Here goes nothing...commuting all the way

[Morrisette]

<deep breath>

Well my yearly train season ticket runs out today and I have not renewed it.

After reading the 'long commutes' thread from a couple of weeks back, buying some new lycra shorts, and learning how to fix faerie attacks, I am going to try and do my full journey to work on the bike. 16 miles each way give-or-take tweaking the route, and I plan to have Wednesday or Thursday 'off' each week to carry clothes in to the office by train.

I'm undecided yet on whether to try this for the dark winter months as well (as a female I have doubts about riding in the dark on country roads for long periods) but I'll take it a week at a time, and come September 1st, I will be going for it four days a week.

Wish me luck   I may need it if the headwind I encountered on the route this morning is anything to go by   But on the upside, I should get a lot fitter and be able to eat much more cake!

[hellymedic]

Good Luck!
I've done 16 miles each way, admittedly on urban roads.
Never did 5 return trips either though; I either stayed there or used public transport all or some of the way.

[TheLurker]

You'll enjoy it.  Mostly.  Honest.

The dark country lanes can be a real joy especially on moonlit mornings  or evenings, but I think once you've done a couple or three trips in the dark and got the hang of it then it won't worry you.

[LEE]

I'm jealous.

I wish my office was 16 miles away (instead of 50), it's a perfect distance imo.

Buy an IXON IQ battery light. 
It will change the way you view riding on dark country lanes.

[MSeries]

I'm jealous.

I wish my office was 16 miles away (instead of 50), it's a perfect distance imo.

Buy an IXON IQ battery light. 
It will change the way you view riding on dark country lanes.

nah. decent dynamo lights, Fit and forget, save the planet.

[simonp]

Good luck!

I only have 5.5 miles each way - so I sometimes have to extend it on the way home to make it long enough to get some real training.

[nutkin]

Good luck!

Riding in the dark during the winter isn't to bad on country lanes. Admittedly when I did this I only had an eight mile commute, but as I didn't drive (and there was no public transport) I did it every day and then cycled the 12 miles into town at the weekend to get my shopping. It made my job bearable!

I found the only thing that spooked me was the tendency of the local wildlife to suddenly jump out on me - deer are BIG!

[Wendy]

You can do it!  Just ride slow and pay attention to your eating and drinking to make sure you recover well.

For the first time this year I've almost managed 3 full house commuting weeks, assuming I make it tonight.  It's a little easier for me as I usually get to have afternoon naps, and I have Mondays and Fridays as rest days.  My commute is fairly flat though, and a few miles longer than yours.

[Kathy]

+ 1 to the comments about dynamo. I used to commute just under ten miles each way on country lanes, sometimes with an extra six-to-ten mile loop on the way home if I had to go home via the shops. A Schmidt hub and decent light (I'm currently on an IQ Fly, but I used to use the older equivalent) meant that I never had any worries, despite being a lone female on unlit lanes. 

Just make sure you carry a small battery-powered torch in the winter in case of emergencies - trying to mend a shredded tyre in sub-zero temperatures using only the glow from my mobile phone keypad is one of my less enjoyable memories. 

I miss that commute. My current seven miles across the M25 is quite dull in comparison. 

[Frenchie]

I am very comfortable with my 35+ Mi daily return journey now. I just need to remember to take it easy at the beginning of the week (>19 Mi/h average on Monday morning; ooops).

I am looking to upgrade my frontlight to add to the dynamo hub, in replacement of my E6 which lacks "power".

The wet and dark winter may be a bit different though. Good gear will matter a lot then.

Enjoy!

[vorsprung]

I do a 15 miles each way on lanes

Mostly 3 or 4 days a week, but 5 days in summer

Yes you can eat a little bit more cake

I take clothes in and shopping back in a huge carradice super c saddlebag

Let's not discuss winter lighting tactics at the moment, there's no need this time of year and it's slightly depressing....

[Wendy]

Let's not discuss winter lighting tactics at the moment, there's no need this time of year and it's slightly depressing....

Sorry!  I'm a lighting freak though, and I commute in the dark at least one way all year round.

My vote is for a super powered battery light like the USE Exposure series.  I have a MaxxD and a Joystick and love them.  AWESOME lighting power that completely changes the way drivers behave towards you.

[L CC]

as a female I have doubts about riding in the dark on country roads for long periods

It's fine. It's quite obvious I'm a girl (fat arse, plait right down my back (till last Friday, anyway), sometimes even a skirt) and I get no bother at all on my completely rural commute. Watch out for beet traffic in the autumn, the lanes can become a vile sea of mud. Other than that, it's all good  . Winter is almost better, in that you can see them coming because of the lights, and vice versa. More wildlife in the dusk, too.
And no, you can't eat more cake. At least, it appears to me that one's metabolism acclimatises, damn it, and only the standard amount of cake can be consumed.

[woollypigs]

The reason why so many new years resolutions fail, is that you got out and run 10miles on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and the 4th of Jan and then your body shut down. And you never get to drop that dress size by easter. Is because the last time you ran 10miles was 8 years ago and you didn't do it four days on the trod, but only two days a week.

Start slow, don't push, leave plenty of time. Eat before, doing and after. As you say do a few days at the start and then build up is a great great way.

And then there is the cake

Good luck

[CommuteTooFar]

Award yourself extra cake for any of the following

Force Ten Winds with horizontal rain.
Large Hail
Freezing Fog

Anything less remember it is Morrisette against the world and Morrisette wins.

[Morrisette]

Thank-you for all the encouragement and advice!

I have wondered about the stabilising metabolism thing - I have noticed I don't feel starving after cycling anymore, as I used to when I started doing longer distances. I guess your body must get used to/better at doing what you regularly ask it to do.....maybe not much more cake then!

I am not going in 'cold' as it were - I have done the commute three days a week before, and did it today in fact - so I know what to expect.

As for lighting, yes, I'll wait until winter  I have never used a dynamo system, I guess it makes it harder work? But they do appeal from an environmental, no batteries point of view....if this all goes to plan I will investigate...

[Wowbagger]

How much money will your journey save you in terms of train tickets not bought? I'd guess it won't take long for you to save enough for the new front wheel with Schmidt hub and Solidlights.

Actually, a new bike with these pre-fitted might be advisable. 

Well done and good luck!

[Gattopardo]

No real advice apart from puncture proof tyres and comfortable seat.

Oh and good luck and enjoy it sit at apace you feel comfotable with.

[teethgrinder]

You'll be OK once you get used to it.
I wouldn't worry about being a lone female either. If you do get attacked by a stranger, then you'd be exceptionally unlucky. Almost all violence and suchlike is committed against someone who knows the attacker.
I reckon a Schmidt hub dynamo would be a good idea. You won't notice any extra effort needed. Plenty of good diode lights around to wire it up to too these days.
Worth carrying a back up in the saddlebag though. Same for the rear. I carry two rears anyway. Saves faffing about in the cold and dark when the batteries go. Just unclip the light with duff batteries and clip in the light with fresh batteries. Replace the duff batteries at your leisure, in the warm, with a cup of tea.
If all else fails, you can always call a taxi to get you home. Even if you have to do that every month, you'll still probably be quids in.

[Morrisette]

If all else fails, you can always call a taxi to get you home. Even if you have to do that every month, you'll still probably be quids in.

I can always call Mr M out with his _CAR to gte me home! Even though that is somehow not the point....

It's a bit tricky to work out how much money is saved when you've spent a load of said money on new kit.....but for every month I do the commute NXEA don't get 100 quid from me 

[pdm]

Well done. Long commutes become a way of life after a while.

Dynamo drag: The dynamo in the winter makes almost no difference on my commutes. More important are wind, rain, temperature, wind, energy levels, number of clothing layers, time of week, wind, which bike I use, wind and, of course, wind....

I also have a back up battery light but rarely use it... (3W seriously bright torch with handlebar mount)

Don't skimp on dynamo light quality though. One of the new IQ's , Solidlights, or (drool, slobber) penury inducing Supernova E3....

[teethgrinder]

It's a bit tricky to work out how much money is saved when you've spent a load of said money on new kit.....but for every month I do the commute NXEA don't get 100 quid from me 

So if you spend £1200 a year, you break even. I doubt that you need to spend that much. You allready have a bike. Unless you buy several sets of Assoss kit, which will last much longer than a year anyway, you won't need all of that for clothing.
It's worth getting a couple of spare tyres, brake pads, cables, some chain and cassettes and a Park chain checker and a stash of spare inner tubes. That way, you can replace your stockpile at leisure and you will allways have a ready supply of stuff that needs regular replacement. Buy it all at once and see how much it costs. I reckon £500 will be more than enough and most of what you buy will still be in your stock for well over a year. Plus you shouldn't need extra clothes next year. It's always more expensive getting established. You will of course, be able to use this stuff for leisure cycling too, so you could say that this is also part of your leisure money too.

Plus, to get as fit as you will get from commuting, you'd have to do some sort of exercise. If you paid to go to a gym, think how much that would cost you. You're not just getting transport.
It's also good fun too, so that in itself must be worth the money.

I'd put that money you save in a bank account and then use it to treat yourself if I was you.
Use your bike to make your life better and more enjoyable. That's my philosophy.

[fruitcake]

You'll be fine.
18 months ago started doing 13 miles there and 13 miles back 5 days a week.  I was knackered for the first month and then realised I should be eating an extra meal a day for the extra calories I was spending.  Some of the best advice I got, from this forum, on conserving energy during the ride was not to accelerate too hard and to allow bigger gaps between me and the car ahead.  That made I a lot less tired on arrival and the cumulative effect of the energy saved was noticeable towards the end of the week. 

[Frenchie]

I enjoyed mine so much today that I did a 53 Mi commute, doing a extra detour tonight. May be another thing in the winter, but I am really enjoying now, even if I get up a 6:00 to leave at 6:30 and be at my desk showered for 7:45, 17 odd Mi later. It is a good way to combine training, pleasure and utility. You will need more kit and will eat more though! I am looking to buy a new light as my E6 is not powerful enough. I am looking at a Schmidt Edelux.

[clarion]

Great news!  Hope you have lots of fun