Are you tired of sitting on a stationary bus, watching carefree cyclists whizz by your window, racing their way through the rush hour traffic with ease?
Perhaps you’ve already planned your cycling route into work, but the idea of preparing for the commute is putting you off.
Well fear not. You won’t need to break the bank, or weigh yourself down with tons of unwieldy kit. Just slip of few inexpensive, lightweight commuting essentials in your bag, and you’re ready to go.
While there are a few things we would advise all cyclists to take with them when going out for a spin, it’s surprising how little you need just to get started.
As part of our commitment to getting more people back on their bikes, we want to offer practical advice as well as words of encouragement.
To that end, we’ve come up with a handy two-part checklist of what you need to make your cycle to work as fun and fuss-free as possible.
So here’s the Cyclechic Guide To Commuting Essentials Part 1: The Gear
1. An accessible, well maintained bicycle
Want to cycle into work? You’re going to need a bike. But how many of us already have bikes tucked away at the back of the garden shed, or buried in the cellar behind a load of boxes.
Even worse, once you retrieve said bike, it’s often a neglected mess of flat tires, worn brakes, frayed cables and a rusty chain.
But don’t feel guilty, help is often at hand in the shape of your friendly, neighbourhood Local Bike Shop (LBS). They’ll often offer a reasonably priced full service that will get your steed back on the road in no time.
Want to save yourself some money and learn some useful bike maintenance skills at the same time? Why not do it yourself. There are tons of handy videos out there on the Web, and if you don’t have an LBS, ordering online from one of the larger cycling retailers can help reduce the cost.
Once your bike is back on two wheels, don’t hide it away. Keep it in a place where you won’t have to think twice about getting it out for a spin, and you’ll find you’ll be using it a lot more.
Just keep those tyres pumped, your chain oiled, and give it the occasional once over and you may not have to visit your LBS again for quite some time (though once you get the cycling bug you may find yourself in there more than you might expect).
2. Pump/Puncture repair kit
Even if you treat yourself to puncture resistant tyres (and we recommend you do), you’re bound to get a puncture one day.
If you live in a large city, with easy access to a LBS, you can always pay them to fix your puncture, and let’s be honest, sometimes that’s a tempting offer.
But one of the reasons you start commuting by bike is to save money, right. And maybe you’re too far from a shop, or they’re busy, what do you do then?
Now we’re not going to tell you that fixing a puncture is a piece of cake, especially when you’re racing in to work, and time is of the essence. But once you get the knack there are few things more satisfying.
That’s where a puncture repair kit comes in. These compact beauties usually contain a pair of tyre levers, to ease the tyre off and on, a stub of chalk to mark the inner tube so you know where the hole is, some patches and rubber glue to affix them.
We’d recommend carrying a couple of folded inner tubes as well, so that you can save time by swapping tubes on the spot, and fixing the punctured one when you have more time at home. Then, just whip out your pump (we’d recommend a compact model), and before you know it you’re back on the road.
Neither the kit, the tubes, nor the pump take up much space in your bag, and they’re not expensive either, especially if you reuse the tubes that you patch up. And if you’re lucky it will be quite some time before you have to worry about another puncture.
3. Mini-tool/Bike spanners
One of the good things about a bike is that it’s a relatively simple machine, so there are less things to go wrong with it, particularly if you keep it well maintained.
Every now and then though something is going to need loosening, tightening up, or both.
For instance, if your wheels don’t have quick release levers, you’ll need a spanner to loosen their bolts should you get a puncture and need to remove them. You’ll also need to loosen the brakes, which is where the mini-tool come in.
Need to adjust the saddle angle or the stem height? Whip out the mini-tool. In fact, pound for pound, the mini-tool or set of compact spanners are probably the most cost effective bits of kit you can buy for your bike.
4. Front/Back Lights
Essential for when the nights start drawing in again, but just as handy keeping you seen while cycling at any time of the day, this is one piece of gear not to skimp on.
Nowadays you can find lights that attach to your helmet and to your bag, but we’d always recommend fitting some to your bike as well.
When choosing lights, they don’t have to be the brightest on offer, as long as they have the most coverage. Look in particular for lights that enable other road users to see you side on, or consider buying lights you can attach to your wheel spokes for a more dramatic effect.
You won’t have to waste money on batteries either, as most modern lights feature usb charging, so you can plug them into your work computer and keep them topped up during the day.
5. Bags
Whether you choose a backpack, panniers, a basket, or even an over the shoulder courier’s bag, you’re going to want something to carry your laptop, lunchbox, spare shoes, and anything else you need for work.
If you’re a speed demon you’ll probably choose a streamlined, highly technical sports rucksack. But there are plenty of other options out there for those who need something equally at home in the boardroom as on the bike.
Want something that sits on your bike rack rather than on your back? Panniers are perfect for a more balanced ride, and if you want to avoid sore shoulders.
If you mainly use your cycle for tootling around town and transporting the odd baguette or bottle of bubbly, why not attach a basket and lend your bike some retro appeal.
Whatever you choose, you’ll be one step closer to turning your bicycle into a practical commuting solution.
6. Locks
Unless you’re lucky enough to work for a company with secure bike parking, you’ll need to carry one, or ideally two locks to protect your precious velo from the attentions of bike thieves.
Most people use cable, chain, or D-locks. Some come with mounts for attaching to your bike, others are wearable like a belt or over the shoulder bandolier, but you’ll have to slip the larger ones into your bag or pannier
Of all the gear you really need to get commuting by bike, locks are probably the heaviest and most expensive. Cycling Weekly suggests spending ten percent of the value of your bike on a lock, and the sturdiest locks are also the heaviest and most bulky.
Locks tend to be fairly utilitarian in style as well, though there are some companies, such as Knog, that manage to design products that combine style and substance.
Just remember, most thieves come prepared to tackle one type of lock, so if you use two of different designs, this will slow them down considerably, and they may decide your bike is not worth the effort.
So locks are expensive, heavy, ugly and inconvenient, but they’re also one of the most important commuting essentials. Unless of course you enjoy a long, miserable walk home.
7. Bells, horns and hooters
If you’re commute takes you through noisy, congested streets, you’ll soon come to rely on this forgotten hero to keep you out of sundry scrapes and collisions.
Most bikes now come with a drab little dinger attached to the handlebars, but there are plenty of more effective and certainly more stylish options out there. From eye-catching polished brass domes, to gorgeous hand-painted bells and tuneful electric ringers, there’s something for all tastes.
Want to go the full retro, get yourself a stylish chrome hooter and give it a honk. We guarantee you’ll be hooked in no time.
So why not treat yourself and liven up your bike cockpit with something that will get you noticed in more ways than one.
8. Water Bottle
When it’s hot in the city, you need to keep cool and hydrated if you want to stay ahead of the game.
Instead of paying the exorbitant prices most shops charge for water, or adding to the plastic waste that’s in danger of engulfing the planet, why not carry your own reuseable bottle.
Better still choose a stainless steel or borosilicate glass bottle and you can polish your green credentials all the way to the office.
Well, that’s the first part of our guide to commuting essentials. We hope it showed that, as long as you have easy access to a roadworthy bicycle, you don’t need a lot of expensive, bulky gear to start cycling in to work.
In Part 2, we’ll be looking at What To Wear, how to beat the weather and become a four season cyclist, how to stay safe and visible, and most importantly, how you can still stay chic on two wheels.
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