Commuting - what bike to get?

[mrbarry]

I have a Bordman pro and my mate has a Team, both 2009 bikes. There is nothing between them to be honest, mine has slightly higher spec but on the road the difference is small under foot. But both bikes are superb. I cover 100 miles or so a week in 3 or 4 rides of 20-40 miles each. I find the bike easy to get on with, reliable, comfy, and solid feeling yet quite lively. I have full tor-tech mud guards fitted, a rack and top bag, and side bags for shopping but they dont stay on the bike full time. As a 'tool' it is fantastic. My commute is 20 miles on safe roads, 17 if I want to dice with death, so I use my car I car pool with 4 others from my estate however and we each drive 1 day a week, saves us each 140 miles a week and takes 4 cars off the road every day, so me cycling wouldn't help as one of those would have to do an extra day.

After 8 weeks however I am craving a road bike with drops for the pesky head winds we are getting in abundance lately. But I intend using it in the day light only for dry rides, the Boardman will be the night/wet/shopping bike, apart from anything else I dont want to spend another £100 on lights

God dam, I want to commute on my bike tomorrow now

[mrbarry]

[pq]

pq wrote: What you need more than anything is speed, so any kind of hybrid or tourer won't cut it. .



I would beg to differ. Is this a serious response from a knowledgeable individual? I would very much doubt that anyone could maintain much higher speeds on an audax than they could a tourer of equal quality. If they could it could be measured in units of diddly squat. What on earth does he think tourers were made for? Lumbering slowly around mountain ranges or something? Tourers are for doing high mileages day after day, whilst maintaining some degree of comfort and having carrying capacity. In my opinion that is exactly what the OP should be seeking.

I used to do a 60 mile round trip as a commute, so I know something about it. Doing that sort of thing every day is exhausting - and I quickly realised that a faster bike made a big difference - both to how quickly I got there, and how tired I was when I arrived.

Commuting is not touring. Commuting involves relatively short rides in a hurry, touring involves spending all day on a bike, probably at a gentle pace. For a short commute, the difference is irrelevant. For a long commute, it starts to add up.

Oh, and Saudidave, it is possible to disagree with someone without being offensive. You should try it sometime.

[Ontherivet77]

I've used a Specialized Sirrus, a Trek 6000 with slicks, an older Falcon Adventurer and a 1970s Dawes Lightning.

The first thing I'd say is if you can't fit full mudguards that you've got a problem come winter, as you get sick of the water in the face from the front tyre. All these bikes have advantages and disadvantages, the Sirrus was the fastest and probably most versatile.
I wouldn't recommend any particular brand or bike but would definitely say, buy one second hand and save yourself 50% on the new price, also you may get things like mudguards thrown in. Commuter bikes tend to get thrashed in all weathers so spending a fortune on a brand new steed is probably not a good idea.

[thirdcrank]

... I used to do a 60 mile round trip as a commute, ....

notworthy.gif (1.74 KiB) Viewed 510 times

And although the little yellow face is grinning, this is a mark of admiration.

[mark a.]

I'm just curious:

NickTheLid

Joined:
16 Nov 2009, 22:47
Posted this question:
16 Nov 2009, 22:51
Last visited:
16 Nov 2009, 22:52

Why ask the question, get 3 pages of useful answers but then don't bother to check back? Or, if he's checking without logging in, don't bother to say thanks?

[saudidave]

Oh, and Saudidave, it is possible to disagree with someone without being offensive. You should try it sometime.

pq I'm sorry if you find my response offensive, however I am completely baffled by your post. I can see nothing offensive in my comments whatsoever.

[Si]

Oh, and Saudidave, it is possible to disagree with someone without being offensive. You should try it sometime.

pq I'm sorry if you find my response offensive, however I am completely baffled by your post. I can see nothing offensive in my comments whatsoever.

Such are the vagaries of the internet, it is very easy for someone to read a comment in a way that the writer didn't intend. I can see exactly why your question "Is this a serious response from a knowledgeable individual? " could easily be taken as you inferring that he was talking out of his hat, and I can also see that it could be a serious and genuine question that could have been posed meaning no offence at all. If you'd have asked it face to face I'm sure that the added facial nuances, body language, etc would have made it much less ambiguous. Alas, on the 'net such hints and clues aren't there to help.

It's a trap that we all fall into (from either end) from time to time, and just underlines the need for added care when trying to put an opposing case to someone.

As it is, I can vouch for PQ being extremely knowledgeable and having a ton of experience to back up his comments. Although I might not agree with his approach 100%, I still respect his opinion.

[mrbarry]

The Internet and forums on the Internet can mask the intention of a post and lead people to read your post in the opposite light to how it was intended. I am a big forum user but new to this one and have already got my self in trouble here in exactly that way. It was easily corrected but I have also seen long drawen out arguments where 2 people are making the same point and can't see it.
Bike wize I still love my boardman despite some very negatve comments from cyclists with exotic makes under their bottoms, if you ask me they need to test one and lower their noses.

[NickTheLid]

Thanks for all the replies - have decided to go for a Cannondale Bad boy 2010 model, as although others have said bent over is better - my back really won't take it (had spinal reconstruction surgery 2 years ago), but will certainly be taking the advice on panniers.

Nick

[thekelticfringe]

Good stuff Nick - post up a pic of the full rig for us to admire whilst it is still new and shiny!