Mr H: In fact, that's a very nice bike that is, with one change, PERFECTLY suited to commuting, imho. The one change (well two, perhaps, but the main one)? Tires: if you're riding mainly on paved/smooth hard-packed surfaces, switch out the knobbies for a pair of slicks or inverted tread tires, 1.5 or 1.75". There's tons of these around, at all price levels, many with very good puncture resistance built in. You'll notice an immediate and obvious benefit in increased average speeds combined with noticeably lower pedalling effort. The other change, if you were to stick with one bike for now and if you don't do a lot of true off-road riding: switch out the susp. fork for a decent, suspension-corrected rigid fork. But -- tires are the main thing: changing them in effect creates a durable/bombproof 26" wheeled hybrid bike really well suited to all weather/multi/rough surface use as a commuter/fitness/road bike.