11 mile commute possible?

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Rozza2012

Regular
Hi,

I am looking at somwhere different to work, it is about 11 miles ish.

I currently commute 4 miles which I find quite easy. does anyone else commute this kind of distance each day?

Its from crumpsall to irlam in manchester.

Not sure if the new place has a shower which is my biggest worry.
 

Michaelt

Active Member
Location
Ashford, Kent
I cycle 10 miles in the morning, no problem for me, usually takes 40mins, I just cool down before I get changed.
 

calibanzwei

Well-Known Member
Location
Warrington
Plenty on here have daily commutes of 30 to 40miles per day, not necessarily everyday though.
Things to consider:
- what are the roads like? more/less hills?
- have a backup plan, as you may find that initially you'll tire but it'll get easier - train an option?
 
I do 8 miles each way. Was only an issue when I first started as I flagged towards the end of the week. Now it doesn't even phase me and have been know to throw in the odd 30 miler (the long way around! ^_^). I do have the advantage of showers at work though!
 

MacB

Lover of things that come in 3's
Last post is good, look at the options and work out alternatives but yes, 11 miles each way is very doable and I would consider it within my optimum range. Short enough for full year round potential but long enough to give a fair workout without recourse to further exercise....as in you can slob evenings and weekends if you want without any guilt :biggrin:

Work facilities, showers etc would be a consideration for me, I'd want to investigate that in particular.
 

Beebo

Firm and Fruity
Location
Hexleybeef
11 miles is very do able, what bike do you have?

Make sure you wear sensible wicking clothes so you dont sweat too much. Some guys who dont have showers just use baby wipes to freshen up. I've never tried this, so cant comment on it.
 

VamP

Banned
Location
Cambs
My short commute is 16 miles, the long way round is anything up to 60 miles. I don't ride it everyday though, as I am not in the office every day.

Baby wipes and deodorant are the best way around the shower issue, also if you can keep workclothes (enough for a week or two at a time) at work, that makes life a hell of a lot easier.
 

jowwy

Can't spell, Can't Punctuate....Sue Me
my commute is a 30 mile round trip - only do it tues, wed, thurs though and a nice ride on saturday mornings

downhill going in dropping 1100ft over the 15 miles and climbing 1100ft over the same route going home.....

its good excercise which means when i get in at half 5ish the rest of the evening is mine with no gym trips needed.
 

Moodyman

Legendary Member
12 miles one way here and mine's quite hilly - 1400 feet climbing over both legs.

It's doable but it took me about 3-4 months to go from 1 day a week to all 5 comfortably.
 
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Rozza2012

Regular
Thanks for all of your advise.

I have looked into using trains and trams but that would then involve quite a bit of walking as i cant take my bike on the trams and trains.

Perhaps if I had a bit of a mix between cycling and using trams etc until I can build it up to cycling each day.
 

martint235

Dog on a bike
Location
Welling
Mine's about 11 miles into central London at the mo. Shifting it at the weekend to an 11 miler into Croydon. I commute 5 days all year round but we do have a shower at work. Not sure I'd be that keen on the babywipe thing! There's a lot of me to wipe!
 

Andrew_P

In between here and there
I would say 11 is almost the perfect miles, may take a while to build up to it.

I was building up but decided to just go for it the first 4-5 weeks were pretty painful nothing more depressing starting off Friday afternoon with Friday legs. But quite rewarding once you are home and dry on Friday.

The memory of that pain kept me doing it through the winter, It is almost routine now except on windy weeks which take their toll on the legs I will sometimes miss a day. This is from a fairly unfit 47 year old doing 14.7 each way.

No showers for me, don't think I have a smell problem either. My biggest hurdle was getting the kit dry in time for the return
 
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Rozza2012

Regular
I have looked on runkeeper and it looks like there are 2 big climbs and then everything else is either flat or down hill.

So perhaps the way home will kill me....

I'll have to ask if they have a shower, i doubt it though.
 
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