Bike Commuting Essentials

Although the mornings are still quite chilly, spring is in the air, which means it's time to break out your bike and start bike commuting! To me, biking to work basically fulfills the trifecta of exercising, saving gas and money, and spending time outdoors getting fresh air. I have often thought that using a bike as a means of transportation can be viewed as a solution to so many of our society's challenges: obesity, climate change, and financial debt. 

It's important to learn the rules of the road before biking along with car traffic. Check out the City of Boise's bike safety tips. Make sure you are very visible, through bright and reflective clothing and bike lights. I also recommend looking at Google Maps and putting into your location and destination to get directions. You can change the directions to "Cycling" mode by clicking the bike emblem at the top of the map. It's also important to do a trial run of your bike route. Drive the route and see if the roads have bike lanes or shoulders, crosswalks on busy streets, etc. You could also walk or bike the route on an early weekend morning or at a non-peak traffic time to get familiar with the roads and where to cross busy intersections. 


Here are a few items that are essential to bike commuting (or if not entirely essential, will certainly make you more comfortable!):

• Bike rack to put a pannier bag on. Having a bike rack will allow you to put a pannier bag on your bike, which means you can avoid wearing a backpack. It's more comfortable than carrying weight on your back! Most local bike shops sell bike racks and will install one for you. 
• Pannier bags. Take the weight off your shoulders and put your work laptop, lunch, calendar, and anything else in a bag that hooks to your bike rack. There is a huge variety of price range and styles, and REI has some good options.
• Bike bell. This is a great option to make sure your presence is known to cars that are backing out of driveways, or if you're passing pedestrians on a bike path. A simple "on your left" will do, but think of a bell like a car horn -- loud and effective.
•  Bike light. It's extremely important to use front and back bike lights for visibility especially in the dawn and dusk hours while you're bike commuting. Check out this rechargeable front bike light and flashing red rear light.  
• Coffee mug. I love the Yeti Rambler mug because it fits in my bike's water bottle cage and keeps my coffee nice and warm! 
• Liner gloves. A lightweight pair of gloves will help keep your hands warm on chilly spring mornings. 
• Fleece headband. I love Skida's headbands to fit under a bike helmet. 
• Bike helmet. The most important piece of bike commuting hear for safety! Find one that fits you well and make sure to purchase a new one if you've ever been in an accident with it.