oh, if anyone is interested, switching to the 700x38c added 2.1 mph to my average speed on a very windy day. I think on a normal day it would be at least 3 mph quicker.

I recall my experience was 2mph with the slicks and another 2mph with the road bike instead

If it won't fit in something like a handlebar bag, then you'll at least want the rack. Might as well get one with the proper stays for panniers then, because eventually you'll spot a great deal on a set and want to add the grocery store to your list of bike destinations. (Or you'll pass a store on the commute every day that you would pick stuff up at if you had the cargo capacity.)

I'm very happy with the various Schwalbe tires I run on my bikes. The Marathon, Big Apple and Fat Franks have served me well over the years. This is one of my rainy day commuters with a Big Apple (front) and a Fat Frank. They roll well, are comfortable on urban streets with potholes and traintrack crossings and have yet to get punctures from all of the broken MadDog bottles, crack pipes and hypos I have to ride through.
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2823/3...96327b56_b.jpg

That's really cool. It just helped me find a new (to me) route through Overpeck Park in Lenonia, NJ that I can use when commuting from home. It will let me connect Ft Lee Rd to the Rt 46 bridge in Little Ferry via Challenger Rd. One of the guys I run into whilst cyclecommuting uses that route. Just never tried it out yet myself.

Another option might be a frame bag. I have been thinking of getting one. Only thing preventing me from pulling the trigger is that they are usually smaller than my current 23L backpack. Also don't know how easy it would be to take off the bike. But I think its just a few velcro straps that hold it on, no?

Depends largely on how your cables are routed and whether they're fully housed along the tubes. The straps will need to be threaded under any bare cables on the tubes, and any rub will wear out the straps fairly quickly.

Aaaah. I didn't think about my break cable routing. On both of my bikes it is routed externally. I guess that's another weak excuse to try an convince the wife that I need a newer frameset? :D ...But honey, the brake cable on this will wear out the strap on my framebag!

hi, can I ask about your experience with the 23l backpack ? is it a hassle?

I did my first mock commute to work and back to get to know the route.

definitely love the cross bike for commuting. will not be using the road bike. I had to go on the side walk in some areas and the road bike would not like that.

the backpack was not bad at all and I appreciated the fact that it kept my big shirt to my back instead of blowing around in the wind. also, I feel it may offer a level of protection in the event of a crash.

My Raleigh redux 1 came with Schwalbe Big Bens with K-guard. It looks like a mountain bike tire shaved down to a slick but still has treads, kinda like directional car treads I guess. Good commuter tire, absorbs a lot of road shocks and seems to have little rolling resistance. I keep mine topped off close to 70psi. The K guard I believe is Kevlar for puncture protection. I went the extra mile and put tire liner in both tires. Don't know if its overkill, but I haven't had a flat for months. Check out the Schwalbe website its very informative.

It's been ok for me for the last 4 years. But I only carry the minimum in it. Just work clothes for the day, a few tools (Park multi allen wrench, 15mm wrench, spoke wrench) and flat fixing tools (tube, mini-pump, 3 tire levers). I get away with leaving my lock on the bike rack at work. Also get away with not carring a laptop since I have one at home and a desktop at work. Hope that explains it. I only ever have to pack the backpack tightly in the winter. That's because I need to wear more layers of cycling clothing then. But I could get away with a little less than 23L if I left a plastic bag in the backpack. Then I could just use the plastic bag for the 5-10 min that I need to carry the clothing from the men's room to the coat rack on the other side of my floor to hang them up. Oh, for shoes I leave a pair at work. I put my cycling shoes in a desk drawer during the day. Finally, for the front and rear lights, I leave the charger at work. Then just leave them plugged in during the day at my desk.

Edit: For rainy days, I'll take two plastic bags from home. One will be used to hold my work clothes in the backpack. The other will be used to cover the seat. The plastic bag seat cover may seem a bit ghetto, but its effective in keeping the seat dry. I learned that from the bike delivery guys here in NYC.

hey thanks for the suggestion. I will definitely keep it in mind for my next set of tires.



same for me. just work clothes and anti perspirant. LOL. I went to work yesterday and left two chains there for locking the bike. I plan to leave those there permanently so I don't have to lug them around. Great minds think alike. Im the only one who uses the bike rack anyhow.

Just leave the anti-perspirant (or deoderant) also at work. I bought a travel size spray and solid from the local store. Since I take a shower at home in the morning and use some deoderant before leaving, I rarely need to use more when I get to work. Maybe when the Summer goes into full swing I'll need some extra. I also wash my hair and face in the bathroom sink after I arrive at work. Also helps me to keep a little more "minty fresh." :)

Just looked up your handle and learned that "luchador" means "wrestler." The recent move "The Wrestler" with Mickey Rourke got that title for the spanish translation. I liked that movie.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/18295942209123473/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/18295942209123473/

great idea. I left it at work :)

[MENTION=25132]ptempel[/MENTION] not Nacho Libre with Jack Black?

question for all. so at 300lbs with the capability to create a lot of torque for short periods of time, Ive read some stuff on line that makes me worry about the stock pedals. last thing I want is to be standing on the pedal up a hill and have it give out from under me.

these are wellgo nylon pedals.

should I be concerned?

what would be a good upgrade???

Wellgo MG-1 or MG-2 or MG-3 would be a good upgrade, or any other decent pinned-platform pedal. Can get them about $30/pr on fleabay

Those nylon pedals do have metal spindles I'm sure, I wouldn't be too terribly worried about it in the meantime.

And pretty soon you won't be 300# any more, that's the plan

Contact points are about the best place to splurge (handlebars & grips & stems, saddles, tires, pedals)

hey thanks for the recommendations. I'll look online for some deals.

hopefully. Ive already upgraded the tires and grips. I just took the stock grips off and double wrapped the bars with cork tape. much more comfortable for my big hands.

The saddle is not that bad but I wouldnt want to use if for say a 30 mile ride. what do upgraded saddles add?

thanks

If you have flat bars I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend Ergon grips. I have them on 2 of my bikes (one of them specific for the swept back Mary Jane bars), and they are amazing!

Actually, I haven't seen that movie all the way through. Will have to download it from my favorite illegal site and do that.

OP, if you stay with platform pedals, then you could try some sort of pedal strap on them. Was looking around and saw that Wellgo has a velcro pedal strap like this one:

http://www.thebeijingshop.com/images...0Straps%20.jpg

This might be the best of both worlds (don't want to get a clipless pedal system yet but still want something to hold your foot). Have seem them on Ebay as low as $10 or so.

@PatrickGSR94 I was perusing Ergon's website. They have some interesting stuff. Their saddles look nice and wonder if you or anyone else has tried any of them:

Products ? ERGON BIKE

They say they are available in two sizes, but don't seem to find what they are yet. Hmm. I seem to like my saddles flat with a little more padding than most typical road saddles. Their SMC4 MTB saddle looks interesting even though I'd be buying it for a road bike.

Edit: Just found out the sizing. Medium is 145mm width and Large is 155mm width.

http://www.ergon-bike.com/en/product...#smc4-44030005

The price is good at $60 for the base SMC4 model. Tempting...

Comfort. Saddles are the most personal, so difficult to recommend. They need to support your sitbones, and not compress your soft tissue, and since everybody's anatomy is different, there is no saddle that is The Best.

The most popular saddle though is hands down Brooks. They have a variety of leather models, and recently introduced the rubber/fabric Cambium. I ride a Selle An-Atomica Titanico X (X is for Xtra Ass). Leather is pricey though, and there are lots and lots of other cheaper options, many of which would also probably work for you.

LBS often have saddle libraries or loaner programs where you can try saddles for a week or two.

Actually had pretty good results with this cheapie from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01A71M0UY

Picked it up to replace a damaged saddle, intending to grab something better in a couple weeks, but I've been riding it for almost a year now. No problems as long as I don't get surprised by a big pothole.

I agree it's personal. I have a fairly expensive SMP Extra saddle (although as SMP saddles go, it's a cheap example, it was $70 and they go over $200) and I like it. But I also like cheap saddles of the sort that come on $400-500 hybrids and "sport" MTB's. Most people who have Brooks saddles love them but I've given them several chances and haven't liked them.

That cheapie looks like it has a nice wide cutout, should be good for avoiding soft tissue

I have a friend who swears by his SMP saddle. That thing looks like it needs a shot of viagra tho!