Road or Cyclocross?

[Iam918]

Few details that may matter:

Phx, AZ
Just got back into biking about 2mo's ago after not biking since early '97. At the time I was looking at getting a road or commuter bike to ride to work (~4mi each way). Brother, however, talked me into getting a MTB. I am enjoying the MTB out on the trails but not in my commute to work. Furthermore, I carry a good 15lbs in a Camelbak (water, work clothes, shoes, etc.) strapped to my back in my daily commute.

My commute to work has two routes:
1st route: I use this one currently
No bike lane for first ~3 miles then last ~1mi has a bike lane. There is however a sidewalk which I use until the bike lane starts. @ 5am I've seen too many people driving distracted to consider it safe to be riding in the right lane of the road. They also like to drive 60 on this 45mph road. Ride home north side of road has a dirt footpath replacing the sidewalk for ~1/2 mi once the bike lane ends.

2nd route:
Bike lane for first ~2mi then narrows down to a 2 lane road (1 each way w/ passing lane in middle) w/ no bike lane and no sidewalk nor bike/walking path. I've used this route a few times however it's almost all at an uphill grade going to work w/ a short steeper 'hill' in one section. After the bike lane ends bushes line the side of the road, they hang out in places making it so you have to swerve to avoid them or ride farther out in the road the whole time. Once I lose the bike path on this route I stay as far right as I can in the road and swerve when needed to avoid the bushes/small trees. Again cars travel this 45mph road @ 60+, however it is more of a side road so not very busy especially at 5am.


All that said to get to the crux of the issue. I am now looking at getting either a true road or a Cyclo bike for my commute. I don't, at this time, know if I'll be taking it for longer road rides. My understanding is that the Cyclo would be easier to ride on the road than my MTB but not as good as a road bike.

If I get a road bike I figure I'll have to use route 2 all the time unless I want to brave the street w/ no bike lane.

Biggest question atm: Will I be stable enough on a road bike carrying the weight of the Camelbak, etc? Or will I want the wider tires of the Cyclo?

With the Cyclo I figure I can continue to use route 1 until my fitness level improves to where route 2 doesn't kill me otw to work. Could I use route 1 (1st half/sidewalk) on the road bike?


Sorry for the rambling.

Thanks.

 

[daveryanwyoming]

As always the best advice is to test ride a few of the bikes in your price range, both road and cyclocross bikes, and see which you like the most.

But having said that, wearing a pack while riding a road bike is no more difficult than wearing the same pack while riding a cross bike. I do it all the time when bike commuting and it doesn't matter whether I decide to jump on my cross bike mounted with knobbies, my cross frame mounted with road tires or my full racing bike with race wheels and tires, my bike handling with the pack doesn't really change. Sure the cross bike is more relaxed in geometry so it's a bit less twitchy and easier to do things like ride no hands but its not like the road bike suddenly becomes dangerous when I decide to wear a pack.

But since you're asking the question and since you don't have plans to do a lot of road racing I'd strongly recommend the cyclocross bike. They tend to be a better value, they have fender and or rack eyelets so you could carry those commuting supplies on a rack instead of on your back or mount fenders for wet weather commuting which is a nice plus. That and a decent cyclocross bike is plenty fast on the road especially if you mount up road tires but pretty fast even when riding knobbies. It's a very versatile bike that you can easily take out for all day rides and I've even done mass start road racing and fast group training rides with other racers on mine when the weather was lousy or my road bike was in the shop. Yeah, it's not quite as agile or race specific as a dedicated road racer and the cantilever brakes aren't as subtle as good road calipers but cross bikes are probably the most versatile bike you can buy. They're fun, fast, tough as nails and an awful lot of fun to ride as you generally don't hesitate to take them anywhere including gravel and dirt roads and trails.

Go test ride a few cyclocross bikes and a few road bikes in your price range. See if the shop will swap a pair of road wheels onto the cross bike for a test ride to get a better comparison of how both types of bikes feel with smooth road tires mounted. I suspect you won't find as much difference in speed or ease of riding and all in all you may like the feel of the cross bike better as they tend to be a bit less twitchy and set up for a bit more comfort with things like bar top braking in addition to the normal brake/shifter setup you'll get on a road bike.

Good luck,
-Dave

 

[pearl-drum-man]

X2 on the Cross bike. It will perform well on pavement, be a bit more durable, and give you options off the pavement if needed or desired. Many have provisions for fenders etc which are good for a commuter. Loving mine. I do a lot of road riding on mine, often the roadside is pretty beat up or I end up in the cinder shoulder and with the Cross bike this is a non-issue.

 

[Iam918]

Thanks to you both for the advice.
I'll be hitting up my LBS and a few others to test ride different brands to see which I like best.