Spring is here,official exercise and diet thread!

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: ausm

Originally posted by: Geekbabe
I've got a helmet and a gel seat,should I also invest in elbow,knee pads?

I would invest in a pair of padded gloves, My hands used to kill me after a couple miles of biking and padded gloves really help make biking more enjoyable.

Ausm

True to a point. They do help, but if your hands are hurting all that much you may have some bike-fit issues that are putting extra weight on your hands. I have cork bar tape on my road bike that provides all the padding I need for my usual rides (40-60 miles). About the only time I wear gloves is when it's cold or in a race where there's a possibility I might crash. Road rash on your palms (as I already pointed out) sucks ass.

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: Hoober

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Hoober

Originally posted by: Fausto1

I would love to bike to work every day. Unfortunately, there aren't any paths or trails from my house to place of employment. There are only busy streets and intersections. How far do you bike every day, Fausto? It'd probably take me an hour or so each way by bike.

It's about 8 miles each way, which takes me roughly 30 minutes (depending on how I hit the lights) at my usual pace. There are shorter routes, but I chose this one specifically for minimal traffic. I can deal with heavy traffic if need be, but I'd rather just pedal a few extra miles and not have to worry about it.

EDIT- I see you're in C Springs. Do you guys have all the bike lanes/paths like Denver does? How far are you from work?

We do have a bunch of bike paths, but they go towards the mountains, not south. I live on the north side of springs, and I work downtown, so I would have to head south. The one bad thing about Springs is that there really aren't any bike paths on the roads. There are a few on side streets, but the infrastructure around here wasn't designed to handle the amount of auto growth we've seen in the last ten years, let alone bicycles.

That's pretty much Atlanta in a nutshell....except for the bike lanes bit. We don't really have any of those.

If I were you, I'd get a detailed map of your area and try to find creative ways to connect your home with your office. My route to work takes me through several residential areas and two parks closed to cars. Like I said, it's longer but it's far safer and I don't arrive at work all pissed off after dealing with angry motorists.

I'll take a look. I need to get my bike out of the back of the garage and serviced, too.

Let me know if you have questions. I'm a pretty decent bike mechanic.

 

[Hoober]

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Hoober

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Hoober

Originally posted by: Fausto1

I would love to bike to work every day. Unfortunately, there aren't any paths or trails from my house to place of employment. There are only busy streets and intersections. How far do you bike every day, Fausto? It'd probably take me an hour or so each way by bike.

It's about 8 miles each way, which takes me roughly 30 minutes (depending on how I hit the lights) at my usual pace. There are shorter routes, but I chose this one specifically for minimal traffic. I can deal with heavy traffic if need be, but I'd rather just pedal a few extra miles and not have to worry about it.

EDIT- I see you're in C Springs. Do you guys have all the bike lanes/paths like Denver does? How far are you from work?

We do have a bunch of bike paths, but they go towards the mountains, not south. I live on the north side of springs, and I work downtown, so I would have to head south. The one bad thing about Springs is that there really aren't any bike paths on the roads. There are a few on side streets, but the infrastructure around here wasn't designed to handle the amount of auto growth we've seen in the last ten years, let alone bicycles.

That's pretty much Atlanta in a nutshell....except for the bike lanes bit. We don't really have any of those.

If I were you, I'd get a detailed map of your area and try to find creative ways to connect your home with your office. My route to work takes me through several residential areas and two parks closed to cars. Like I said, it's longer but it's far safer and I don't arrive at work all pissed off after dealing with angry motorists.

I'll take a look. I need to get my bike out of the back of the garage and serviced, too.

Let me know if you have questions. I'm a pretty decent bike mechanic.

I appreciate it. Between moving and storage, though, I think it'll be easier to just have somebody take a look at it and make sure it's in good order after going through all that jostling around.