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#1
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new to the group
Hi everyone!
I just stumbled onto the group. During my daughter's nap time, I'm going to read the faq... I'm thinking about transportation options right now. Currently I don't drive, I never bothered learning. This college school year I am studying through distance learning online, my daughter wasn't quite ready for preschool. Next year, I plan to study on campus with my daughter going to the on campus preschool. My family is an one car family, with my husband transfering schools next semester which he will definately need the car for. We keep tossing around how I'm going to commute to school when the time comes, and this weekend started considering that a bicycle commute wouldn't be that bad neccessarily. The distance between home and school via yahoo maps is approximately 7 miles one way. From lurking around the messages for the last few days, I can see that this is fairly reasonable idea so far. I'm a fairly newbie to bicycling, the last bicycle I owned was in high school and only used every once in a while. How long of a commute in a suburban area would 7 miles be? Stating the obvious, I would need a bicycle, lol. But, also probably I will need a trailor for my daughter to ride in. Anybody want to step in my shoes and state what you would do? Thanks in advance! Laurel --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.786 / Virus Database: 532 - Release Date: 10/29/2004 |
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#2
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Tue, 2 Nov 2004 13:45:41 -0800, ,
"SuperEeyore" wrote: How long of a commute in a suburban area would 7 miles be? Likely less than 30 minutes. How much less depends on terrain. Stating the obvious, I would need a bicycle, lol. But, also probably I will need a trailor for my daughter to ride in. Anybody want to step in my shoes and state what you would do? I'd start riding immediately to build the fitness needed for towing a loaded trailer 14 miles. Do some test runs on weekends and explore routes other than those you'd normally use for driving a car. You have more options on a bike. -- zk |
#3
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SuperEeyore wrote:
How long of a commute in a suburban area would 7 miles be? It depends on the route. If you have a nice route where you can maintain 15mph or so with few stops, then it's about half an hour. Since you're just starting, a more comfortable 10mph pace puts it at about 45 minutes. But if you hit a stop sign or signal every other block,... Stating the obvious, I would need a bicycle, lol. But, also probably I will need a trailor for my daughter to ride in. We ordered a trailer from http://www.wicycle.com/ and it looks good, but we only picked up the tandem we're going to use it with last night, so we haven't taken it for a test ride yet. Another option (for both the bike and the trailer) is to look for local used ones. -- Darin McGrew, , http://www.rahul.net/mcgrew/ Web Design Group, , http://www.HTMLHelp.com/ "Experience is what allows you to recognize a mistake when you make it again." |
#4
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Consider attending a LAB Road1 class and a Commuting class if there's one in
your area. The information in these courses will make you a confident, safe cyclist in a short time. It's much better than learning the hard way - through experience. My commute is about 7 miles across fairly flat terrain. The first couple of weeks, I rode it in 35-40 minutes. Now it's more like a comfortable 30 or less, and sometimes, just sometimes when the wind is right, it's sub-25! Believe me, the hardest part of bicycle commuting is making the initial decision to try it. After that, it's all just problem solving. -- alan Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman." "SuperEeyore" wrote in message ... We keep tossing around how I'm going to commute to school when the time comes, and this weekend started considering that a bicycle commute wouldn't be that bad neccessarily. |
#5
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Laurel wrote:
Anybody want to step in my shoes and state what you would do? Hi Laurel, and welcome to the group. You can do a 7 mile commute, but if you've been fairly sedentary, you will feel like you're going to die about halfway into the ride. Keep at it, though, and after a few days you'll get used to it. Several people mentioned 30 minutes for this distance. My wife takes about 45 minutes or longer for her 7 mile commute, but she takes it *very* slowly and doesn't like to arrive sweaty at her job. Conversely, I do my six-mile commute in about 20 minutes. When the kids are with me, it's more like 45 minutes to an hour for this ride. I second Alan's recommendation to take the LAB Road 1 and Commuting class. Go to http://www.bikeleague.org/ to find an instructor. Riding in traffic -- even heavy traffic in narrow lanes while pulling a child trailer -- can be done safely, but instruction and knowledge is helpful to have. If an instructor isn't available locally, find somebody through a local advocacy group, riding club, or local bike shop who would be willing to mentor you and perhaps ride with you a couple of times. Remember to keep it fun! RFM http://www.masoner.net/bike/ |
#6
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On Tue, 02 Nov 2004 22:44:45 GMT, "alan"
wrote: Consider attending a LAB Road1 class and a Commuting class if there's one in your area. The information in these courses will make you a confident, safe cyclist in a short time. It's much better than learning the hard way - through experience. Alan, can you be more specific about what these classes are? Link, perhaps? My commute is about 7 miles across fairly flat terrain. The first couple of weeks, I rode it in 35-40 minutes. Now it's more like a comfortable 30 or less, and sometimes, just sometimes when the wind is right, it's sub-25! Believe me, the hardest part of bicycle commuting is making the initial decision to try it. After that, it's all just problem solving. True, dat. -B |
#7
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"SuperEeyore" wrote in message
... Next year, I plan to study on campus with my daughter going to the on campus preschool. How old is your daughter? The distance between home and school via yahoo maps is approximately 7 miles one way. From lurking around the messages for the last few days, I can see that this is fairly reasonable idea so far. I'm a fairly newbie to bicycling, the last bicycle I owned was in high school and only used every once in a while. How long of a commute in a suburban area would 7 miles be? Initially, a 6 mile suburban ride for me (all either uphill or downhill, very little flat) was 35 minutes. Now it's about 20-25 minutes. Stating the obvious, I would need a bicycle, lol. But, also probably I will need a trailer for my daughter to ride in. If your kid is little, you'll want a regular trailer. If your kid is around four-ish, maybe an older three, you might be able to do it with a trail-a-bike. See: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/trailrcy.html and then horse around that site in general -- there's a lot to learn there. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply Home of the meditative cyclist: http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
#8
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Claire Petersky wrote:
How old is your daughter? She will be 3 in April. If your kid is little, you'll want a regular trailer. If your kid is around four-ish, maybe an older three, you might be able to do it with a trail-a-bike. See: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/trailrcy.html and then horse around that site in general -- there's a lot to learn there. The trailer sounds a bit better right now, only because of school books and the length of the commute. It would be much easier to have her sitting with stuff to do, then trying to pedal or sit on a trail-a-bike. Laurel --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.786 / Virus Database: 532 - Release Date: 10/29/2004 |
#9
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Badger_South wrote: On Tue, 02 Nov 2004 22:44:45 GMT, "alan" wrote: Consider attending a LAB Road1 class and a Commuting class if there's one in your area. The information in these courses will make you a confident, safe cyclist in a short time. It's much better than learning the hard way - through experience. Alan, can you be more specific about what these classes are? Link, perhaps? LAB = League of American Bicyclists http://www.bikeleague.org/educenter/education.htm has various Course Descriptions, Classes (schedules), and more info. it was a really good program makes aware of your rights and duties while on the road. Builds confidence for riding with traffic. if you are in SF bay area check out: http://www.bicyclesolutions.com/BayAreaClassTable.htm Laurel, make sure you get a bike that fits you well. you can read the FAQ/earlier posts as to how important fit is. +ravi My commute is about 7 miles across fairly flat terrain. The first couple of weeks, I rode it in 35-40 minutes. Now it's more like a comfortable 30 or less, and sometimes, just sometimes when the wind is right, it's sub-25! Believe me, the hardest part of bicycle commuting is making the initial decision to try it. After that, it's all just problem solving. True, dat. -B |
#10
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On Wed, 03 Nov 2004 00:16:51 GMT, "Claire Petersky"
wrote: If your kid is little, you'll want a regular trailer. If your kid is around four-ish, maybe an older three, you might be able to do it with a trail-a-bike. See: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/trailrcy.html and then horse around that site in general -- there's a lot to learn there. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky Would you not want to be an expert bike handler on your own before trying to tow a trailer with a child? Just asking. -B |
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