How to get comfortable riding with car traffic

I googled your location...it looks like you're only a few miles from some pretty rural areas.  Those are going to be the best places to ride.  Not too many intersections, not too much traffic, etc.

Scout out some of the roads west of you to see which have good shoulders and little traffic.  Ride those roads a few times and you'll start to get comfortable.  Like anything in life, it just takes a little experience and you'll get used to it.

This is good advice...they'll bring you to good routes as well, that you can then ride on your own.

Ask other cyclists/triathletes in your area who train for longer distance races.

In my neck of the woods there are 30- and 45-mile country (and I mean COUNTRY) isolated loops that I had no idea existed until another athlete told me about it. I have to drive about 30 minutes outside of the city to get there, but the reward is a wonderful road with barely any traffic - and with hills as well. 

If you DO have to ride in traffic, yes I would practice quick clip-out maneuvers, hitting the brakes, holding your line, etc. For me, it also just took practice to get comfortable.

This is excellent advice.  I started riding with my husband, just to have someone to show me the routes, an riding in a group is great.  They point out hazards, etc.  Very good time!  

I'm in the middle of a big city (with non-stop traffic) and I will not ride unless I'm 100% sure I'm safe to do so (i.e. beach paths, early in the morning with as rural a road I can get on, etc.  I had a HUGE scare where I was bumped by a car and it has me semi-freaked out.

Luckily - there ARE bike lanes here - it's connecting them that's the issue.

You'll also learn routes that are likely to be decent. A group I've ridden with has a number of theirs posted on their website.

I am still not completely comfortable and am a very cautious rider.

I have noticed I am more comfortable when I ride with others. I think the extra eyes and ears make me feel safer and also I feel that drivers would be more likely to notice riders in a group.

The other thing I do is I get out really early and try to get all my street riding in early before I hit the trail. I know eventually as I go longer I'll be out later but I've found some good roads that are large and don't have a lot of weekend traffic - office park areas are good for this although I'm sure during the week it's a mess.

Also, like others said, ask around.

I ride fairly early in the morning on weekends when the car traffic is lighter.

I also map rides out using Google Maps and turn on their bike route feature. It will show you which roads are bike friendly, have a dedicated bike lane, or are a bike path. If I'm unfamiliar with the territory, I will go drive the new route to see how it is.

Weekdays are strictly indoor training sessions. 

I am never comfortable in traffic, especially during the week when people are trying to get home from work.  But I think that makes me more careful and keeps me focused and hopefully accident free *knock on wood*.

I ride with the mentaility that everyone IS going to hit me and I have to do everything to make sure it doesn't happen.  Better to be safe than sorry.

Now on the weekends at 7am, I do feel pretty comfortable and my mind wanders (and so does my bike sometimes).

I ride both bicycles and motorcycles.  On either, I take the approach that the cars don't see me or if they do, they are out to get me and don't care if they hit me, so I am better prepared when they make an unexpected move.  That thought has saved my bacon more than once.

As far as bike routes, I like to choose low volume streets with lower speed limits (45 and under, 35 or less is better).  I won't ride on highways for more than a block or two in order to jump to a neighborhood street. 

If shoulders are narrow, I go ahead and ride in the lane a few feet to make cars move over.  It seems if I hug the white line, they try to stay in the lane and get to close.  If they have to move, they go ahead and move on over.  Of course there are always jerks that try to brush you and old people that are too scared to move over.  Just try to be as visible and safe as you can be.

Also try to lobby your local city for bike paths and trails.  I'm an engineer and I know there is lots of free grant money for studying bike lanes and developing plans.  Actually building them is a little more difficult, but if a plan is in place, it's a start.

From Wog: A good friend of mine who rides motorcycles says--once you stop being afraid of it, bad things happen.  Same applies to riding in traffic--at least for me.

2x this.  My close calls have been when I was not paying attention.  I 3x the other comments.  I think group rides help give you confidence in the road and traffic.  Also, group rides usually pick a common route, so they know which one works and which one does.   You can always get up earlier to avoid the traffic. Luckly at Nashville, we have 450 miles to FL that is private road, 2 lanes and cars go 40ish mph and the cars yield to the bikers.  Back when I lived in IL, crazy drivers that you have to find a country road because the people get mad at bikers "get off the road".  I think each area is different - car traffic to driver's attitude to bikers to bikers.  Here, bikers are common, cars go slower because of the rolling hills, and drivers are very friendly.

It's all about practice.  Get out and start with some residential streets where you need to concentrate on stopping and unclipping quickly at the same time you can practice starting and clipping in quickly.  We have several county roads that are rather narrow.  I make a point to wear bright clothing and I try to ride about 6 to 12 inches from the white line, if there is no shoulder or a rumble strip shoulder.  If you don't know what a rumble strip shoulder is then imagine going down train tracks, in the middle, over the wood planks, but more uncomfortable.

Most drivers are cool with cyclists.  Truthfully, the Harley Riders are the ones that I would like to pull a handgun on.  I have been buzzed a few times and it's nerve racking.

The state of Iowa is going to enact a new law that requires drivers to stay at least 3 feet away from cycilists.  We had hoped for a 6 foot distance, but we will take what we can get.

It took me a long time to feel comfortable riding in traffic, and even now, I still don't, but I'm getting better. I live in a really urban area with lots of traffic and drivers who think it's OK to "buzz" cyclists on the road.

The trick for me was 1) riding outside during early hours when there's nobody out there, just to get a feel for the roads and routes themselves, and 2) learning which of the sidestreets are less trafficked than others. Once I figured out some solid routes and became familiar with them, I've been mentally better dealing with drivers.

Still, though, I worry I'm going to hit a pothole when some jerk's riding too close and fall off and under a wheel. The hard-core city cyclists and bike messengers are crazy. 

I find this odd in some ways.  I grew up riding on the street.  There were no paths/trails back then, at least not I knew of (I'm 47).  I rode across town in the morning to school on Fridays as we had a bike riding class and that was in Rockford, IL, which had ~250,000 people at the time and I was in middle school.  It was an alternative middle school, so not near home.

Now, in a city with lots of traffic I understand the concern, as I'm now in Atlanta, and there's plenty of places I don't think would be very safe for cycling.  And I wouldn't like my kids riding in the traffic near home, largely because they don't bike much.  I'm used to traffic and know that most people driving cars don't look for cyclists (or motorcycles for that matter).

Now that I'm getting back into triathlons I'm riding on a trail, to start.  Then I'll ride with a group on the streets to get some hill work in.

Mostly don't try to hide from traffic.  They're not looking for you to begin with.  Make yourself as obvious as possible.  Avoiding heavy traffic is best.  It's not good riding anyway; traffic lights, smog, and the potential to get hit is higher.  Rural is better in many ways, less traffic, fewer traffic lights. 

Truth is, you may not be cut out for it.

All the advice given is good advice. And how you get over any fear is to confront it and do it. But the truth is everyone has a level of fear they are willing to accept and a level they can't.

I like adrenelin. It's fun. I'm not a junkie, plenty of people with better skills and higher thresholds than me, but I do enjoy it. I love riding in traffic. I used to commute year round and at night. Fly though red lights, zip around like the Invisible Man... but understand I was not taking risks. I was not cutting things close, or anything crazy.... just riding like that, head on a swivel, aware, alert, speed, heart racing... it's fun. I see all those crazy people riding in New York city, messengers, weaving in and out of traffic and people, anything goes... I think that in my younger years I would have loved doing that.... and then there are those that would never do that in a million years.

There is nothing wrong with that. Honestly... people that jump off cliffs with squirrel suits on are simply not right in the head. You can try some of the suggestions, but if you are that freaked out, then so be it. You can still train for a IM on a trainer. You can still make anything work... and these days with cell phones and drivers texting... you can still do everything right and conquer your fears and still get killed by a driver not even looking at the road. Only you know the level of risk you are willing to accept and what level of fear is fun for you and what is not.

Bottom line is that bike training does not depend on riding in traffic. It just doesn't. You can do the majority of it on a trainer. But most certainly go out and do some group rides. At least get comfotable riding with others. That will help skills in races. There is safety in numbers, and they choose good routes. Start there and work on your skills. After that you will figure out if you want more or not. This is supposed to be fun.