StorkDM

Hi all,

I currently commute to school on an older (around 2001?) Gary Fisher Tassajara with disc brakes. It's been a great hardtail mtb to play on trails and get into mountain biking. Due to transferring schools, I now commute on it. There is no way I can justify riding my $1000 ish road bike to class so my mtb makes the most sense. I also do not have room to store another bike, so owning 3 bikes is out of the question for now.

Anyway, I am thinking of spending up to $500 on my mtb to make it a faster commuter to classes, grocery store, college parties, the bars, walmart, or wherever. I won't be taking it on any trails or anything as Madison, WI is extremely bike friendly and has paths everywhere. Plus, any upgrades i make for commuting may translate to a faster bike offroad if/when I convert it back to a dedicated mtb. My idea is to convert to a rigid fork, single chainring up front and remove front derailer, lightweight wheelset/tires, and upgrade rear derailer/shifter (currently a Shimano Deore). I plan on riding this bike the next couple yrs so I'd like to make it a bit nicer, but not so nice as it becomes a thief magnet.

My issue is I'm not sure what my money is best spent on. I am assuming a lighter set of wheels and road tires first, rear derailer/shifter next, then a rigid fork, and lastly converting to a single chainring up front.

I'd also really like some suggestions on spec'ing out some components if possible.

Thanks