that's a personal postural preference, kickstart.

Yes, but a properly fit roadsters posture reduces the strain and effort to maintain it than a road bike or cruiser to name the opposite extremes.

Well to some commuting is a race, and that's OK, one just needs to be cognizant of the compromises they make to achieve their goals.

Yes, and the OP asked about the endurance vs racing categories of road bikes as he was curious about one or the other as a possible commuter for him.

Like lots of threads, there were tangential conversations about bikes not strictly related to commuting that many people in the forum enjoy.

The TdF pros are riding during work hours, though it is doubtful that they ever ride their work bikes to and from their work site.

No doubt there is a lot every bike commuter on BF can learn from the choices made by these "commuters." :rolleyes:

True, and the OP's question was only tangentially related to bicycle commuting.

How is choosing a bike for commuting tangentially related to it?

Here is a diagram I love but forgot where I saw it until this morning:

http://clevercycles.com/blogpath/images/bikefits.png

It's from an article I'm sure you'd identify with:

Dutchness / Clevercycles Blog


Personally, I don't find sitting upright to be comfortable for very long. Sometimes I like to sit up straight, but other times I like being able to support some of the weight of my torso and head using my arms. I also like to stand now and then. That's as true at a desk as it is on a bike. If you pay attention to how other people actually sit, I'm definitely not the only one. That's why chairs have armrests.

Desk chairs do have back rests, but they don't have aero bars. ;)

Cat 6 commuting is commuting.

Speak for yourself. I type so fast my work had to get me an aero keyboard.

It looks like they have the comfort/cruiser, and the dutch/roadster positions swapped, unless they're using a loop frame oma as their reference point.

Driving a truck all day long I prefer to be upright rather than slouched back or leaning forward, and that's the ergonomics that all trucks use because of how they ride compared to a car.

Commuting is my only exercise. About 35 minutes of hard riding twice a day. I hope to get it down to less than 30 minutes each way. Besides the bike and the engine, I find that skills are also big part of speed, like cornering properly and smoothly.

I find a lot of interesting info on the thread.

They might, but the author was definitely fond of dutch bikes and didn't have much good to say about cruisers.

I have a Schwinn phantom that I have stripped for the wheels and other odds and ends, looks nice but I didn't like riding it. To me it felt clumsy and very slow.

The last cruiser I rode was a Giant "Simple 1" that the hotel I was staying at would just let you check out. It was in Duluth, MN which is a hilly place. Only having single speed cruisers available in a place like that is a subtle way of ensuring they never wander too from the hotel. ;)

Still, I appreciated that they had bikes at all and was happy to tool around on the lake walk. Like most any bike I've ridden I enjoyed it for what it was. The big balloony tires were kind of fun. Wouldn't like it for my commute though.

:roflmao2:

For just plunking around on gravel roads, or around town on bad roads it did fine. The issues came up when wanting to go long distances with any sense of urgency, the fat tires and springer fork turned into a liability.

Not always, but it's not unheard of either:

http://40.media.tumblr.com/c83952401...o0yso1_500.jpg

At one time Raleigh made wheel racks so one could ride their bike to an event on road wheels, then swap them out for their race wheels when racing. Some of their bikes also came with fenders that were easily removable for the same reason.

Nice, I remembered seeing that pic a few years ago, but had no way of searching for it to post. Do you recall who that is?

I believe it's Philippe Gilbert

I remember seeing once a historical photo on Dave Moulton's blog showing somebody riding to a race with their race wheels just hanging from their handlebars with leather straps, probably spare toeclip straps. But now I can't find it. Maybe somebody as awesome as caloso knows what I'm talking about and can dig it up.

I actually live in the high mountains. Thanks for your insight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlz52XW6CMM

This is a good video that kind of hits that topic. Aero vs. Climbing bike. I've seen a few places that say aero and race geometry have been proven to be faster, but it just comes down to rider preference. If you're commuting a short distance it won't make much of a difference. Over a longer distance it might save you more time and energy, but if you roll up to work doubled over with back pain...it might not be worth it.

That's Phillipe Gilbert who wore the rainbow jersey in 2013 after wining the world championship in September 2012.