How long did it take to develop your routine?
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How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Max » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:18 am
Somewhere in all of this, I'll realise my water bottles need filling, and I'll fill them. Half the time I leave them on the bench and I'm back and forth between the bench and the bike putting the bottles where they belong.
I'll be halfway out the house before I realise I haven't pumped up the tyres. There are days I'm lucky if I remember my gloves, sunnies and helmet. One day I was halfway through my commute before I realised my gloves were missing.
I'm normally a pretty organised person, but when it comes to riding my bike to work, it seems I'm a frickin' airhead. I'm getting better, but I wonder if I'll ever just have the routine down pat, to the extent that I don't have to double and triple-check everything I do.
How long did it take you to develop your commuting routine?
Max
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby hannos » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:25 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby CommuRider » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:30 am
2 weeksMax wrote: How long did it take you to develop your commuting routine? Max
I've down it to pat especially when I arrive at work and degear from my cycling outfit and put on my work outfit. Hence my locker's crowded too - a dresser away from home. I have spares - what I use at home, has now its equivalent in the office. I have 2 hairbrushes, 2 pairs of gloves, 2 deodorants, 2 water bottles etc.
It helps having panniers because I chuck everything in it. It's become a bigger handbag for me
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Boognoss » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:30 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby The Womble » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:32 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby CommuRider » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:35 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby trailgumby » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:39 am
I'm at least as bad as you are. Except I only double check, not triple. Sometimes.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby goneriding » Wed Nov 03, 2010 9:47 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby biftek » Wed Nov 03, 2010 10:41 am
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Mulger bill » Wed Nov 03, 2010 10:58 am
You can't forget yer hemlet if it's hanging on the bars.
London Boy 29/12/2011
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby goneriding » Wed Nov 03, 2010 11:05 am
Done that Wondered why my head felt cooler until halfway into my commute.Mulger bill wrote:You can't forget yer hemlet if it's hanging on the bars.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby m@ » Wed Nov 03, 2010 11:16 am
Oh, I dunno - I see at least one person a day riding along with the helmet dangling from the barsMulger bill wrote:A couple of weeks usually. I'm not a morning person, do the multi checking the night before.
You can't forget yer hemlet if it's hanging on the bars.
Routine is not my strong suit, I've been commuting off and on for about five years and still manage to forget at least one thing most days. Just have to embrace it I suppose - variety is the spice of life!
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby ft_critical » Wed Nov 03, 2010 11:43 am
In pen I have 'set the alarm,' on my actual copy in the other section.
Such a cycle nerd, I don't know...
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby casual_cyclist » Wed Nov 03, 2010 11:48 am
I have everything at work so I don't have anything to forget. Because my ride is only 9km I don't take water and I don't pump my tyres up in the morning (I am running 32mm tyres so they are lower pressure anyway. Even with all that there is stuff to remember:Max wrote:How long did it take you to develop your commuting routine.
helmet, wallet, keys, sunnies... I tend to just put everything I need in one place the night before because I am shocking in the morning. I stumble about half asleep so can't trust myself to remember anything.
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How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Comedian » Wed Nov 03, 2010 12:43 pm
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby westab » Wed Nov 03, 2010 12:49 pm
Reason - Keys. (Ops manager knows me well and rightfully thinks that in the morning I would forget my head if it wasn't attached)
I lock my bike in the sunroom out the back (must be locked with the key from the outside) with my shoes still in the pedals and head inside.
When I get there I remove my helmet and place all the riding items (gloves, helmet lightpack, etc) inside along with my keys in on top. I remove my lunch container, dirty work cloths and put them out for washing, then I attach my helmet to my backpack.
In the morning I get up & get dressed (riding cloths placed in bathroom near towel the night before), make Kids lunches and mine (my hungry lot don't let me not make theirs) and deposit theirs on the table and mine in my helmet. Feed the dog & rabbit out the back. Look at the clock - I'M LATE - call out to Mrs Westab - wheres my keys - Get responce about being a "forgetful idot(again) - in your helmet" - tell her that I love her (again) - kiss her if time. GO TO BIKE - with helmet, backpack, keys, lunch (now in backpack so I can get keys) - and ride to work (slowly getting some brain function) - arrive feeling good.
Also - on bike in saddle pack and Toolbottle - 3 spare tubes, repair kit, handpump, basic tools, spare batteries for lights.
At work - locker with enough cloths for two weeks (min), shaving kit and toothbrush, floor pump, two spare water bottles, works complete tool kit for everything, & a spoke key (in top draw).
At home - floor pump, and all my tools.
Work clothing gets taken in on Monday - after ironing on Sunday night one guess where it gets put (hint - it is on top of the keys)
ps - great idea for a thread - realy like it
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby thomashouseman » Wed Nov 03, 2010 1:57 pm
Towel,
Trousers!! (wife had to rescue me for that one)
Shoes,
Gloves,
Waterbottle,
Headphones/Mobile Phone
T.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Max » Wed Nov 03, 2010 2:00 pm
I like ft_critical's list. I think I'll have to make one and stick it somewhere obvious/annoying/obnoxious - like the bike seat or the front door or something. Thankyou everyone for your a) commiserations and b) suggestions
Edit: Thomashousman - my workmate once forgot his trousers. He spent all morning sitting at his desk wearing a work shirt and nicks!! Thank god he was able to convince his wife to bring him some pants!
Max
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby CommuRider » Wed Nov 03, 2010 2:21 pm
I'm impressed Must do one for myself...and for other tasks.ft_critical wrote: Such a cycle nerd, I don't know...
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby casual_cyclist » Wed Nov 03, 2010 3:23 pm
The worst thing I have done it thought that I forgot jeans on casual friday. Went to target in all my lycra glory and bought jeans. came back to my locker to put my shoes in before my shower and realised... duh! there are trousers in my locker which I pushed past that morning to get my shoes to go shopping inMax wrote:I'm so glad I'm not the only disorganised one! I'm also very envious of you folk who managed to get it all down within a couple weeks. I have so much to learn.
I like ft_critical's list. I think I'll have to make one and stick it somewhere obvious/annoying/obnoxious - like the bike seat or the front door or something. Thankyou everyone for your a) commiserations and b) suggestions
Edit: Thomashousman - my workmate once forgot his trousers. He spent all morning sitting at his desk wearing a work shirt and nicks!! Thank god he was able to convince his wife to bring him some pants!
Max
Had my shower and tried on the jeans... too small
I wore the trousers that were there all along and returned the jeans at lunch time
Did I mention I am hopeless in the morning?
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby ColinOldnCranky » Wed Nov 03, 2010 4:22 pm
My advice to noobs is that a year after they start (and provided they persit) they will have a different routine and duifferent gear and a different slant to what they hold true at the start. If I had to give a number I'd say at least one set of seasons, and possibly two (12-24 months).
But I have found that, in those time frames, there is always sufficient change (aches and pains coming and going, changed job location, time constraints changed to accomodate kids activities, etc etc etc) that the routine is never fully bedded down.
That being said, the need to experiment with different backpacks/panniers, clothing, lighting, tools and so forth reduces. So in theory the expenses should taper off. However, as we know, we then replace the reduced absolute NEED for purchasing accessories and stuff, with much rationalising to justify a new frame, a new set of wheels, seats, second bike, latest cleats, Brooks saddle, competitive riding...
For example, I'm nearly sixty, I've been riding for well over thrity years. You'd think that there is bugger all to change with a unicycle. But then I went and lost some weight and vanity determined that I ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY HAD to buy up a more flattering style of clothing - drop the baggy tees and find some tight muscle singlets.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby HappyHumber » Wed Nov 03, 2010 4:54 pm
I'm swapping between panniers and backpack at the moment and swapping between an old & new routine just to confuse things.
I make a general rule too - never take anything home from the locker (if you're lucky enough to have one) until you've got bought a clean one to replace it; this generally just applies to Trousers & towels though. Buffer a couple spare pairs of socks & jocks in there as well. 7 or 8 shirts usually get a trip in every other weekend when I'm out & about in the Smokebox.
Hit me up via the BNA dm; I'll get an alert. If y'know, you know.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby lethoso » Wed Nov 03, 2010 6:53 pm
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby Baalzamon » Wed Nov 03, 2010 7:13 pm
I've done that before. I typically pack my pannier the night before and add my lunch, wallet, keys, phone to it in the morning. No locker at work so will carry my shoes one day and leave them there.lethoso wrote:took me a couple of weeks to get a good routine going, still forget stuff every now and then though - forgot to bring a water bottle a couple of times (fortunately my commute is short enough that this didn't suck too hard) and I had to go commando once Paranoid about forgetting my pants one day.
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Re: How long did it take to develop your routine?
Postby HappyHumber » Wed Nov 03, 2010 7:27 pm
Might have something to do with my long latent desire to back over it in a Haulpak anyway.
Hit me up via the BNA dm; I'll get an alert. If y'know, you know.
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