Cyclo-shopping!

Beer in bicycle basketCommuting by bicycle to work everyday is a great way to get into shape, save a ton of cash on gasoline, and emit less pollution. I love riding to work everyday and it seems to get more enjoyable everyday. There’s nothing like getting some endorphins flowing while feeling the wind flowing over you, smelling the sweet morning scents in the air and waving to other cyclists commuting to work. It is the perfect way to start your day. However, as you continue your cycle commuting lifestyle, you find ways of making your commute more useful and enjoyable.

Groceries in bicycleOne of the best investments I’ve ever made is buying a Wald Bicycle Basket! When cycling home after work, I like to stop by a local grocery store and pickup some ingredients for dinner, beer, or both. Previously I had been carrying my stuff home by cramming it all into my small trunk rack, but I soon realized that better solutions had been invented for transporting items by bicycle. I had seen bicycle baskets before on old bicycles and in movies (think Elmira Gulch’s bicycle in the Wizard of Oz) but you really don’t see them very often nowadays. Searching Google’s Product Search, however, brings up quite a few good deals.

After measuring the interior distance between my drop handle bars, I purchased the Wald 198GB Multi-Fit Basket from one of the Google search results. I bought this model since it is the most versatile of all the baskets as far as getting it to fit on your bike. My drop handlebars were just barely wide enough to fit this basket, by the way, so make sure you measure carefully.

Wine and frozen veggies in basketAnd as you can see from the photos, this basket works great for transporting quite a load of groceries. I decided to buy a six-pack of my favorite beer, Pilsner Urquell, to christen my new bicycle accessory. I quickly found that I needed to buy some bungee cords to keep things from bouncing out of the basket, and I also found that the basket I bought can hold a lot more than a tiny six-pack. On my next ride, I bought a couple of six-packs and rode home fine with them (didn’t have a chance to shoot a shot of that, sorry folks). On grocery ride number three, I bought a couple of large bottles of wine and some frozen veggies, also part of the gallery. Are you seeing a pattern here? Yeah, I’m a cyclist who loves his beer and wine :-)

Today, I use my basket every day to carry my lunch to work in a cold-food pack that fits perfectly in my basket and a few of my co-workers have asked where they can get one. Just remember, get the black painted models if you don’t want your bike to look too feminine! And be extra careful when you’ve loaded up some heavy items into your basket since the bikes handles differently. But, don’t worry, you get used to it quickly. It’s a snap.

Happy cyclo-shopping!

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