If you are considering bike commuting, but you are unsure how to start, this article is for you. We will go through the basic skills, gears, mindset, and the bike you need.
To become a bike commuter,
- Decide to become a bike commuter.
- Have the proper gear, clothing, and a decent bike.
- Know and plan your route.
- Form habits (foresight) to prepare for the ride
- Acquire skills in bike handling.
- Maintain your bike in good condition.
It’s pretty easy to think that the proper gear is all you need, but in reality, while a usable gear is important, having the other elements in place is just as crucial.
Mindset
It’s easy to get enthusiastic about bike commuting, but in order to persist when going gets tough, you need to have the proper mindset and have formed firm habits.
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It’s nearly silly to say, but it’s important. You need to decide that you want to commute by bike. That’s it! Start thinking about yourself as a bike commuter. This will change your attitude in every other aspect of the process.
Maybe you’ll never want to do it 5 days a week, but maybe you will ride every day after the first month of trying. As you ease yourself into this new habit, you will fall in love with it more and more, and you may change your mind down the line. You don’t need to put extra pressure on yourself; it’s about having fun first and foremost, getting in two extra workouts a day for free and during a time you’d spend commuting anyway.
Real diehards will bike commute whatever the weather, come rain or snow. But if you feel uncomfortable with that, feel free to skip those days. You can still call yourself a bike commuter because you have the habit of commuting in certain conditions. More on what you need for cold, wet, and muddy rides later.
When setting your goal, be realistic about what you can do. It is reasonable to bike commute up to 12 miles daily, but 20 miles or more is stretching it too much. If your commute is 20+ miles and you’ve never done it before, you should look into multimodal commuting, which means you combine riding with other forms of transportation: public transport or car.
Bike and gear
A commuter bike needs to be reliable, durable, and practical. Reliability and durability mean that you can get on it every morning without having to worry that something will go wrong with it, and it can withstand anything that your journey may throw at it (potholes, mud, rain, shifting etc). A bike that doesn’t shift or brake properly can put you off very quickly from bike commuting.
A commuter bike needs to be reliable, durable and practical.
Common sense
Ensure you have at least a good entry-level bike that can serve you and make riding enjoyable. If you already own a decent bike, try it out for your first commute, but if you buy a new one, don’t purchase a cheap department store bike designed for occasional recreational use.
Department store bikes, in general, are too heavy and chunky and handle very imprecisely. After a few weeks, it will cause more frustration than fun. Some decent entry-level bikes are available starting from 500 dollars that can perfectly serve you.
If you want to give bike commuting a try and you’ve never bought a bike before, I would suggest borrowing one for the first couple of weeks. As you use the bike, you will realize what is important for you and for your commute, what you like and what you dislike about it.
The distance, terrain, and traffic conditions will also influence your choice a great deal. After the first couple of weeks, you can form a pretty clear idea of what you want and need. If you are looking for some clear and simple to use guidelines to pick a good commuter bike, you can check out the post here.
To make your bike as practical and commuter-friendly as possible, you will need to add a few pieces of gear to it.
- Set of lights: A good set of lights helps you to stay as visible in traffic. In some countries, it is also a legal requirement for cyclists. I use a front Cateye Volt 800 and a rear Cateye Rapid X2.
- Fenders or mudguards will keep the water and muck away from your bottom and belly. If you fail to get one, you will realize their importance on your first wet commute.
- Backpack or pannier: Some commuters use a backpack to carry their stuff, but panniers are a much more convenient way to carry your belongings, as they allow air ventilation to your back, leaving you less sweaty. The gold standard of waterproof panniers are Ortlieb.
- Rear Rack: You need a good, sturdy rear rack for your bike to put the panniers on. If your bike comes without a rear rack you can choose either a permanent solution like the Ibera Bike Rack, or you can use a seatpost-mounted rear rack
Clothing
What to wear for your bike commute? You can either dress for the ride or dress for the destination. The easiest solution is to ride your bike in the clothes you wear for work. This is only practical if you have a short commute, but if it’s longer than 3 miles (about 5 km), then you can expect to sweat and you’re better off getting changed for the ride.
If you dress for your destination, choosing clothes that are not too tight is best.
Dressing for the commute has two main benefits: it’s more comfortable, and it can get dirty, messy, and sweaty without having to worry about how you look at your workplace. Your dedicated commuting clothes don’t need to be lycra, but clothing that allows for ventilation in the summer and keeps you warm without making you sweat too much in the winter.
It’s a little bit of an art to get the amount of clothing right, but once you get used to it, you will have no problem deciding what you’ll be wearing just by looking at the weather forecast or the thermometer.
I usually think in terms of three temperature ranges and dress accordingly. Your body probably tolerates these temperatures differently, but you can prepare at least a mental table, which will help you decide what you will wear without having to think too much. You will figure it out after a few rides.
- 59F+ (15C+) – Top: short sleeve running or cycling jersey. Bottom: running or MTB shorts. Sandals or runners.
- 41-58F (5-14C) – Top: short or long sleeve running jersey with a light cycling jacket. Bottom: thermal underwear and running shorts. Thin cycling gloves. Runners with socks.
- 40F (4C) or less – Top: short or long sleeve running jersey with windproof warm cycling top. Bottom: long, warm, windproof cycling trousers. One or two pairs of socks, wind, and waterproof hiking shoes.
For safety, I always make sure that the outermost layer is bright and reflective so you can be spotted when visibility is poor.
Rain doesn’t bother me too much on warm days, so if it’s not too intense, I just get wet, because I know that it will dry quickly. If it rains heavily, then I use a rain jacket.
It’s OK to be wet, it’s OK to be cold, but it’s not OK to be wet and cold.
Anonymous
Rain on cold days is completely different. It’s ok to be wet and cold, but it’s not ok to be wet and cold at the same time. It leads to sickness. In wintertime, I always make sure that I have a rain jacket (and waterproof pants) with me.
Route. Which way to go?
Of course, you know where you work. Of course, you can get there. But can you get there in the safest, most efficient, shortest, and quickest way? Sometimes those can’t all be combined in one route, and you need to find a good balance of distance, speed, and safety.
The best route for you as a bike commuter is most probably very different than the best route to take when you drive to work. You can take certain shortcuts that you can’t drive on, some streets allow bikes to go in both directions, and some roads are just too dangerous or even illegal to ride the bike on.
It’s good to have a route in mind for your first ride. Riding it on a quiet day is even better so you understand it in practice. You will find out if there is any major issue with what you planned. You can make other changes as you get used to bike commuting.
Distance isn’t the only factor determining how fast you can get to work or home. The number of lights you need to cross, how they are synchronized, the quality of the roads, shared paths with pedestrians, climbs, and descents all come into play. Also, you may discover that the quickest way is not the one you enjoy most. After years of commuting to my current job, every now and then, I still find ways to improve the route.
You can use Endomondo or Strava on your phone to check the route you took and compare it to other possible routes. Komoot is another cyclist-specific application that allows you to plan out your commute ahead of time.
After seeing your route on the map, you can compare it with other possible routes. Direct riding experience helps you decide if it’s worth trying another way.
For example, initially, my commute used to be 25 miles (both ways), and I could shorten it to 18 miles. It was 7 miles longer and full of traffic lights and busy pedestrian areas, and it took me 2 hours to get there and back. Today my commute is only 1 hour and 15 minutes in total.
In short: know the way, but don’t be overconfident that you know the best route. Ever since I started bike commuting, I keep improving my route and make little changes. Obviously, the changes you make at the beginning are greater than the ones you make after a year.
Take care of your bike
To maintain your bike and keep it running smoothly for a long time, you should have some tools at home.
If you take care of your bike, your bike will take care of you.
A Bike Commuter Hero
Here’s a short maintenance checklist:
- Check the tire pressure twice a month. It’s normal for the tires to lose pressure. This is essential to have a quick ride and to avoid pinch flats.
- Clean and lube your chain as often as necessary or at least every month (depending on the lubricant you use and the riding conditions – read more about it here).
- Change the chain every 2000-2500 miles and the cassette when it shows signs of wear (usually at every other chain replacement).
- Check your brake pads and replace them when they’re worn.
- Replace the cables once a year: especially if you ride your bike in all weather conditions.
- Lube the bearings every year
You don’t need to do all the maintenance at home. You can take your bike to your local bike shop for the chain, cassette, cable replacement, and lubing of the bearings. However, simple tasks, such as tire pressure, chain cleaning can be done at home even if you live in an apartment.
Keep a decent floor pump at home with a pressure gauge. Pay attention that your pump is compatible with your valve. The most common valve types are Presta and Schrader. I recommend using a twin-head pump, which allows you to inflate tires with Presta or Schrader valves without having to use an adapter, change the head or use any trick. The BV Bicycle Ergonomic Bike Floor Pump ticks all the boxes.
This floor pump is compatible both with Presta and Schrader valves, which means that you can use it with MTB tires as well as road bike tires.
To keep your chain clean and well lubed, you will need at least a brush, degreaser, a few pieces of cloth, and chain lube, but if you don’t like making too much mess, a chain cleaning device, such as the Park Tool Chain cleaner is recommended. It does a great job at cleaning your chain fast, and it keeps most of the gunk contained in its body, leaving less for you to clean up.
This Park Tool kit includes everything you need to keep every bit of your chain clean.
Prepare for the commute
Besides bike maintenance, you should prepare the things you will need for the ride the night before.
It is very hard to get your mind to focus on the things you need in the morning, especially if you are in a hurry and there are other things on your mind. I learned this the hard way after repeatedly leaving socks, gloves, and even my helmet at home on one occasion.
Now I have a mental checklist of the items I prepare every night before I go to sleep. Everything is in front of me when I wake up in the morning, and no brain processing power is needed to make sure that I remember everything.
Prepare for the weather
One of the items on the night-before checklist is checking the forecast and preparing the clothes for the next day. The summer and winter are pretty predictable, but the temperature changes very much from one day to the next in spring and fall.
Skills you need
If you learned to ride a bike as a child, you’re probably familiar with some basic bike handling skills. These need to be second nature, especially when bike commuting in traffic.
- Riding with one hand off the handlebar: this is needed to signal to turn intent, fix the helmet, reach for a water bottle, just to name a few.
- Shifting weight front and back: standing out of the saddle and having all your weight on the pedals allows you to shift your weight when riding on roads with potholes, crossing train or tram tracks, riding on cobblestones, or getting on and off curbs.
- Shifting gear: know your bike and how it works, especially how it shifts gears. This doesn’t only mean that you know where the shifters are, but how to get into higher and lower gears, when to shift, and how to shift without destroying your bike. You can read about it in detail here.
- Scan the route ahead for vehicles, cyclists, and potholes. It is more a habit than a skill, but making good decisions ahead of time is essential. Awareness of your surroundings, including traffic from behind you, ensures your safety.
- Pace yourself, especially if you have a long ride. It requires a conscious effort to spend your energy wisely and not be destroyed when you arrive at the office. This takes trial and error, and you’ll get used to it after a few weeks.
- Enjoy, relax, and have fun. One of the benefits of bike commuting I noticed in my life is being less stressed when I get to work, especially when I get home. The 40 minutes I spend on the bike is downtime, which allows me to leave all the worries of the job behind me.
Refuel the engine
As a bike commuter, you’re not only the rider, but you’re the engine too. You cannot bike commute on a completely full stomach, and most people cannot ride on an empty one either.
As a bike commuter, you’re not only the rider, but you’re the engine too. Don’t fill it with gas, but fuel it the right way.
Another Bike Commuter Hero
You need to fuel your body the right way. You will experience a spike in your appetite in the first few days. It’s completely normal, given that you’re using more energy than before, and this energy needs to be replaced.
Know yourself and plan your meals in such a way that it supports your activity. I recently wrote extensively on the topic of riding after eating as well as the weight loss and nutrition aspect of bike commuting.
Conclusion
Becoming a bike commuter takes some investment if you don’t have the proper gear but more importantly, it takes some mental preparation. For someone living an inactive lifestyle, it’s literally going from zero to hero. I encourage you to take the plunge. You will be so proud of yourself in a year that you can’t even imagine it now. Take it one step at a time and try to have fun every step of the way.
Happy riding!
