Commuting to Work on Bike

I’ve been commuting to work on my bike this last week. It has been great. The car was in the shop so I finally had a reason to commute. I’ve been planning on doing it but never was motivated enough to start the process. This last week I did not have a car so I had to. It turned out to be great. I even had after work meetings downtown.

Overall it was a great experience, and I will be doing it more in the upcoming weeks / months. I did learn a few items though. The major item is to be careful on 4lane streets without any bike lanes. Early morning they are clear and easy to ride, 5:00 PM is not a safe time.

I also learned that packing for work is an art. We don’t have showers at work so I took items to accommodate, but that meant packing it with me. Next time I’ll have items at work to use. Carrying a full backpack is a pain.

Here are some great commuter tips. http://www.commutebybike.com/2007/08/16/a-guide-to-a-simple-bike-commute/ After reading these, I had a few ah-ha moments.

I have two bikes:
A road bike : Fuji Roubaix http://www.fujibikes.com/bike/details/roubaix_3_0 I can’t say enough great things about this bike
A old Mountain bike: Schwinn S95 mountain bike that I modified for a commuter. Road tires and accessories.

I recommend also having a bike lock. I did not, so at my downtown meeting I had to risk the bike all alone. Overall, commuting on a bike is a great experience and exercise.