I’m going to try something different this week. I think part of my burnout of late has been on account of missing the road bike. I like the Kona, mind you, and think it’s a fine bike, but I miss my Torelli. Spending 108 miles on it last week, and then another 75 in yesterday’s high winds (yeah, that was a treat ;) got me thinking.
So tonight after dinner (spaghetti with meatballs… yummy the frak yum – happy spheres of cow), I’m going to drive (yes… drive) a weeks worth of clothing up to work so that I can take whatever bike I want to work and back this week. If it’s raining, I’ll go ahead and take the Kona. But if it’s not, you can damn well bet the farm I’ll take the Torelli.
Instead of packing my panniers every evening before bed, I gather what I’ll need for the week and take it up there all at once.
Pants, check.
Shirts, check.
T-shirts, check.
Socks, check.
Underwear, check.
Belt, check.
Shoes, check.
In addition, I’m taking a (scentless) garbage bag for dirty laundry, and am keeping my unmentionables (which I’ve already so brazenly mentioned) in a backpack. I’m hanging my clothes in a communal closet, and it would be rude to throw private or dirty stuff all willy nilly in there with the rest. So I tuck them away a bit.
Phone, badge, access cards, and the like will still accompany me on my daily rides.
It all comes down to finding whatever method works. In the grand scheme, I want to ride to work. I want the exercise. I want the miles (nod to Noah), and I want the feeling that I’m doing a little bit to reduce my carbon footprint. Granted, this method still involves at least one trip by car to work and back per week in order to drop off and pick up laundry, but it’s better than 5, no?
I’ve been commuting for a little over 6 months now. I’m still a relative n00b, and as such, am sill working it into my life to ensure it’s more than just a passing fancy. This week’s worth of clothes idea is something I’ve toyed with for a while, and it’s time to put it into action to see how it goes. I’ll let you know how it works out (as if there were any doubt about that), but I can tell you right now I’ll enjoy the lack of daily packing, and the lighter load regardless of which set of tires sees the asphalt.
I have been “biking to Home” several weeks this year. I drive to work on Monday morning with a load of clothes. Then bike home each day until Friday afternoon then drive back home. This lets me have a car at work if I want to go out for lunch. If I have to go somewhere at night, generally I can use the wife’s minivan.
Alan
You know, I toyed with that idea as well. I didn’t try it first b/c I don’t feel quite comfortable leaving my car at work overnight. It’s not a bad part of town, by any means (unless you consider well lit and mostly developed bad), but parking is uncovered and I don’t know what the security around here is like after hours.
I may try it, but we’ll see.
I’m a huge advocate of mixing it up to find out what you like. As the summer riding season picks up, it’s undoubtedly a great time for a paradigm shift.
One awesome thing about commuting by bike is that there’s really only one rule: part of your commute has to be by bike.
I personally am borrowing a lot of my tricks and gear from bicycle tourers: big panniers with rain covers, fenders, and walkable recessed cleats on clipless pedals. Not a lot of fancy riding gear, but I don’t demand a lot of performance from my machines. I have no reason to be in a hurry, and aside from wishing I could lose another 30 pounds, I’m not really training for anything. My style works well. For me.
Your new plan is a popular one and works very well for a lot of bike commuters I know. Many of them are either racers or are training for long rides like Ragbrai, BAK etc. You’ll be switching over to “roadie” mode, and it will benefit you a great deal as you’ll be better prepared for more realistic training and perhaps a few REALLY long homeward detours on the machine you’re taking with you to TBP.
If you end up taking the Kona on occasion, you can use that as a mule to haul the past few days’ worth of stinky clothes back home.
I tried a few round trips with just me and The Twelve. I found out very quickly that I couldn’t pick up any extra speed or make the effort any easier by unloading my bike. My bottleneck is obviously the bike’s engine. :P
Switching from the loaded Kona to the nimble Torelli will certainly give you a boost.
Al, is that you I’ve been bumping into on occasion at SW and Summit? Last time, I was waiting for some convoy denizens. We took off shortly after someone I think was you had passed us, and then took off up Roanoake while my convoy kept truckin’ down SW into Joco. I’ve ridden home with probably a dozen different cyclists. I think you joined Chris and I once last summer.
Noah,
It must me someone else. My commute starts and ends outside of the 435 loop on the west side of town. I think the last time I saw you and the Twelve was during a Moonlight ride last year. I thought I might bump into Dave but after looking at his route, the farthest east I get to is Phlumm, and Dave heads down Quivira.
I might be thinking of MonkeyWithChainsaw then.
http://monkeywithchainsaw.wordpress.com/
Sorry for the Hijack, Dave. :P
Seriously! I’m going to have to start charging rent! ;)