Bicycle Newbie... (Ashland: to buy, groceries, vs)

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by Gunner0325

If you get a single speed bike make sure you grow a moustache, buy a pair of skinny jeans and don't follow any of the rules that you are supposed to. Like, don't even worry about red lights, just go right through them and ride right in the middle of the road...oh, and exclusively drink PBR tall boy's

Aren't they sporting full overgrown beards with strangely perfectly parted short hair these days?

[jwaiter]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

Aren't they sporting full overgrown beards with strangely perfectly parted short hair these days?

Also, get a worn out t-shirt of some 1970's corporate product and wear it ironically.

[Gunner0325]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

Aren't they sporting full overgrown beards with strangely perfectly parted short hair these days?

Haha!

[Gunner0325]

Originally Posted by jwaiter

Also, get a worn out t-shirt of some 1970's corporate product and wear it ironically.

ha!

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by Bardot

So I'm finally biting the bullet and purchasing a bike for commuting around Chicago. I've lived here for nearly 10 years and have always been too intimidated by biking (the danger! the bike theft!). I'm curious what tips you all might have on the matter. I'll be commuting from Lincoln Square to: Wicker Park/Bucktown; Roscoe Village; maybe Lakeview or Lincoln Park.

My questions are:

-What type of bike is ideal for urban commuting? Is it looked down on (amateur) to wear a helmut?

-What do I need to know about safely locking the bike up when not in use?

-What neighborhoods/roads are best suitable for biking? Which ones should be avoided b/c of dangerous roads and traffic?

Any other safety tips? Thanks in advance

Like the others said, get a road bike. $300-$500 should get you a very nice commuter road bike, but not so nice it stands out too much. Get a nice lock.
Wear a helmet.

Avoid any of the 4 lane bidirectional streets (Irving Park, Ashland, Western, etc). In general, you'll figure out which streets are best along your route pretty quickly. It doesn't take much time to realize Ashland's not the best place to be on a bike.

Be prepared for stale hipster jokes. (Did you hear the one about the skinny jeans and bad mustache?!)

[jgardener]

For your purposes, both Damen and California are good N/S streets to use from Lincoln Square. As for E/W I like Wilson, Montrose, Addison, Belmont.

Always keep an eye on things ahead of you, both car/traffic and pothole/obstructions/objects on the road way. Don't assume Cars or other bicyclists will stop for you and don't tailgate, you never know when someone will slam on their brakes (car or bike); watch for cars turning right and don't pass them on the right. Keep an eye out for pedestrians walking between cars. I also keep an eye out for people sitting in the driver's seat of a parked car who may be about to open their door. If you can't see yourself in someone's side mirror (especially large trucks), they can't see you.

As for a first bike, used is a great way to go, and skinny tires are not always better for roughly paved/pothole filled Chicago roads. I have two bikes: one is a hybrid that has skinny tires and straight handle bars, the other is a cyclocross with dropped handle bars and wider tires with a deeper tread. In the city I tend to get less flats with the wider tires and feel less of the vibration from the street (it may also be because the frame is steel and my other bike is an alloy).

I also find that it isn't always the expensive bikes that get stolen more, it's often the flashier bikes. If your bike is brightly colored and/or has a widely known brand name across it (even if it's a cheaper model or older), it tends to get noticed more. Of my two bikes, my more expensive one (cost 3X as much as my other bike), rarely gets noticed. It happens to be a muddy brown color with no brand or i.d. on it.
Also, my ex and his roommate had 2 of their 3 bikes stolen from their basement when the door was left open. The thieves took the bright orange Trek road bike (it was an entry level model, not terribly expensive) and the 10 year old Cannondale mountain bike, they didn't take the brand new Fuji track bike that was plain white with one small brand on it.

I wouldn't go crazy buying your first bike, but expect to spend $150 to $200 on a good used bike and 350-500 on a good new bike on sale, by before spring when prices go up (there should still be some sales now).

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by jdiddy

Be prepared for stale hipster jokes. (Did you hear the one about the skinny jeans and bad mustache?!)

Come on, you have to admit it's fun

[Jesse69]

A road bike is the fastest bike you can get, but you don't need a high end one. My high end 2004 Cervelo Soloist Team - top speed sprint 32.6 mph. My Giant OCR 1 with 2 Jandd Commuter Panniers [for shopping] top speed sprint 29.8 mph.

I bike everywhere. Down Western, Ashland, Damen, North Ave, Elston, etc. I've been using biking for transportation and to save gas and CTA fares in Chicago since 2005. Saved from $56 to $100 in gas yearly. I lock up everything, my cheaper bikes and my best most expensive bikes with a Ulock and cable.

Check this website on Chicago bike thefts; they steal everything everywhere and even with U Locks. Chicago Stolen Bike Registry

Best to get the best low end road bike with rack eyelets so you can put a rack and panniers on it. See the pic of my $2800 Trek SPA connected to a $280 Burley Nomad used for heavy duty shopping. Shopped 100 lbs of groceries from Strack Van Til to my house once. Also helped me a lot to shop and not use gas after Hurricane Katrina hit Houston. Gas stations were packed with block long waits of cars trying to buy gas, so this really helped me a lot.

I plan to write an ebook about biking for transportation and weight loss. Takes a lot of time to write it and research some stuff. But I've been a heavy biker since 2003 so I have a lot of experience with biking and advice.

[Irishtom29]

I wonder which is more likely to be stolen; an old, kind'a beat nice bike like a Schwinn Collegiate or Varsity or a new cheap bike like a $100 Huffy from Target or Wal Mart? I'm thinking of parking a bike for several hours during the day at the Rockwell stop on the Ravenswood El.

[jgardener]

I could see somebody stealing a vintage Schwinn to use the frame for a re-build, but I think a shiny new bike is more likely to get stolen. My friend had her new Target Schwinn stolen a few years ago from the damen blue line stop, it was $65 at the time schwinn jaguar bike at Target.

If you perform your tack-weld trick and use a tight fitting new U-lock with a cable through the back tire and around the frame; locked to a bike rack or some sort of cemented pole (not bolted). You should be fine.