5 Beginner Tips For Commuting By Bike | Maintenance Monday

Cycling to work can be great, it's cheap, green and, most importantly, fun! But there are some basic maintenance tips which can make or break your commute. Alex and our resident beginner cyclist, Harriet, take you through 5 tips to make commuting a breeze!

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:27 - Visibility
1:39 - Tyre Pressure
3:00 - Use Mudguards & A Pannier Rack
3:44 - Take Care Of Your Chain
4:59 - Check Your Brakes
6:46 - BONUS TIP! Bike Helmets

Useful Links:

Do you have any bike commuting maintenance tips? Let us know in the comments down below! 👇

Watch more on GCN Tech...

🎵 Music - licensed by Epidemic Sound 🎵
Idea Whale - Chelle Ives
Why Is This Bird So Jealous - Chelle Ives
After the Rains - Brendon Moeller
Slo-mo - Aiyo

#gcntech #gcn #cycling #roadbike #commuting #bikecommute #cyclingcommute #cycletowork

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[gcntech]

Do you have any bike commuting maintenance tips? Let us know in the comments down below! 👇

[savagepro]

Shimano has groupset for the people. But GCN now has Harriet, a presenter for the people!

[menohaveaname]

At this point, I feel like Harriet is a full-blown member of the presenting team! She's really taken to being on camera! Kudos!

I feel like you could have a good angle there, with her now gaining more and more knowledge, expanding more into road bikes, maybe a race someday?, etc. if she's up for all that.

I also can't wait for the commuter challenge to come out!

[Akdreamy]

Seeing Harriet always makes me happy! Thank you!

[nerigarcia]

Harriet is a natural. I'd love to see more of her and watch her progression as a cyclist.

[bareenlars]

Thumbs up for Harriet today! Such a calm and lovely personality!

[davidsnow]

That was cool having Harriet on talking about commuting tips I’m glad she’s part of the GCN family. Keep up the good work and stay safe out there.

[colinbensonvideos]

Harriet is a great addition to GCN! More videos with her. I’m a rookie cyclist too and it’s nice to have a presenter like her make it all more approachable.

[emiljarengrim]

Was slightly worried that the first thing Alex would teach Harriet was how to set up her tyres tubeless!

[Brunkerm]

100% agree with all the tips. Get reflective panels on the panniers as well. Cheers Alex and Harriet!

[craigmurray]

I am a big fan of Harriet's. Loved the video👍

[philbailey]

The duo we didn't know that we needed! Sound affects on point as well

[bryguy]

Everyone is already saying it, but I like that were all seeing more of Harriet.

She seems well put together and a bit made for this, plus I absolutely love the approach to diversify the target audience of GCN videos.

Experts are great, but it's even better when a total newbie is asking questions, and represented in videos. The same reason I love seeing hanks dad, there's something genuine and playful about their demeanor and approach to cycling that is highly admirable.

[phil_d]

Wax your chain for commuting. You can make it yourself for under £20 and the mix will last for years! I make up a drip bottle to use if it's been raining (between waxes) by mixing a small amount of wax with isopropyl alcohol with you then heat/blend in water at c.70-75c. No more dirty chains and hours cleaning!!!

[WaechterDerNacht]

The best thing i added since i go to work by bike and train, is panier bags (are they called that? We call them the french word "sacoche" here in Switzerland).
I always have a sweaty back when i carry a backpack, which isn't great to go to work. I baught 20 or 25 liter Ortlieb bags. They are even big enough to put an average shopping in one side and the laptop with all the gear (headphones CAD-mouse/spaceball etc.) in the other side.

Additionally, besides my national rail ticket (GA) i added the "Velopass" aswell. Now i don't have to buy a bike ticket when i take it onto the train. Just have to check if on the train i want to take a reservation (2 CHF / ride) is needed.
And I am still cheaper and faster at work than with a car.

[shirleyarias]

I do like gcn segments for "normal" cyclists (ie. non competitive). Maybe a segment where you teach (hariet) how to fix a flat.

[djrlloyd]

Harriet is a GCN star in the making. More please 👍

[alinapopescu]

Finally something for normal people! Like me. And Harriet.

[moof]

Chain lube tip: After adding 1 drop of lube per roller and spinning the cranks several times (or better, ride around the block) to work it in you should wipe any excess off with a clean rag. Any oil on the outside does nothing but attract dirt and grime. It is often possible to re-lube the chain a couple times between full degreasing sessions if there is not tons of lube all over your drivetrain.

[sianwilliams]

This channel (and the main GCN one) has been my go to these last few months! I've had a bike for years and rode it on and off but it wasn't the greatest, I recently took the plunge and got my first road bike so have taken to learning that bit more about maintenance as I'd like to keep it tip top! Like Harriet I'm using it mostly for commuting right now, but I hope to start going further a field when I've got a bit more confidence and the weather isn't the gloomy British winter! Thanks to the whole team that but videos and content together for helping newbies like me feel that bit happier going on and being on the road!