i commute on this:



i didn't have a bike in Germany (gave away my bikes to friends when I moved from sweden) and wanted to start the stable with an MTB because it's the most versatile and excellent single-track riding can be reached here by subway.

the suspension can be locked-out and i have the rebound adjust set really high (stiff). also, i do like the suspension and the wider tires because the bike paths here are often made from pavers.

also, i want something that I can throw a baby seat on the back of, which rules out most road bikes. also, i think drop bars are kinda ridiculous unless you're actually riding very seriously and would be pretty much useless for touring over here, so I didn't consider them.

however, after logging about 1200km of commuting I do have a few concerns:

1. I would get a bike with a trekking front crank (with 48T in the front) ... they're quite common
2. My bike has all of the equipment for metal fender installation front/rear and rack installation rear, but not all do.
3. if you'll be on road most of the time look for 20x700c (20-622) wheels/tires and they'll be more efficient.
4. I really enjoy the disc brakes and highly recommend them in the wet

If I know what I knew now, I would go with this (cheapest disc brake model in the CUBE line-up) ... non-disc brake models are roughly 400€ / those with discs are roughly 500€ new: