whats the furthest you've cycled to work?

paky

im starten a new job next week and its about 23km/14 miles away. getting there by public transport is a pain in the hole, it can take up to 2 hours or more. just wondering if i invested in a decent bike would i be able to cover this distance on a daily basis and how long would it normally take?

Mint Sauce

Should be easyable covered. Should take no more than an hour. Used to do a 5 mile commute in about 20 to 25 minutes in London. Compared to 45 to 60 minutes via the tube and buses.

Kintarō Hattori

Well I cycle a MTB 35km to work and that takes about 1h 30min. I'm told that were I to get myself a road bike I could cut that down to about 1h.

Sunnyisland

paky wrote: »

im starting a new job next week and its about 23km/14 miles away. getting there by public transport is a pain in the hole, it can take up to 2 hours or more. just wondering if i invested in a decent bike would i be able to cover this distance on a daily basis and how long would it normally take?

Can be when cycling to

paky

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

Well I cycle a MTB 35km to work and that takes about 1h 30min. I'm told that were I to get myself a road bike I could cut that down to about 1h.

MTB is a mountain bike right? do you do the return?

Beasty

I started off a 4 years ago commuting 23km each way - it took me around an hour then. I can do it in under 40 minutes now

Jawgap

You could easily do that in less than a hour with a reasonable bike.

Forget about a mountain bike unless your workplace is at the top of a mountain or at least at the end of a very rough road!!

Have a search and a read of some of the threads to get an idea for the type of bike you might like, and what's involved.

paky

Beasty wrote: »

I started off a 4 years ago commuting 23km each way - it took me around an hour then. I can do it in under 40 minutes now

nice one, thats very motivating. is there a need to a shower after cycling that distance or how do you manage?

Beasty

paky wrote: »

nice one, thats very motivating. is there a need to a shower after cycling that distance or how do you manage?

At sub-40 minutes, yes! Some make do with baby wipes though ....

paky

Beasty wrote: »

At sub-40 minutes, yes! Some make do with baby wipes though ....

is it pretty taxing on the body though? would you be pretty tired at the end of the day?

Jawgap

paky wrote: »

is it pretty taxing on the body though? would you be pretty tired at the end of the day?

You'll be surprised at how quickly you get fit. Start off by working up to doing the distance.

Then cycle in one morning, public transport home in the evening. Public transport in the next morning and cycle home in the afternoon. Couple of days of that then start cycling in and out in one day - and you're off!!

I usually take one day a week to drive in to replenish clothing supplies and bring home the laundry!

concretehead73

i used to do 55 km in morning and same in the evening 3 days a week now working closer so have 22km 5 days a week , the spray bottle with a bit of shower gel is your only man.:)

jinghong

I used to do 18km on a mtb. Nice spin. Got a road bike after a while. MTB was hard on the thighs, or maybe I was soft.

What I find is I continue to sweat for 15 mins after getting off the bike. Baby wipes dont solve that, in hot weather.

paky

nice one lads, thanks for the advice. im gunnen for it now!!! GO ON YA BOYA!!!

Mysticalman

Years ago I cycled from Rathfarnham to Hollywood in Wicklow and back for about 3 weeks. 80km round trip. Lost about 2 stone. One day one of the pedals snapped off about 7km from Hollywood so I had to pedal with one pedal. Not easy. Got pedal fixed when I got to work.

paky

Mysticalman wrote: »

Years ago I cycled from Rathfarnham to Hollywood in Wicklow and back for about 3 weeks. 80km round trip. Lost about 2 stone. One day one of the pedals snapped off about 7km from Hollywood so I had to pedal with one pedal. Not easy. Got pedal fixed when I got to work.

lol i just finished abook there which was written back in the 1920s. the author claimed that it was not unusual for people to cycle from say cork to dublin to watch an all ireland final back then. that was what set the idea in my head

Jawgap

Can you access the Cycle to Work scheme?

Plenty of info on here about it and you can get a lot of bike for your money on it.

paky

Jawgap wrote: »

Can you access the Cycle to Work scheme?

Plenty of info on here about it and you can get a lot of bike for your money on it.

how does that work?

Beasty

paky wrote: »

how does that work?

Everything you ever wanted to know but may have been afraid to ask about the BTW scheme

Kander

I do N.Dublin (santry) to Blessington return about 3 days a week, 85km round trip. I mix and match when I cycle and drive so dont end up a heap by the end of the week. I found really slowing down the pace the last few km's helps with any sweating issues when u hop off. After that its a couple of baby wipes and a shower in a can.

paky

Beasty wrote: »

Everything you ever wanted to know but may have been afraid to ask about the BTW scheme

nice one. may aswel go all in and get myself something expensive

tomasrojo

paky wrote: »

lol i just finished abook there which was written back in the 1920s. the author claimed that it was not unusual for people to cycle from say cork to dublin to watch an all ireland final back then. that was what set the idea in my head

I know that back in the day some of my antecedents used to cycle to Dublin for special events, but that was only from Kildare.

Patrick Kavanagh mentions walking from Monaghan to Dublin in The Green Fool.

Kintarō Hattori

paky wrote: »

MTB is a mountain bike right? do you do the return?

I do and that's a few minutes quicker. As folk have mentioned, for long distances a road bike really would be better.


(MTB is indeed a mountain bike)

Dermot Illogical

Beasty wrote: »

I started off a 4 years ago commuting 23km each way - it took me around an hour then. I can do it in under 40 minutes now

That's some pace for a commute! Did the increase in speed come naturally due to repetition, or has racing/training been key to improvement?

Seve OB

just make sure you get a road bike

im back up on the bike after years of being a lazy petrol guzzling git and it takes me about 50 mins to do your kind of distance

i had been using a mountain bike till last week and you would be adding best part of 20 mins to that journey

if you are on the higher tax rate, spend the whole grand, it will only cost you 480 ... happy dayz!!

damoz

50km each way. Only on the odd day during summer...

Khannie

My commute is 32K each way. I'm up to 3 days a week both ways now. Started off just cycling in one day, home the next a few days a week and built up from there. We have a shower in the office though and I need it when I get there (though I could probably get away with baby wipes). I have it down to around 1 hour 15 minutes each way average now.

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

Well I cycle a MTB 35km to work and that takes about 1h 30min. I'm told that were I to get myself a road bike I could cut that down to about 1h.

That's good going on a MTB. I think you'd be doing well to average 35Km/h even on a road bike unless there are no traffic lights on your route. They really kill your average speed.

Beasty

RT66 wrote: »

That's some pace for a commute! Did the increase in speed come naturally due to repetition, or has racing/training been key to improvement?

Repetition - basically I did the same journey, initially 1 or 2 times a week, building up to 3 or 4 times (and adding distance to the return leg), and I did it all year round

It's typically a bit faster during the summer.

To illustrate the improvements made (data just goes back to April 2008, I was a bit slower before then, and the distances varied depending on route chosen) - fastest average one-way speed:
April 2008 - 24.2kph
Sep 2008 - 29.1kph
Mar 2009 - 31.2kph
Aug 2009 - 33.8kph
May 2010 - 34.4kph
Oct 2010 - 34.8kph
Jun 2011 - 35.2kph

All of these times were "wind assisted" to varying degrees
One day I'll give it a go with the aero bars;)

I only started racing last year, and you will see some improvement since then. However I'm now more in "recovery" mode when commuting over the summer months, so tend to have less opportunities to give it a real go ...

MaroonTam

I communte 20km each way twice a week in around 55mins (traffic lights etc.)
I have a shower at work and have a light back pack thats just big enough for work clothes and a towel & soap.

Doing this on a steel MTB with 'slick' tyres. Road bike will be in use as soon as the work settle the invoice on the Bike to Work scheme

thebouldwhacker

@ Beasty: Thats impressive.
It looks like I'll be starting a 45km (each way) commute in a few weeks, looking forward to it....

Beasty

thebouldwhacker wrote: »

@ Beasty: Thats impressive.
It looks like I'll be starting a 45km (each way) commute in a few weeks, looking forward to it....

The great thing about commuting longer distances is it brings a lot (if not all) of your training into the daily routine. You are also likely to be on country roads which means a lot less stopping and starting (even on my commute, I reckon junctions, roundabouts and lights cost me over 1kph on average)

Khannie

Beasty wrote: »

and I did it all year round

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

Jawgap

Khannie wrote: »

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

Get some decent kit, winterfy the bike and plan to cycle and you'll be fine..........and winter endorphins feel a lot better than summer ones.

Also remember rule #9

Beasty

Khannie wrote: »

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

I'll be commuting much more over the winter than over the summer, as I won't have any racing to worry about

Last winter December became almost impossible to cycle because of the snow and ice, and I also lost a lot of January because of a round the world business trip (the warmth of California, Australia and Singapore made up for it though;))

I'll stick some mudguards on and start wearing some warmer clothing, but cycling through the winter doesn't really bother me unless there is ice about

helimachoptor

Dun Laoghaire to Blanch, think its about 25km, took about 75 mins due to the traffic lights around the city centre

JOHN_70

41 km each way, I use a road bike with mudguards and rack so using a rack bag allows me to carry a certain amount of stuff with me, and we have showers at work. I started last year as a means of getting in some extra training for sportives etc, took the winter off and got back into it around March/April this year. Initially 2 days a week, then 3, and last week I cycled all 5 days. I'm actually getting to the point where I detest any day I need to travel by car, so I will try to keep it going into the winter this year, although maybe not every day.

seamus

Khannie wrote: »

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

Like Beasty, I'll be cycling through this winter as I've done the last couple.

The key is warm clothing. Duh, but so easy to overlook it. Layers are key, layers everywhere. Last year I wore two pairs of socks (one thin, one thick), and overshoes if it was windy. Two pairs of gloves on my hands. 3 layers on top; 2 base layers and windproof winter jersey. Cap on my head under the helmet. General rule is that if you get colder as you ride, you're not wearing enough, so buy more.

It was -10 one morning last winter, think that was the worst, but being out on the bike in such ridiculous temps and not really feeling the cold that badly is exhilarating. There's something indescribable about spinning around on a bike as the sun rises on an impossibly cold, yet crisp and beautiful winter's morning.

Of course for the cold, not crisp, wet and miserable days, of which there are plenty, decent gear is a must. If you don't have overshoes, good gloves, a rain jacket and fleece-lined bib tights, then you won't be happy.

Seve OB

at the risk of sounding like a tool

What are overshoes?

Beasty

Khannie wrote: »

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

I know - it's a bit like Harrods opening their Christmas section yesterday -we're not even out of July yet, but we did have Winter - the thread last year

thebouldwhacker

The greatest gift man has ever invented. I'm on my phone so i'll let someone else post a link. They are like wooly hats for your feet!

Khannie

stevieob wrote: »

at the risk of sounding like a tool

What are overshoes?

There is no sounding like a tool. I have done all the tool-worthy questions. :pac:

Khannie

Beasty wrote: »

I know - it's a bit like Harrods opening their Christmas section yesterday -we're not even out of July yet, but we did have Winter - the thread last year

Oh I just can't wait to buy stuff.

Jawgap

I'm going to go with winter boots this year - the overshoes are ok, but they have their limits.

brian807

get a good road bike, should be possible 55minutes each way

Hungrycol

Beasty wrote: »

I started off a 4 years ago commuting 23km each way - it took me around an hour then. I can do it in under 40 minutes now

Wow, is that door to door or pure on-the-move time? I have about 14kms each way and I struggle to keep this under 30mins door to door and something like 26 sets of traffic lights!

You're in group 4 this Wednesday fella!

Beasty

Hungrycol wrote: »

Beasty wrote: »

I started off a 4 years ago commuting 23km each way - it took me around an hour then. I can do it in under 40 minutes now

Wow, is that door to door or pure on-the-move time? I have about 14kms each way and I struggle to keep this under 30mins door to door and something like 26 sets of traffic lights!

You're in group 4 this Wednesday fella!

On the move. Only 5 sets of lights over 23km though. Racing with the vets tonight and hopefully at the track tomorrow (weather permitting) so giving 3 x Ardcath a miss

Jawgap

The complete guide to winter cycling

rp

Khannie wrote: »

So are you cycling in the filthy winter cold and rain? I'm conscious that my first cycling winter isn't a million miles away and wondering how it's going to affect the regularity of my commute.

Last winter was great, all those horror stories from my colleagues stuck in traffic or trains for 5, 6, 7 hours, and I was getting a couple of hours free winter sports in, morning and night.