LoftusRoadie
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Herts
Hi All
I’ve been browsing here for a little while but thought it was time to sign up and get started!
Bit of background: I’ve been cycling for the past 25 years: pretty much Monday – Friday 5 days p.w., either commuting to work or at the very least to the local train station to get to work. Lived in Nuremberg for 7 years and besides cycling to work, I cycled pretty much all the time in the city limits. Also lived in Taiwan for 5 years, still cycled to work but not much besides that as didn’t feel it was safe cycling around Taipei streets especially with a young kid. Been living back in Herts for 9 years and mainly been cycling to the train station.
Present Time: Which is where the story changes really. My train Season Ticket is just over £2000 p.a. (and that’s just for a 25-30 min train journey!) so I was thinking about how to reduce those costs. Decided to see if I could cycle to work (I work near Cannon Street station) as a theoretical £2000 annual saving (I know! I know!) would come in quite handy. So since October I have been doing practice runs to work on the weekend (fastest time 85 mins for 19 miles one way) or going out in the countryside round where we live. The route to work is pretty nice – towpath along the River Lea for a large part and probably only 15-20 mins actual cycling in London roads.
I intend to start commuting to work by bike at the end of March (once the clocks go forward) so that it will still be light along the towpath going home. Plan is to do it for 6 months, and then see how I feel (if I’m still doing it!) – i.e. whether to take the train for the next 6 months or perhaps 9 months cycle/3 months train, or cycle all year round.
I feel quite confident that cycling to work will be fine (assuming I can sleep well!): currently it takes me 60 mins door to door in the morning and I will only have to wake up about 30 mins earlier to cycle to work. But cycling home will be harder – currently only takes 55 mins door to door going home so instead of getting home at 6.55pm I won’t be home until about 7.40 pm once I start cycling. I can see that psychologically being hard. And the physical effort of doing 19 miles x 10 runs each week whereas I’ve probably never cycled more than 6 or 7 miles even in my younger days when I was commuting by bike.
Equipment: Giant Iguana (which I’ve had for a few years) + I am going to buy CarraDura Rack Bag which I think will be big enough to carry my stuff on a daily basis (we have showers at work and I’ll be leaving stuff at work as well).
Sorry for the long introduction but actually it’s quite therapeutic writing it all down!
I’ve been browsing here for a little while but thought it was time to sign up and get started!
Bit of background: I’ve been cycling for the past 25 years: pretty much Monday – Friday 5 days p.w., either commuting to work or at the very least to the local train station to get to work. Lived in Nuremberg for 7 years and besides cycling to work, I cycled pretty much all the time in the city limits. Also lived in Taiwan for 5 years, still cycled to work but not much besides that as didn’t feel it was safe cycling around Taipei streets especially with a young kid. Been living back in Herts for 9 years and mainly been cycling to the train station.
Present Time: Which is where the story changes really. My train Season Ticket is just over £2000 p.a. (and that’s just for a 25-30 min train journey!) so I was thinking about how to reduce those costs. Decided to see if I could cycle to work (I work near Cannon Street station) as a theoretical £2000 annual saving (I know! I know!) would come in quite handy. So since October I have been doing practice runs to work on the weekend (fastest time 85 mins for 19 miles one way) or going out in the countryside round where we live. The route to work is pretty nice – towpath along the River Lea for a large part and probably only 15-20 mins actual cycling in London roads.
I intend to start commuting to work by bike at the end of March (once the clocks go forward) so that it will still be light along the towpath going home. Plan is to do it for 6 months, and then see how I feel (if I’m still doing it!) – i.e. whether to take the train for the next 6 months or perhaps 9 months cycle/3 months train, or cycle all year round.
I feel quite confident that cycling to work will be fine (assuming I can sleep well!): currently it takes me 60 mins door to door in the morning and I will only have to wake up about 30 mins earlier to cycle to work. But cycling home will be harder – currently only takes 55 mins door to door going home so instead of getting home at 6.55pm I won’t be home until about 7.40 pm once I start cycling. I can see that psychologically being hard. And the physical effort of doing 19 miles x 10 runs each week whereas I’ve probably never cycled more than 6 or 7 miles even in my younger days when I was commuting by bike.
Equipment: Giant Iguana (which I’ve had for a few years) + I am going to buy CarraDura Rack Bag which I think will be big enough to carry my stuff on a daily basis (we have showers at work and I’ll be leaving stuff at work as well).
Sorry for the long introduction but actually it’s quite therapeutic writing it all down!