Quote Originally Posted by nicole309 View Post
Well, welcome to the PNW and TE!
I have also found how great public transportation is in this area along with a new found love of bike riding since January. I don't own a car and quite frankly can't see why anyone would in this area. If I do decide to take a longer trip I just rent one. Since last fall (about 7 months) I have had about $150 in automobile rental expenses and a little under $100 in bus costs. Not too bad! I use my bike for pretty much everything including commuting, errands, leisure, and work related travel. Still trying to convince my office that I should get reimbursed for mileage just like the cars do!!
Are you looking for advice on a new bike? I started out with a road bike, a Trek 1000, which I really liked for long road rides. I however found it really impractical for commuting and grocery shopping and ended up investing in a touring bike. The Jamis Aurora that I bough is great and I use it for everything now including bike tours such as metric centuries. If you have any questions, you found the right place. Hope you are enjoying your new home!
Sorry for interrupting the thread, but I am wondering what difficulties you encountered when using your road bike for commuting and shopping. Was it lack of carrying capacity (i.e. rack/panniers) or something else? Just curious as I have a hybrid and may in the future get a road bike. I'm still a bit of a newbie, so forgive dumb questions!