hadn't cycled for years and started again.

Apart from what's already been mentioned here, the one thing I would suggest is remembering to check / look behind before you change positions. In the early days, I almost collided with a few other cyclists by 'pulling out' without looking!