Any Students?

[Clare]

I'm a student and I used to carry my books in panniers that I had cable locked to the bike rack. I found a 1/8-1/4 in. cable approx. 2 feet long and worked the cable aroung the rack and panniers and locked it up with a padlock. It worked really well and I had no problems with anything being ripped off. Just had to make sure that the cable was clear of the back tire.

Clare

[uk elephant]

I've always cycled to work/school/classes and I've always just carried a backpack. I never bothered taking text books with me, but usually carried laptop (not the teenyweeny type), notebooks, food, snacks, sweater/jacket and sometimes even some work-out gear. Just a normal school bag type backpack seemed to work well for me. If it got a bit heavy the hip-straps helped take the weight off my shoulders. I've had anywhere from 2-40 minute commutes depending on where I was studying and where I was living. Seemed to work ok for me.

If you insist on going with panniers I know there are several that come with back-pack type straps to be carried as a regular back-pack off the bike.

An option for lockers is to check out the gym on campus. Most places I've been a student, they have lockers for rent at the gym.

[xeney]

It must be a lot cooler in the UK than it is in inland California! For about nine months of the year here, even a two-mile ride with a messenger bag leaves you with a strip of visible sweat across your chest; wearing a backpack on a bike means your entire back will be soaked in sweat.

[HipGnosis6]

I have the strange fortune to be a fashion design student. So far I've managed to take my bike with me to school exactly twice. There are no bike racks there, so if I want to take the bike I have to chain it up to a light post in the designated smoking courtyard.

Getting the appropriate amount of stuff to and from was crucial - I could only do it on days where I didn't need to pack my patterndrafting rulers, which are large and unwieldy. And then I'd have to pack my clothes (had to change into street clothes at work, back into bike gear for the middle part of the commute, and then back into street clothes for class) and two meals' worth of food. That pretty much stuffed my 80's vintage Traveler panniers, which are fortunately quite easy to take on and off the bike and carry around. I had to take a backpack as well to get my books and supplies to class.

I hate riding with a pack or bag on my back, and would rather have a pannier by a long shot. It keeps the center of gravity low, you know? So instead of wearing the backpack as I rode, I used a cargo net to secure it to my rack. It seriously looked like I was headed out for a weekend junket, but compare that to the crap most people drag around with them every day in their car....

[uk elephant]

It is supposed to be cooler here in the UK, but I think someone forgot to tell the local weather gods. All summer it's been hot and humid. Maybe not by central CA standards, but certainly for me. But I still cycle to work with my backpack. I guess I don't worry so much about being a bit sweaty for a bit. If it's a big deal I'll bring a dry t-shirt to wear once I get there. But if it's that hot I'll be sweating like a pig just sitting at my desk anyway so what difference will a little bike ride make? I hate hot weather!!! When is winter coming!!!! (sorry, it just came out...I've calmed down now)

[xeney]

Ha, okay, so that is the real difference. Here in California, if you arrive to work all sweaty, you will get hypothermia from the air conditioning once you get to the office. (Although classrooms are a lot less likely to be air conditioned.)

My standard commute outfit is some kind of thin linen sleeveless shirt, which I cover with a thick cardigan as soon as I get inside.

[xeney]

Reviving this thread for a moment to report on how it all worked out: he's been commuting with a Cannondale CyPod pannier, which he really liked, and in fact he was thinking of getting a second one. He can fit most of his stuff in there, but it's easy to carry as a messenger bag around campus, and it looks good enough for client meetings. Once in a while he has to carry his laptop separately in its own messenger bag, but usually he can fit everything he needs in the Cypod pannier.

Except ... this morning I got a call about fifteen minutes after he left for class, asking me to come pick him up, because the plastic hook that holds the pannier on to the rack just broke in half. So the $120 pannier is useless after only about a month and a half, and this afternoon he is going shopping for an old-school Wald wire basket.

Fortunately he bought it from REI so he can get his money back. Not a good design, there.