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kiffie posting in

bicycles

First off, hello! I'm new, here!

I'm also semi-new to cycling, since I've always depended pretty heavily on cars to get me around. Over the past few months, though, money has gotten tighter, so I've been relying more and more on my bike to get to and from work. It's been... an experience!

My town has a lot of bike lanes that are in mostly-working order, which is nice. Cars are usually attentive, if not terribly happy about sharing a lefthand turn lane. My only complaint is hills. Recumbents are not made for uphill, and there isn't a single bit of flat ground on my entire route. It's a fairly short distance-- about a mile or so --but for a more-or-less beginner, every day feels like a marathon.

So! Anyone have tips for a bike-commute newb? Best ways to ease into riding? Things to watch out for in traffic? General advice?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

pinesandmaples

I never assume a car can see me. I never assume I'm visible enough. I have more lights than I need, and I'm pretty sure my bike is visible from space. I still don't consider that enough lights. My bike is black, and I often bike home from a job as a line cook wearing all black at night. Everything I own for riding is covered in reflective, light-up, safety shit. I haven't been hit in a long time.

Most of my biking is done on shared roads (sharrows) or just the road. I allow myself to ride at whatever pace I want when I have a bike lane, although I stick to the right side of the lane to allow other, faster cyclists to pass me on the left if they would like. I pick up the pace a lot when I'm sharing with traffic.

The only way to improve your athletic conditioning is...to do the athletic conditioning. The more I ride, the faster I get. The more I ride, the greater my endurance. When I'm interested in increasing my fitness, I take a longer route home to get some extra miles in. When I'm tired and just ready to kick back, I go straight home with no guilt.

Is there a particular reason you ride a recumbent? As you said, they are pretty terrible on hills. Riding in a lower gear and pedaling more is better than riding in a higher gear to pedal less but feel like you are dying. Your gear game will change the more you ride.

If you feel like you need to gamify the whole situation for yourself, Love To Ride to the rescue!

From:

kiffie

I am 110% down with looking like a Christmas tree, if it means cars might see me better. I have two headlights and two taillights (one solid and one blinker, each), and will probably splurge for those Nyan Cat-esque rainbow spoke lights on my next paycheck. I should get some reflective stuff, though -- do you have any suggestions for what works best? 3M tape, or reflective stickers...?

I ride a recumbent because I can't ride an upright due to a permanent injury. I've tried darn near every saddle style out there, and everything feels like sitting on glass. It's disappointing, because I like uprights better, both for visibility's sake and just for pure style, but well, at least I can still ride a bike, even if it's not my ideal jam.

(It was also cheap on Craigslist, because it was a little rough around the edges. I feel like I've made it worse since I bought it. Uh, whoops?)

From:

pinesandmaples

I actually have Monkey Lights, which are supposed to make patterns. However, much to my annoyance, I have to go faster than my preferred pace to make the pictures show up. (The pictures appear at a sustained 16 MPH.) Rope lights designed for bikes are much better at just looking cool without requiring speed. I don't recommend any wheel lights that are motion activated because they waste their own batteries.

Have you greased your chain lately? That helps just about everything. I live in New Orleans, and my bike guru (

grrltastic) recommended Triflow for my chain. It's been great. Wetter/more sodden/colder climes might do better with another product, though.

From:

kiffie

Yessssss the local bike store has Monkey Lights on display. I didn't realize their working speed was so high, though. Alas!

I was hoping to snag some of the NiteIze spokelights, which are passive, but slowly rotate through a set series of colors -- a bit like a color-changing night light.

I currently use White Lightning, which I honestly just bought because I felt it was punny (owning a Lightning Thunderbolt, obvs). Is the Triflow just a lubricant, or is it a cleaner, as well? I might grab that when I run out of my current bottle. I like trying new products.

From:

juliet

I used to do long-distance rides with someone on a recumbent, so seconding the idea that it is in large part about just keeping on riding & it will get easier. Having said that: clean & regrease the chain, check tire pressure, and maybe give it a general look-over (either yourself, with the help of book/YouTube, or take it to your local bike shop if funds permit & you prefer that). And then just take it at a pace you're comfortable with.

My two main tips for cycling on-road are:

1. do not go up the inside of a long vehicle (especially a lorry), because if the driver doesn't see you (and they have huge blind spots) and turns across you, it is Very Bad News. Bike lanes will sometimes encourage you to do this. If it's a fully protected lane (ie has a kerb separation or similar) that's probably OK but still be aware that if you're alongside a long vehicle at a junction, it might try to turn in front of you. In a bike lane that's just painted on the road, exercise extreme caution if undertaking a long vehicle in a traffic queue, and if in doubt, wait.

2. when turning across traffic (for me this is turning right, but if you're in the US, it's turning left) remember what motorbike folks call the Lifesaver: a last-minute double check over your shoulder. There are idiots out there who are determined to overtake you even if it's really obvious that you're waiting to turn. It's worth looking for them, every time, before you take the turn.

And another note: whether or not it's night & whatever lighting you've got, the Sorry Mate I Didn't See You collision is all too common. Keep an eye on cars waiting to pull out, try to make eye contact with the driver if you can, and be ready to slam the brakes on if they pull out in front of you. Or across you, or whatever. I'm never sure if I actually manage eye contact as such, but I figure that humans are hard-wired to see FACES, so if you look up and at the driver, it gives their hindbrain a FACE to spot not just a weird moving object.

From:

kiffie

do not go up the inside of a long vehicle (especially a lorry), because if the driver doesn't see you (and they have huge blind spots) and turns across you, it is Very Bad News.

This is one of my biggest fears, re: turning at a red light. I've seen plenty of boxtrucks, and even some semis, who were previously going straight through seemingly remember at the last minute, "Oh no! I was supposed to turn there!" and shove their way into the righthand turn lane from the middle lane. I can't imagine being on the inside of that whole mess. The sidewalk always looks tempting at that point.

(I've also had a Greyhound try to merge on top of me, but I was in a car and thus had a horn. There was... a lot of screaming, on my part. :V)

I figure that humans are hard-wired to see FACES, so if you look up and at the driver, it gives their hindbrain a FACE to spot not just a weird moving object.

A good tip!

Thank you!

From:

vlion

watch out for angry drivers who will rush by a couple feet from you, attempting to intimidate or startle you.

happens on the regular to me, they go by on a double yellow lane. >.<

general advice: keep doing it. you get stronger.