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I’m contemplating, for a couple reasons, doing my long commute by bike once a week, and potentially twice a week as fitness allows in the future.
It’s 35 miles each way so. I want to save a bit on the fuel prices, but I’ll probably spend the savings on food 🤣 I’d like to spend more time doing z2 endurance so this is quite an efficiant use of time, currently it’s either Zwift sweet spot or club ride.
My fitness is getting back to a state where I could do it now. But need to plan out the logistics, timings etc to get to work by 08:30. I used to commute by bike, but when it was 4 miles away - so not much to plan, just ride in shirt if needs be.
Anyone else doing a long bike commute??
Get the train there and ride back? Or vice versa?
Or do alternate days - drive in one day, ride home then ride in/drive home. That way you can leave fresh clothes etc in the car so you don't need to carry anything on the bike. (pre covid mine was just under 20 miles direct but I'd extend the ride home to 35+)
Get the train there
Not possible, no line between the two
I've done it before, Cardiff to Bristol, as much as 2-3x a week at times. Set off early and don't go too fast, it gets harder. I actually enjoyed it (it was spring/summer last time I was working there mind). Tips:
- Use the fastest road bike you have
- Leave shoes and trousers at work, so you're only bringing underwear and a t-shirt/shirt for minimum luggage. You'll have to swap the trousers every week or two of course.
- I used a small super light rucksack that sat low down my back (Camelbak Octane super light thing) because that's the most aero place to carry luggage.
- As the weather warms up get arm/leg warmers. I had a lovely spring that year but it was still chilly at 6.30am whereas on the way home it was warm. I wore a short sleeved top and shorts, but with arm warmers because it was less weight to carry back home in the afternoon when not wearing them.
I have done in the past. Used to do shift work and occasionally I'd work at a site about 25 miles away. The route was (and remains) one of my favourites even as a leisure ride. If it had been 25 miles of urban it would have been crap but this was country lanes, the option of canal towpaths in places, lovely scenery and pretty quiet. Sometimes used the road bike for speed but in summer time, it was worth using the CX to give the option of towpaths.
However it was exhausting. I could do it 2, maybe 3 times a week if necessary but that was when I was race fit which I'm not now! Even then it was tiring. Sometimes I'd just drive in, especially if the weather was bad.
If I was doing that sort of thing now, I'd get an e-bike. The cost of one would pay for itself over fuel costs or train fares pretty quickly!
Do a longish commute 16 miles each way occasionally.
- Panniers FTW or store all your clothes at my work
- have everything ready to go the night before
- take lots of good quality food, and them some more
Thing that makes it bearable is that the route I go is actually a nice ride on quiet roads and paths. I wouldn't fancy doing a long route if it was horrible.
Good tips, cheers.
Yes, it'll be 95% country lanes. And it would be zone 2 effort, keeping it light.
It's only now that the daylight hours have increased that I'm starting to plan for it. No thanks in the dark wet months!
I spent some years working daily 45 miles from home, my solution was to drive part of the way with the bike in the boot and cycle the rest, it was how I got a measure of cycling fitness (sadly now gone) - I found a few different spots, according to how many miles I fancied, my regular was about 12 miles each way (had another around 20 miles, and I once did Cycle To Work Day from home - that was a long day!). I did enjoy it, but whilst the mornings were good, I found it became a real grind finishing work to face an hour on the bike followed by best part of another hour in the car, it became quite a chunk of the day. I experimented with the train as well, worked ok in the mornings but late or missing trains on the way home were really frustrating.
I don't think I ever did 5 days (maybe once, to say I had), probably 3 were enough. The roads were quite countryish but near a biggish town, so there could be some fast traffic.
I've just changed jobs so stopped now, but for years I did a 25 mile country roads commute - I did as @thepurist suggested, so drive in Monday morning taking bike, ride home Monday eve, then ride back to work Tuesday morning and drive home. Repeated Thur/Fri. Worked really well to be honest and in a way I miss it, but not so much in the winter! Kept me fit though!
Four plus hours of cycling a day plus work is a big chunk of time and energy (about an extra days calorie requirement). I’ve done it it the past by cycling half way from Oxfordshire to London then bus the last 30 miles. And reverse on the way home. I’ve also trained riding 400km a week.
Ride-drive-rotate is a good plan. A nice two hour ride down the lanes on the morning is great.
Yes @thepurist approach does sound decent. I could leave weeks worth of clothes in the car regardless.
Ebike or motor kit and charge it when you get to work? I've taken to riding up to my mam's (37 miles away) more because a) our car was nicked and we haven't replaced it (out of choice because bloody hell how much does stuff cost now? 😬 ) and b) public transport is shockingly unreliable (tried it a handful times since not having a car and it's ok getting there but 50% of my return journeys have been delayed or just plain cancelled.)
Lucky where I was that there was secure indoor bike storage, lockers to store kit in and bearable (not perfect by any means but manageable) changing facilities. Could hang damp or muddy kit up in the storeroom where it was out of the way and didn't matter too much about any smell as it was miles from any customer areas.
Didn't need to carry a laptop or anything either, it was simply underwear and a T-shirt; the rest of the clothing plus work-shoes, I'd have at work.
Makes a massive difference if you don't need to faff around locking bikes up and can just wheel it into the workplace and pop it in a storage room.
The key is to prepare for it. Have a set of tools and an emergency waterproof jacket that live in your commuting rucksack, that way you're not constantly swapping stuff from your weekend bike to the commuter or caught out without a jacket. If the forecast shows a day where it's raining, plan that for the day to drive in with clean clothes and bring back the worn clothes, use the nice days to ride (or half drive / half ride).
Get a comfy bike, not a fast bike (if it's fast and comfy, that's good).
I did a 40+ mile round trip 4 days a week for 18 months. Ended up modifying my needs as i went, started off leaving shoes and trousers at work for 4 days and carrying the rest daily. Ended up doing a clothes swap on the day i drove. So left all i needed in my locker. Also left some spare cycling kit in the locker incase of unexpected shit weather. Plus some emergency food/drinks mix and chargers/batteries for lights.
Used to head out for a longer ride on a couple of evenings a week as well.
Had two bikes ready to roll as well, that helped a lot, if the weather looked a bit ropey it was mudguards, lights and 28s, if it was ok it'd be the normal road bike.
I am fortunate, that in our office block I have a dedicated parking space here. Plus they have showers. Car can act as locker for shirts
Top tips, thanks again
I commuted from Stockport to Chorley for a while, 32 miles, took around 2 hours.
Started off 1 per week during the Summer months, with a change of clothes and locks left at work, and showers to clean off.
I had to set off early to get in, and it was a long day by the time that you got back, obviously wind made a massive difference, 1:45 quickest, down to 3:15 on a wet Winters day. Traffic lights make a suprisingly bit difference, I was passing > 100 each way. So was quicker on my steel commuter for a couple of years before I beat that time with a carbon racer.
I Strava'd it and gave myself little challenges along the way, it was too long to do it for the whole thing. But if the wind was right, and the lights were with you for 3/4s of the way, then it became Game On 🙂
Goal was to cycles 52 times in a year, and also 5 days for one week, managed both but it took 4 years to acheive
The route was along wide roads that gave cars room to pass safely, I've not done it since we moved, as the roads from here are narrow with blind corners, and now I'm WFH so don't need to.
P.
Be prepared to set aside some time every weekend to do a proper deep clean of your bike. If you scrimp on it you’ll soon find yourself eating through rims/drivetrains/bottom brackets at a rate that will compete with fuel prices.
If you’re going to ride in all weathers, invest in some really good waterproof boots, and make sure you carry a spare layer in case you get a mechanical. It’s tempting to try and save weight if you’ve already got work gear to carry, but in shit weather on country roads you’ll rapidly head towards hypothermia (especially when you’ve lost all your body fat through riding so much!).
Have quick and easy healthy snacks ready for when you get home/to work or you’ll find yourself just eating blocks of cheese, packets of biscuits, or whatever you can get your hands on.
Enjoy!
Get a comfy bike, not a fast bike
Hmm. My commute was fast and rolling. My personal best was 2h05 on my fast road bike, but was comfortably 2h15 or under. I did it subsequently on my comfy slow bike with panniers and it took 2h45. That extra hour a day was significant.
Obviously whatever bike you use has to be tolerable for 4hrs a day of riding, that goes without saying. But any fast road bike is worthless if it's too uncomfortable to ride.
I never did it in bad weather because I didn't need to. There was enough good weather riding not to have to bother with wind and rain.
Used to do 25 hilly miles and would do drive in, ride home. Occasionally would go full bifter on a friday in summer but found my legs would be sore for the first half hour of the return leg. Pick your routes to make it safe and pleasurable, made a few mistakes in the early days (riding along the local A roads) that nearly saw me coverted to meat paste but once I'd sorted that it was ok. Had a few puncture nightmares that saw me get in late/late home too so factor that in, extra tubes, patches, co2, sealant (more than you think you need).
Was going to post something like Hannah's: Look after your bike. Punctures can be a 'mare. Give yourself a break every now and again. I can find the routine of it relaxing, sometimes that last commute home at the end of the week is just one too many though.
Be prepared to set aside some time every weekend to do a proper deep clean of your bike. If you scrimp on it you’ll soon find yourself eating through rims/drivetrains/bottom brackets at a rate that will compete with fuel prices
This is very wise.
Another issue the doubler (there and back) or a ride home the next day is the change in weather between the two rides if you don't have options - going home cooking because it's 12 degs warmer than the way in and you've only got heavy weight stuff to put on.
Punctures is a fair point - I had a few, mostly fixed them, but also have a very tolerate helpful wife who rescued me on a few occasions! I'd vote for fast bike over comfy bike too, time is a key factor in the day. Obviously a fast and comfy bike wins! The thing about 'drive in ride home, ride in drive home' was that I didn't have to carry anything at all, just a small saddle bag for tube/tools. That makes a huge difference...
Would be my carbon roadie, which is fast and comfy. Happily ride 4hrs on it.
Well, not as fast as it used to be, but that's not the bikes fault!
Obviously whatever bike you use has to be tolerable for 4hrs a day of riding, that goes without saying.
I'm not talking about going from a 14lb carbon weapon with 80mm deep rims to something like a 35 lb steel tourer with a 4lb brooks saddle and panniers, more like something that you can ride in two, two hour chunks a day without complaint. Decent sized (and quality!) tyres, a saddle that fits you properly, a fit that is good for long rides. That sort of thing. Comfort first, speed a close second. (FWIW i've done both 300 km in a day and 1 hour crits on my "best bike", with nothing more than a change of wheels and an extra bottle cage.)
But any fast road bike is worthless if it’s too uncomfortable to ride.
You'd be amazed by the mental gymnastics that people perform regarding fit, comfort and useablity to justify having a bike they think is fast...
It’s tempting to try and save weight if you’ve already got work gear to carry, but in shit weather on country roads you’ll rapidly head towards hypothermia
My first commute was in November, I think (CTWS voucher and bike both took a bit longer than planned!) - I wore shorts because I was stupid and thought I'd warm up, I remember having to stop for a turning lorry in freezing fog at the foot of a big hill and seeing my leg hairs were rimed in frost. It was deeply unpleasant. 🙂
As alluded to above, don't forget to eat through the day if commuting both ways daily. I often get to about 330/4pm and feel empty if I haven't had a big lunch and snacks, by which point it's too late to recharge sufficiently and the ride home becomes unnecessarily a drag.
(on the worst occasion, I wasn't round the first corner and had bonked [had bonked before leaving the office really] and had two stops in a shop for crsisps, chocolate, coke and sandwich then 2 mins along the road stopped for a chippy. I'd just hit rock bottom by forgetting to eat properly through the day. Was still a painful slog from there.).
Servicing and cold weather, i had the brake cables freeze into the outers on one cold commute, due to all the rain on my way into work that morning.
That was an exciting ride home.
more like something that you can ride in two, two hour chunks a day without complaint.
Who buys a bike they can't ride for two hours?! No bike needs to be that uncomfortable except maybe a TT bike. If yours is you need to take a look at it.
Decent sized (and quality!) tyres, a saddle that fits you properly, a fit that is good for long rides.
Goes without saying on any bike of course!
Be prepared to set aside some time every weekend to do a proper deep clean of your bike. If you scrimp on it you’ll soon find yourself eating through rims/drivetrains/bottom brackets at a rate that will compete with fuel prices
Nah, not in my experience. Yes clean it if you have a shitty wet ride (especially the chain), but you don't need to strip it every weekend, no way.
It's not something I HAVE to do, it'll only be if dry. If it's freezing, very windy or peeing down I'll drive.
All of the above, bike fit, tyres etc. I've got that, experienced roadie. It's the long commute plus work that was the quandry.
The drive-ride rotation is likely the way, and glad I asked now, Ta!
Some great advice so far (because am in agreement with pretty much all of it 😀)
The things that make the most differences to me are bike-comfort, heat-comfort, and terrain-comfort. Too much or too little or the wrong combo of these can really affect progress/motivation. Surface-comfort can be as simple as a few mm of tyre volume or a few lbs of pressure depending. Heat-comfort is self-explanatory. Terrain? I couldn't commute far in North West Devon, but on the Severn Plain I could rattle off 30 miles without suffering much.
Get a comfy bike, not a fast bike
Fast and comfy is not necessarily unachievable. I ride a steel audax/tourer that is no lightweight (531ST, triple, Brooks, SKS, 28c Marathons ie the whole communter shaboodle) but it is suprisingly swift and almost supernaturally comfortable. With a lightweight saddle and the rack off it zips along laughingly. Have yet to try with lighter more puncturable tyres. Nor tubeless.
If one is of a scientific bent then here was a “single centre, randomised, non-blinded trial of two bicycles; n=1. Both bicycles were of traditional “road” construction with drop handlebars, although the frame of one was made of steel and the second carbon. Identical lights and fittings were used on each bike”:
tldr: He bought a used steel tourer for £50 and a CTW scheme carbon roadie
Conclusions
A 30% reduction in bicycle weight did not reduce commuting time over a distance of 27 miles (43.5 km). A new lightweight bicycle may have many attractions, but if the bicycle is used to commute, a reduction in the weight of the cyclist rather than that of the bicycle may deliver greater benefit and at reduced cost.
What about a lightweight hub motor such as the Cytronex C1 ?
Has a max speed of 15mph but can save your legs on the climbs.
Friend used to one to commute over Carron Valley and Tak ma'doon from Stirling and said it made the whole thing possible.
All of the above. My biggest commute was 25 miles each way to Maidenhead from Kingston. I did it for 9 months whilst on a contract.
I did it every ride on a fast and tricked out singlespeed I have been commuting on for years. It took about an hour, 15 each way. I would ride about 2 to 4 times a week on ave. This route is flat as hell so was good until the winter and the wind picked up. Then it wasnt funny.
I have a good routine. I left a pair of locks at work, and a tri bag/desk full of kit and spares. Dont be tight on tyres and brake blocks. Every few months the tyres started getting punctures, time to throw away and get new ones, Conti GP4/5000's in the summer and Four Seasons in the winter.
Shoes, trainers and a jacket at work, Monday a new towel and trousers, clean shirt folded and rolled up and new skids and socks every day.
I miss it like hell 🙂
Not quite as far as you're planning OP, but I used to have a ~21 mile commute that I would do a 2-3 times a week (on road) depending on weather and general fatigue.
One thing I did start to do when work needed me in earlier or time wasn't on my side but I'd planned to cycle, was to catch a train to the nearest station ~3 miles away, do that shorter ride in, and then ride the full journey home, I'd do this maybe a couple of times a month and it would make things a bit more physically sustainable.
All of the above, bike fit, tyres etc. I’ve got that, experienced roadie. It’s the long commute plus work that was the quandry.The drive-ride rotation is likely the way, and glad I asked now, Ta!
Check on bail-out options - where's the nearest station you could potentially get to if needed, is there the option of calling friend / family / taxi for a lift in an emergency and so on. It's likely not needed but worst case is the car is at work, you've ridden home that night, you're riding in the following morning and there's some sort of mechanical...
After years of experimenting, I eventually went down the cheap and cheerful option for kit. Overshoes get trashed, no point in an £80 set, a £20 set does the same job and can be binned after a year or so. Jackets - yes, ShakeDry is wonderful (although can't be used with a backpack!) but it's also fragile and expensive. Can get 4 x decent waterproof jackets for the same price as one ShakeDry and it won't matter as much when you scuff it to bits or stuff it in a bag.
Only thing I'd spend decent money on is lights. 2 x rear ones and a bloody good front one. At the time I was doing my long-distance commute, I had a HID light (now largely defunct with the advances in LED) but without that I'd never have been able to ride the dark country lanes. It never once let me down.
A new lightweight bicycle may have many attractions, but if the bicycle is used to commute, a reduction in the weight of the cyclist rather than that of the bicycle may deliver greater benefit and at reduced cost.
Weight not the issue so much as aero. When I did it on my commuter bike I had panniers and I think they are fairly un-aero. That, the bike, the tyres and the riding position were all slower, and it added up.
FWIW my current Cube Attain "endurance" road bike is more comfortable than the bike I was using on that commute and faster, largely down to the bigger better tyres I suspect. That's the kind of bike I'd be using if I were to do it again.
Overshoes get trashed
How? What are you doing to them?!
Who buys a bike they can’t ride for two hours?!
From observation of "typical" road cyclists (and selling them stuff).
Quite a lot of them.
If yours is you need to take a look at it.
Personally, I don't have a bike i can't ride for 3 or 4 hours straight.
Even my long departed TT bike was good for a couple of hours, it probably wouldn't be so comfy now, given the 20+ extra kilos i'm carrying.
panniers and I think they are fairly un-aero.
I’d agree with that too. Much prefer a rack-pack for that reason (also less of an issue in narrow squeezes)
Of course, OTOH, zero-luggage is the best type of luggage if at all possible, but 2x slightly slower commutes a week with a pannier full of fresh/dirty laundry is an option* Carrying a daily laptop is possibly the outlier/biggest penalty (unless using e-assist)
Early bed Sunday, up at the crack and lug in the fresh folded laundry. Leave in panniers or locker at work all week, using as required. Put dirty laundry in a big ziplock bag. Ride dirty laundry and panniers home on Fri eve, taking the scenic route via pub 😀
8 out of ten trips prefer it.
I once went through a stage of cycling to work in London once a week. I live just outside Brighton so a near 100 mile round trip. It did wonders for my fitness! I did bonk once on the way home on the downslink and made it home at midnight, utterly spent. That was not fun.
I WFH and my office is around 100 miles away depending on how much I want to detour to avoid hills. I'm so very tempted to ride in, but I'd need a laptop and overnight kit. Or I could do there and back in a day as a bit of a challenge, although the weight of kit would be annoying and might spoil it. I could post a package to my colleague though, he'd be happy to give me a box of clothes when I arrived I'm sure.
very tempted to ride in
😬 that's a decent commute!
Jumbo seat pack, à la lightweight bike packing setup
I used one of the giant seat packs for King Alfred's Way. Can easily get overnight kit in there and then some.
I did not like out of saddle waggle though, but you tune in to it
Edit: Ah ignore that, just saw you said you needed laptop
It's a 150 km round trip for me, so no chance.
The ex and i used to do it one way or the other fairly regularly before the divorce, as she works not far from where i do.
So a lift in and a ride home works well. A ride in and a lift home, less good. Especially about lunchtime when you're ready to hit the sofa for an hour!
Doesn't work now with different working hours and childcare arrangements. Even though we're still working within about a km of each other!
Mine's a 35-40 mile round trip which I've been doing 3-4 times a week for 3 years, in all weathers - snow, rain, hail, ice, wind and the occasional bit of sun on a gravel bike with full guards, racks and lights.
I carry two fully loaded panniers once every two weeks with clothes, food, etc and cycle home with them fully loaded with dirty clothes, etc on the same day. This means I'm baggage free for most of my miles. My journey takes about 110mins in the winter (dark, wet and windy both ways) to about 90mins in the summer. Visibility, wind and slimy roads really slow you down.
It takes a toll. On a windy week, I'm pretty damn tired by the weekend and the last thing I want to do is more miles. So a balance must be struck. generally - I like it, it keeps me fit, allows me to eat what I want and removed the need to use the car or a gym.
Just try doing it, see what happens.
I now start my working days at home so I go out for up to 1.5hrs most mornings before I start - much more civilized! Although I realised I'd become a wimp and wasn't going out when the weather was bad, so I went out last week in the rain and remembered why it's nice not to be committed to commuting!!
Just try doing it, see what happens.
Without over-analysing everything, and worrying about which tyre?!? Where's the fun...
😬 that’s a decent commute!
Yeah I'm not doing it regularly 🙂
Jumbo seat pack, à la lightweight bike packing setup
No rack mounts on my endurance roadie. Also, laptop. I do have a spare though.. hmm.
I used to do 20 miles each way day in day out all year so I think 35miles each way would be easily doable one day a week if you work up to it.
As others have said, I’d take in as much as possible on day when you’re in the ar so you don’t have to carry much of anything when you’re on the bike.
Sounds like it’d be nice tbf, I use to enjoy my long ride to work, and extended it when I could but it was a slog by the end of the week and when I was under time pressure to get home it could be a misery, especially in the winter
I used one of the giant seat packs for King Alfred’s Way. Can easily get overnight kit in there and then some.
I did not like out of saddle waggle though, but you tune in to it
There’re a couple of (maybe irrational?) reasons I’ve shied away from giant seat-packs vs a lightweight rear rack + drybag
- waggle
- faffy strappage
- prefer to carry weight lower/nearer to midsection of bike
- ease of access to stuff
- relative cost vs versatility
My commute is only 18k but I did run it a few times when I was fitter (took me nearly 2 hours so similar time). Only did one way and train home. Cycling is or was more regular and both ways.
The main thing I found was how hungry you get! Going to need at least one extra sarnie for lunchtime (the regular lunch will have evaporated by 11) and easy desk breakfast is to have a bowl shaped tupperware box full of museli or cereal waiting at work. Stays fresh and just add milk.
You may still find yourself detouring for snacks from mid afternoon or en route home.
Food planning is as important as clothes and bike logistics.
Re. The waggle, as I mentioned you do weirdly tune in to it.
I remember the first ride I did on my gravel bike when I took all the bags off. I nearly fell off the thing as the weight shifting wasn’t there but I was still overcompensating
Just sat at work stuffing a bit of food before 20 miles home 🙂
Speed is nice but above all else you need reliability. So with glass and hedge cuttings for me that is Marathon plus tyres in a suitably comfy size - fast tyres are fun but punctures are miserable and make you late. Hub dynamo light so it it is always there, always on and never flat. Mudguards because my route is filthy. Alfine, disc brakes and Shimano UN5x square taper bb so I'm not eating mechanical bits too quickly (because of the filth). Currently backpack but probably moving to a panniers.
Speed is nice but above all else you need reliability. So with glass and hedge cuttings for me that is Marathon plus tyres in a suitably comfy size – fast tyres are fun but punctures are miserable and make you late.
I used to do a 25 mile each way commute 1-2 times per week, before covid and WFH
After a recommendation on here, when it came to replacing tyres, I swapped to Marathon Pluses. It added about 15 mins to each direction, so 30 mins per day.
I stuck with them for about 6 months, so around 40 return trips. 20 hours additional commute time. That is a lot of time Vs a 10 mins fix of a very rare puncture.
I found a good middle ground was a Schwalbe Durano, or Conti GP4000.
That is a lot of time Vs a 10 mins fix of a very rare puncture.
This. With a long commute I would only ever consider tyres of that type on an e-bike (I run conti contact plus on mine). I would lose the will to live very quickly using them on anything else. For a shorter commute they make some sense.
I found a good middle ground was a Schwalbe Durano
I find Marathon Supreme (folding) to be quick with decent protection/weight compromise
Actually, I've just remembered that I ditched the contact plus on my ebike for something lighter and nicer to ride but still with decent puncture protection - Conti Urban. Went up from 37c to 42c and still saved 900g!
They look good ^
The Supremes comes in fairly light (just slightly lighter than the Urbans)
32-622: 380g
37-622: 440g
42-622: 490g
50-622: 640g
I bought a used bike around four years ago which came with a new pair of Supremes in 38c. I had never heard of them before. Was instantly converted and ditched old favourites (Marathon Racers) in favour. They also come in 29x2.0
An unsung tyre, I think.