I like riding one of my road bikes to work sometimes. I like riding my commuters as well. It just depends. I know in winter, I'm sure as heck riding a bike with fenders, a lighting system, and studded tires.

I have a couple of older carbon S-works bikes, a Tarmac and a Tricross with full fenders. I also have an aluminum Bianchi that's used for backup. I put lights on whatever bike I'm riding for about 6 months of the year between Oct and Mar. Other than fenders there isn't a big difference between the bikes I ride. I mounted a set of 28mm tires on the cross bike but haven't tried them yet as we haven't had any rain in the the last couple of months. I don't really need wide tires but I thought I would give them a try.

Really? For the sake of discussion, would you ever understand disdain for cyclists who choose to commute against traffic and flip the bird to anyone who says anything about it?

and i-like-to-bike is right, this whole topic started on a smug foot.

^ I think he was mainly referring to what bike someone chooses to ride. Commuting against traffic or being a general ass isn't associated with one type of bike, it's based on the person.

This. Who cares what you ride as long as you're out riding it. Whether or not it's the best bike for the job is not based solely on technical aspects, some people choose to ride a certain bike because it's more fun for them. I sometimes get jibes for riding my bike because it may not be a traditional commuter but isn't a commuter bike just a bike you ride to work? I'm glad to be out there rain, snow, or shine.

Ride the bike you like, the way you like to ride it.

I commute on my 18 lb carbon fiber bike so it is *BY DEFINITION* a commuter bike

I just bought a car and anyone with a modicum of common sense who rides a bike would want many more people like me to drive cars.

This is the appropriate way to end ~70% of comment threads here.

Fairweather commuter? Hardly. Here is the winter ride.



And yes, that was a ride home and no there is nothing holding the bike up other than the snow that was still coming down and it was a foot deep in most places. No panniers, no racks, just fattie goodness that is slow and wide.

Why is that? Are you something special like the OP and "the rest of us"?

Good try!

It seems that the "real" commuters out there don't get your intent, or insist of telling us we're doing it wrong.

Like you I ride bare bones sport bikes (one road bike, one converted rigid mtn bike) and carry very little, ranging from a thumb drive to a messenger bag if I'm planning on doing some shopping on the way home.

One blessing of riding light fast bikes is that I can do my 6 miles in going to work, and enjoy a nice evening ride ranging up to 40 miles coming home, depending on whim and weather.

So, despite riding to work and back daily just about year round, I'm not a real commuter, just a cyclist who chooses to commute by bike.

I was planning to ride my old beater bike to work through the winter months last year. I bought some cheap fenders in preparation. After the first few rides to work in 30 degree weather, I realized that I wasn't having any fun. My hands were freezing despite wearing gloves. The more I thought about it, a 10 mile ride in the Michigan snow and cold just didn't seem like fun to me.

That was the turning point where I admitted to myself that I am a fair weather cyclist for now. This is also the reason that I didn't add fenders or a rack to my new bike. I ride with a backpack and enjoy how light my bike feels under me as I ride.

Of course I would understand disdain for commuting against traffic and tossing up their middle finger to any who complain.

But that isn't in any way relevant to the thread topic or to my previous post.

There is no "rest of us." There is just "us." It is a huge tent, with room for all.

Nothing smug about it. Not everyone that commutes has to have fenders, panniers, IGH, etc. Some of us choose to go bare bones and enjoy it just as much. I don't look like a commuter nor do I want to. I just want to ride my bike.

What's smug in any kind of way about trying to start a thread dedicated to people who choose to ride light? Nothing was said negative about people who don't.

Meanwhile the "real" commuters like you had no problem being derogatory about the light riders here, and trying to set them (us?) right.

It's a bicycle, you turn the pedals to make it go. If you do so, you're a bicycle rider. If you do so, to get to work or school and back you're a bicycle commuter. There is no right way or wrong way, it's simply about turning pedals to get to work.

I can't see any reason to put people down or offer suggestions of better ways unless asked.

The thread was started to celebrate light commuting. If that's not your cup of tea, that's OK, don't post here.

I drive with the extreme caution that a dangerous machine merits and, when doing so, I do not pollute the environment or harm human health.

Fenders aren't going to magically make people want to ride when it is cold. Nor are dynamos, panniers, IGH or any of a number of other items. People don't ride in the winter because they think it's too cold. For some, it is.

I have 8 bikes that I can commute on (and have commuted on each one). None of them fit the mold of "commuter" bike that some feel is "necessary" for commuting. I don't always agree with spare wheel but if I'm riding it to work, it's a commuter bike.

Now this is what I'm talking about. Someone who is not pretending.

A stripped-down, lightweight bike can be a better option for some commutes. I'm thinking of people who commute with a combination of bike and transit. Most subway stations won't allow bikes on the escalators, so you either have to use the elevator (limited/slow) or carry the bike up long flights of stairs. I know what kind of bike I'd rather use in that situation.

I have a track bike set up almost identical to yours (I use bullhorns on the road), which I usually use on the track. I do commute on it sometimes just for fun, although 23mm tires are not my first choice for a commute.


49x15? Seriously? I that is my track gear which gets me 30mph at 100rpm. On the road I use 49x18. That gives me a cruising speed of about 21mph at 100rpm. I'm going to suggest that your acceleration, braking, and average time to work will be much better with lower gearing.

But the fast bike for me commuting is a 1990's steel Specialized race bike (aka American Flyers). The track bike really doesn't like cracks in the pavement.

I wasn't going to "go there" in this thread, but totally agree. 72" is faster off the line than 86", and won't hold you back unless you need to spend a lot of time on the other side of 25 MPH or so.

Consider my 'smug' comment retracted then; it's funny how easily people misinterpret or project tone onto forum posts. Myself and a lot of y'all included.

but that's how some people choose to commute! And so directly relevant to your previous post, which stated you can't understand disdain for how some people choose to commute. My point is that everyone draws the line somewhere, everyone can get put off by something another cyclists does. Relevant to the thread, it's hilarious when it's over something as trivial as equipment choices.

@FBinNY - when did I call myself a real commuter, put anyone down, or try to 'set [anyone] straight'? You think I'm against this thread? I very fondly reminisced on my days of commuting via brakeless bmx bike. i think that's very much in the spirit of the thread, unless it aims to be roadie specific.

Heck yeah 49:15. I took all the parts off of this, and that is what came stock on there.

My comments about the attitude of some of the folks here wasn't directed at you in particular. I only quoted your statement that said ILTD was right and the thread was smug from the get go, which was IMO an unfair characterization.

BTW- I never understood why people had to choose sides or be for or against anything (please no strawman arguments based on a broad reading of "anything"). We're here to talk about bikes, ostensibly because we enjoy riding them, and for some, maybe because they don't have a choice. As someone posted it's a big tent, we all ride for our own reasons and according to our own preferences, and there's no reason to think that any way is better than another.

If someone asks for help or advice, we should offer it, but that shouldn't include license to step in to "correct" people who are happy doing it differently. As we used to say on the streets in the Bronx "if you can't say something nice, STFU".

I tried to go bare bones but the police said I had to wear shorts...