Cycling to Work - Max Distance?

"Ian B." <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable for
cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle from
where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a bit far
(I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!). Still, the
alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

As with everything else with cycling, the answer is "depends".

If you have shower/changing facilities in work (or it doesn't bother people
if you're a bit fragrant) it's a lot longer than if you don't. I used to
ride 10 miles each way, over some reasonable hills, taking about 45 minutes
and that wasn't a problem.

The problem is that six miles each way currently isn't enough! I've had to
take scenic detours to increase the distance.

Quoted message said:

Cheers for any thoughts,
Ian

Quoted message said:

As with everything else with cycling, the answer is "depends".

I agree; I was doing 14 miles (flat) either way in Jan/Feb, now do ten
hilly miles - I think the limit is time rather than distance. Much over
an hour and it's a bit much, IMO. Unless of course other modes take even
longer :-)

Don't underestimate how much time is needed at either end - easily
another 1/4 hour for me on a good day! Mr Faff, that's me...

hth,

Tony B

"Tony B" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

As with everything else with cycling, the answer is "depends".

I agree; I was doing 14 miles (flat) either way in Jan/Feb, now do ten
hilly miles - I think the limit is time rather than distance. Much over an
hour and it's a bit much, IMO. Unless of course other modes take even
longer :-)

Don't underestimate how much time is needed at either end - easily another
1/4 hour for me on a good day! Mr Faff, that's me...

hth,

Tony B

Couldn't agree more. I used to commute 12 miles each way, but it was never
the ride that was the problem- I used to used cycling, as I would arrive at
work awake! It was always sorting out my clothes and washing... really found
I had to plan the week out, and carry them around in shifts. Think at least
2 days ahead, and you should be ok. Oh, and add on half hour for
mechanicals, and you will find it won't be the distance, but how early you
want to get up/ how late you want to get home that will be the thing.

Don't let it stop you though. The sense of awakeness compared to driving/
other methods really is amazing.

Simon

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

Cheers for any thoughts,
Ian

Depends on fitness and keeness of the cyclist. For me I'd say 15 miles
each way would be the absolute max "sustainable daily rate"; taking into
account the number of working hours I'm doing.

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

Used to do 10 miles. As another poster pointed out, its more time.
Imho more than 45 minutes gets to be a bit of a drag.

Get in a few test runs, see how you feel about it. 45 minutes cycling
through the country might be far more preferable than 30 minutes donning
the Urban Warrior kit and taking your life in your hands. All depends.

Is it really possible to get a bike on a rush hour tube?

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

It depends on a number of factors of course. As you haven't given us any
specific information I can only tell you what I would consider to be
reasonable on-road commuting distances for myself. I've done a longish
stint - around 10 months - of 20 miles each way on a fairly hilly route
and found it to be no problem. I've even ridden the route in a heavy
snowfall. The journey is actually quicker by bike than by car in the
rush hours, and much quicker when there's deep snow on the ground.

I'm currently doing 11 miles each way and that's an easy distance. It
takes around 45 to 50 minutes in traffic - still quicker than driving. I
used to have a commute of 15 miles each way, and that seems to be the
ideal for me. The shortest I've commuted is 3 miles each way, which is
too little to be satisfying. The longest I would personally attempt on a
daily basis would be around 30 miles each way.

--
Dave...

Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the
future of the human race. - H. G. Wells

"Ian B." <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable for
cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle from
where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a bit far
(I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!). Still, the
alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

Cheers for any thoughts,
Ian

Again, to add weight to the 'time' not 'distance' thoughts - I'd feel
comfortable if the all-in (i.e. to get to sitting at my desk) time was upto
1hr perhaps 1.15. Fitness, IME, allows for more variations en-route with
more hills e.g. - however, for me, the work commute needs to be flat, or v
close if hilly at the moment.... ;-)

Graham

Tony B said:

Quoted message said:

As with everything else with cycling, the answer is "depends".

I agree; I was doing 14 miles (flat) either way in Jan/Feb, now do ten
hilly miles - I think the limit is time rather than distance. Much over
an hour and it's a bit much, IMO. Unless of course other modes take even
longer :-)

Don't underestimate how much time is needed at either end - easily
another 1/4 hour for me on a good day! Mr Faff, that's me...

I'd agree with that. About an hour riding time was a practical limit. That
was 16 miles or so in hilly Oslo with a warm garage to park bikes in and
showers. I would quite happily ride every day in the summer.

It took a lot longer in the winter with snow and ice on the ground but I
tried to do at least one commute per week on the bike.

...d

As I've said previously I used to do 23 miles each way across London, took me about 1hr 30, but that compared to 1hr 10 on the tube on a good day. It all depends on how much you like being on the. Now I only have a 9 mile commute, on a nice day like today I miss the extra time, so end up adding extra bits onto my new commute, but when the weaters bad or I just feel like [censored], I'm glad I donl;t have so far to go.

If you look back at other threads on this subject you'll see the concensus is that about 15 miles is what most people consider to be an acceptable distance, and it's only a few of us that commute longer. (I seem to reclal someone having a 100 mile round trip but they only did it twice a week)

Bryan

in message <[email hidden]>, Ian

B. (') said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

I'd guess for an everyday, around fifteen miles.

I used to cycle twenty-one miles to work (forty-two round trip) about
three days a week and that was good; but I was single at the time and
there was no-one waiting impatiently at home. Total commuting time
about three hours/day. Quite tiring in the evenings - I was noticeably
slower on the way back. When it rained I took the car.

Also, in the London area where people seem tolerant of very long periods
spent commuting, you might be prepared to do farther.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; no eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn.
;; Jim Morrison

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

You'll be in London. You will not achieve the sort of average speeds
you can get in the country. I have never achieved more than about 14
mph overall, and I don't hang around.

And unless you have a towpath on your route, that 14mph involves a lot
of fast starts from traffic lights and reaching 20+ in between. I'd
say 8 miles each way is enough to do daily on that basis.

If you cycle slower, 10 miles should be OK, taking 50-55 minutes.

Colin McKenzie

On Wed, 11 May 2005 02:33:49 +0100, "Ian B." <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

25 miles is a bit far for me; on days when I ride both ways I end up
quite fatigued. Anything up to 10 miles seems to be fair game,
though. I had a commute of 7.5 miles each way for some years - that
was ideal (a bit short in summer, not so long that I got excessively
chilled in winter).

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at CHS, Puget Sound

"Colin McKenzie" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

You'll be in London. You will not achieve the sort of average speeds you
can get in the country. I have never achieved more than about 14 mph
overall, and I don't hang around.

And unless you have a towpath on your route, that 14mph involves a lot of
fast starts from traffic lights and reaching 20+ in between. I'd say 8
miles each way is enough to do daily on that basis.

If you cycle slower, 10 miles should be OK, taking 50-55 minutes.

Colin McKenzie

About the same for me, I have an 11 mile commute each way, usually between
3-6 days a week, my personal best is now 43 minutes. I have to admit to
finding that distance quite far enough and definitely need at least one rest
day per week, but then I do a physical job. Were I a shiny bum I could
manage a fair bit further I think.

"Ian B." <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be?

15 miles, with training.

(I did 16 which was a bit much...)

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Not Responding <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

Cheers for any thoughts,
Ian

Quoted message said:

Depends on fitness and keeness of the cyclist. For me I'd say 15 miles
each way would be the absolute max "sustainable daily rate"; taking into
account the number of working hours I'm doing.

YAM&IAY...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Tosspot <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

Is it really possible to get a bike on a rush hour tube?

A Brompton, going against the flow is no problem. A Brompton with the
flow only a minor hassle.

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

My current commute is 42 miles and if they move the office any further
from home I'm not going to be able to cycle.

Like others have said it depends on time, fitness and route. My route is
out of London and only has one hill of note on it. So the return journey
can be done in just over an hour (PB 1:00:25) depending on traffic.
It certainly helps that the prevailing wind blows me home and the Sun is
always on my back.

I would not have even contemplated this distance had I not been doing a
29 mile commute before an office move so was nearly at the distance.

Chris

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

"Ian B." <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be
suitable for cycling to and from work every day would be?

15 miles, with training.

(I did 16 which was a bit much...)

But then the NHS does expect its doctors to go the extra mile.

--
Dave...

Ian B. said:

What do you guys reckon the maximum distance is that would be suitable
for cycling to and from work every day would be? I'm tempted to cycle
from where I'll be living in London next year, but reckon it may be a
bit far (I won't say how far, I don't want to influence any ideas!).
Still, the alternative is cycle + tube so not too bad either.

Cheers for any thoughts,
Ian

Thanks for the replies everyone, that gives me a good feel for the
distances! Just in case you were wondering I was thinking of going from
Raynes Park (ish) to South Kensington, it's about 8 miles/36 minutes (if
I put my "walking speed" to fast, 51 minutes if I leave it average)
according to the TFL journey planner (anyone know how accurate this
is?). It's mostly on roads but around mile or so over Wimbledon Common.
So I'll probably give it a go next year, if cycling is half as good as
most of you seem to think then it should be good fun!

Just one last question, what's the deal with showers? Do you sweat that
much on a bike ride that you need one? Seems then you'd loose a load of
time you save!

Thanks again for all the replies,
Ian