# Best bike for grocery shopping and local store visitations.



## dnoyeb (Sep 23, 2007)

I need a bike to pick up my clothes from the cleaners and to go to the pharmacy and grocery store. Any recommendations? What type of bike would it be?

So far the best candidates seem to be the police bikes. But I don't think I need the front shocks. Plus I want to sit back and relax while going to the store. So I don't need the flat handlebars.


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## matt1976 (Sep 9, 2007)

Cruiser.

You're welcome. :thumbsup:


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## PscyclePath (Aug 29, 2007)

It's the bike that you like to ride best.

If you're just looking at putting together a commuter/utility bike, a hardtail MTB is a good starting point. You want to be able to carry stuff with you, so while a backpack or messenger bag may be a good starting point, it works a lot better if you're able to transfer the load to the bike. So the first and most important addition would be a rear rack.

Next is wheels and tires. MTB wheels are usually excellent for negotiating urban pavement and the occasional back alley. My work commute (9 miles each way) includes a little less than a mile of gravel and single track (hence at least part of my enthusiasm for MTBs as commuters), so that's the way I went, and left my grip tires on the MTB. For paved or mostly paved routes, swap your knobby tires for a pair of slicks to reduce your rolling resistance a quieter, smoother ride.

Next, you need lights. White light on the front, red light on the rear. Note that I say *lights *and not reflectors for this. State law and safety says you need active lighting system, the CPSC says that the bike companies can squeak by by giving you reflectors. You need enough light to see where you're going and dodge the potholes, pavement cracks, broken bottles, and road kill; you also need to light yourself up like a Christmas tree so that motorists and other cyclists can see and avoid you. Here's where all the reflectors come in. I wear a helmet, and stuck Nathan's reflective tape on front back, and rear. Also a hi-vis jersey, and if out after dark I add a reflective vest that's stashed back in my rack trunk. Reflectors on pedals are good, and those little reflective "commuter bands" that you wear around your ankle to keep your britches leg from getting wrapped up in the chain are good.

That's pretty much it as far as the bike goes. You do need something to carry your groceries in. Backpacks are cheap and you probably already have one, but let's think about that new rack back there.

A rack trunk is a good deal to carry lots of little stuff. For groceries and other bulk items, panniers work best. Most are sold in pairs, except for the big "grocery bag" panniers (so called because you can set a whole grocery bag down in there) which are sold singly. Panniers clip to the side rails on your rear rack and have a little elastic hook that clips down by the axle to keep them from flopping around. You can usually use your rack trunk, or bungey-cord something to the top of the rack, at the same time as you're using your panniers.

You can also bungey-cord or zip-tie a milk crate to your rear rack, for that decidedly urban retro look. It works well, too...


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## Paulitik (Jun 27, 2008)

This will carry a few groceries


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## FastFix (Sep 29, 2007)

There is always the Xtra cycle. I use it regularly to buy groceries to feed a family of four.


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## wheelbender6 (Sep 25, 2007)

Get one of those cargo trailers from ebay and ride whatever bike you like. Panniers will be full with 4 - 2 liter sodas and it's tough to balance.


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## pimpbot (Dec 31, 2003)

*I'm rolling like this....*



dnoyeb said:


> I need a bike to pick up my clothes from the cleaners and to go to the pharmacy and grocery store. Any recommendations? What type of bike would it be?
> 
> So far the best candidates seem to be the police bikes. But I don't think I need the front shocks. Plus I want to sit back and relax while going to the store. So I don't need the flat handlebars.




Here I took my camping gear on an trial run, but you get the idea. I haul groceries with this all the time.

I went for nice swept risers as well. I didn't do a cruiser because we have real hills around here, and nothing sucks more than trying to grind one of those things loaded down with stuff up a steep hill.

The bike came with a craptastic Rockshox Jett fork, which was repalced with a rigid Voodoo fork. Worked out great.


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## klay (Feb 23, 2006)

*Try this*

https://www.browncycles.com/tandems.htm


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