Suppose I am an old fart. And suppose I am considering buying a bicycle so

I can (say) get more exercise and burn less gas when I go grocery shopping

Grocery store is perhaps a bit over 3 mi away -- pretty flat terrain, might take me 1:15 hr to walk there. I can't afford to spend 1:15 + :30 + 1:15 = 3:00 hr for a walking grocery run when a car run takes me maybe 0:05 + 0:30 + 0:05 = 0:40. But I could probably afford to spend 0:15 + 0:30 + 0:15 = 1:00 or 0:20 + 0:30 + 0:20 = 1:10 for a grocery run, since I'd been getting exercise at the same time

Anybody want to give advice regarding a bike? I haven't biked for years, so it might take a bit of practice, but I could toodle around the neighborhood a bit for a while before I try the highways and byways

They might look dorky, but they are a lot more practical than two wheelers. Or you could build your own pedal car: http://www.americanspeedster.com/index.htm


The electric version of their Side Kick pedal car.

I thought about getting a kit for one of these, but my knees are so bad, pedaling is out of the question. So I got an electric golf cart instead.

I know the bike lanes here are a little narrow, but the kit manufacturer makes some that will fit the lanes, though I am not sure how street legal the electric versions are.

They also have carry racks that hook to the seat post and stick out flat over the rear tire - with a bungie cord strap built in!

Got one for under 100 a few months ago.I like that the shifters are built into the grips and shifting is a breeze...assume most if not all are like that these days

The ones the girls have are newer and they've got the inner wheels on the grips for shifting.

They will be familiar with your area and they'll have bike that's the right size and has the right capabilities you're looking for.

If you end up using it for grocery runs just make sure that your load is balanced.

I recall you mentioning that in a post a couple of years ago!

My bike was recently stolen...:cry: but I had it rigged up fairly nice for hauling a few groceries. I got one of the racks that mount over the rear tire and found a wire rack that would fit down over that which the spring loaded doohickey would slap down back over and hold in place. This would make a stable enough platform to bungee cord a plastic milk crate down onto it

Get a fat-tired bike with a good seat. Go for handle bars that allow you to sit upright rather than leaning forward. Even a beach cruiser would be fine if you are looking at just flat ground. If you live anywhere near a beach sometimes the rental places sell off some great bikes that are starting to get dinged up but are still otherwise great for bargain price.

Try Craigslist. People move and can't keep their bikes or give up good bikes for various reasons all the time.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/B000BPNK7O/ref=cm_ciu_pdp_images_3?ie=UTF8&index=3

My husband found a couple of these on Freecycle.

Another bit of advice-you can inject "Slime" ® into inner tubes (gooey stuff which fills punctures immediately from the inside) and can save getting flats fixed, unless the puncture is too big.

Those are nice. :)

designated bike path?

A quick trip to the grocery store is probably better accomplished in a car if youre sharing the road with people who are talking on the phone, checking their email etc.
And im not saying that because of your age. If there is no bike path or bike lane on a low speed limit road i would suggest using your car for groceries and getting your exercise in a park or greenbelt or where its safer.

At least the ice cream will stay frozen too yeah.

i don't know anyone over 40 who bikes who hasn't had a serious accident, including myself, i have given my bike away to younger bones

a friend of 50 (don't know if that's older or younger than your old fartness) has broken several ribs in a recent biking accident and he has lasting pain from the accident that has not yet gone away, at this point, we don't know if the pain ever WILL go away

i know of others who have actually been killed

i have to say, you get out of shape REAL DAMN FAST when you're in a biking accident, so i can't recommend it if the reason is to get in shape

an accident at age 50 or older is not the same as an accident in your 20s

so i have to admit for grocery shopping the time is worth it to me to walk instead of to bike, the cost of one accident or one broken bone or tooth pays for a lot of lost hours in my humble view

that's my advice, and i apologize in advance since i know it isn't what you want to hear but a biking accident when you're old is NOT like a biking accident when you're young, it could well mean pain for the rest of your life at the site of the injury in addition to the extra costs of recovery

p.s. i have seen some elders around here on the "adult tricycles," and they are truly old folks, from a nearby assisted living center who i assume are no longer able to drive, so it's possible the additional stability of these tricycles make them MUCH safer for older bodies...but i don't know the costs of these tricycles and haven't tried them myself, at the end of the day, i discovered that spending more time and taking the walk (or just eschewing the shopping visit) was more practical for me

Here are the facts:

http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/facts/crash-facts.cfm

"The loss of 630 lives in bicycle/motor vehicle crashes in 2009, just under two people every day of the year in the U.S., is a terrible toll. While lower than the 760 fatalities in 1998, bicycling crashes were on the rise just a few years ago. These numbers represent approximately 2 percent of the total number of people killed and injured in traffic crashes in 2009."

Then take a look here:

http://www.walkinginfo.org/facts/facts.cfm

This page is interesting too, though I didn't read it carefully:

http://neptune.spacebears.com/opine/helmets.html

According to the facts, you are more likely to be killed while in a car or walking than on a bike.

If bicyclists account for 2% of all vehicular mortality, then the death rate per (say) hour of on-road cycling must far exceed the death rate per hour of on-road driving

The average American driver may spend 1:30 hr/da in car and the average American 1:00 hr/da in car. So we get something like 0.33 fatality per every 1 000 000 hours in-car

For the on-cycle rate to be comparable, one should need about 2% of the traffic to be cyclist, which means that in ordinary driving on city streets I should see about one cyclist for every 50 cars I see. I can easily spot 50 different moving cars a day, when driving, excluding highways and other roads unlikely to be cycled: where I am, days pass without me seeing a cyclist on roads. I conclude road cycling is much more hazardous than road driving

Because you don't see many where you live.

:shrug:

I don't buy

First of all, no one has any idea of how many miles are collectively cycled in this country. People just make quasi-educated guesses. It's not like cars where we know how much gasoline we use and the approximate gas mileage of cars on the road, along with the fact that odometer readings are checked regularly.

Secondly, cycling habits vary wildly. Frankly, a lot of people who bike do so because they're not allowed to drive, for good reason. So you get Darwin Award winners getting smacked when they're biking after dark in black clothing. You also get the Lance Wanna-bes who bike way too fast, and end up with some horrendous injuries. And then there's the whole thing with kids riding bikes on the street, and not being as aware as they should be about the dangers.

Are there risks? Yes, it's just that no one knows exactly what the risks are. If you're smart about how you ride, the risks are reasonable.

My 20+ years of near daily road riding with no serious injuries is conclusive anecdotal proof that I'm right.

victim of hit-and-run: it took him several years and several surgeries to recover, more or less

accident. My daily commutes have often been long eg 16 -20 miles round trips through city streets. I don't think luck is related to my safe driving record. There have been close calls but I base it on xtremely defensive driving.

I have been behind enough people to know that they are accidents waiting to happen - people never doing regular shoulder checks, people moving into traffic without shoulder checks, moving into intersections without shoulder checks, people biking while in a state of oblivion, imagining I suppose that they don't need to be mindful.


To be safe on a bike there has to be a zen level of attentiveness and focus but it is that which makes it such a relaxing experience. Besides inattentiveness, lack of visibility is an issue even during the day. My basket over the rear tire has wide, highly reflective tape as well as an orange plastic ribbon that flutters.

If you decide to buy do NOT buy a mountain bike, buy what is called a commuter or hybrid bike. THese have wide mountain bike tires but the handles are designed so you can sit upright. An upright position is an absolute must for being able to do shoulder checks without losing control.

My commuter bike gave up the ghost after 20 years and due to my financial situation I had to a mountain bike because it was dirt cheap. The mountain bike does not give me the same neck flexibilty or sense of safety, not to mention comfort, sitting upright on a hybrid is very comfortable as opposed to being hunched over on a mountain bike.

The other nice thing about commuter/hybrid bikes is that the handle bars are straight across like mountain bike handle bars so shopping bags can go on each handle and the stability isn't affected. When I shop with the mountain bike, bags hanging on the bars reduces stability so I'm more careful about the amount of stuff I buy.

eastern-seaboard big city and biked a lot, often on rather busy roads: I tried to obey traffic laws, and in fact I actually had to have a license plate on my bike. Drivers honored my hand-signals. My family then moved to a big city in the South. The cycling experience was completely different: drivers were deliberately rude to me as a cyclist

I got the kind that attaches the handlebars because i knew if I had one on the helmet I'd smack it against things all the time. With a mirror you can do quick shoulder checks but also just keep an eye on what's coming up on you.

Also... carrying things on the back is much safer. Bags on handlebars makes me nervous. Can you get a rack for the back? Then a free milk crate or similar, and you're set.

of all animals including humans responding to other animals head and/or eye movements. It seems all animals are programmed to be highly sensitive to these movements so for instance when someone is staring at the sky humans find it impossible not to stare up as it is a defense mechanism. I have since then used that info when I'm riding and regularly move my head knowing this movement will be caught by drivers behind and beside me me who may not be paying attention.

I can only assume it has some merit as I have never had an accident. As for bags on handlebars, it depends on the bike. I would never have put shopping bags on handlebars on either the racer or Raleigh touring bike I was owned, however I never had any issue with stability with my commuter/hybrid bike.

I just turned in my Cannondale hybrid for a Cannondale road bike. I just started riding a little over a year ago, before my 51st birthday. I've never had an accident or even fallen down. I ride a lot, many miles at a time.

I'm over 40, have been riding all my life and have had a wreck that broke a bone. Completely my fault because I was checking out attractive cyclists instead of watching where I was going. Anyway, bone healed and I'm fine.

Safety doesn't just depend on the cars, it depends on the cyclists being aware and being smart. In any case, I think the fear of cycling is much worse than the reality and while cycling isn't for everyone, more people could be doing it.

I don't believe you.




(How do you like that?)

and I hope you do it. But I think you might be a little optimistic on the time estimate. 15 minutes for 3 miles means you're going about 12 miles an hour, which is certainly doable but if you are really an "old fart" who hasn't ridden a bicycle recently, you probably won't go that fast.

As an example, I ride a few times a week, going distances of about 20-30 miles (round-trip). I go about 10 mph.

and one that allows you to extend your legs; that is, not too small for your height. You might have to buy the seat as an accessory since most new bikes come with standard seats.

Hi,
I started commuting to work this spring. I go five miles one-way, some residential streets and some bike path. There are risks with everything, if you ride defensively and be attentive like others have said it reduces your risks. I got tired of lugging my work clothes home over my back in a messenger bag so I got an "Ex-Grocery Pannier". I had to get a rack put on my bike for it to hook to, but it really is a nice bag. You can buy two and balance your ride out, you can cram a surprisingly large amount of stuff in onr. There are all kinds of different bags or baskets you can buy though.

http://www.blackburndesign.com/bags.html

I too definitely suggest going to a local bike shop, tell them how you will be riding it, and ride several different models. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. I know I love love love riding to and from work. Going to work gives me energy, leaving work after a stressful day relieves the stress and lets me relax.

Peace

I love them - use them several times a week. I got mine at REI: http://www.rei.com/product/780449/novara-round-town-single-bike-pannier
They have easy release clips that fit on a rack.

With two of those I can get several gallons of milk and other groceries home at once (or a case of beer if I bring two empty 12 pack boxes and repack it). I'm in my late 40s and have been doing all my shopping on the bike since I got them. I love that they have handles and I can use them as reusable grocery bags right in the store.

I use the free Move! app on my phone as a gps to track the distance I ride.

and the tires got flat all the time before I replaced them (I don't know if it was vandalism or just cheap hybrid tires). Since I replaced them they don't go flat. Probably cost me $100 for repaires and tires. Save yourself the grief and just get a bike in the medium price range.

Everyone is talking about hybrids and mountains and cruisers, but, if you can afford it go for an inner city commuter bike - http://www.commuterbikestore.com/city-bikes.html - These guys have a great selection and we'll probably be getting our next bikes from them.

My suggestion, as you say you haven't biked for a while: Get a step through frame (ladies bike) with wide handlebars and what is called a pedal forward configuration. You sit upright, your hands are in a comfortable position and you are highly visible. Also the center of gravity is slightly lower on a commuter bike.

Some of the bikes at the link come equipped with racks, lights, chainguards, and built in locks.

Highly reflective clothing is a plus as is a mirror. I do agree about doing the shoulder check though and not relying completely on your mirror.

Good luck!

You may feel like a dork but it's a modest amount of effort to give you a decent amount of protection.
Also buy a bottle cage if the bike isn't equipped with one.

Definitely look for a hybrid or cruiser type. A mountain bike is okay if you change out the knobby tires for smooth ones. Knobbys will make your short trip seem much longer. Get a rack and outfit it according to your grocery needs. For grocery runs I use a trunk bag and either panniers or a backpack. The trunk bag is large enough to carry a gallon jug of milk but it's most useful as a place to stash frozen food because it's insulated. I have two separate panniers and usually on take one unless I plan on buying heavy stuff -- then I'll use two to balance the weight.

I think your estimate of 0:15 is a good goal time. It will take longer the first few times you try it.