Originally Posted by
alan s
You can commute on anything that moves. I've even seen people commuting on skateboards and push scooters. Just get the right tool (or weapon, if you prefer) for the job. Commuting on a high-end race bike is like driving a Ferrari to work - you can do it, but its not very practical. Wear and tear costs go up the more expensive your ride, and that applies to cars as well as bikes. An ordinary road bike is a great option for commuting in most conditions.
Every time someone says "use the right tool for the job" regarding which bike to commute with, I get this mental image of someone with a with 15 hammers on a belt saying "I carry all these hammers so I have one for every single nail size I have so I can 'use the right tool for the job'". He also has an entire set of hammers for each brand, so he only uses Grip Rite nails with Grip Rite hammers, Paslode nails with Paslode hammers, etc etc. :-D
Wear is about what you'd be doing anyways - it's definitely true that if you're commuting to save money, using a "high end" road bike is not the way to go. But if you'd be taking your bike out for training rides anyways, it's kinda silly to ride a cheaper bike to and from work, then take out the nice bike every night after that for training. :-)