Here are some items you can quickly prepare for bike commuting starting tomorrow.

While some things will need to be purchased, others can be substituted with items you already have at home.

However, you will be in a lot of trouble without these things, so please take a look.

Pants clips

When you ride a bicycle, the hem of your right pant leg inevitably gets caught in the front gear.

That's why there are bands that prevent your pant leg from flapping around.

After some research, it seems they are called "suso band" (pants clips).

Other names include "zubon susodome" (trouser hem clip) and "susodome strap" (hem clip strap). Since "suso" (hem) is a common word, it should be easy to find them online.

Without these pants clips, your pant legs will get caught in the gears and tear, and chain grease will ruin your pants.

Inexpensive ones can be found for around 1,000 yen, and if you search, you might even find them at 100-yen stores.

At worst, you can use a rubber band as a substitute, but it doesn't look good, so I recommend preparing something proper.

■Gloves

Driver's gloves look cool, but they tend to be quite expensive (cost-wise).

They are also called "driver's gloves," "driving gloves," or "bike gloves."

Again, "gloves" is a common term, so they should be easy to find.

Regular gloves or work gloves aren't bad, but they can slip.

Gloves with anti-slip grips are sold at convenience stores for about 250 yen.

Those would be better.

■Comfortable Commuting Routes

If you search on Google Maps, it might give you routes right away, but will those roads actually be comfortable to ride on?

You tend to look for the shortest route, but you should choose a route that is easy and enjoyable to ride, even if it's a little longer.

For example, morning shopping streets have very few pedestrians, and the roads are well-maintained and easy to cycle on.

Please be careful of pedestrians.

Paths in parks are also good targets.

Larger parks sometimes have dedicated pathways.

If you use these, you can enjoy a comfortable ride on well-maintained and easy-to-ride paths.

■Ensure you have a parking space for your bicycle

When commuting, your bicycle will definitely be parked for a long time.

You might need to park it from around 8 AM until at least 5 PM, or even 9 PM.

During that time, parking at convenience stores, supermarkets, vacant lots, or parks feels bad and, above all, can be a nuisance.

You, too, would be in trouble if your bicycle were removed somewhere.

It's important to secure a proper bicycle parking area.

Many parking lots can be used for about 100 yen a day.

If your bicycle is removed, you'll immediately be charged around 3,000 yen as a fine, disguised as a handling fee.

Parking while constantly worrying about it isn't right either.

Plus, getting scolded as an adult is truly disheartening.

Make sure to prepare properly beforehand.

Also, make sure to keep some change for parking fees in your wallet.

With the widespread use of credit cards and cashless payments, many people probably don't carry cash in their wallets anymore.

On the other hand, some bicycle parking payment machines still only accept 100-yen coins.

While some do give change, it's reassuring to have a 100-yen coin just in case.

Once you've used a parking lot, you'll know the situation, which makes it easier to use—this is likely one of the factors.

■Emergency restrooms

Commuting means it's either morning or evening.

Depending on your habits, you might suddenly need to use the restroom.

It's strange, but when you urgently need a restroom and start looking for one, you get flustered and can't find one.

Keep an eye out for places that are open in the morning and have restrooms available, such as "convenience stores," "24-hour supermarkets," "parks," and "stations."

Also, it's a good idea to keep some toilet paper in your bag, just in case.

Especially in the morning, when few stores are open, places where you can easily use the restroom are very valuable.

If it's a convenience store or supermarket, perhaps buying a drink as a thank you would make it a give-and-take situation.

■Location of bike shops

It's highly unlikely that a bike shop will be open during commuting hours in the morning.

Bicycles, when ridden for a long time, are prone to various issues such as flat tires, chain derailments, or broken spokes.

While regular checks can prevent these problems, what actually happens depends on "experience."

Many people, after experiencing a major problem once, become more careful and add to their personal checklist for inspections.

Summary

If you're going to commute by bicycle, gloves and pants clips are essential.

Ideally, I'd also like you to use goggles, but I'll tell you about that another time.

Decide on a route, at least roughly, pinpoint a parking spot, and you're ready to go.

Riding while observing people and shops makes for a pleasant mood and a fun bike commute.

Enjoy a bicycle commuting life that's not just about speed.