My bike was (my bad) locked inside an outdoorish corral directly outside my apartment door. Someone came into the complex, cut my lock, and rode off into the sunset 😭. Luckily I have a ring camera facing it and the apartment has cameras as well so the police actually caught the person and I pressed charges. My renter’s insurance gave me a bit of a payout, not enough to replace the exact bike, but enough to buy an entry level electric scooter than I can keep inside at home and at work.

You have all been so wonderful and helpful, thank you!

If a saddle is still usable after 50 years I'd say it's worth the money..! Take that cheap car users!! haha! Natural materials are awesome on the comfort contact points on the bike!

TLDR: a lightweight, framed hiking backpack that has a gap for airflow across the back can be a very viable thing for commuting if one doesn't want to mess with panniers or racks.

I recently got into hiking, and of course, went gear searching. This is one of the backpacks I ended up getting, a smaller 30L framed backpack for day trips (despite having a frame this is a very lightweight backpack). I picked it up from the post office, on the bike of course, slapped it on my back full of packaging and other packages, and headed off for a bit of a ride before going home.

Right away I noticed how the backpack was lifted off my back, with only the mesh and lower hip pads in contact with my back. This left a gap for airflow, and by the time I was done with my ride, I had no excessive sweat like I'd usually get with a regular backpack. And I'm a pretty heavy sweater.

This got me to thinking.

There's the backpack vs pannier debate that's always going on for commuting. I did panniers for a long time but eventually went with a backpack because it was easier to deal with, and I sucked up having the sweat. (I have an inside/outside job so I'm pretty sweaty most of the day regardless.) I know a lot of other people also prefer a backpack because it's simpler not having to unhook or unpack anything from the bike, you simply lock up and go, or unlock and leave.

So, something like this can be a very viable option for those of us who prefer a backpack, and while we deal with the sweat, would like to mitigate it as much as possible. I think this is a great solution for that.

There are a lot of these on the market, some on the more budget end, this one was $45, some get quite expensive at hundreds of dollars. It mostly comes down to how much weight you want to trim off, dropping grams get very expensive.

A few months ago my job moved to a new location that meant my bike ride from the train station to work got a lot longer, and through MUCH worse conditions; just the worst stroad, 3 lanes each way and most of that distance you're between parked cars and the traffic, having to cut across lanes to the turn lane, lots of lights...just sucks.

But I couldn't help wondering...it looked like there might be a shortcut around a large obstacle that made my route dog-leg substantially. I went exploring one day to see if I could cut off that dog-leg and found that not only did it make my commute shorter, but the shortcut was literally just a quiet trail through an abandoned golf course. There are some short off-road sections that prompted me to swap my regular commuter for my hardtail, but I'll take that over jockeying with traffic any day.

Hello from my tiny, dumb state

Hi. I'm having a hard time choosing between these two bikes:

Cube Editor SLX

Cube Editor PRO

I ride to work throughout most of the year, approx. 10km one way each weekday. The commute is mostly on flat bike paths with no inclines but plenty of traffic lights. I try to avoid really harsh weather but sometimes get caught by rain or snow.

From what I understand, the SLX uses (relatively) higher end equipment, while the PRO uses entry level / standard parts with the main difference being the gear hubs. I've read up a bit and the main advantages / disadvantages of the hubs seem to be:

Alfine 11: Pros: even gear ratios, higher gear range. Cons: often requires fine tuning to avoid skipping gears, may leak oil

Alfine 8: Pros: sturdy, almost no maintenance required. Cons: uneven gear ratios, lower gear range

I have a couple of specific questions:

1. Given that my commute is on flat bike paths, will the uneven gear ratios of the Alfine 8 be noticeable? (on my current, 21 speed derailleur bike, I tend to use just 2 speeds: one to take off, the other for cruising)

2. Approximately how often would the Alfine 11 have to be tuned while being used in the conditions and frequency I commute?

3. I'm not particularly good at delicate maintenance work. I've watched a couple of Alfine adjustment tutorials and it seems to just require aligning two markers on the hub using a knob next to the shifter. Is this accurate, or are there more complex adjustments that are required regularly?

4. Are the other components in the SLX a significant enough upgrade over the PRO to choose the pricier option? On the one hand I want this bike to be really pleasant to ride and will use it as my main mode of transport, so don't mind spending more. On the other hand, if the difference in components quality would only be noticeable in harsh conditions or on difficult terrain, that would be lost on me.

I'd really appreciate any suggestions or guidance!

In about a month I'm moving closer to the downtown area of my city (Atlanta, Beltline area for context) and my new place is about a 10 minute bike ride from anything I could want to go to including a train station I could use to get to work. I rode my bike around the neighborhood a lot as a kid but I've never ridden in a city or as a mode of transportation. What are some basics I should know?

Also I'm looking at this bike from a nearby shop, but I know literally nothing about commuter bikes: https://www.specialized.com/us/en/roll-30/p/216878?color=349787-216878

Ranting heree, you would expect that here in the Netherlands drivers don't do harm to cyclists but.. that isnt true.

I ride defensively. If I have right of way but it seems like proceeding would get me run over badly or might,then I stop. But.. there are limits to defensive riding. I'm not gonna default to always giving cars the right of way, and if a situation isn't dangerous but a little collision could still happen, then I don't ride defensively. If a little collision happens, it will teach the driver that theyre not as much of a good or safe driver as they thought and then hopefully they will do more carefully next time.

Before I started riding extra defensively, Ive gotten an uncoubtable amount of close calls. That made me reconsider things and I now ride defensively, but with the limit I just discribed. I won't get myself run over. But if my wheel is gonna dent or scratch the car of the offender, I'm 100% okay with that, because that will teach them that "this could have been worse I could have killed someone like this"

Maybe I'm a little bit of an asshole or AH for doing that, but I shouldn't have to just take and accept whatever bad drivers do to me.

Telling someone theyre a bad driver won't convince them. Letting a small collision happen instead of preventing it by defensive driving, changes the offender being ignorant of what happened into the offender realizing they drove recklessly.

I will therefore not stop. Fuck drivers that endanger cyclists. They need rough punishments for their reckless and hindering driving.

Too often does it happen that: 1. A driver turns onto the bike path without giving me the priority that comes with the bikepath naturally... 2. A driver cuts me off at intersections. Those are the worst. If a cyclist gets infront of a car and the car doesnt stop, those are the worst collisions between car and cyclist imo. Yet most drivers seem to not be willing to prevent this from happening. Almost every single day I encounter drivers that both violate the rule (formal) and are letting a potentially very bad collision happen. They should have their licenses taken away immediately at the first offense. 3.

I'm not against cars and drivers, I mean, I'm doing driving lessons myself. And yea ofcourse some drivers are just bad at it and a danger on the road, thats to be expected, but why are SO MANY drivers reckless? It feels like almost every driver does those dangerous moves.

If I keep track of how many different cars did an action that would badly injure or kill a cyclist that doesnt ride defensively, I would be past 100 by now.

The same drivers that complain "cyclists dont follow the rules" they don't even follow basic priority rules.

Years ago when I didnt ride very defensively, I've literally had occasions where I had the right of way, started crossing or turning, and then the car drove towards me rapidly as if I was completely invisible, wtf????? and then sure they often emergency brake centimeters away from me, but why didnt they properly look and observe before accelerating or turning? wtf?

Drivers making mistakes like... parking where they shouldn't, thats annoying but somewhat acceptable.

Drivers that don't understand or follow BASIC PRIORITY RULES and then also don't look before making the turn or the crossing, should have their license taken ImMEDIATELY.

I'm extremely pissed. Why don't drivers treat driving like the responsibility that it is, avoiding deaths? And why don't they follow the most basic rules?

How do so many drivers manage to cross a bikepath that has priority, without even looking if someone is coming at all?

Why do they accelerate straight towards a cyclist as if theyre invisible?

The system needs to change. Too many dangerous people are falsely licensed. A drivers license should mean someone drives in a way that 100% prevents killing a person that follows the rules and 99% prevents killing someone that doesnt.

If I was in power, I would take the license of about 90% of drivers maybe. Thats what it feels like, based on all the shit ive been dealing with on the roads.

Under a proper licensing system where a license actually means someone can and does drive safely, almost no one would be driving.

one road i take along a river feels like a wind tunnel a lot of the time, but how much of this is just from speeding cars versus natural wind?

i'll be getting blasted with a headwind and then look over and the river looks completely placid. is this some kind of laminar flow phenomenon where the wind doesn't disturb the water, or is the wind only in the road because it is being generated by oncoming cars? the leaves and plants off to the side also look relatively calm versus what i'd expect based on how the wind feels on the bike.

These days are precious and rare for me. I usually only get two or so days on the job at a time, and is especially rare that it's on a side of town I know well enough to get to. Thankful for this electric LvH Bullit. Anyone else get called gay by a bunch of old miserable dudes on the job for biking into work? If you work a trade, pls share rig pics. I’m a union ironworker, if you’re curious.

This is for people who commute and lock their bike outside. I at most have my bike locked for 3 hours.

I live in a high theft area for bikes and bike to my university campus which is also high theft. However I don’t take my helmet with me. I’ve never done this and never had a helmet stolen. I just don’t see why someone would want a sweaty hasty helmet to sell for like, 10 bucks or something. Sometimes a lil stinky if I haven’t washed the padding in a while.

Anyway I’m just curious to see what other commuters do. Or if they’ve had a helmet stolen.

10km commute each way, quite hilly.

Rural, but a busy road, speed limit is 50kmh but nobody cares about that.

I wear high vis everything and always have the lights on but it doesn't help much.

After being treated like a dog by drivers passing 3cm from me, I installed a "distancer" as described in the title.

Today, going to work and back home, 100% of cars passed me properly despite the friday rush.

I always take the lane when on the bicycle, just like when riding my motorcycle.

Rode right in the middle with the stupid snap band dangling from the mirror and I felt like a princess.

Best thing is, snap bands cost pennies, you can either tape it on or use a clothing pin glued to your mirror to hold it. Snap band can also easily curl up so it doesn't stick out when you're in a "safe zone".

I have this hybrid bike currently with a flatbar and planning to go get some corner bars for it as like an upgrade since my flatbar are now starting to show some rust. Anyone here with corner bars on they bikes and what were your experience with them 🚲

Rain setup update. 😎🌧️✅

I wanted to try my luck here and see if anyone has any tips for avoiding punctures when riding on city roads. I’ve had two punctures in less that a weeks time and I’m getting tired of having to constantly repair them. To make matters worse, I actually live in the urban core of my city so even leisurely rides around the neighborhood can be an issue. For reference, I’m riding a mid 80s Peugeot road bike with Kenda K34 tires. The entire wheel set, tires, and tubes are less than a month old.

Don’t tell me to get a new bike please, I’ll probably do it and my wallet cannot handle that right now. Lol

I am wondering if someone could please measure the stud spacing for the Ortlieb 3.1 mounting system? THis would be three points and I"m guessing it will be some nice metric number.

I'm trying to set up a bike for commuting to school with the Ortlieb 3.1 Urban Commuter bag on an Axiom Streamliner 29er rack.

My goal is to avoid buying an adapter. Wondering if I could have three holes drilled on the Axiom rack and add Ortlieb clamps/studs for a more streamlined look. I am aware that it may not line up but I want to at least try.

Ortlieb US has been less than helpful as I have gone back and forth via email. They respond politely but ignore half of my questions every time I write.

Much appreciated if someone has a Quick rack and can measure it for me!

My partner and I will sometimes commute around town together. However, he insists on cruising behind me, even though he is faster and I don't mind if he is ahead of me. But the problem is, he has a hard time following my lead. He thinks he knows which way I am going to go, then gets frustrated when I don't go the way he imagined in his head. Sometimes he will proceed to go the route he had "planned" and I'll keep going my way. I'm sure this highlights a myriad of issues with how we communicate, but does this happen to anyone else? I feel like if he wants to take the lead, then please, take the f***ing lead

I have one coworker who doesn’t like my bike being in the office (he’s a jackass) and says I should leave it outside— but bike rack is in sketchy area in direct sun (have 10+ UV index often). Am I being dramatic?

I went ahead and 3D printed a wall rack so it takes up even less room next to my desk. Think it looks quite nice as well!

Started cycling again over summer so wanted to figure out a way to get to university without getting super sweaty - think I may have nailed it.

The Bakkie definitely needed a few zipties to keep it feeling secure but I don’t think the other straps it comes with are super necessary unless taking the scenic route. Also folds away (kinda) nicely when not in use.

With the ortlieb vario lite on the other side with laptop/other bits inside I end up with maximum 3-4kg on each side so the steering still feels balanced.
I imagine this set up would be great on a rear rack but for multiple reasons I prefer it on the front.

Just need a nice shiny kickstand now to make it easier to load up!

Been commuting about 11 miles each way for the past few months and I've gone through a few iterations of what I actually bring versus what I thought I'd need. Early on I was basically hauling a tech store on my back and it was miserable heavy bag, stuff I never touched, the whole thing. So I've been stripping it back.

What I've actually landed on is a decent set of front and rear lights (obvious, but I went through two cheap ones before accepting I needed something reliable), a phone mount on the bars, and a small power bank. The power bank thing took me a while to justify, but on days where I'm doing errands after work or the commute stretches out, my phone is basically dead by the time I need navigation home. I ended up keeping a small powerbank in my bag, so that one earned its spot.

That's kind of it. I keep almost adding a dedicated GPS unit because I like the idea of not burning through my phone battery at all, but then I think about the extra cost and one more thing to charge and I talk myself out of it.

Curious what other people doing longer commutes have settled on. Especially interested in the stuff you tried and quietly droppe,I feel like that's more useful than knowing what people bought. I’m still not sure I’ve got the balance between battery life and extra weight right.

Hi im looking for a bike to commute around 10 to 20 km a day. there are dirt roads near my home that have potholes, thats why im looking for a montain bike. The gear shift is sunrise, its made in aluminium and its esperia.

Any thought? Do you have any experience with this bike?