Commuter Accessories

If you are biking often, you’ll need some accessories to make your trips easier.

Clothing

• Gloves
  • You should wear gloves to help keep a better grip on your bike, protect your hands from the weather, and help protect your hands from scrapes in case you fall.
• Helmet
  • Helmets are important in the case of a crash they protect the bicyclist from brain damage and they can save lives.
  • Buy the smallest helmet that is comfortable, and test that the straps fit you properly; you should be able to fit two fingers in under the chin strap and on both sides by your ears.
  • Remember that your helmet is worn on top of your head, not tilted back.

• Reflective clothing
  • Reflective vests, arm or leg bands make you more visible to motorists. You can find them at any bicycle or hardware store.

• Specialized cycling clothing
  
  • There is cycling clothing designed to help keep you cool in summer and warm in winter by wicking sweat away from your body. For a daily commuter this special clothing is not essential.
  • If you plan on making longer trips you may want to look into some specialized cycling clothing.

• Waterproof Gear
  • Cycle Cape
    • These are the traditional waterproof gear choice, and they work well, except when it is very windy.
       
  • Waterproof clothing
    • A good waterproof jacket and pants set will keep you comfortably dry in rainy weather.
  • Helmet cover
    • If you wear a helmet you should get a helmet cover to put on it during bad weather.
      
• Chain Guard
  • You should put a chain guard on your bike to protect your clothing from getting caught in the chains and getting torn or oily.

Lights

If you ride at night you are required by law to have front, rear, wheel, and pedal reflectors. You can choose from three types of lights.

• Dynamo
  • These are lights that are powered by your pedaling, so they don’t require any batteries. However, this means they go out when you aren’t pedaling.
• LED
  • These are lightweight, powerful, and have a long battery life. They are also the best priced light option.
• Halogen
  • These have a very strong light, you can use them to see more easily in the dark as well as make yourself seen by motorists, but they don’t have a very long battery life.

Lock

You must protect your bicycle from theft. One of the best ways to do so is have a good sturdy lock for your bike and always park in highly visible locations. If your lock is heavy and you don’t want to carry it with you everyday you commute, then leave it somewhere secure at work, so you only need to carry the keys each day. Locks vary greatly in price, and there are three typical types of locks.

• Cable Locks
  • These are easy to carry and are very flexible. You should choose a cable long enough to lock the wheels to the frame and to the bike rack.
  • You should get very thick strong cables, because they are the only ones resistant to bolt cutters thieves may try to use.

• Chains
  • These are very heavy, but very secure and you can get chain in any length you want. This is a good option if you have to lock your bike in a high-risk area.

• U-Locks
  • These are strong and resistant to bolt cutters. They are not very flexible so you may have to look harder for a spot to lock your bike.

Luggage Carriers

Carrying the things you need for work is very easy because of the options you have for luggage carrying.

• Backpack
  • Backpacks work well for carrying your things if you don't have or don't want to install a luggage rack to hold panniers. However, backpacks do make your back sweat, so be sure to have a change of clothes available.

• Briefcase pannier
  • These are designed to fit into a luggage rack and are just the right size for a laptop and change of clothes. They also look very professional.

• Basket and Handlebar bags
  • These hook onto the handlebar and are a convenient way to carry small loads

• Standard pannier
  • These bags offer plenty of storage space for your things. You’ll need a luggage rack to use these

• Wedge bag
  • These fit under the seat and are great for carrying your tool kit.

• Trailer
  • These are the best way to carry a really large or really heavy load, the main disadvantage is they make the bike harder to control.
     
• Rear luggage rack
  • There are three types of luggage racks. Welded are the strongest types, followed by bolted racks. The kind that clamps to the seat is weakest.

Mudguards

These protect you from spraying mud and water from the road up onto yourself. There are two types.

• Full-wheel guards are recommended if they fit your bike, because they catch all road spray.
• Quick-fix guards are more suited to mountain bikes, which usually won’t fit full-wheel guards.

Tool Kit

Last but certainly not least, you will need a basic tool kit containing all of the following.

• Cycle Oil
  • Your bike chain must be well-oiled so bring cycle oil to add some whenever needed during your trips.

• Latex gloves and a rag
  • Bikes get dirty, so you’ll need a rag to clean your bike on occasion, the gloves aren’t essential, but they’ll help keep you clean.

• Multi-tool
  • A multi-tool has all the basic tools you will need in a convenient package.

• Pump
  • Tires lose pressure over time and that makes riding more difficult, you can carry a mini-pump in your tool kit.

• Tire repair kit
  • Should include tire levers, patches, and rubber cement. You can buy self-adhesive patches to use, but these are more expensive.