@ascentale
I plan for flat tire emergencies by not being a racer. Since I don't need racing tires, I use tires that are thick enough to basically never get flats while going to work or on errands.
@MartyCormack @bikenite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a. As a perpetual optimist, I'm always late. My current commute is 7 minutes by bike, but I budget an hour, so there's time to dawdle with cat, pack lunch, get dressed, load bike, walk across parking lot, get hot coffee to defrost fingers... Cont'd #BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3 I use an app that my state built to let us report commutes and earn points for store discounts. I’ve also timed myself enough to know my door-to-door ride time. I should do better to plan for flats—but I got a Kevlar-belted rear tire and have faith in it. #bikenite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a. The time it takes to get somewhere is pretty consistent on a bike in my experience. I just take the route guidance, adjust roughly for my pace, and add some time to try to get there a little early. I'll also, when possible, plan to go somewhere else nearby much earlier and work/whatever from there to minimize daily disruption.

A3b. No real additional plans go in, just try to give myself wiggle room for the things that really matter.

#BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3 - I just plan for the time it takes me to get there on a bike. If I have a mechanical on the way to work it's not different to having a mechanical or getting stuck behind an accident in a car.

I've recently been arguing that cyclists should get an allowance when being used to commute to courses / events. We get wear and tear and petrol payment for a car - why not wear and tear on our bikes?

#bikenite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3 A. I generally allow myself 30mins extra for a nice long shower, so I can cut that short if the journey takes longer than expected.

A3 B. Time wise I don't. I just use heavy commuter tyres (Marathon Plus or Continental Ride Tour).

I find on a 1 hr commute, the variability is hardly more than +/- 5mins and if it is, it's quicker because my benchmark time is with plenty of red lights and the variation is when I get them app green

@ascentale A3. Regular for me, is the gym on Fridays (also sometimes on Wednesdays), an occasional dr or dentist appointment, and an occasional grocery run (I usually buy groceries on the way back from the gym). For Fridays the there is no start time, no so planning, nor grocery trips. Wednesday gym trips are for a yoga class, I try to get there an hour early. For appointments I usually just checks maps, add five minutes and end up plenty early (I pedal faster than the estimates). I’ve not had to deal with a flat on the way, which I guess is good, lol #BikeNight

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite #bikenite A3 My commuting route doesn’t change much so for me the big variables are wind and, with the exception of this winter, snow conditions. I can pretty accurately adjust my times accordingly, and usually build in enough margin to account for a photo stop, laziness or happenstance

I haven’t had any flats with tubeless tires yet, and only a couple with tubes. A couple of years ago the seat tube broke in half on my Kona, but close enough to walk to town

@ascentale - I’m so annal that I’ll do a test ride before an appointment. Especially if it’ll be repeated/important. For errands, I just build in extra time. Like only do a couple in a morning. Then there might time for a coffee shop stop! For contingencies, I take my bus pass. If I get a flat, I just head to the nearest stop, grab a bus and call it a day. (It seemed I got flats at night or during inclement weather, so the bus is a big win. Now I can do repairs in comfort, or later.)

#BieNite A3a: Going into the city from my rural town (Elmira) takes about an hour. Less for Waterloo, more for Kitchener. I've done the trip often enough, obsessing over the odometer, that I know pretty much how long it takes to get anywhere from here.

A3b: Wishes and good luck are my plans for avoiding emergencies. But bus-biking is my backup if things do go wrong.

@ascentale
@MartyCormack @bikenite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite @bikenite #bikeNite

A3b: I carry a lock, so I can lock up my bike, go to my appointment, and come back to retrieve my bike later in the event of a serious mechanical issue, blown tire, etc. Those are rare. Fallback transport can be public transit, a taxi (only needed once in decades), or hitchhiking (only once, with a combination of illness and mechanical problems touring in Argentina, and got a ride with my bike in a pickup right away).

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite when I commuted all the way to work (90minutes) to avoid traffic I was getting there early enough to cool off reading emails, then grab breakfast at the cafe and start proper work at 9.

So you could say I built a buffer in.

#bikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a: IDK, I have a vague sense of how long it takes me to ride somewhere under given conditions. Then I pad 5-15 mins if it’s truly time-sensitive.

A3b: honestly, I don’t. And they happen so infrequently that I feel justified in that. I do tend to keep an eye to parallel bus routes in case I need to bail (and our buses have bike racks on them), but that’s really it. #BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite #BikeNite Q3a & Q3b. Most of my whole life is contained within approximately a 10 km radius from my home, so I generally try to allow 15-30 minutes for arrival at most appointments. I do not plan for contingencies, at all; my rides are short enough that it is virtually never an issue.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3) for suburban/rural, I use bikerouter.de to estimate time . ( For heavy traffic and stoplights it's not accurate )

I carry a spare tube, then patch inside where it is dry and warm

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite #BikeNite Q3 My times are very predictable, though a hair slower than in the past. My plan for flats is to be pretty quick and changing them, though it will slow me down by 10-15 minutes. I carry a couple of spare tubes and all the tools. One advantage of largish (60mm) tires is that I can often get some distance on the tire before it goes completely flat.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3a. My commute is very consistently in the 45-50 minute range. Progress is governed more by traffic than my effort. Detours and delays I've encountered to date have been brief.

I include time in my estimate for the shower and change at the office.

I'm lucky that it's no big deal if I'm not in my seat at the designated time. (First off, I'm on the one who designates it ... ) If there's something urgent when I arrive, I'll take care of it before the shower.

A3b. I always carry a spare inner tube, tire levers and a minitool. I haven't had a flat while commuting -- touch wood! I have got a phone, of course, and my wallet with a credit card and typically some cash. The biggest issue I've had to date is forgetting to charge the lights.

#BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite I know how long my commute to work takes, so I just leave on time (approximately). I carry a spare tube, pump, tire levers, and multitool in a pocket on my commuting backpack. I’ve got reasonably robust tires. I keep my commuting bike in reasonably good running order, although it could do with a wash.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a. #BikeNite. I have a strange variation on that. I have to fill bike team practices with 1.5 or 3hrs of riding. I have the get the kids back on time or their parents start to worry or get annoyed. I'm usually pretty good about it. Certain places that we ride always seem to take longer to return from, like the canyon in the nearby state park that requires a big climb at the end. I've learned to add 10-15min to those rides. I generally don't account for flats or mechanicals. We shorten the ride or get back late.

For the shorter 1.5hr practices where we're on nearby trails I can often get us back on time within the minute. I know the trails well enough and we can always switch to riding the roads to get back quicker. I'll piece things together in my mind as we're getting close to the end, to either waste a little time or speed things up.

For longer 3hr practices on trails that are new to me I'll use Strava's route creation feature beforehand. It gives an estimate of how long it will take me to ride the route and I'll add an hour to that to account for stops and riding with the kids. Usually that works ok, but I did have one of those where were 30min late because we got stuck inside a gated community.

@ascentale@sfba.social @MartyCormack@urbanists.social @bikenite@fedigroups.social A3a: For a route I've taken a few times before, I have a pretty good idea how long it takes, taking into consideration weather, time of day (i.e. traffic volume), etc, so I leave home accordingly. For an unfamiliar route, I use Google Maps to get a ballpark figure.

A3b: I usually give myself 10 extra minutes, give or take. Fixing a flat would take longer, but since I've got tubeless tires, I just rely on the statistically very low chance of getting an unrepairable flat. 😅

#BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3.
a. I usually pad the time I time I expect it to take by 20-30 minutes. I’d rather just arrive early.
b. Eh, I don’t really. Knock on wood, I’ve only ever had one mechanical on my commute & I was still able to make it to my office with the failure. Echoing the Schwalbe Marathon tires recommendation from others. #BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3a) if its a regular route I know how long it will take. For new routes I plan with 20 km/h and add a few minutes of buffer, maybe check brouter or Google maps for a time estimate - but those online tools can't take into account headwind and ice/snow or huge amounts of tiny insects near water.

A3b) "puncture proof" tires and a mobile phone. I had two punctures in 10 years/30000km and was able to get to my destination with just a few minutes delay (having tools and being used to just swapping the inner tube on the side of the road helps). In theory I have an insurance that allows 24/7 pickup/taxi but I never used it. And it only applies if I at least tried to fix a tire.

#bikenite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite Q3
In oh, 15 years, twice I've had a "mechanical" on my commute/ an errand run. It's basically just as likely to happen in a car. I have ferociously good tyres. When I had maladjusted gears, and was wearing my 'amphibious" shoes with teh back mashed down so they were like sandals, and didn't use the toe clips.... I was goin' up a hill and the gears shifted badly so the pedal jumped, my foot slit off and touched my wheel and the spokes snatched my shoe off into the spokes and dumped me. Cold weather so the layers prevened moer than a tiny bit of road rash, but there I aws with a shoe wrapped in my wheel.
Called work to say I'd get there when I got there.
Took a few minutes tryin' to extract and then MacGyver / my father's spirit spoke to me and said drily, "just go back the way it came." D'oh wheeled bike backwards, put the shoe back on... mashed the fender so it wasn't in the way...
The other time was a flat on my way home & I didn't have my pump 😞 BUT "Hi, Sue???" oh, Mike biking home from visiting his wife in adult care had a C02 ... the cool thing was he *didn't* fix it for me. He respected I"d know my bike 😉 😊
If I show up to the library a few minutes late it doesn't matter but with my Garmin I do kinda try to earn daily good behavior "I got in the building by 8:00" points for myself.

@ascentale @bikenite
#BikeNite A3:
When I was a regular cycle commuter to work, I knew how much time I needed AND I had a flexible work schedule so my arrival time did not matter much.
Now that I am retired, I travel for various appointments at different locations under different conditions, so I need to know the distance to where I'm going, the bike I'm riding and the weather conditions, especially the wind speed and direction. Then I need to calculate how long it will take to get there.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite Google maps gives a very conservative travel time estimate (based on 16km/h) which means I should have plenty of time to get there.

Flats are rare and a mobile phone is useful for keeping stakeholders posted.

I see other people advocating for Schwalbe Marathons and I second that motion. Brilliant tyres that rarely puncture.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a. I use @CyclingGuide to get routes, and its estimates of travel time are good enough for my needs. (I know that it uses 15 km/h as a cycling speed when calculating travel time.)

A3b. Contingencies? Never happens, right? 🤣🚴‍♀️❤️

#BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite #BikeNite A3a. You definitely need to calculate how long it takes you to get to and from some place. The farther you are, the longer it takes, and you really have to plan ahead. Close by, it's faster to cycle than drive (due to parking and traffic), but the farther out you go the slower bicycles are (for me). Mostly because we have a lot of hills.

A3b. I don't generally go so far that I have to add in contingency plans... but definitely something to think about!!!

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3a. For consistent destinations, I have an idea of how long it takes to get there, so I try to leave with enough time that I never have to hustle. This usually works.

A3b. I carry probably too many tools with me, and I'm familiar with bus routes and people that can bail me out.

#BikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite #BikeNite A3a: Primarily based on experience, otherwise based on distance. If I'm unsure, I consult https://bikerouter.de/ for an estimate.

A3b: I use Marathon Plus or similar tires on my commuting bicycle and don't expect flats. 😉 Ok, and I usually start a few minutes earlier compared to what I expect the ride to take. Depending on where I go and how far it is, it's up to 30min, e.g. if I have to catch a train and the next one isn't just 15 minutes later.

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a. I know that I can get anywhere in Westside in under an hour on my e-bike so I do a gut check based on how many major roads I have to cross to get there.

In general, I know I can average 15 mph on my e-bike; 20 mph if I am pushing hard.

A3b. I don't. I have my cell phone, so if I have a flat, or crash and break a bone, or whatever, I can call ahead and report the delay, if applicable.

#bikeNite

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A3a: Same way as for any other trip, which is familiarity and an understanding of speeds.

BUT!

This is another eBike thing. I can do this reliably _because_ if I need to I can turn on / up the assist and _know_ I can go faster if I'm running late.

The ability to go faster for sure is one of the big advantages of _car_, right? You probably won't be nailed for speeding and if you fall behind you can make some or all of it up, or at least feel like you can.

With ebike, I estimate times at 14-15mph, but if I'm late and I need 18, 19 mph, I can get the assist going _even if I'm tired_ and make up the time. It provides _confidence_ of schedule.

You don't need a throttle for this, I don't have one.

(1/2)

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite

A3. When I commuted to work, I gave myself an extra 20 minutes in case I wanted to stop somewhere, had a mechanical issue, or just wanted to bicycle a little longer.

#BikeNite