redblueye

Hi all, I've been commuting to school on my Fuji Declaration for ~ 6months and I love it.

I'm looking for a new bike for a ~30 mile round trip commute 5 days a week.
Also not a big fan of gears.

Right now I have my eyes on a Fuji Track 1.1 as I'd get the most bang out my buck with Fuji since the warehouse is in my city.
https://www.fujibikes.com/bike/details/track-11-usa

Any other suggestions?
All advice is appreciated.

fietsbob

Maybe more Gears than one? how about Brakes , 2. 'K that has them

nobody steals expensive bikes at your school?

redblueye

What are the pros/cons of single speeds vs geared bikes?
I like to push myself every time I hit the road if that changes anything
Not that a know of, as it is a pretty tiny school.
I'm thinking I would be safe with 2 u-lock + cable protection for 7 hours in the day?

Confused about the brakes statement

fietsbob

Kids your age (young) seem strangely absorbed by brakeless fixed gear track bikes ..

can't you just go to a bike shop you can ride stuff and see for yourself.

jdstoledo

Detroit Bikes - A Type. American made. 3 speed. Comes with rack and fenders. $550

Badger6

What's your opposition to gears? Don't get caught up in the hipster need to be seen as ironic to be cool...fixies are definitely cool, for specific things, a 30 mile r/t commute is not one of them. A properly geared bike is what you need, it'll allow you to get better, healthier, stronger, and faster. In the short term, it'll give you the ability to maintain the cadence necessary to get the "go hard" workout you want....by maintaining your cadence in the proper range regardless of the slope you are on...that won't happen with a fixie, ever.

rms13

I have a fixed gear track bike that I ride on the street. I love it and it's my favorite to ride but I wouldn't commute 30 miles round trip on it every day. I might do it on a single speed with a free wheel if it was mostly flat but I can't ride 15 miles without coasting a little here and there

no1mad 

It's an allusion to the fact that quite a few FG riders like the 'clean look' and just ride w/o brakes, which is bad news if the chain breaks.

That Fuji Track that you're eyeballing ain't exactly what most of the folks in this forum would consider 'optimum'- aggressive geometry, narrow tires, lacks rack/fender mounts.

You claim that you like to go hard when you ride... that's fine. But with a daily 30 mile r/t commute 5x week? You'll probably also wanting to pick up a bit of speed to save time. Just plugged the numbers into Sheldon's calculator. If your current bike is stock gearing, you should be travelling 20.6 mph @90 rpm, that Fuji Track improves upon that by ~2 mph (though it will be a harsher ride) at 90 rpm. The Jamis Coda Sport, OTOH, is rack/fender friendly and is capable of hitting 28.9 mph (48x12 @ 90 rpm).

PennyTheDog

How about a bike that's single speed but has a derailleur hanger in case you'd like to switch to gears later? This is a very flexible frame that you could set up road bike-y, mountain bike-y, single speed or gears:
https://surlybikes.com/bikes/cross_check_ss
So you could ride it one way now, and it could evolve as your tastes change. It also has fender and rack mounts. Having a rear rack is so much more pleasant than carrying a backpack!

modernjess

Do you really want input from this crowd? Because a vast majority of commuters here with hundreds of years of combined commute experience will tell you it's a very tall order to ride a track bike 30m everyday for many many many reasons. It would never be my choice especially if speed and training was a subtext to the rides.

Therefore I say go for it! The only way you'll learn what truly works for you is from experience. You're young. Ride the wheels off the thing and and figure it out.

KenshiBiker

Sorry, I don't agree with you here. How can you say he needs multiple gears unless you know what his commuting route is? I have a 29-mile RT commute that I do on my fixed gear; It's mostly flat except for a few short hills near my house. I'll be switching over to my old road bike once the rains show up, but only because I can put racks and fenders on the road bike. As far as getting "better, healthier, stronger, and faster", well, I'll agree that OP will want a "properly geared bike", but IMHO the proper gear may be just one.

bikemig 

No. 1; this is the best idea. The OP gets his single speed. This bike is well set up to carry gear with good tire clearance and eyelets. And it is easy enough to add gears down the road if the OP changes his or her mind.

Badger6

I should have said "in my opinion" and "in my experience." I've never had a commute that didn't have a lot of roll and some seriously steep (albeit not long) climbs with super fast descents the other way. That said, I can get behind anyone telling the OP to go for it...the only way he's going to figure out what works for him is if he goes and does it. If he's on two that good enough for me!

gregjones

I think it's usually best to start with a geared bike. Then if one gets a hankerin' for a SSFG, ride the geared bike for awhile and don't shift.

Then, if the "fixie fad" really doesn't suit you, just move the shift levers and you're good to go.

Badger6

All good advice, IMHO, Greg.

redblueye

Thanks all for the input appreciating and considering it all
Currently on my Fuji Declaration (single speed+fixed), it takes me ~1 hour to reach my destination. Call me simple minded if you will but I enjoy single speeds because I don't want to deal with all the extra components and changing gears as I ride.
I do ride with breaks and I ride fixed not because of the "hipster fad" but because I like it personally.
I know a track bike is stiffer but would it be a lot more different than my current ride? My route has some smooth roads with few hills and bumpy areas.

bikemig 

Racks and fenders are a beautiful thing on a commuter regardless of how many gears (or how few) you want.

redblueye

I have no need for a rack and if weather isn't looking nice I can ride an older bike (or take a different mean of transportation)

wolfchild

I see that you're still a newbie, so welcome to bikeforums. My advice to you is to go with the bike that you feel comfortable with , go with a bike that YOU KNOW will serve your commuting and riding needs . Ignore all the negative "hipsted fad" comments form people who don't have a clue how to ride a fixed gear bike. For some reason there are a lot of "haters" out there who don't like FG/SS bikes and who believe that fixies are not suitable for commuting. Just ignore them all and go with what you like. I have been commuting and riding FG/SS for few years now and I have no plans to change anything because I enjoy it.. I also strongly reccommend that you have brakes and some form of foot retention when riding fixed. Good luck with your new bike..

chrism32205

If you are riding 30 miles you are going to want a rack. Fenders wouldn't hurt either. I've been where you are. I rode a Mercier Kilo TT fixie (with rack/fenders) and found it's nice to have gears.

Thrasymachus

Well it seems like the original poster wants that bike for some reason despite all the valid criticisms. It is a good bike if you want to commute by bicycle when you feel like it and the conditions are optimum, but otherwise you will take some other transportation modality. In your thread title you implied commuting regularly which indicates you don't commute by bike regularly currently, and if you get the Fuji 1.1 track bike you still probably will not commute regularly because it is totally ill-suited to such a task.

Again a summary of some of the problems:
1) No rear rack eyelets, and it does not look like it has a long enough chainstay for p-clamps without heel strike, so if you have very hot weather your back will sweat. In very cold weather your back will also sweat more as you are doing physical activity with a jacket and a backpack. Panniers and rear racks are superior for consistent commuting.
2) No fender mounts, so when it rains or during snow melt, you will take a bath from nasty road water sprayed up from your tires.
3) No gears, thus the bike is overall less efficient compared to a geared bicycled. More work, more fatigue, more of a deterrent to taking the bike instead of using some other method to get to campus.

Also it is hardly an upgrade or much different than your Fuji Declaration for the purpose you intend to use it. Infact it will be actually worse because the Declaration has a freewheel so you can coast, but with the track bike your feet will have to move constantly and it has no brakes unlike your current single-speed.

earl_blue

I'm 40 years old and commute to work 20 miles round trip 3-4 times a week as well as take 20-30 mile rides on the weekend. I ride a Trek Earl single speed and it has been fantastic although I upgraded to wider tires to handle the trails a bit better. I ride about a mile or so through neighborhood streets to the local paved rail trail and then another 9 miles to work. If you want to ride single speed, I say go for it! Don't listen to the naysayers, you don't need gears and I fully believe you'll get a better workout without them. However, I do agree that a rack and trunk or pannier is worth the investment if you're planning on commuting on a regular basis.

Dwayne

I'm looking at the specs of the Fuji Track 1.1, and scratching my head trying to figure out why it costs as much as it does. The wheels, handlebars, stem, saddle, and seatpost are all Oval branded, which is Fuji's house brand of components, so really nothing special there. Low end brake calipers and levers, I'm guessing Tektro stuff. The crankset is pretty decent, but that's the only thing that catches my eye. Seems like it costs about 400-500 more than I'd expect it to. Sure, it looks nice, but that's a lot of money to pay for looks.

bikemig 

I love OPs who ask a question and then disagree with everything that is said. There are lots and lots of people here with real experience in commuting. Some like geared, some like single speed but pretty much everyone here has said that if you want a bike for commuting, rack eyelets are a plus. I'm curious why did you post this question if you know what you want? Just go buy the bike you originally posted and have done with it.

PennyTheDog

Haha, yes I agree with this comment a little bit. "I'd like your advice on bike commuting, but I already have my mind made up about my bike, my apparel, lighting, bags, bike safety and how to secure my bike." You might as well just get the bike you want, and see how it goes. If you want to change things thing up after a few months or years you can try something else then.