Here are some tips for those of you just getting you feet back off the ground (and on to some pedals)
We don’t expect everyone who has found a new enthusiasm for cycling to be at the same level so please sift through to find information that is relevant to your level of cycling ability and your ambitions for getting out there on your bike.
Learning to ride
While many people learnt to ride as a child some of us were no so lucky. It can be a challenge to learn to ride a bike as an adult. We offer one-to-one sessions for those who are wanting to learn. We try try to make it as unintimidating as possible and there will be no pressure to be in the Tour de France by the end of it. If you would prefer to have a go on your own check out some useful tips here.
Riding on the road
Once you have learnt to cycle, it can still be a big step to feel comfortable riding on the road. Some different steps to take this plunge are:
- Learning the road rules and responsibilities for cyclists (through the RTA)
- Look up your local Bicycle User Group (BUG) as well as your local council and see what initiatives they have running, such as
- - Bicycle maintenance courses (or come along on Tuesday 12-3pm at the Qual Lawn)
- - Courses for commuting in the city (there is some being offered by City of Sydney)
- - Bikebus groups (a group of commuters riding together daily)
- - Maps with bicycle paths and appropriate safe routes for cyclists (available through the UNSW BikeClub)
- - Social group rides as well as Critical Mass
- Find people who are willing to give you advice or take you on a tour (club social rides are a prime opportunity for this)
- Your work mates or friends may be able to advise you or may be able to ride with you
- If you visit a bike friendly city, take the opportunity to ride on the road
- Look for tips on the internet
The other important step for preparing to cycle is buying an appropriate bike and the accessories. It can be intimidating walking into a bike shop and feeling like they are talking in a foreign language as you try and dicipher what sort of bike you want. My tip is to be honest, open and willing to learn. Let them know you are still new to the world of bikes and they should be accomodating – don’t feel obliged to buy a bike the first time you walk into a store. You could also come by on a Tuesday to the workshop to get a better idea of what you want from your bike and how much you are looking to pay. Detailed information on options for buying a bike.
Is it worth cycling there?
The question of distance, time and sweat probably come to mind. As far as distance goes, you will surprise yourself with how far you can go. A 5km trip will probably be possible for most people in good health. Depending on hills, this can be done in less that half an hour with no sweat. You can assume you can cycle at around 15km/h (give a bit for experienced cyclists, take a bit for beginners). In regards to looking at times between specific locations, the routes on the website www.bikely.com often provide times. Once you start cycling more, you will want to go further and further until you decide to move to a distant suburb just so you can cycle a bit more each day. Another important point is that your ride doesn’t have to be from home to Uni, you can incorporate with public transport use by cycling to a convenient train station or bus stop.
It is important to remember that cycling has so many other benefits. The immediate savings in time or money are just the tip of the iceberg. Other benefits include getting exercise, getting to feel the environment you pass, taking nice and quiet routes, not worrying about parking, having fun, not contributing to environmental problems such as the enhanced greenhouse effect, excessive resource consumption, local air pollution, excessive urban land use for transport and barrier effects, as well as social problems such as aggressive vehicles creating danger on the road and inequality through inaccessibility to opportunities without cars. While it is hard to factor in all these benefits when deciding whether to take your bike, just remember there are a lot of them!
Planning your ride
When planning your route, there are a number of maps with bike routes supplied by the RTA and local governments (which you can get through UNSW Bike Club). There are also websites where commuters put the routes they use with tags such as “safe”, “low traffic”, “back streets” etc. The most popular is Bikely. There are also a number of books including BikeIt Sydney, which is a directory of connected cycle friendly streets and paths.
Finding your way en route
There is very little information for cyclists on the commute in Sydney. You are best to have a personal maps or GPS to help you orientate yourself. There is some signage, but this often lacks continuity and they are usually quite discrete (look for blue and white signs, some just have a bike and an arrow).
Good luck and feel free to contact the UNSW Bike Club if you ever get stuck.
