Finally did it, but my body didn't appreciate it

[Sprocket's Mom]

Personally, I hate carrying a backpack too. But there are occasions when the mule (myself) must shut up and put up. So I bought myself what I consider the BEST biking backpack ever. I got it from an online store called Altrec. I bought a Deuter backpack. It has this nifty little thing that's kind of like a trampoline that is mesh and keeps the pack suspended up off of your back. No more super sweaty back and no more of those shoes or whatever else digging into your back while you're pedaling.
I have seen them for sale from Title 9 too but I found it cheaper at Altrec. Look into them, I wouldn't give my pack up for the world.

[teigyr]

If you need a part for your road morph, e-mail Topeak. We were missing a tiny rubber part so I e-mailed tech support to see how to get it and they put two in the mail immediately

You bike commuters impress the heck out of me. It just seems like there is so much going on such as helmet hair, sweatiness, and packing. I'm really not THAT vain but it seems like there is so much to remember. Knowing me, I'd forget clothes so I'd be at work in lycra.

Anyway, kudos to all of you

[mimitabby]

oh yeah! they did that for me too. Topeak is the greatest!

[Melalvai]

You bike commuters impress the heck out of me. It just seems like there is so much going on such as helmet hair, sweatiness, and packing. I'm really not THAT vain but it seems like there is so much to remember. Knowing me, I'd forget clothes so I'd be at work in lycra.

There's a lot to remember driving a car, but you get used to it and it becomes second nature after a while. Same thing with biking. Eventually you start forgetting less stuff and less frequently. If only the seasons would stoip changing, I'd probably have it down.

[district47]

Congratulations on starting up your bike commute! I dislike the weight of a backpack on my shoulders, so my solution has been to use a messenger-style bag with a waist strap. Currently I use a North Face Base Camp, and it's pretty enormous, but the advantage is that I can fit everything in it. The waist strap helps me balance while riding and really keeps the weight almost completely off my shoulders, making heavy loads far more bearable. Good luck!

[NoNo]

They make these little "P" clips that you can attach a rack to if your bike doesn't have braze-ons or the little screw holes... You didn't mention if your bike was meatl-framed or carbon fiber... Personally I wouldn't use the clips on carbon fiber stays, so I did the backpack thing until eventually splurging for a regular commuter bike with racks and the other trimmings. If an aluminum or steel-framed bike, a rear rack and the little clips are definitely the way to go. It's a lot more comfortable to carry the load on your bike than on your back!

Another thought might be a messenger bag... a little more expensive, but maybe more comfortable than a backpack...

Sorry for the delay, I don't have internet at home, so this is the first I'm getting to the replies.

I'll have to look into those clips. The frame is aluminum, so that's definitely an option. But how easy is it to take the rack on and off? I obviously won't want it on the bike when I'm doing a normal ride.

I have a messenger bag, but it's too small to carry all that much. Then again, if I plan ahead and carry things in on a train day, it'll be perfectly fine.

Made it home fine Friday night, it was warm and my shoulders were tired and sore, but I made it. And the car from the local bike shop gave me a friendly honk as he drove by

[NoNo]

If you need a part for your road morph, e-mail Topeak. We were missing a tiny rubber part so I e-mailed tech support to see how to get it and they put two in the mail immediately

You bike commuters impress the heck out of me. It just seems like there is so much going on such as helmet hair, sweatiness, and packing. I'm really not THAT vain but it seems like there is so much to remember. Knowing me, I'd forget clothes so I'd be at work in lycra.

Anyway, kudos to all of you

Oh, awesome! Thanks for the tip, I'll send them an email right away

I'll take a look at that backpack, Sprocket. The trampoline part sounds intriguing....

[TahoeDirtGirl]

Girl! I had the perfect commuter for you being 5 ft 1 but I gave it to my sister! Since you are in CT I could of dumped it off on my way sometime to PA!!

I finally got rid of the backpack (actually my MULE where I kept all my bike stuff and water) and strap it to my rack along with another backpack that holds my laptop and office stuff along with clothes. I don't use clipless so I just use my regular shoes to ride and wear at work.

On the why you feel crappy in the a.m. you will notice your HRM higher when you working out in the a.m. than say, the afternoon. There are all kinds of systems in your body waking up and one is getting blood to all the right places. That's one reason you will find your HRM higher, also, higher HRMs sometimes indicate the need for hydration (lower blood volume) but that may or may not be the case. I find that mine is higher in the a.m. if I am out the door within 1 hour of waking. If it's 3 hours after waking, it's normal.

As far as eating for me, I might eat something really small, like half an apple or some OJ. I save my eating for when I get to work, and it's usually yogurt with granola and alot of fruit and alot of water. I also stop for coffee on the way most of the time, and the caffeine helps me get going (sometimes in a way that I'm not happy about!).

Boy I'm so jealous right now. I had to sit on the bench because of this stomach thing. Today is my first mtb ride since 'the bug' hit me hard last week.

Keep on commutin!!!

[NoNo]

DRATS! Well if your sister doesn't end up using it, tell her there's someone willing to take it off her hands

That makes sense about my body needing to wake up. I've always been jealous of people that could get up and work out, but it's never been my thing. Today was a train day, I was way too tired to think about riding, and it's rainy and supposed to be stormy. Wednesday is looking nice, so I'll have to report on how that ride goes.

[TahoeDirtGirl]

Will do NoNo...btw can you hold them clouds up in CT for a few more hours? I want to mtb this afternoon.

There is a whole debate in exercise science about 'warming up'. See in the morning it makes sense, but at 5 pm you should be warmed up. I just sit on the fence about it.

I always notice that the first 20 minutes of my ride is always the hardest, my HRM will spike easily and just feels 'hard'. There are a bunch of different reasons for it, it's actually kind of interesting, but the point is, your body is getting 'ready'. Mine just takes a while.

I'm not sure if people do it out here before races but I would always see people on trainers at their cars (yes trainers the one you use indoors) out West when they were either getting ready for a road or mtn race. I used to think it was goofy but then I realized they were just cranking through those 20 minutes that I flubber through and then they are ready for action. In fact, I might do it myself if I ever get out of the 'beginner' stage

[Crankin]

Yes, people here use trainers to warm up before a race. I'm not a racer, but I'm related to some...
I always felt like crap on my morning commute. Once I accepted it and realized my speed would be down, it was fine. I ate a small bowl of cereal and yogurt before leaving, and then would have a Luna bar and coffee upon arriving. I also left at 5:45, and it is hard to get going at this time, even though I have done other exercise at this time for years. I also ate a slightly bigger lunch (a sandwich instead of a salad) and ate another Luna Bar before I left work.
I used my Camelbak with the bladder taken out to bring a few things, but I always brought my clothes to work on Monday and left a few essentials there all of the time, like one pair of shoes, a bra, and spare undies. My husband uses a clip on attachment for his Carradice bag on his carbon bike. There has never been a problem. The only reason I don't use it, is because my bike is small. I also didn't want to ride my hybrid (a Jamis Coda) which has a pannier, because it is really heavy and my speed is much lower. f you plan, you can do it.

[NoNo]

Determined to give it another try, I brought in all my clothing and food the day before. Everything was set and I got up and got on the road. Seemed to be doing better than the first ride. Even saw grandma outside while she waited for my uncle to take her to the casino Then it all went sour. Just a mile from work I look a lovely spill on a very busy bridge. Turned left and my tire got stuck in a railroad track going across the street. I've seen it talked about on here plenty of times, but now I know how evil these things are first hand. I left a bit of skin on the road and my wrist was in immediate pain. First instinct was to make sure there wasn't a car about to plow into me and then I dragged myself to the side of the road where I was repeatedly ignored by both motorists and other cyclists. Nice. Finally, a nice gentleman named Lee stopped to see if I was ok and helped me to the other side of the bridge. After waiting for a boat to pass through (it's a lift bridge), I was able to finish riding to work. Found a first responder, cleaned up the wounds, nearly passed out, got sick, and eventually my boss drove me to the ER. Spent the next 4 hours there, but thankfully the x-rays came back negative on my wrist. Just a nasty sprain and lots of scrapes. Bike's in the shop, but I think it's ok. In no way will this deter me from riding; as soon as I can handle putting weight on my wrist I'll be back out there! And now, blurry cell phone pix!

My right shin, where something gouged into me.


My left shin. Fell on my left side, so this is where the most damage is.


A nice blurry shot of my upper thigh. As my friend said, I have road rash on my ash.


My gloves only cover half my fingers, so the tips got ripped up. These hurt more than any of the other scrapes.


I keep banging my elbow on stuff and it's getting tiring.


ROBO ARM! It definitely helps keep me from moving my wrist, but it really hurts nonetheless and my thumb is quite sore as well. Never realized how much I used my left hand, but the repeated shocks of pain are helping to remind me.


For the parents out there, your job is never done, the worrying never ends. Dad picked me up from the hospital and gave me the "you're still giving me gray hairs!" speech, while mom called later on and told me I was going to be the death of her. I'm sure I'm going to have a lot of people telling me to not ride to work, but with as much as I ride, it could have happened anywhere. I'm glad it wasn't worse and that I had plenty of people to help me.

[mimitabby]

Oh, NoNo!
i'm sorry you fell down. I fell down on one of my first solo commutes too. Scared me quite a bit (but i wasn't hurt as badly as you) There's a learning curve to this; and one of the things you have to learn is how to approach RR tracks.
I hope your wrist heals quickly, sounds like your spirits are fine.

Take care
mimi

[Melalvai]

In "Art of Cycling" the author says for most of us, being told the tricky bits to watch out for--railroad tracks, gravel, getting doored, etc--is not very effective. He says most of them (the bike messengers) had to experience each type of accident first hand. But after you've experienced it once, you will never have that type of fall again. You will know in your bones to avoid them!

You are a much better cyclist now having had this experience! (I'm trying to find a silver lining for you...)

[Tri Girl]

Ouch- I'm sorry you fell so hard! I hope you heal quickly!!!!