Originally Posted by
newtwowheels
I had two questions for those who know vastly more about bikes and biking than I do. I'm a newbie, just started and have been trying to commute to work. I have a long (20+ miles each way) ride that is 90% on a river bed bike trail, so I don't have to go on the road much, I also have a locker at work so I don't carry anything but repair items. I don't race and haven't gone on any group rides, nor do I expect to do either in the future. However, I do want to ride as fast as possible to cut my rather lengthy drive time down.
Welcome! A newbie commuter and already doing 40 miles a day... wow
Originally Posted by
newtwowheels
Basically are the returns on an expensive bike worthwhile for someone who has no intention of racing, but wants to get to work as fast as possible.
In your case, I'd say "Not really." You already have a Schwinn Fastback, which is a bike with a modern drivetrain and a fairly light frame. I would say the
extremely important features for a commuter bike are comfort and reliability--especially when you're riding 40 miles a day!!!
In you case, the next most important things would be efficient riding position (properly sized and adjusted handlebars and saddle) and tires (slick and as narrow as you can stand).
Originally Posted by
newtwowheels
Also, I wonder if better bikes are built for racing, are they more fragile for day to day use? For instance, lighter tires sounds nice, but will I need to true the wheels every couple of rides (My route does have some rough areas, but overall is fairly well paved)?
In theory, race bikes should be more fragile... but in practice I have found this to be mostly only an issue with the wheels and STI shifters, and not with most other components. For example, 32/36 spoke wheels are definitely stronger than 16-spoke wheels. On the other hand, I have abused the hell out of a set of ultra-light 28 spoke Mavic wheels on my race bike and they have never given me any trouble at all. However, the performance difference from expensive wheels is pretty negligible unless you're holding a steady speed of 20+ mph.
As for tires, I find that 28 mm is about the thinnest that is comfortable and reliable for me. I am 165 pounds, and I ride on some rough roads and there's a lot of glass around here. I've found that switching to kevlar-belted tires has drastically reduced the number of flats that I get.