It’s great fun commuting to work. It’s a different kind of riding to a 50 mile time trial or 100 mile cyclo sportive, but, there are still various skills and tricks you can develop to make it more fun.
Bike That Works
Sometimes I’ve thought that since I only ride 5 miles a day on my commuting bike, it doesn’t matter if repairs are neglected. But, it is much more fun riding a finely tuned machine. The majority of commuters seem to ride without pumping up tyres to their optimal pressure. I have started pumping tyres to find their pressure had fallen to 20psi. If you put it at 90psi, you will go much faster with no extra effort. Make sure nothing is rubbing like mudguards and brakes. The best time to fix a problem is the first day it happens, rather than riding with a rubbing mudguard for two months before finally getting around to it. There is nothing more annoying. If, like me, you are a hopeless mechanic find a good bike shop and take it at regular intervals when things start to go wrong.
Essential Kit
- Puncture resistant tyres. Armadillo tyres are great for avoiding punctures.
- Mudguards. It will rain, and mudguards help keep clothes clean.
- Bell. Bikes are almost silent. A bell helps wake up pedestrians who rely on sound alone.
- Panniers for carrying bags
- Lights for night. Don’t be tight – light up at night!
Anticipating Pedestrians / Drivers
Cycling down a road is like a game of chess, you have to anticipate the movements of your opponents. Like a knight on a chess board, pedestrians may make unexpected manoeuvres into your path. Cars can be like rampaging castles turning left without signalling. Cyclist may suddenly appear from the pavement into your path. You can’t take anything for granted but have to always be anticipating future moves. Remember in a head to head between you and a Land Rover 4*4 there is only going to be one fatality.
Confidence
It really is good fun to obey all the rules of the road. Looking over your shoulder, eyeballing drivers, signalling and not irritating other road users.. All these give you much greater confidence to cycle to work. When you have confidence in cycling you feel safer and will enjoy cycling more. The trick is to avoid overconfidence which can be as deadly as a being a nervous rider.
Keeping Calm
This is the skill to prize above all else. Keeping calm when everyone around you has lost it. Not getting frustrated when you have to stop at traffic lights. Not expecting everyone else to be perfect citizens of the road. The aim is always to arrive at work, happy for the cycle and not frustrated at the inevitable bad driving / selfish people e.t.c.
Patience.
Patience – a virtue seldom found in road users. There is something about getting onto a road which makes us panic to get anywhere as quickly as possible. It’s like an unofficial time trial where we need to arrive before a certain time and any hold up causes to writhe in agony. – I simply must get to the next tailback as quick as possible!
The Art of Racing
Racing to your workplace is really a bit of a faux pax. I mean it’s pretty sad to race old grannies on sit up and beg bikes. The thing is you have to beat other cyclists without appearing to try. You can innocently sit on wheels in a driving headwind and then sneak out to race past whilst at the same time trying not to breathe heavily. If someone cycles past, sit on their wheel before showing them a clean pair of heels.
Showing Off.
Just in case you like to show off to other commuters, there are a few things you can do.
- Have a super cool retro bike and retro clothes – either in the mould of Brompton racers or 1920s England. Old looks good, but, the bike needs to be super modern.
- Fixed / Single Gear. People won’t know difference between fixed and single gear, but, a sleak, stripped down bike in all its primordial simplicity – will get a few admiring glances.
Track Start at traffic lights.
When you come to traffic lights, don’t be a loser and ride through a red light, practise your track start and keep your feet off the floor. Try to hold the bike until the light turns green, and then shoot away. I have had a few people express their admiration at this skill. Of course, there are probably double the number cursing me under their breath – show off! but, it’s another challenge to brighten up the daily commute.
Trying different routes.
Many cycle the same route everyday, but, often their are much more friendly cycle paths worth trying. Try different routes.
Take a few photos. It’s fascinating to sometimes sit back and watch other people ride to work. You can look at the different styles and the different frame of mind that people are in.
More
You also need to make sure that you have the right saddle as this causes more people to stop cycling that almost anything else. The problem is the intense pressure that conventional saddles put on the sensitive perineum area and this not only leads to numbness in both men and women but also potential health issues such as erectile dysfunction, urinary tracts infections, boils and irritation. A US study recently showed that riding with a noseless saddle resolves these problems and ECD has more information on this and other issues on its website (www.ecdsports.com). They have just launched a new noseless saddle and it was tested by Tom Kevill Davies, the Hungry Cyclist, on a road trip to Paris recently – he was very positive about the benefits (http://www.thehungrycyclist.com/blog/2009/06/ecd-introduce-radical-new-cycling-seat.html).