Making the cycle commute the 'default' option

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Comments

  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    gtvlusso wrote:
    salsajake wrote:
    gtvlusso wrote:
    My wife is the only car owner/user in the house......

    yet you name yourself after one?

    I can sit in a darkened room, with my memories of lost youth, no mortgage, kids or dogs.......and disposable income for the "finer" things in life.

    Maybe I should change my handle to "Porsche911"?

    Is there a way to change your sign-on? I had a try a while back when people were having a go at my long name but couldn't see any alternative to starting over.

    I'm of the "No alternative" school of bike commuting... It's four and a half miles to the station and if I didn't ride I would have to get up the whole family two hours early to get a lift... It's possible there's a bus that goes in roughly the right direction at about the right time but by the time I'd caught it and connected with the train i reckon I'd have been quicker walking!

    It does make it relatively easy to bike through the winter though- choices are easy when you have no options!

    Cheers,
    W.
  • salsajake
    salsajake Posts: 702
    What happens when its icy though - other than falling off, which is what happens to me!
  • gtvlusso
    gtvlusso Posts: 5,112
    You MTFU and take the MTB.....I was lucky this winter had a few sketchy moments in snow and ice - took almost an hour to do 6 miles on one deep snow morning, but all went okay in the end.

    I am lucky enough to be able to work from home - not had to do that this winter though.....

    "Your skin is waterproof" - old Marine expression.
  • salsajake
    salsajake Posts: 702
    I thought about it but reached the (unresearched) conclusion that a mtb knobblie was just as likely to break traction from under me as my relatively wide 28 section road slicks. Is it the broader shoulder of the tyre, lower and more 'upright' (if you see what I mean) centre of gravity?

    I would agree on snow and have ridden on snow lots on my mtb, but I just assumed if there were patches of frost/b;black ice on my rural road, I should just get in the car.
  • gtvlusso
    gtvlusso Posts: 5,112
    4 tyres good - 2 tyres baaaad....Duh!? I agree, in some circumstances, it is better to survive another day than massage your manly ego and bin it face first, on ice.
  • edhornby
    edhornby Posts: 1,741
    I've always wondered if the sensible winter option is a trike conversion kit !!! I know my cousin had one (his dad, my uncle Dennis was the GB Tricycle TT champ in the 70s) and it was a right laugh to ride on - you bolted it onto the stays and the seat clamp at the top and hey presto, 56cm frame trike !
    "I get paid to make other people suffer on my wheel, how good is that"
    --Jens Voight
  • salsajake
    salsajake Posts: 702
    http://www.classiclightweights.co.uk/co ... nents.html
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    Hi,
    When it's icy I ride on gritted roads. I made the mistake of riding on the bike path a couple of winters ago... not going to try that again when it's frosty!!

    Obviously, this approach isn't universally appropriate.

    If push came to shove I'd get some studded tyres- You can get them in 700c if you try hard enough but the number of times you really need them is pretty small and they arn't great on tarmac!

    Cheers,
    W.
  • snellgrove
    snellgrove Posts: 171
    Well done to you all who have made it the default option recently. I've used my car just the once in the last few weeks and don't intend on doing so, for quite a while. Toying with the idea of selling it, as petrol isn't the major cost - Servicing, MOT, road-tax, insurance & depreciation are worse.

    Knees were a bit sore this morning due to a Gym workout on Wednesday but I decided I'd still ride in rather than drive :-D I just looove it so much compared to sitting in traffic!!

    I find the clutch pedal heavy enough that I think cycling is probably better for my knees anyway :D
  • salsajake
    salsajake Posts: 702
    glad you are enjoying it snellgrove!
  • Christophe3967
    Christophe3967 Posts: 1,200
    I simply don't have a quicker, more reliable way of getting in to the office (and more importantly - home). I do like to think its cheaper than public transport (indeed this is how I get so many bike things past the financial controller) but I am not that stupid :)
    Bike1
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/35118936@N07/3258551288/
    Bike 2
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/35118936@N ... otostream/
    New Bike
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/35118936@N07/3479300346/
  • salsajake
    salsajake Posts: 702
    Christophe3967 wrote:
    I simply don't have a quicker, more reliable way of getting in to the office (and more importantly - home). I do like to think its cheaper than public transport (indeed this is how I get so many bike things past the financial controller) but I am not that stupid :)

    even if you spend the same or a little more, the difference in value is amazing.

    Both get you to work and back for the same money, but going on the bike gets you that, plus all your bike stuff you spent it on, that you get to keep and to use for leisure as well as the commute! Plus you get to give your cash to bike shops and keep the industry going, rather than some faceless bus/train/oil company
  • biondino
    biondino Posts: 5,990
    What if you spend about £1500 more?
    My Focus / My Bob Jackson
    Blog (incl. bikes)
  • il_principe
    il_principe Posts: 9,155
    biondino wrote:
    What if you spend about £1500 more?

    Amateur! :lol:
  • snellgrove
    snellgrove Posts: 171
    biondino wrote:
    What if you spend about £1500 more?

    You get a more reliable bike, I think... ?

    I could be wrong as I've not commuted year after year, and owned many cheap and many expensive bikes.

    But in the experience I've had, I spend a LOT less time tweaking the deuraillers, brakes & truing wheels on my nice road bike, than I do on my cheapy mountain bike.

    People with more experience, feel free to agree or disagree :-)

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