Go out of my way for quiet route or man up?

[Hotchilidamo]

Ok so I'm a new commuter, in fact I've only done it once, so you could say I'm a virgin commuter. Anyways, my long planned cycle route on my spanking new bike proved to be long, slow, and have way more loose sand than I'd hoped for.

So on the way home I went a different route which had quiet-ish patches but was on main roads for most of it. I'm not a massive fan of cycling on busy roads, but I shaved 10 mins off the route home.

The only other alternative is to take a longer but much quieter route. Or go for the main road with one less hill and be a little scared by it.

So what do you do? Take a main road or opt for a quieter longer route?

 

[derrick]

You have to do what you feel safer doing, as your confidants grows you may want to change your route,

 

[Hotchilidamo]

[QUOTE 2975734, member: 30090"]What scares you?[/quote]

The speed of the cars passing me and the intensity of concentration required I guess

 

[vickster]

Roads never sacred me really, but having been knocked off at a busy junction, I expect I will now be seeking quieter roads if possible. Do what you feel more comfortable with and assuming you have the time, the longer route will mean you cycle more . Get a copy of cyclecraft to learn how to ride as well as you can, although you can't mitigate for all occurrences

When you say busy, sheer volume of traffic or ten speed of the cars. I have never felt entirely comfortable on roads with a speed limit over 40, around here though it's the number of cars not how fast they move

 

[Cameronmu917772]

What you could do is look at the route and work out a route that is lower in elevation?
I don't tend to bother either way if I go to St. Andrews I use the main road and that's the same road that goes out to Kinross I prefer the St. Andrews side more though because it's larger and you can see further.
Do you use strava or app like it?

 

[Hotchilidamo]

What you could do is look at the route and work out a route that is lower in elevation?
I don't tend to bother either way if I go to St. Andrews I use the main road and that's the same road that goes out to Kinross I prefer the St. Andrews side more though because it's larger and you can see further.
Do you use strava or app like it?

No just downloaded it but I used run keeper for this one.

 

[Cameronmu917772]

No just downloaded it but I used run keeper for this one.

I my self use strava after mapmyride didn't seem to be very good for me. And if you go onto veloviewer.com you can get a mass of geeky information. So it can help you figure out where to improve but also gives you detailed maps so from that you can work out the fasted route aswell as finding back roads etc. and def check out articles on Cadence etc check out this link.
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/technique-cadence-matters-16394/

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Ok so I'm a new commuter, in fact I've only done it once, so you could say I'm a virgin commuter. Anyways, my long planned cycle route on my spanking new bike proved to be long, slow, and have way more loose sand than I'd hoped for.

So on the way home I went a different route which had quiet-ish patches but was on main roads for most of it. I'm not a massive fan of cycling on busy roads, but I shaved 10 mins off the route home.

The only other alternative is to take a longer but much quieter route. Or go for the main road with one less hill and be a little scared by it.

So what do you do? Take a main road or opt for a quieter longer route?

I've been known to take a longer route or two

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

If you've got the time, I'd go for the quieter route. Of course, there will be days when the clock misbehaves and you'll have to go the quick non-peaceful way. If you're working fairly standard hours, it might be worth trying the busy route during the Easter holidays to ease yourself into it.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I much prefer the quieter routes. I used to commute 5 miles each way on roads that where I physically started to close my eyes everytime there was a near miss. It got that bad at one point, the local police knew my name and address when it came to witnessing accidents... After several years of this, I decided the stress of those roads was not worth it and changed and extended my route to 8.5 miles each way - not a major extension except for one small factor - half of that was off-road across country and the other half on minor single track country lanes where if I met anyone they would say hello, stop and wait for me in passing places, knowing I would do the same for them if I got to a passing place first. I really wished I had changed my route years previously. Yes the time doubled but it was so much nicer.

Go with what stresses you the least - life is already stressful enough and if you don't like busy roads and have the time available (or are happy to get up earlier) go for what you prefer and are happier with. It is simply not worth it otherwise.

 

[wiggydiggy]

Ok so I'm a new commuter, in fact I've only done it once, so you could say I'm a virgin commuter. Anyways, my long planned cycle route on my spanking new bike proved to be long, slow, and have way more loose sand than I'd hoped for.

So on the way home I went a different route which had quiet-ish patches but was on main roads for most of it. I'm not a massive fan of cycling on busy roads, but I shaved 10 mins off the route home.

The only other alternative is to take a longer but much quieter route. Or go for the main road with one less hill and be a little scared by it.

So what do you do? Take a main road or opt for a quieter longer route?

It depends on how the road is busy and what the cycling is like on it.

What I mean is I have 2 x 50 mph A road sections to negotiate on my route, difference is one is dual carriageway with wide lanes and either a mandatory cycle lane on one side and segrated on the other. This is ok to cycle as despite the fast traffic I feel safe.

The other A road is narrower lanes, single carriageway and no cycling facility. After a few goes I'm reasonably happy on the second but I still avoid it of a morning as I have a quieter way.

Try it a few times when its quieter or strangely when its very busy > my problem road is a breeze when its rush (3) hours as the congestion means I just sit behind the car in front an pedal at about 10-15 mph!

 

[Kies]

a busy road with lots of cars doing 20-40mph is a lot less intimdating to one with fewer cars all doing 50 mph +

if it was me, start with the quiet, longer route and revisit the busy route in 6 months time , with experience you may not fear it.

 

[sheffgirl]

a busy road with lots of cars doing 20-40mph is a lot less intimdating to one with fewer cars all doing 50 mph +

if it was me, start with the quiet, longer route and revisit the busy route in 6 months time , with experience you may not fear it.

I find the opposite to be true for me. A good 4 miles of my commute is on 50mph and National Speed Limit roads. These roads are however, quite wide, and most drivers give me plenty of room. Its not usually that busy so drivers are able to overtake, or don't have to wait long for a suitable gap.
The rest of my journey is on a bridlepath through the woods and then on the cycle path along the side of the dual carriageway.
The faster roads don't scare me as much as riding on the 30mph much busier dual carriageway does. It all depends on the road I suppose.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Depending on the time of the day and indeed on the day of the week, my routes change often - I work shifts.
If you have to ride rush hours on weekdays you need to get to work relaxed, not stressed out.
So choose the route that does not stress you, even if you need to get up a bit earlier.

 

[Hitchington]

Quieter route for me every time