If you could keep only one bike, which one would it be?
#27
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Do I get to keep some extra wheel sets? With a wheel/tire swap my litespeed blue ridge does it all, tour, comute, light off roading, and fast club rides. Light and built like a tank, It is my bike of choice with the others gathering dust.
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I have only one bike. It's a steel touring bike, and I've been going on up to 180km rides with it, paved and gravel, commuting year round (including in snow), carrying a week's worth of groceries, etc.
#37
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Pretty easy decision - my Kona Jake the Snake. That poor bike has been grossly ignored the last couple years, but it's easily my best and most versatile bike.
That said, I'd have a hard time giving up my fixie, which is my go-to bike for urban trips.
That said, I'd have a hard time giving up my fixie, which is my go-to bike for urban trips.
#39
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I currently have six bikes. If I could only keep one it would have to be my carbon fiber Kestrel road bike. It's not very versatile, but I just love every second I spend riding it. Crazy smooth and great handling. I can't imagine giving it up.
I'm not about to muck it up with fenders or subject it to the abuse of winter (that's why I have other bikes.) If that were my only bike I'd wind up not riding on rainy days and during the winter, so that would be sad.
From a sheer practicality standpoint it would make more sense for me to keep my Diamondback hybrid that's equipped with fenders, rack, horn, etc and swap out winter tires. But while that bike is nice it doesn't speak to my soul the way the Kestrel does. So if I can only keep one I'm making the impractical choice.
Thankfully I don't have to only keep one.
I'm not about to muck it up with fenders or subject it to the abuse of winter (that's why I have other bikes.) If that were my only bike I'd wind up not riding on rainy days and during the winter, so that would be sad.
From a sheer practicality standpoint it would make more sense for me to keep my Diamondback hybrid that's equipped with fenders, rack, horn, etc and swap out winter tires. But while that bike is nice it doesn't speak to my soul the way the Kestrel does. So if I can only keep one I'm making the impractical choice.
Thankfully I don't have to only keep one.
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If I could only keep one bike it would have to be a bike that can be used for just road riding, gravel roads, commuting, and touring, so my new titanium bike would be tossed out...damn it! So that would leave either the Schwinn Le Tour Luxe or the Mercian Vincitore Special; looks wise the Mercian wins hands down.
Rick / OCRR
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Dial the cynicism up and you'll see it.
Perhaps I am showing my cards as jealous because my bike is too mediocre to compete with others in this thread.
Perhaps I don't even have a bike.
Perhaps I am just a bot...
Last edited by 1983; 11-12-15 at 02:08 PM.
#44
No one carries the DogBoy
I'd keep my disc trucker. I'd want to keep my Jamis Renegade, but the trucker is way more practical.
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That's actually one of the things I find interesting about this question. If I could only keep one bike, it wouldn't be the bike that's my favorite. In fact, if I whittled them down one by one the bike that I ride least often (the mountain bike) would be one of the last to go, because it is so much better at what it does than the others. The bike I said I would keep would ultimately win out over the two that are my favorites because it is still pretty good at the things I use the other bikes for. But I guess that's just because all of my bikes are so awesome.
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#46
always rides with luggage
While I love my Bakfiets, 99% of my mileage is without the kids, so I'd keep my singlespeed.
And yes, the Motobecane Fantom Cross Uno is a pile of crap compared to many. But it's my fun bike and it fits me better than the other piles of crap hanging from my rack.
And yes, the Motobecane Fantom Cross Uno is a pile of crap compared to many. But it's my fun bike and it fits me better than the other piles of crap hanging from my rack.
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Previously: 2000 Trek 4500 (2000-2003), 2003 Novara Randonee (2003-2006), 2003 Giant Rainier (2003-2008), 2005 Xootr Swift (2005-2007), 2007 Nashbar 1x9 (2007-2011), 2011 Windsor Shetland (2011-2014), 2008 Citizen Folder (2015)
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--Ben
2006 Trek SU100, 2009 Motobecane Fantom CX, 2011 Motobecane Fantom Cross Uno, and a Bakfiets
Previously: 2000 Trek 4500 (2000-2003), 2003 Novara Randonee (2003-2006), 2003 Giant Rainier (2003-2008), 2005 Xootr Swift (2005-2007), 2007 Nashbar 1x9 (2007-2011), 2011 Windsor Shetland (2011-2014), 2008 Citizen Folder (2015)
Non-Bike hardware: MX Linux / BunsenLabs Linux / Raspbian / Mac OS 10.6 / Android 7
#47
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Another reason for this thread... the first two bikes that I bought, were not the bikes that I would choose to keep - in fact, I didn't... I sold both of them. Maybe it's best to buy the bike you would keep first and then buy bike N+1. That is the way that I wish I would have done it. Anyway, maybe we're doing this wrong, we should probably all spend more time thinking about our next bike, huh?
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Another reason for this thread... the first two bikes that I bought, were not the bikes that I would choose to keep - in fact, I didn't... I sold both of them. Maybe it's best to buy the bike you would keep first and then buy bike N+1. That is the way that I wish I would have done it. Anyway, maybe we're doing this wrong, we should probably all spend more time thinking about our next bike, huh?
You make a purchase based on what you know at the time, what you can afford, and what appeals to you. Getting some miles under your belt may influence future decisions. That's not a bad thing. I think the only time there should be major regrets is if you were to spend a small fortune on a bike you intensely dislike and can't recoup very much of the cost by selling it, or if a bike is such a poor choice that it puts you off cycling altogether.
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Another reason for this thread... the first two bikes that I bought, were not the bikes that I would choose to keep - in fact, I didn't... I sold both of them. Maybe it's best to buy the bike you would keep first and then buy bike N+1. That is the way that I wish I would have done it. Anyway, maybe we're doing this wrong, we should probably all spend more time thinking about our next bike, huh?
My first bike (as an adult) was not at all what I ended up wanting. It was a GT Timberline, a "comfort" bike with entry level components and cheap front suspension. I outfitted it with a rack and fenders and it did OK for me, but after a year I knew I wanted something else. My second bike, a 2008 Kona Jake, was great and I used it for everything for years. My only complaint was that I wished it had disc brakes. So the first year Kona made a Jake with disc brakes I bought it, and that's the bike I'd keep now if I could only keep one.
Of course, a secondary purpose of bikes 2 through N is to teach you what else you want for bike N+1.
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#50
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Another reason for this thread... the first two bikes that I bought, were not the bikes that I would choose to keep - in fact, I didn't... I sold both of them. Maybe it's best to buy the bike you would keep first and then buy bike N+1. That is the way that I wish I would have done it. Anyway, maybe we're doing this wrong, we should probably all spend more time thinking about our next bike, huh?