Biking & Urban Cycling

Overview

Cycling as primary transportation in NYC. Not recreational road cycling or mountain biking—utilitarian urban cycling for commuting, errands, exploration. The bike as a tool for navigating the city efficiently and understanding it intimately.

This started as practical transportation and evolved into a deeper engagement with urban infrastructure, mechanical skills, and advocacy work. Cycling in NYC requires constant attention but rewards you with freedom of movement that transit and cars can't match.

Current Setup

Daily rider: Steel frame commuter bike (2015 Surly Cross-Check). Chosen for durability, repairability, and the ability to take abuse. Steel flexes, absorbs road shock better than aluminum. Also: clearance for wider tires (35mm), fenders for wet weather, rack mounts for cargo.

Modifications

• Brooks B17 saddle: Took 500 miles to break in, worth it. Leather conforms to you over time.
• Swept-back handlebars: Upright position, reduces strain on wrists and back.
• Platform pedals: Not clipless—need to bail quickly in city traffic.
• Dynamo hub: Powers front and rear lights. Never worry about batteries or charging.
• Wider tires (35mm): Better grip, more comfort, handles NYC road conditions.
• Fenders: Essential for wet weather riding.
• Rear rack: For panniers, groceries, cargo.

Why Steel Frame

Steel is:

• Durable (won't catastrophically fail like carbon)
• Repairable (can be welded if cracked)
• Comfortable (flexes to absorb road shock)
• Long-lasting (will outlive me with proper care)
• Affordable (compared to carbon or ti)

Maintenance & Repairs

Learning to maintain and repair bikes is essential in NYC. Bike shops are expensive, and simple maintenance (chain cleaning, brake adjustment, flat fixes) is doable with basic tools and YouTube.

Skills Acquired

• Fixing flats: Can do it in under 5 minutes. Essential urban cycling skill.
• Adjusting derailleurs: Indexing gears, cable tension, limit screws.
• Replacing cables/housing: Brakes and shifters. Fresh cables transform feel.
• Truing wheels: Straightening wheels with spoke wrench. Satisfying when done right.
• Overhauling hubs: Disassemble, clean, regrease bearings, reassemble.
• Chain maintenance: Cleaning, lubing, measuring wear, replacement.
• Brake adjustment: Pad alignment, cable tension, hydraulic bleed (learning).

Still Learning

• Wheel building from scratch
• Bottom bracket service
• Internal hub maintenance (Shimano Alfine/Rohloff)
• Hydraulic brake systems
• Frame alignment and facing

Tool Investment

Having the right tools makes maintenance meditative instead of frustrating:

• Park Tool bike stand (best purchase)
• Cable cutters (clean cuts are essential)
• Chain tool
• Spoke wrench
• Cone wrenches (for hub overhauls)
• Hex keys and torque wrench
• Tire levers and floor pump
• Chain wear indicator

Maintenance Schedule

• After every ride in rain: Wipe down, dry chain, relube.
• Weekly: Quick clean, check tire pressure, inspect for issues.
• Monthly: Deep chain cleaning, brake check, bolt torque check.
• Seasonally: Full tune-up, cable replacement, bearing service.
• Annually: Hub overhaul, bottom bracket service, full inspection.

Routes & Navigation

Learning the city through cycling. You notice details that car passengers and even pedestrians miss—how intersections work, where infrastructure fails, which streets have safer traffic patterns, where the good pavement is.

Favorite Routes

• Brooklyn waterfront greenway: Uninterrupted riding with views. Williamsburg to Red Hook to Sunset Park.
• Prospect Park loop: 3.35-mile loop, closed to cars mornings and evenings. Best training loop in Brooklyn.
• Kent Avenue bike lane: Busy but protected. Williamsburg north-south spine.
• Residential side streets: Slower but safer. Bedford Ave alternatives in Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights.
• Manhattan Bridge: Best Brooklyn-Manhattan crossing. Dedicated bike path, views.
• Pulaski Bridge: Williamsburg to Queens. Short but sweet, industrial views.

Route-Finding Strategy

1. Prioritize protected bike lanes where they exist
2. Then low-traffic side streets
3. Then wide streets with painted lanes
4. Avoid: narrow streets with parked cars (door zone), major truck routes, construction zones

Navigation Tools

• Google Maps (bike mode): Suggests bike-friendly routes, shows bike lanes.
• Citymapper: Good for multi-modal (bike + train) trips.
• Strava: Heat maps show popular routes. Follow the locals.
• NYC DOT bike map: Shows all bike infrastructure. Good for planning.
• Mental map: Eventually you internalize the grid. No need for GPS.

Gear & Practical Concerns

Weatherproofing

• Rain: Showers Pass rain pants and jacket, waterproof pannier bags (Ortlieb), fenders, shoe covers.
• Winter: Pogies (handlebar mittens), thermal layers, lights for shorter days, studded tires for ice (rarely needed in NYC).
• Summer: Light layers, sunscreen, hydration, breathable fabrics.

Security

Bike theft is rampant in NYC. Prevention strategies:

• Two locks: U-lock for frame and rear wheel, cable for front wheel.
• Lock to fixed object: Bike racks, street signs (thick ones), parking meters.
• High-traffic areas: Park in visible locations, preferably with foot traffic.
• Remove accessories: Lights, bags, anything quick-release.
• Register serial number: NYPD bike registry, photos for insurance.
• GPS tracker: Hidden AirTag if the bike is especially nice.

Safety

• Lights always: Front (white), rear (red), even daytime. More visible = safer.
• High-vis clothing: Bright jacket or vest in low light.
• Rear-view mirror: Actually useful. Check before lane changes.
• Bell: For pedestrians. Polite but firm.
• Defensive riding: Assume cars don't see you. Assume pedestrians will step into bike lane. Plan escape routes.
• Helmet: Controversial in cycling communities, but I wear one. Your choice.

Cargo Hauling

Bikes can carry more than you think:

• Panniers: Side bags on rear rack. Grocery runs, commute gear.
• Front basket: Quick access, good for small items.
• Backpack: Less ideal (back sweat, weight distribution) but sometimes necessary.
• Trailer: For large/heavy loads. Considered this but NYC traffic makes it scary.

Advocacy & Infrastructure

Following NYC bike infrastructure development. Protected bike lanes are slowly expanding but still fragmented. The city has a long way to go—Amsterdam and Copenhagen show what's possible when cycling infrastructure is taken seriously.

Current State

NYC bike infrastructure is:

• Improving but inconsistent
• Often painted lanes (not protected) that feel unsafe
• Frequently blocked by delivery trucks, Ubers, construction
• Better in Manhattan than outer boroughs
• Subject to local opposition ("war on cars" rhetoric)

Organizations

• Transportation Alternatives: Advocacy for safer streets, better bike infrastructure. Attend rallies and community board meetings.
• Bike NYC: Education, classes, community rides.
• NYC DOT: Official but slow. Submit feedback on projects.

How to Help

• Attend community board meetings when bike lane proposals come up
• Email representatives supporting bike infrastructure
• Join Transportation Alternatives
• Show up to protected bike lane hearings (numbers matter)
• Report blocked bike lanes (311 app)
• Vote for candidates who support safe streets

Vision Zero

NYC's Vision Zero initiative aims to eliminate traffic deaths. Progress is slow. Cyclists and pedestrians still die regularly. Better infrastructure (protected lanes, protected intersections, daylighting) would save lives. This isn't theoretical—it's proven in other cities.

Philosophy of Urban Cycling

Freedom and Constraint

Cycling in NYC is simultaneously liberating and stressful. You move faster than walking, more flexibly than transit, cheaper than driving. You're not trapped underground or stuck in traffic. You notice the city in ways you don't from a car or train.

But it also requires constant vigilance. NYC wasn't designed for bikes—you're always negotiating space with cars, pedestrians, delivery trucks, construction, potholes. It's adversarial by default. The goal is to make it less adversarial through better infrastructure.

Physical Activity Built In

Cycling builds physical activity into daily life without requiring gym time. Commute becomes exercise. Errands become movement. You arrive places energized, not sedentary.

Connection to Place

The freedom of point-to-point travel, the physical activity built into daily life, the connection to place that comes from moving through it under your own power—these make it worthwhile despite the challenges.

You understand the city differently when you move through it slowly enough to notice but fast enough to cover distance. You learn shortcuts, patterns, rhythms. The city reveals itself.

Sustainability and Independence

Bikes are:

• Environmentally low-impact
• Economically accessible (compared to cars)
• Mechanically simple (you can fix them yourself)
• Space-efficient (compared to cars)
• Healthy (physical activity without gym membership)

Urban cycling is a form of practical sustainability. Not performative, not sacrifice—just a better tool for the job of moving around a dense city.