Who commutes 20+ miles one way?

[dustinm]

Hi, I'm new to the forum, but I just bought a new recumbent bike with dual 650c wheels and really want to start commuting to work with it.

I clocked out my route on the way to work today with a GPS and it was 22.52 miles, one way, on flat back country roads with little traffic. I work 12 hour shift from 6am to 6pm, 4 days one week and 3 days the next, so I will probably have to leave a little after 4am each morning. I do have access to showers and lockers at work and my employer has a guarateed ride home program for alternate transportion folks if I should ever need it.

Right now I can maintain 14mph on my old recumbent pretty easy so I'm hoping I can get about an 18mph average out of this new one. That would make my commute about 1.25 hours. Does that sound reasonable?

For now I'm planning on 1-2 days per week and see how that goes but I would really like to hear from anyone that does this on a regular basis. I could also use some advise on getting the bike and myself ready for the commute. Any first hand advise would be helpful.

Thanks,
dustinm

 

[tcklyde]

That's a heck of a commute. Actually, I'm a bit jealous! After a 12 hour work day, I'd both love and hate a 22 mile ride home...

Assuming you don't have to stop a whole lot, 1 1/4 hours sounds pretty decent estimate. Would probably be much more for me, but I have lots of traffic and stop lights. As for prep, the one thing I would say is to wear good cycling clothes (or appropriate athletic wear) and not your work clothes. I used to wear jeans and a t-shirt when I rode in; not bright. Got everything sweaty, dirty, etc. I just felt much more comfortable wearing my shorts, etc. Changing at work is a breeze.

And although I'm sure you're planning on this, nothing saves the day like a spare tire tube, a pump, a patch kit, some hex wrenches, etc. Nothing worse than breaking down 10 miles after a long day at work! I also take along a little first aid stuff just in case I pick up some road rash.

Finally, good lights, front and rear. For me, I use a flashing cateye on the front, and I think it's almost (almost) more important than the rear light. Cars turning right onto the road almost never see you coming without a front light.

Otherwise, go for it! Sounds like a great ride!

 

[caligurl]

my hubby's commute is only 11 miles.... downhill to work uphill home.

i flat refuse to commute! when i leave work and it's 115 degrees. i'm sitting in my car! lol!

 

[Scoffin]

I'll make this my first official post. Just found this forum. I just started back into biking and mostly commute, but I do 24 miles per day (round trip) and that takes around 1:15-1:30 of ride time. I also have to stop a couple times, but my average speed is between 14.8-15.5 depending on how much of a hurry I am in. The slower days are when I have grass to mow when I get home.


I actually do 7.5 miles into work and 16 miles on my way home. The extra trip home is to avoid 1 monster hill that I come down, and don't want to go back up. It's worth it to take the long way home than to tackle that monster.

Good luck, sounds like you have a nice ride. Be safe and take in the scenery.

 

[eric_the_red]

My commute is only 12 km each way, if I take the direct route. Usually go straight to work in the mornings, about 25 mins, and take a longer route on the way home.

 

[cd667]

That sounds like a great way to make a pleasure from a necessity - I only commuted 22 miles each day before my move closer to work but really miss it.

I know this sounds mad, but I think to do a long commute to work initially it helps to remove any choices of ways of commuting. Try to remove your access to a car, because if you "use up all your enthusiasm in one go" and decide to drive you make it much harder to start cycling again. Remind yourself of the advantages of cycling to work - the money you save, the awareness of the environment you're in (at bike speeds it's a case of "look at that", in cars "what was that?") and the improvements in your health and lifestyle. After a couple of months it becomes second nature and you feel that you're missing out if you don't do it.

Lights are really important - my old Dawes touring bike used to look like a christmas tree for the dark twisty country lanes around Reading where I work - reflective tape on everything including me, flashing white LED on front and at least two on the back, with a decent dynamo lighting system for the front to see where you're going - I think the advantages of having lights whenever you feel like it far outweighs having to drop down a cog or two to power them or having to worry about recharging a battery pack or pay through the nose for alkaline batteries. I must recommend my Busch & Muller lumotec dynamo for this.

Let me know how you get on.

 

[Jakebrake]

I commuted (moved closer to work now) 50 miles 3 days a week (25 miles one way). When I first started it was pretty rough. I need to be to work around 3:30 AM, so I was leaving the house just before 2 AM. The ride into work was great, no traffic, light if any winds, I would usually make it in 75 minutes or so. The only thing I would have to worry about is the occasional motorist yelling out the window that I was going to die. But then, I would have to deliver groceries for 12-15 hours a day (brutal work), then ride home during rush hour in the Texas heat. The ride home would be about 1:45. I started off only doing 2 days a week, then bumped it up to 3 days. The first month was hard, I was having to force myself to ride in, but as time progressed, I really looked forward to my commute. I did this for about a year, then I moved closer to my job. I'm only about 3 miles away now, I don't even bother riding in, I just wait till I get home from work and then go crank out the miles.

The most important thing for me was lights. cd677 covered that pretty well. Make sure all your gear is laid out the night before so you can hit the ground running in the morning. I would carry all my gear in my Pearl Izumi backpack (uniform, steel toe shoes, bike tools and such, food....more food) and coming into work sweating was no problem, as soon as I got there, I would be climbing into my truck to make deliveries and continue right on sweating.

 

[wilmar13]

Hi, I'm new to the forum, but I just bought a new recumbent bike with dual 650c wheels and really want to start commuting to work with it.

I clocked out my route on the way to work today with a GPS and it was 22.52 miles, one way, on flat back country roads with little traffic. I work 12 hour shift from 6am to 6pm, 4 days one week and 3 days the next, so I will probably have to leave a little after 4am each morning. I do have access to showers and lockers at work and my employer has a guarateed ride home program for alternate transportion folks if I should ever need it.

Right now I can maintain 14mph on my old recumbent pretty easy so I'm hoping I can get about an 18mph average out of this new one. That would make my commute about 1.25 hours. Does that sound reasonable?

For now I'm planning on 1-2 days per week and see how that goes but I would really like to hear from anyone that does this on a regular basis. I could also use some advise on getting the bike and myself ready for the commute. Any first hand advise would be helpful.

Thanks,
dustinm

You could also start doing it one way to see how it goes. I commute 45 miles (one way) twice per week, but on two different days. I will drive to work with my clothes and food for the next day (as well as my bike ) in the car, then ride home, get up and ride back in the morning, and load my bike into my car and get my stuff. This way I don't have to carry anything with me, I have a place to store my bike, and I am only riding once per day. It works pretty well, as long as you can get to sleep earlier than normal to get up much earlier.

 

[hilljunkie]

I commute 24km each way on a rusty mtb with a broken derailer. So I think your commute sounds manageable on a road bike. It takes me any where from forty minutes to an hour and a half depending on how energetic I feel. I work in the afternoon and evening so I usually jog or do a training ride in teh morning as well. When I first started I would feel worn down after three days or more of consecutive bike commuting but once my body adjusted to the load I started really looking forward to the ride to work. If you aren't bike commuting to many consecutive days in the beginning then you should be fine. One thing I like to do is leave a little earlier than necessary so I have plenty of time to eat, stretch and relax a little before the daily grind begins. Gl with your commute and i'm sure you'll be commuting as much as you can and loving it in no time.

 

[v3rtigo]

My commute is 20.4 miles each way ... unfortunately it's all city streets with lots of traffic and stop lights, not to mention the 110+ degree summer heat. It's a great way to wake up in the morning and a great way to end your day as long as you have the energy to do it.

The hardest part of the commute for me is going to bed early enough to feel rested in the morning. Waking up early is one thing, waking up early and throwing 20 miles into your legs knowing you have a 12 hour work day and another 20 miles is another. It's very doable, and very enjoyable, my best recomendation is if you wake up tired/sore, get some extra rest and ride the next day. If you ride to work and you're already exhausted the ride home will kill you.

 

[SpearSlinger1]

My commute is only a little over half that distance 4-5 days a week, but you may find you'll want to schedule in some easier (slower) days for moving recovery. I have found that if I try to push hard every day I get progressivly slower, even on days that I don't feel particularly sore, and I recover faster if I ride slower than if I take a day off from the bike.

 

[Randybaker99]

I commute to work 1-2 times per week and it is 30 miles each way. Obviously, I absolutely love the ride, otherwise why would I do it? It is mostly back roads with light traffic and it is very scenic. Sometimes I even take a detour that adds three more miles!

I was a little hesitant to try it at first but I quickly got used to it. I am averaging 18 MPH in the morning (100 minutes) and just under 20 MPH in the afternoon (90 minutes), the discepancy is because work is 450 feet higher elevation than home.

It helps that I have access to a fitness center with showers, etc. at work, as I am pretty sweaty at the end of the ride.

As far as getting ready for the ride, I had to make a checklist to make sure I wasn't forgetting something important - like socks! (or worse, pants!! ) I made it in Excel and printed a copy the night before each ride. It sounds really geeky, but it was really reassuring that I wasn't forgetting something, it was a pretty big list in the winter - 40 odd items. Summer is a much smaller list. Now I pretty much have it memorized - though I did forget my belt once.

I also bring some things to work ahead of time and leave some items there for later pickup (damp shirts and socks are HEAVY). In the summer I use a backpack (Camelback HAWG) but in cold weather I need to use panniers.

Anyways, good luck and I hope you keep it up! It is a great way to get more miles in each week.

 

[Glowingrod]

I have a buddy down in Houston who lived outside Humble on th houston side. For years he commuted in the 28 miles, 28 miles back. Thing was when he got into downtown he took a little 15 min rest and then began his workday as a bike messenger! He only did short shots, around downtown and Med Center to downtown and back, but with his commute he was averaging about 90-95 miles a day. At 50+ years of age I was mighty impressed. He still rides downthere working, although he lives in the city now. Since he only has a 3-4 mile commute he expanded his delivery range to everything between downtown and a 1/2 mile outside the loop which I'd guess is a circle 14 miles across. Devoted rider.

Sounds like you got the setu with your job having facilities and a ride program. Do It! the health benefits rock, jest get plenty of them flags to show the SUV riders where you are on the road