Commuters??

i realize some of you only read the Downhill forum but this really isn't the place...

here's the bike commuter thread: http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=190090 . there are quite a few of us, myself included.

DO IT!! its a win win situation. if i live close enough to work i would be doing that as well but my riding commute would be over 40 miles each way and i'm not that hardcore.

but seriously if you are thinking about it then go ahead i doubt you end of regretting it.

on a side note being a core MTBer i cant stand a true road bike and i much prefer a cross bike even if you put slicks on it i bet you will like it better

if there are trails you could ride to work get a mtb. I ride to work, but I only live 1mile away. for my commuter bike I have a late 70's-early 80's scwhinn 5sp. I bought it for $15 at vallue village, put new tubes in it, added lights, and relubed everything.

road tires on an old hard tail works great too. not using a car is great, full fenders are a must though, I also have rain gear. a place to park the bike at work is nice too. I can keep mine inside, so I don't even need to lock it up.

I ride a SS DJ to work, I haven't drove in over a year.

I've got this.

http://www.brodiebikes.com/2009/bikes/ocho.php

700c, flat-bars, disk brakes, Alfine hub = perfect.
Now if they'd only do it with a belt drive.

I have a hard time figuring out how people can have such an aversion to drop bars. They're more comfortable, give you way more leverage when sprinting and climbing in general, plus they're a lot less dorky than road wheels with flat bars. Flat bar road bikes have got to be one of the silliest looking kind of bikes out there.

Besides...drop bars shred!!!!

WBC said:

Flat bar road bikes have got to be one of the silliest looking kind of bikes out there.

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Except that flat bar fixed gears outnumber drop bar commuters in NYC by about twenty to one.

I commute on my XC bike. It's as fast as taking the subway to work, and saves me $4 a day in subway fare. Lighter tires with a solid center line tread roll fast on pavement. Don't trade weight for speed- a thicker tire makes for a better commuter, as you definitely don't want to be changing flats on your way into work.

Driving sucks





That's why We make two or three frames to avoid driving as much as possible.

Having something fun and cool to ride makes having to go to work a little bit easier. We've been doing flatbar builds on our cxbikes for more people than I thought we would be.

I didn't, then early last year I did for a 6 week period. 10 miles each way.

Shocking how much fitter it made me, although I didn't realise at the time. I will be doing it again when the weather turns & BST kicks in. Motivation is hard for me as I have a company car & fuel, but it was great for the body.

I've got one of these now to do it on.

I haven't driven to work for about 3 years. Now I'm curious to see what kind of miles I'm getting. But yah, It takes me about 10-15 minutes depending on how fast/hard I ride to get to work each way, I love riding bikes of any sort, and I really couldn't care less what other people think of me. I was cheap, and couldn't afford a drop bar road bike, so I bought a flatbar "sport hybrid" trek 7.3. Its been great. If I had as much money as I wanted and was gonna do it again, I'd have gotten a drop bar road bike, they're faster for less effort, but I don't regret buying the flatbar bike in the slightest.

That said, I'll echo the "good tires" thought. I haven't gotten a flat in the year and a half I've owned this particular bike, and I haven't changed the tires at all. Get a "hardcase" type tire like an armadillo, bontrager hardcase, or conti snakeskin. I'm sure there are others out there, but those are three I happen to know. I'm a big fan of the bontrager because the rubber grips so much better and I like pretending the bike is a mountain bike and turning hard on it and being silly, but all of them will last a long time and not flat easily.

But yah dude, pull the trigger on that sh1t and start riding, its fun, it'll keep you in better shape, and you'll save lots on gas. Very worthwhile. Also good for the environment.

-C- said:

I didn't, then early last year I did for a 6 week period. 10 miles each way.

Shocking how much fitter it made me, although I didn't realise at the time. I will be doing it again when the weather turns & BST kicks in. Motivation is hard for me as I have a company car & fuel, but it was great for the body.

I've got one of these now to do it on.

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Wow. I want.

I've commuted on and off for a few years. Never really had a dedicated commuter bike, I just usually ride whatever bike I currently have.

I'm building up a singlespeed roadie out of an old Dawes road bike I had laying on my porch. It'll be super ghetto, but should be fun and a whole lot faster than commuting on my Karpiel or Glory.

Commuting is addictive! Once you get past the initial difficulties, like finding a route, making a schedule and remembering to bring everything you need, its a lot of fun.

And its always entertaining when the Cinnabon brigade gets on the elevator with you and is shocked to learn you choose to ride a bicycle to work.

-C- said:

I've got one of these now to do it on.

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You have one? Are you the mtbr member that gave me the link recently? I'm working on a Cotic Roadrad purchase now actually.

Wow that picture is big - sorry. I cant even see the edit button!
well if that pic gets nuked here is the link
http://jhota.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/district_vintagegray.jpg

Just because everyone is doing it doesn't make it right. Besides, look at what you said...

jbogner said:

Except that flat bar fixed gears outnumber drop bar commuters in NYC by about twenty to one.

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One thing to consider is what you plan on doing with bike besides commuting.

For example, I rather get a 29er than a cyclocross or a commuter-only bike, because I can use the 29er on the trails I ride now.

A rigid 29er with road tires does the same job as the other commuter bikes.

sanjuro said:

A rigid 29er with road tires does the same job as the other commuter bikes.

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Except it is not as fun to ride on the road, and no fun to ride offroad

SuspectDevice said:

Except it is not as fun to ride on the road, and no fun to ride offroad

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LMAO. Everything is a compromise, for sure.

Bulldog said:

You have one? Are you the mtbr member that gave me the link recently? I'm working on a Cotic Roadrad purchase now actually.

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I do, although the spec on mine is slightly different. Its out of my parts bin! I'm running XT HT2 cranks, single speed, Hope XC hubs laced to Mavic road rims & some Goodridged Saints for brakes!

I haven't given anyone the link for one though? But I can recommend them. Its a great (and cheap) hack bike

I'm using a giant bowery to commute in to school, it works out at about 20k a day. Great bike, single speed(yeah, I know, I'm a poser), light enough and very maintenance free. I've got about 1500 miles on the bike now and all i have had to do is lube the chain a bit and replace brake blocks.

the way to go here is find a ghetto a$$ 1980 road bike frame that has been sitting in someones garage. Then just add flat bars, single speed, old bear trap pedals with cages and perhaps a new brake and some tires and you are good to go. But you have to make sure to sticker slap the $hit out of the frame. Or at least spray paint it black.

jerseydirt said:

the way to go here is find a ghetto a$$ 1980 road bike frame that has been sitting in someones garage. Then just add flat bars, single speed, old bear trap pedals with cages and perhaps a new brake and some tires and you are good to go. But you have to make sure to sticker slap the $hit out of the frame. Or at least spray paint it black.

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Then sell it for $250 bucks on NYC Craigslist and buy yourself something better.

Bulldog said:

LMAO. Everything is a compromise, for sure.

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Except a nice bike for commuting.

SuspectDevice said:

Except it is not as fun to ride on the road, and no fun to ride offroad

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Mine's fun (and fast) on the road, and more fun offroad. Different strokes.

SuspectDevice said:

Except it is not as fun to ride on the road, and no fun to ride offroad

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I disagree.

We can do analysis between road, cyclocross, and 29er geometries, but from someone who commutes on a road, mountain, and a freeride hardtail, they can be all fun except when it comes to speed.

Personally, I was thinking about a Cannondale 29er 1. With the Lefty lockout, it is the closest to rigid, but I can still use it offroad.

sanjuro said:

I disagree.

We can do analysis between road, cyclocross, and 29er geometries, but from someone who commutes on a road, mountain, and a freeride hardtail, they can be all fun except when it comes to speed.

Personally, I was thinking about a Cannondale 29er 1. With the Lefty lockout, it is the closest to rigid, but I can still use it offroad.

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Speed is the only thing that's fun, ATMO.

If I wanted to be retarded, I'd have married my grandma.

Also why I commute in a skinsuit, without a helmet.

Commuting by bike is a good way to go. How long is your commute, out of curiousity?

I ride to work, to classes and to do errands and things. The rides aren't too long compared to most, but pretty frequent and with some decent hills. I've found that the bike I'm using for it has been great. It is nothing exciting- mid-high end Trek hybrid from probably 8-10 years ago. It is pretty close to a flat bar cross bike in some ways. I like it because it is a steel frame, has a good gear selection (hills), gripshift (which I usually don't like, but I find it slightly more reliable, longer lasting and easier to use with winter gloves than rapidfire), 7 speed drivetrain. I put on a rear rack and got some panniers too. I use them when running errands, but find that I like wearing a backpack more. Think if that's something you'd want and look for a frame with mounts.