Greetings,
I'm sure stuff like this gets asked all the time, but hey...
I'm going to comlete my bike collection with a 'cross bike very soon and wanted a couple
bits of advice. I have already a mtn, road and touring bike (norco 853, willier alp d'uez, marinoni)
so this will not have to overlap anything.
I will be using my new cross bike for rides where the road bike won't go (longer stuff with some gravel,
trails, etc. connecting roads) and for winter commuting. Probably some early and late-season riding as well.
As of now, I'm thinking: surly cross-check frame with centaur drivetrain, fenders, reasonably wide rims (35c
tires highly likely for some things, although will probably run something narrower most of the time).
Basically, I don't really know what to do rim, hub and brake-wise. Suggestions? I want something pretty
beefy for the wheels -- I'm not known for doing a whole lot of bike maintanence and generally "abuse" my bikes (I'm told
.
While I won't be doing full-on mtn bike rides on this bike, it will see dirt action. I don't race but do some reasonably
long rides on occation (longest so far being about 14.5 hours) and some touring in the spring (although the
marinoni will see the brunt of that action unless I happen to plan something involving mostly gravel).
Thanks for suggestions,
mike at mike dash warren dot com