bhop

Roughly 13 miles each way.
To work, slightly downhill = 45min to 1hr depending on my energy level and traffic lights.
Home from work, slightly uphill = 1hr to 1.5hrs .. although I have made it in under an hour when I really push hard.

I've tried to make it to work faster, just for fun, but I don't think I can because of traffic lights.

Roger M

I ride 11.4 miles to the local park&ride. Part road and part MUP. On the way in, I can do it in 34 minutes on my commuter bike or road bike(my MTN bike ads about 3-plus minutes). A good portion of flat and downhill.

On the return trip it takes about 53 minutes.(add a few min. for MTB). A long uphill and some flat road.

HappyStuffing

My ride is 11.3km (7.25miles) one way - 30mins.
I carry all the standard emergency bike maintenance stuff.

As far as a protein bar, i don't think it is necessary to carry an actual energy bar marketed for those who ride long distances. For going to work, your breakfast will be enough to fuel you through your bike ride and then some.

I carry around basically any food bar, whichever is currently on sale basically. It is just for those times when i get super hungry. Besides, since you are going through a urban city to get to work, i'm sure you'll pass by lots of convenience stores and gas stations that you can pickup some food item if you really need it. I wouldn't worry about nutrition on the short trip to work. If nothing else, carry a bottle of water.

bubbagrannygear

9 miles each way - takes 40 minutes - ride a single speed with 28 mm gaterskin tires over a relatively flat route with about 4 hills that I get out of the saddle for - carry lunch, 15 mm wrench, multi tool, tube, patch kit, pump, disposable gloves.

My advice about avoiding flats is to look at your rim tape. If its a rubber band or plastic strip, change to the adhesive tape type - think velux fonde de jante. What can happen is those other types move when the tube is inflated exposing your tube to the sharp parts of the rim. You can end up getting "mystery flats" where you flat and can't find any sharp object or puncture in the tire.

Azreal911

My ride is 6km each way and 18 minutes to get there. This is done on a single speed folder with some kojaks, and racing through neighborhood sideroads to get to my destination. Most of my ride is on fairly flat terrain so I get a good spin there on 56 gear inches.

Pobble.808

I'm the wimp of the family -- just a mile and a half each way. Takes 10 minutes door to door on a heavy commuter bike, with a substantial hill in the middle and a traffic light or 2.
There has been much excellent advice offered already, so I'll try to prevent information overload by keeping to a few main points:

-Bulletproof tires are your friends - different riders have different favorites but Schwalbe Marathon Plus is definitely trustworthy.

-As others have noted, it's a good idea to practice changing tires / fixing flats at home so you'll know exactly what you're doing when you need to do it. It may take anumber of tries to get it down, but well worth it. And with any luck, a tough pair of tires will keep you from needing to do it except on rare occasions.

-The main thing is to have fun on your ride! Some of us could afford to get to work in pricier ways, but I like riding my bike so much that if somebody forced me to pay to keep riding it instead of taking my car I would. I hope that you start to feel like that too...

yuyax

I do 15 mi each way, 30 mi total every other day and it takes me between 56 and 65 mins per trip, depending on street lights, wind, how busy is the path, etc, etc. My avg times are lower now as my fitness levels is increasing.

You can check out some 'sport commuter' bikes on this thread:

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...bling-Thoughts...

sevenlas

20 miles total. from brooklyn to manhattan with my mu p8. the only thing i carry spare is 2 tubes and tire.

PaulH

How many miles you commute daily and how long it takes?

Ten miles each way and it takes about an hour.

Would a beach cruiser go well for commuting?

Much of the population of China and Northern Europe commute on what we call a "beach cruiser" They have the advantages of a chainguard and fenders and are reliable and convenient to use.
On the other hand, gears are very helpful if there are significant hills. I have hills, so I have gears. I'd suggest test riding several bike types and see what works best for you.

And how long would it take me to ride 6.5 miles on average?

How fast do you ride? How many hills? How many stoplights? I figure on 40 minutes for 6.5 miles, but your situation may be different.

Flat tire issues?

With Marathon Plus and Mr. Tuffy, I've gone 25,000 flat free miles. No issues.
As far as getting to work on time, a bike is much better than a car, as it is not affected by traffic jams.

Lights for night commutes?

Absolutely. The most convenient approach is a hub dynamo and an LED headlight and taillight, which is what I use. Some people use high capacity lights with rechargable batteries. However, a cheap AA battery LED light and a rear blinking LED will work fine. Just get something.

Safety

All the habits from years of driving will serve you well. Ride defensively, follow the rules.

Gear

I just hop on the bike and go. I do keep a Gortex rainsuit permanently attached to the rack, just like the soft top on a car.

Paul

CbadRider

My commute is 17 miles one way. On my hybrid at a comfortable pace it takes about 90 minutes in the morning because it is mostly uphill. The downhill commute home takes 15 minutes less.

I highly recommend tires with kevlar liners, they have really helped to prevent flats.

I have showers at work, but a lot of people here have posted that they use baby wipes to clean up at work when they can't shower.

rando

jeez, some of you are really fast! (or I'm really slow.) My commute of 5.5 miles usually takes me about 40 minutes. I don't try to rush it, though. I take it easy.

Ganesha

The Commute: 5.1 miles (one way). 20-30 minutes.
Flats: I run Gatorskins and had 1 flat in the last 3 years.
Lights: Blinker in back. 25 W of lights upfront (depends on how well lit your city is at night. Tucson tends to be very dark).
Other Safety: Extra reflective tape on my Panniers and reflective jersey or bright green jacket depending on weather.
Other Gear: Fenders are good.

woodenidol

My present commute is 22 miles. Takes me about 1 hour 25 minutes.

I have both pump and co2 cartridges.

I have a superflash on the back, which I use in the dark, or cloudy days. I ride a flasther in the front in the summer when its dark, and a real bike light made for illumination in the winter.

My wife rides a 7-8 mile commute on a hybrid, she just started this year. It takes her about 35-45 minutes. She rides in the daylight and I have her equiped with a bell, superflash on the back and flasher on the front. She uses a rack, which she bungees her stuff to. Same thing I use.

Good luck, welcome to the club.

hopperja

That's what I thought, especially when I read episodic's post (#2 in this thread): 2.1 miles in 4 to 5 minutes! Wow, s/he's fast, especially for a self-described newbie! That's around 30 mph average!

I ride half time, which is 2x per week. My route is 10.2 flat miles each way. My typical time is 35 to 40 minutes each way. It usually takes me a few more minutes coming home than going in because, for whatever reason, there's more often than not a nightly headwind (my return commute starts about 9:15pm).

acidfast7

I'm new to commuting (been 2 weeks now). My commute is about 11km (7 miles) each way and I use a bone stock mountain bike (2010 Cube Acid). I ride from the absolute middle of the city (where the skyscrapers are) out to the foothills where the mountains are (to the university). With stoplights in the morning, it takes about 40 mins. The last kilometer is a long hill that always crushes me. On the way home, it's all downhill and takes about 32-35 mins. Yesterday ... I caught the stoplight at the bottom of the hill and was able to coast through the intersection at 45km/h, which made the ride home quite nice.

I suggest that you commute on whatever you can get your hands on for a bike and buy equipment as you need it. That's the best way to figure out what you need.

For me, I don't even need to worry about flats because the subway line runs parallel to where I ride. If I get a flat, I can just jump on the subway with my bike and finish the commute to work/home.

Good luck.

ItsJustMe

RE: Fast
Keep in mind that your average speed is very dependent on your route and the length. If I only had to go 2 miles, I could probably keep up an average speed of well over 20 MPH, especially if the route was flat. When I'm on flat areas and not bucking a headwind, when I look at the speedo I'm almost always doing over 20 MPH, and I'm CERTAINLY not any kind of a speed demon, though after 5 years my legs are pretty beefy. I don't really try for speed though. When you start doing 10 miles or more though, and if you have hills, your average speed goes way down. By the end of my route the best I've ever done is 18 MPH, and that was with a tailwind. With calm winds (no head/tailwind) I'm usually right around 17 MPH average, what with hills and the 4 miles of gravel road out of 11 miles total.

I really don't watch speed, or even really pay much attention, I kind of use the "constant effort" method - I pedal at a rate that I figure is comfortable and sustainable, turn on the audiobook and just go, I get there when I get there.

MacCruiskeen

If you're going to use a hand pump, I'd suggest splurging on a Topeak Road Morph, the one with the little gauge. You can carry it as a frame pump for emergencies and use it as a floor pump. You will only need to have one pump.

Also for rain gear, look at O2 rain gear. It's not elegant, but it's effective and very low cost. Good for a commute.

My own commute is only 3 miles each way, and it takes about 20 minutes, in city traffic. So when I'm just on my way to work, I usually don't need to carry much beyond my lunch. But I also use the bike for other utility transport, such as grocery shopping.

If you ask for bike recommendations here, you will get a different one from everyone who responds. I'd just say, get a bike that fits well, will carry what you need to carry, and that you enjoy riding. Because if it doesn't feel good to you, you won't want to do it.

Spire

Its about 25km each way and I can pretty consistently do that in less than an hour. I find it almost impossible not to go as fast as I can!

Chalupa102

Mine is 18.9 miles one way and I'll be doing it again 3x a week when college starts back up in Sept. On the way there, it's mainly downhill and takes about 1:15 on a good day. The way home is mainly uphill and takes about 1:35-1:45. This is the elevation profile from home to the campus:

GeneO 

30 miles RT on 80% trails (crush limestone and gravel/hardpack), 20% road on a cyclo with 32mm tires. 12 miles in, 18 back. Takes me between 45 and 50 minutes in, hour and 15 min back usually. I do between 15 and 16 mph on average. I would expect on a cruiser you would do 10 mph or so.

In my seat bag I bring a spare inner tube, a a CO2 inflator, tire irons and a mini toolkit, a couple of Power gels, a small amount of cash. If it looks like rain or I will be in low visibility I throw in a headlamp and tail lamp.
On my frame by the water bottle cage a mini-pump for last resort
My change of clothes etc. in panniers. and a windbreaker if it is windy or rainy.

m_yates

11.25 miles each way typically takes me 45 minutes. My personal best this year is 37 minutes.

Other advice: a bike with gears will give you a lot more utility. I'd pick the hybrid over the beach cruiser.

If you are riding at night, don't skimp on lights. A flashing rear light like the Planet Bike Super Flash is recommended by lots of people. A proper biking headlight is expensive. However, you can make do with a flashlight mounted to handlebars. You can make your own flashlight mount using conduit hanger. Also, the Magicshine light is recommended a lot here as a relatively cheap headlight option.

I'd suggest carrying a cell phone to call for help. Put the cell phone in a ziplock bag in case it rains. Keep a rain jacket with you, tire levers, spare tube, patch kit, multitool, and a bicycle lock and you should be all set.

GP

8 mile round trip, almost totally flat, 30 minutes. A beach cruiser is fine if your route is flat.

AdamDZ

Between 7 and 8 miles each way, all urban, 90% with traffic. 35-40 minutes in the morning 40-45 in the afternoon (more traffic). Add 10 minutes if the weather is bad.

audi666

I like reading about some of your daily commutes. Helps put it in perspective. I always thought ~20miles each way would be my limit but who knows. How does the 20mi+ commute work for you all? Do you all do it daily as well? Either way im impressed, cheers!

My commute is a bit over 16miles each way and takes ~ 50-65 minutes depending on traffic in the city/weather. I ride a road bike with a large seat bag using a bagman support. I stopped using a backpack after a while since I hated the sweaty back that goes along with it. I ride daily until there is snow/ice on the ground.

I am wondering though, for those that ride longer commutes 15+ do you commute in the snow/ice? I usually just wimp it out and carpool with someone to work around those times

sudo bike

Exactly why I started, too.

Ideally? Spare tube, cheap-o multi-tool, portable pump (they have some that strap onto your frame), water bottle (always keep hydrated), and bus schedule (if applicable. If so, if you break down you can have a backup). That's what I'm comfortable taking. I've also occasionally gone with nothing but me and the bike. You'll develop a "comfort zone" of what you feel you should have with you.

I have the exact same length commute. If I'm going at a relatively easy pace, it takes me 30 minutes. When I first started, I rode on a bike comparable to a beach cruiser, and it took me about 40-45 minutes. It's certainly doable, but if you can get something lighter and a little more goal-oriented (cruisers tend to be more about enjoying the journey than getting anywhere fast), it will almost certainly be more enjoyable. The heavy cruiser is just a pain sometimes. It just was a little too long and slow for my comfort. But I did it for over a year, so...

An investment in good quality tires will pay back dividends in spare tubes. I haven't had to buy a new tube for over 6 months. I recommend Michelin CiTY's (with reflective sidewall). Not too expensive, and hold up well to debris.

Definitely. The brighter the better. I don't have any specific recommendations, but I'm sure plenty of people here do.

For safety, I highly recommend a mirror (either a helmet or eyeglass mounted one, preferably). There are lots of tips on the forums, but generally speaking ride with traffic, like you were traffic. If a lane is wide enough for a car to pass you safely, ride over to the right to facilitate that. If it's not wide enough to share, you should ride in the middle of the lane. It seems counter-intuitive to safety, but by riding over to the right on a too-narrow lane, you invite motorists to pass you too tightly, which is unsafe. The general consensus is to avoid sidewalks (there are exceptions, sometimes). Again, it seems against logic, but riding on sidewalks are statistically more dangerous. With drivers pulling out of/into driveways, as well as drivers turning across crosswalks, it's generally more dangerous.

Other than that, there isn't much to it. Pedal along, and enjoy the trip!