Originally Posted by
mynameuk
i'm still pretty new to commuting and i haven't been through a winter yet (still waiting for autumn to arrive) i always read post about bad weather bikes as people second bikes and was wondering the reasons behind having one. is it more about set up, tyres and so on. or is it about not wanting to get a more expensive bike ruined in the bad weather?
I have two bikes, one for summer, one for winter. They're both decently mid-range bikes, but one is a newer road touring bike and the other is an older, rigid, mountain bike.
Both are up to inclement weather, outfitted with fenders, and I don't worry about riding in rain on the newer bike. But the snow is another matter. Winter roads are a lot more like biking offroad, so the MTB seems appropriate. Having two bikes also means that I can keep the studded tire on the MTB, and not worry about changing every season. The sand and salt also age the bike faster, and I'd rather keep riding an old bike until the wheels come off than have to replace a single ride more often.
Some people also prefer a single speed or IGH for winter because of easier maintenance, while a derailleur bike offers more possible ratios for any given price point. Because I didn't purpose-buy a winter bike, I have derailleurs on both and haven't had any difficulty with it.