What type of bike do you commute to work on



Azulene said:
During the winter I started to ride my fixed gear bike to work. With the shorter days my fixed gear gives me a better work out.


Depends on the weather, I'm an all season rider since 1978. If it's a great day out (DRY) or I'm running late, it's the road bike, my FeltF10, full Campy record carbon. If I want to play or if it's muddy my mountain bike (KHS Alite 4000 frame w/full XTR). If I'm torn between the two I go with the Redline Conquest. My routes run 34 to 38.4 miles round trip and are also dependant upon my playing in the mud or how nice the day is.
 
I didn't know which option to choose, because I ride 3-speed bikes exclusively (I chose "single speed" but that's not really accurate.)

If I have a lot of stuff to carry, I use my 3 speed with panniers attached to the sides and back. For simple rides or commutes where I don't need to carry much, I use my Raleigh 3 speed.
 
I commute on a Avanti Team Corsa, setup as a single speed using 45/15 ratio.

It's extremely light and is easy to clean especially during these wet winter nights. Also when (not if) I'm involved in an accident, I'm not trashing my custom build bike. :D
 
Azulene said:
During the winter I started to ride my fixed gear bike to work. With the shorter days my fixed gear gives me a better work out.
I ride my 1999 Rocky Mountain Thin Air mtb. Got bald 1.5" tires on it, a quick release rack, and it's great. Of course, it's only 4.5 miles one way, so it's easy. The roads are really rough, that's why I ride the MTB.
 
I ride a Mongoose Randonneur EX with a rear pannier rack to work and also for most other trips. It is a great bike for a relatively quick and responsive ride with a relatively heavy load on the back. I previously rode a Mongoose Switchback which survived two car accidents and still sits in our garage.
 
Tabruno3 said:
My ride is 22 miles each way (I try to get in at least 3 round trips a week).

I find my Trek 1400 to be just fine. Fair amount of gain on the rides each way, and with "only" a double I get a great burn!

Concern now is COLD. Boston is getting chilly in the AM - need to upgrade my tights before parts start freezing off....
-----------------------------

I will add that I just moved up from 700x23 to 700x25 - wanted a bit more sturdy tire but still want a road feel.
Please let me know what works for you for protecting the groin area in freezing temperatures.

I would also love to hear your impressions of the tire change as I am about to consider the opposite change...moving from a 700x27 to a 23, and running tube protectors. Thoughts?
 
My current ride is a gem I cobbled together last weekend. I found an Apollo Club Sport at a local shop, threw on my OLD mtb bars with "Moose Horns" and now have (for me) the perfect commuter 700x27c's on Araya wheels with Shimano 600 sealed hubs, 54/38 gears up front, 13/25 on the rear, Shimano Ultegra rear derailleur the rest is all 600, fenders, Jim Blackburn alloy rack...cost so far, $189.

I ride 16 kilometers each way to and from work with weekend and evening rides with the wifey. I try to get in 250K each week to keep trim. RHR is 66 and I like to hammer to 160 (I'm 49) using interval training all the way to work. Cruising HR is 120. I usually cover my total commute in 38 minutes with heavy traffic and as quick as 26 minutes if I make all the lights and breaks. I also find that sitting upright with my new bars, does not slow me down! For the trade off in back pain between upright and drop bars...I can push harder sitting upright.

My route is nice with 6k of total on a nice dedicated multi-use trail off of which I jump onto a dedicated bus/taxi/bike lane all the way downtown. Had my last ride stolen a few weeks ago from my office towers secure inside bicycle "compound" and was forced to ride my wife's Raleigh "Sprite GS" until I got this baby sorted.

If you want to see the ULTIMATE bike for snow...check out the Surly Pugsley!
http://www.surlybikes.com/pugsley.html Totally awesome, gotta' have one for up here in Edmonton, Ab. 4-inch tires whoo hooo!

I saw a bike like this once in Grande Prairie, AB where they get lots of snow. That particular bike had clearly been custom built using tires and wheels from an ATV. The tires were at least 6 inches wide...very cool to watch him just motor up and over snow piles.
 
Xtracycle on a Buzz frame with slick 26"s.

I can haul 4-6 bags of groceries and out manuver any street bike with panniers. Faster than the drag of a trailer and can hook up a passenger easily.

I should have bought one a few years ago!
 
Azulene said:
During the winter I started to ride my fixed gear bike to work. With the shorter days my fixed gear gives me a better work out.
Old steel framed touring bike with mudguards, all year round.
 
I ride a Rivendell Atlantis (at least I did till a wreck last weekend). Good ride, I probably needed a little smaller frame than the 56 CM bike I bought. 3x9, XT up front with a mountain triple, Ultegra in back, XTR hubs, 36 spoke wheels with Conti TT 1.9" tires, Paul Cantis, and SPD pedals. Down tube shifters, and drop bars, conventional road layout of controls.

Plusses: Ride quality of the steel frame, plenty of gears, and rolls forever.

Negative: While I was used to downtube shifters, and conventional brakes, I probably would be better off with everything on the bar like a mountain bike, maybe with moustache bars, thumbies, and MTB brake levers.

Frame top and down tubes are now buckled, and the fork is bent, but all other components survived. I will be looking to build another commuter/weekend raider.
 
My Xtracycle. Built on a Novarra Buzz with 26" slicks.

The pic in front of the grass is with a xl duffel with a full load of laundry and a bag of groceries on the other side.

Loving this rig! Able to carry huge payloads and a passenger and stable fast and slow speeds.
 
Azulene said:
During the winter I started to ride my fixed gear bike to work. With the shorter days my fixed gear gives me a better work out.
I alternate between using my road bike when I make the full 19 mile (one way) trip into work from home. I do that one once or twice a week depending on my schedule at work. Trek1000

On other days, I drive to the half way point and used my mountain bike. Trek 200. On these alternate days, I ride with another rider who has less road experience and cannot ride as fast as I can. I use these rides to just enjoy riding.

I try to use my bike for transportation rather than throw money away on gasoline.
 
just got a new fuji cross pro im using to commute.
put some urbanmax tires on it to be a little smoother on the roads.
it's only 3 miles round trip, so i do it as may days as the schedule allows.
 
If I biked to work I would use my 2005 Kestrel Talon and change the Eurus wheels to HED 3s. I would like to go fast so this would be it!

I am amazed at how some people (on this thread) are biking far distances with crappy bikes.
 
JTE83 said:
If I biked to work I would use my 2005 Kestrel Talon and change the Eurus wheels to HED 3s. I would like to go fast so this would be it!

I am amazed at how some people (on this thread) are biking far distances with crappy bikes.

The crappy bike thing was out of line, these are people who like what they're doing and maybe they love their bikes and you come along and want to dis them. Maybe to some your Talon is mere ****. :mad:
 
FELTF10 said:
The crappy bike thing was out of line, these are people who like what they're doing and maybe they love their bikes and you come along and want to dis them. Maybe to some your Talon is mere ****. :mad:

Absolutely! I simply cannot afford anything better than what I've got anyway ... and it does me fine.
 
I switched from 10 speeds to 3 speeds 6 years ago, find the 3 speeds more comfortable and pleasing to ride.I have 4 at present, a 1969 Robin Hood (6700 miles), a 1983 Peugeot with aluminum 27 inch rims, aluminum stem, seat post, a Huffy Baypointe (5700 miles) and the most recent, A Schwinn suburban (700 miles). All have brooks B-66 saddles with sheepskin saddle covers, generator lights, Pletscher racks with flashers on the rear. The Huffy has the Shimano 333
hubs, the Robin Hood and Peugot the Sturmey Archer AW , the Schwinn has the
Sturmey Archer S3C-came that way. My daily commute is about 15 miles round trip. I have the SRAM 24 tooth cog on all 4 bikes, I live at the top of a good size hill so top gear is 66-68, the other gears are for hill climbing. I commute year round, I live a Snow Belt state but I do not feel the cold. I have 2 cars, they run fine, but they are both big old V-8s, at $3/gallon, The bikes save me
quite a bit, and I really do enjoy cycling. At 4980 I put the Huffy into drydock.
built new wheels with the old hubs, new aluminum rims and spokes, the Schwinn
came with an aluminum rear wheel, built a new front one to match it. Anyone
contemplating getting their old 3 speed back on the road, I definitely recommend new aluminum rims. I build my own wheels, check with your local
bike shop if you don't feel up to that. I used Sun AT-18 rims, I think they are
now out of production, I will try their CR-18 model next.
 
FELTF10 said:
The crappy bike thing was out of line, these are people who like what they're doing and maybe they love their bikes and you come along and want to dis them. Maybe to some your Talon is mere ****. :mad:

I didn't say what I said to dis them. I said it because it was a fact. I see people here in Chicago commuting with crappy bikes all the time and I don't dis them. I bet they would admit they ride a crappy bike and they'd love to have an expensive / nice bike one if they could afford one.

Yeah, I know there are a lot of bikers with crappy bikes because they can't afford a better bike. But I'm not dis'ing them. If I had a crappy bike I'd admit it.
 

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