First commute :-)

tav1969

Hi all, I'm pretty new here, and today did my first commute of many. It's a combined car/bike commute - first drive from Newport to Bulwark, park up on the A466 and ride to Aztec West near Almondsbury. The ride took an age (just over an hour), but I hadn't done any practice runs so I was a bit wary of finding my way and avoiding hazards. I lost my rear light twice (gaffa tape here I come), once on the bridge when it jumped out onto the hard shoulder. Very naughty of me, but I hopped over to retrieve it when there was no traffic. The next time I hit a pothole on a pitch black lane (started at the bridge at 6am), whereupon the light exploded into its constituent parts. I thought I had everything, but was missing the end spring for the batteries, which took an age to find. It still works though, much to my amazement. While fixing the light, I put my cycling glasses on the grass verge. Yep, you guessed it, lost those as well, which took me another 5 minutes to find. Saw another roadie commuter when I was stopped, had some nice strips of leds on his back and bike I think, looked very good (I went through Olveston and Tockington, if anyone recognises themselves). I've got 2 fairly cheap lights on the back (one flashing), but I can see the need to upgrade visibility in that area). The P7 torch was great on that portion of the ride, and I took so long on the ride that it didn't stay pitch black for too long.

Anyway, I made it which is the main thing!

craker

Hi tav, I do that commute too from Chepstow into Aztec West. Maybe we could get a tandem? I'm rather less inspired to be doing it just at the moment - getting out of a warm car and starting the ride is always the hardest part (but I guess you too may have been stuck in the gigantic Almondsbury interchange queue yesterday?).

What bike are you on? I'll say hello if I see you. I'm on a black Fort roadie, my current plan is three rear lights and three front. A bit of redundancy never hurt anyone...

btw there are two routes from Tockington to the interchange, I used to go through Almondsbury until I realised the chap I had overtaken earlier was now in front of me having gone straight up the steep hill past the scout camp. Know where I mean? I does put you onto the Gloucester road for a longer time though.

tav1969

Hi mr_si. I think I know what you mean - basically carry on east instead of going down through Tockington? I've looked at that on maymyrun, but that hill looks far worse than the one I take, which brings me out onto Gloucester Road just North of the M4. And I am a complete beginner in terms of cycling. I can run a half marathon, but hills on a bike really hurt. I was OK yesterday actually, I'm out by 4:15 ish if I'm in the car though, maybe the traffic was worse later. Today wasn't too bad in terms of temperature because of the mist and cloud, I'm used to stepping out for runs at 5am anyway.

I've got 2 rear and 2 front lights. The 2 front are OK I think, especially with the P7 torch. The 2 rear are a bit weak though - I think as large a surface area as possible is a good thing for rear lights, so I was impressed by the LED strips I saw the other commuter using.

As for tandem, I am up for it, but perhaps I will be a bit too slow to start with? I'm hoping to do this twice a week (Mon & Wed) if weather permits, so I should be getting up to speed soon enough. Is a 6-6:15 start at Bulwark OK for you? I like to get home for my daughter as she's in bed by 7-ish, so usually leave work early as a result you see.

Also, what do you do when out onto Gloucester Road? I crossed over onto the left, but coming up to the roundabout it's best for me to be on the right to cut out the Aztec West roundabout and take the path into the business park. So then I had to wait a while to be able to cross back to the right and up onto the footpath.

Cheers.

FeynmanC

Welcome Tav,

I commute in to Avonmouth, so give us a wave as you're going over the bridge

Congrats on making it - sounds like an adventure.

My first time it was raining hard, i got 2 puncture and only had 1 inner tube so had to call a colleague to come rescue me, after pushing the bike over the Avonmouth bridge :oops:

I always carry 2 tubes AND a few patches now.

tav1969

I didn't realise I was on a bridge this morning, it was fairly misty on the river to say the least!

Oddjob62

Not many would decided to take up commuting in November.

Welcome to the club

Wallace1492

Brave start!! Good on you sir!!

sarajoy

Welcome!

I've only cycled out to the bridge one, via Olveston and Tockington - the road surface was pretty hairy if I recall!

And agreed - good on you starting now, tis wet and chilly which goes deep into my body and gives me the chills (am fine when riding, but my arse always lags behind, taking longer to cool down or heat up, so I spend a couple of hours in the office and back home with a cold bum, even after a hot shower).

If you weather the winter, you can do anything - I can understand the willingness to beat the bridge toll!

craker

Hi Tav, tongue very much in cheek about the tandem thing. My car is small, my shed is small, my wife not necessarily compliant etc etc. :roll:

not totally sure we're talking about the same routes around Tockington. No matter, half the fun is taking a long way home every now and again. Are you an Aztec West runner? Do you know the little footbridge over the M5 that leads to Pegwell Break (very steep muddy hill)? At the bottom of that is the Easton Compton road. There is a way home that way but it's a good three miles further.

As for crossing the M5 roundabout, a not-completely-legitimate way is to cross the road onto the pavement at the rugby club (which is intermittently and not very clearly a cycle path). It's the same side of the road as Aztec and preferable to mixing it with four lanes of traffic.

tav1969

It's not a great road, that's true, with stretches of knobbly tarmac which make my Boardman team road bike feel like a boneshaker. The weather wasn't bad today, I'm sure there will be worse days. I'm just using mitts at the moment, and my hands feel too warm if anything, which according to my cyclist colleague is because I'm not going fast enough!

tav1969

Ah I see mr_si, I didn't realise you meant an actual tandem you see, I thought it was a term for riding together or something. Are you talking about a route which takes in the A403, and then comes up Over Lane? The hills on that lane look a bit steep mind! I am a runner, although only recently an Aztec runner, and I have found the footpath which goes along the M5 and past that footbridge. When I was planning this whole commute thing, I wondered, from the map, whether I could find a back way into Aztec over that bridge. maybe on a cyclocross....

craker

sarajoy wrote:

Welcome!

I've only cycled out to the bridge one, via Olveston and Tockington - the road surface was pretty hairy if I recall!

It was resurfaced around Tockington (crikey did it need it) in September. But the stretch through Olveston is still terrible..

Did anyone see the Banksey graffiti / art on the wall of the bridge under the M4? (between Tockington and Almondsbury). No idea if it was genuine but it's since been painted over.

tav1969

Right, almost time for the return leg. I think I may try going through Almondsbury this time, under the M4. I just hope my back light survives 'til i get home!