Originally Posted by
Dan515
Just commuted on my fiancee's dutch-style bike in 30*C weather. I thought "It's a beautiful day. Maybe I should try her bike to have a more leisurely commute." The 16km route has rolling hills, and with the heat, the upright position, and weight of the bike, I was miserable. I was wishing I had my CX bike to move faster, or at least something lighter to offset the draggy feel of the bike. I almost feel that that sort of really upright position is only really appropriate for flatter and/or shorter commutes. Feels very inefficient and unnecessarily slow. The engine isn't super fit, but I can manage some of the same hills on the commute with a higher gear than I was spinning on her bike.
Nice to have 1.75" tires and a suspension post vs my usual 25mm Armadillo tires though!
I know exactly what you mean! I wished, too, that I could ride more leisurely on my commute, but something about being out at that time of the day, whether it's morning or late afternoon, that makes me want to not be out. It's certainly not like riding with my kids on a Sunday afternoon.
I used to commute on flat-bar/hybrid type bikes. But now I am exclusively on drop bars. The head wind today was miserable coming home, like a good 30km/h gust. I was on the drops for 90% of the time. It made a HUGE difference. Can't imagine being upright and exposed to the wind on an upright.