Originally Posted by
EdmontonIrish
1. Will a touring/cyclocross bike give a significant speed advantage during my commute over my current hybrid assuming the tires stay the same?
1a. If they're not a major upgrade in terms of weight/speed, are there any modifications I can make to my Dew FS for faster riding?
2. Is a cyclocross bike that can handle panniers a better choice than a touring bike for light touring and my commute (that is, will it go faster)?
As a point of reference, here's the bikes I'm looking at:
Touring - Surly LHT, Rocky Mountain Sherpa 30, Trek 520, Cannondale Touring 2
Cyclocross - Specialized Tricross Triple, Opus Sentiero, Surly Cross Check
Thanks much for any and all help.
1. only if you can't lockout your front shock or get into a more aerodynamic position on your Kona with the handlebars a few inches lower than the seat.
a. get the handlebars into a position a couple inches below the seat, bar ends, use clipless pedals, and learn to spin with power. In other words a bike set-up for higher speeds REQUIRES that you put out more horsepower, if you aren't putting out more hp efficiently it's a small improvement just changing posture on the bike or other mechanical changes.
2. only if you can put out more hp, 35mm tires on a Dew or a Cross bike won't matter if your max comfortable hp only gets you up to 15mph on either bike, more than that and you need to get into a more efficient posture for greater hp output, and put out that greater effort.