Commuting

[thinpaperwings]

Congratulations on bike-commuting.

Perhaps you might convince a friend or coworker to bike with you: two bikes are easier to see than one. Also, I recommend going at about the same time every day: that way, the people who drive along that route every day at the same time will get used to a bike being on the road.

As for left turns, I judge it by the road and how comfortable I feel.

Do you have showers where you work? I sometimes shower right before I leave, and then my sweat isn't as smelly as it would have been if I hadn't showered. But usually I like to shower at work. I've read that one person brings a washcloth soaked in water and ethanol in a baggie and uses that to wash the smelly parts when he gets to work.

I also recommend bringing a spare tube in your pannier (I heartily recommend panniers over backpacks). When you get a flat, it's a lot nicer to just switch out the tube and deal with repairing the hole later.

I'm looking forward to all of the great advice others will have : ).

-Sara-

[miffy'sFuji]

Once you try a few of the different routes you mapped out, you'll get a feel for which one you like best. I commute in the city of SF and added about 1 mile to the basic route that I take home, and I now have a route that is "quiet" (for SF standards) most of the way.

As for left turns, I play this by ear. If there isn't much traffic, you can do a left turn with traffic. With lots of traffic, I find that people get impatient with the bike and will try to get past me. In those circumstances, I just stop at the corner, wait for the signal and generally walk my bike across the intersection in the crosswalk.

For supplies, definitely bring everything you need to change a flat, just like thinpaperwings said. Spare tube, pump or C02, tire levers if you need them, and handiwipes...

Are there any bike shops along your route? You might note their locations in your head just in case you ever had an emergency.

best wishes! I always feel great after my ride into work.

[KnottedYet]

Here's a book you might want to look into: The Essential Bicycle Commuter by Trudy E Bell. (isbn 0070055033) It's well written and funny with good pictures and diagrams. Covers EVERYTHING, from locking your bike to yeast infections. (really! I'm not kidding! pg 137.)

She includes a great list of resources. Also covers how to ride in traffic.

Just a great all-round book. I've been putting consecutive holds on our library's copy. Really I should just go buy it, cuz it's that good.

[Geonz]

Online there is a very good booklet at http://www.dot.state.il.us/bikemap/litlist.htm (look for the pdf about safe bicycling in Illinois). It has all kinds of stuff including suggestions for dealing with police who may not know the laws (and tell you you shouldn't be doing something you should be doing or the other way around). The Chicago Bicycling Federation is, I believe, behind that particular tome.

Good ROllings on your adventures... yea, try to find cmpany! THen the drivers might think there's a movement...

[KnottedYet]

p.s.

Where in Michigan are you riding? The Tri-County Bicycle Association (www.biketcba.org) can give you some info about bike routes for commuting, if you're somewhere in their area. Ann Arbor has a honkin' big active bike club, too. Can't remember their name.

TCBA does the DALMAC ride, which is a real hoot. If you get the chance, do it!

[tulip]

I second Paperwing's endorsement of panniers. Also, put a chain tool in your toolset in case your chain breaks...you can fix it and keep riding (learn how to do it if you don't know).

I commute 14 miles from Maryland through DC to my office in Virginia. The Virginia part is on a multi-use trail, but the other part is all on streets with traffic. However, I do not go the same way I would go in a car. My rather roundabout bike route is much nicer, quieter, and only 1 mile longer than the car-route. It's also a whole lot safer. So get creative with your route.

Left turns: usually I am on smaller streets, so left turns are not a problem, although I'm careful and signal and take the lane. In one spot, though, I do hop on the sidewalk. It's bridge over RR tracks, so there's no danger of cars pulling out of driveways (a serious hazard of sidewalk riding). The road over the RR tracks is crazy fast and there's not much vertical sight distance.

Clothes: I wear obnoxiously bright clothing. See www.alertshirts.com for some good shirts (see my post under "Sewing Shirts" to see how I'm adapting mine to cycling). I also have good lights, front and back, and reflector things on my ankles. I figure you can't be too bright.

Have fun. It's a great way to improve fitness while not adding any more time.

[betagirl]

Cool, welcome to commuting. I just started about a week ago and am hooked. I commute from a suburb to downtown chicago, which depending on the route I take is anywhere from 11 to 15 miles each way. I tend to be pretty aggressive in traffic - not reckless, but I ride like I'm a car. Chicago is great for bike lanes, so I try to take roads that have those as a priority. But there are times when I find myself on a busy road without that. The biggest risk I seem to see is people opening car doors from the parking lane. So I try to ride as far into the parking lane as I can but not too far as to not get cross checked by a car door. The roads I ride on are wide enough to let me be out into the road a bit without holding up traffic. When I make left turns, I go into the left turn lane and either stay behind the last car or go up along side the one in front and turn with traffic. I ALWAYS try to make eye contact with the driver in front and point that I'm making a left. That usually works well for me. I also signal when I'm changing lanes by pointing to that lane and looking at the cars behind me. I don't change lanes unless I have a good gap. That's typically only in the downtown area I'm doing that though. I obey stoplights (for the most part) but stopsigns I typically try to time to go through with another car. If there's cross traffic waiting to go, I'll slow down so they can go through. I never just blow through an intersection, but I'm also not one to come to complete stops all the time (I know, I know).

For carrying stuff, I got a Timbuk2 medium messenger bag. It holds a ton of stuff and rests comfortably on your back. If you can, bring clothes to leave at the office so you don't have to haul clothes every day. I have a couple of shirts and some pants and shoes that I stash there to change into. Oh and of course get a good lock if you can't store your bike in your building. I work in a rather nice part of town, and bikes are stolen in broad daylight apparently. If you have quick release wheels, make sure you lock them also.

Enjoy!