The Bare Necessities
Well, strictly speaking, if we’re only talking about the bare necessities for bike commuting, that would be, by definition, a bike. Any bike. Nada más. Clothing? Purely optional. Helmet? Completely hypothetical. Just a bike and somewhere to ride it to. Okay, job done, blog over. Think I’ll go open a beer and pat myself on the back.
What? You’re still here? All right, so I guess you’re expecting some sort of accumulated wisdom at this point, right? Keeping in mind that this blog is entirely colored by my own personal experiences and preferences, here are some things that I think are absolute musts.
The Bike
Yeah, I know, we covered this above. Sure, you can commute on any old bike. And a circus bear can ride a tiny children’s bike, but does he look comfortable? Is this a practical vehicle for your typical urban ursine? There are certain features you’re going to appreciate – and quite possibly depend upon – in your daily commuting bike.
First off, make sure your bike fits your body. Any reputable bike shop will only sell you a bike that fits you correctly. Also, for a fee, many will adjust the bike you already own to fit you as well as possible. Ever climb behind the wheel of a car that someone much taller or shorter than you had previously been driving? What’s the first thing you do, probably before you even start the engine? Move the seat, right? Can’t drive very effectively if you can’t reach the pedals, nor if your knees are higher than your elbows. On a bike, you’re not pedaling very efficiently – and you’ll probably become uncomfortable pretty quickly – if your seat is too high or too low. (On a recumbent, this translates into being too close to or too far from the pedals horizontally, much like a car seat. And in this case, you’ll feel the poor adjustment mainly in your knees.)