jaxy357

It has taken me a long time to have two bikes set up for commuting; one near my home and the other near my work. Multimodal commuting makes for some challenges to figure out. Folding bike didn't have the umph I needed for getting over the pedestrian bridge to the train station, tried out a few options, broke at least one rack, etc. etc.
But today I successfully chained up my "home" bike at the station near my house, then hopped on board, read a little of my new book (getting fired up about infrastructure, okay?) and hopped on my campus bike upon arrival. Got a shower at the gym, figured out the laundry service I just signed up for, ordered myself a bagel sandwich and coffee and was 3 minutes late to work. I think next time will be better. I used to arrive like 30 mins early from the train but now decided if I can be riding for part of that time, why not extend a little? No reward for workaholism, at least not that I'm interested in!

My fingernails got long while in France and now have bike grease under them, a badge of honor. Got a new (used) Park Tools repair stand in the garage and am figuring out how to service and maintain my vintage road bikes.

timdow

Glad to hear you go it worked out and are now commuting.

Korina

Well done! Also, it's a great read isn't it? I had trouble putting it down.

Harhir

Cool commuter concept. I just hope your bikes don't get stolen or vandalized while being locked up at the station or campus. And I just ordered the book. Looking forward reading it.

joey buzzard

Enjoy the book! I've been watching lots of urban infrastructure videos on YouTube recently, and the Strong Towns organization is often referred to. Not Just Bikes and Oh the Urbanity are worth checking out if you haven't already. I ride a 20" Swift folder and it's great at getting up hills. In fact I live in a mountainous area. Going anywhere involves hundreds of meters of up. I've ridden it more than 200km in a day over mountains no problem. In the city I like the small wheels which accelerate quickly which makes getting out front and visible at traffic lights easy. I think that folding bikes potentially have a lot of performance depending on gearing and the quality of the frame and other components.

jaxy357

I find there's strength in numbers and probably about 6 or 8 bikes left at the train station routinely for people doing the "first and last mile" thing by bike. The one near my house has the security station right in front of it and I have a U lock with cable to go through each wheel (Kryptonite brand) so I feel pretty okay about it so far.

Korina

As others have said, you don't have to have the perfect lock, just better than those around you.

How's the book going?

rumrunn6

2 bikes & a train, one way. wow, great. wishing you good weather!

jaxy357

I honestly stopped reading it for a while, pick it up from time to time. It's making me sad...

Smaug1

I used to do a multi-modal commute like that. My bike I left at the work end was apparently a bit too nice (Gary Fisher commuter) and it got stolen one weekend. That was heart-breaking. I had a heavy padlock and a heavy cable; the cable wasn't enough.

I tried it with a folder, Dahon Curve D2. beauty of a bike, but it had bad wheels and I sold it off. It was slower, but did have a nice low gear for hills.

One bike I have now might do you OK: Lectric XP Lite folder. Fold it and put it in a bag for the train. It's heavy at 44 lbs. but the electric assist would make quick work of the hills and if you just take it a little easy, you could skip the shower step and all of its support gear. When you get to work, lock it outside or roll it inside, depending on the situation there.

Now, I'm lucky enough to live 2 miles from work, so I only need the one bike.

It's cool that you're working on learning how to wrench. I need to get a bike stand soon for that; it can be frustrating doing it without. I also want to get a trailer hitch installed on my car so I can bring the heavier eBikes with me for rides further away from home.

jaxy357

Lil update: I've been driving to the train station lately because I'm having some mechanical problems with my "home" bike. So no shower anymore, lol. I looked at some of those folding e-bikes and was put off by the weight. Something to ponder. Sorry to hear about your stolen bike, Smaug1!!

Smaug1

Oh, bummer. No local bikeforumers to help out? I'd volunteer if I were closer.

Free Spirit: that's a brand name I haven't seen since my childhood. Does it hold some good memories for you?

I'm not familiar with Bridgestone or Centurion.

jaxy357

I volunteer at the local bike project but am sometimes nervous that someone will say something if I'm always working on my own bikes instead of customers' bikes...but that's in my head mostly because other volunteers routinely bring theirs in to use the tools and get feedback on issues they're experiencing.

I actually don't have any particular attachment to my project bike, the Free Spirit, except that it's pretty cool looking (though taken apart at the moment).