Re kickstands...they rattle, which is another annoyance.

Unfortunately, both at home and work, the only walls available to lean the bike against are brick or stone, so the sides of my old leather covered seat are a bit scuffed from that.

I ride my 2007 Trek 1000 18 miles round trip on a hilly country road. I don't carry what I can't fit in my shirt or jacket pockets and under seat bag. I keep a drawer full of clothes in an empty desk at work and trade them in and out on rainy days. It's not very hot in Northern Maine that often so I can just change in the bathroom.

Dang, I rode home for the second time on my new Trek.

Accelerates great, swift, clean shifing, even with a load. Balance and feel, superb. Straight as an arrow, beautiful to ride.

I feel guilty riding a bike that is so easy to ride!

I had a mtb that I equipped with slicks but it was so much heavier and slower than my road bike that I stopped riding it altogether (I stopped commuting on it about 8 years ago in favor of an old early 90s road bike I had after trying to make the mtb work as a commuter).

I actually sold my mtb last summer and don't miss it at all. Who has time to pack your bike up on the car, drive an hour to someplace where you can ride it off road, then spend a couple hours riding, only to drive an hour back home. Not me...By by worthless hunk of metal. Hello road bikes!!!

That adds character. I love an old worn looking saddle quite frankly. Both of my Arione saddles are starting to get that look and I love it. I've got a couple thousand miles on them.

You might as well love a scuffed saddle. It's going to happen sooner or later.
My arione has a decent amount of character and my toupe is excelling in the amount of character it now has.

Clean shiny saddle = unridden bike = poseur :D

Matte-finished saddle that's now shiny because it's ridden so much + no scuffs from falling = well-balanced rider

;)

(I think I just jinxed myself!)

I ride a 1978 Shogun touring bike.Bought it new and commute to work everyday since.No fenders,front and rear racks,down tube water bottles(stops the water when wet)diy halogen lights.Used to ride 36 miles rt,5 days a week.Sold my business a few years back and now I only ride about 10 miles rt.Iv'e only had a computer on it the last couple years so I don't know the real mileage but it must have close to 200,000 miles on it.I ride about 5-8000 miles a year the last couple years and I rode ALOT more than then that before I got the computer(and got old).

Lugged,triple butted CroMo frame and fork,27x1 tires.21 speed,SR triple crank(46-36-26),the rest is all Shimano w/Araya rims,with double butted spokes.Still the same way I bought it except for a different seat and Shimano aero brake levers and the normal stuff.Been a great bike,if they still made them I would buy another.Cost was $650 in 1978,alot for a bike in those days,and worth every penny.

Ride the same bike to San Fran and back every year for the last 20 years.Been to Denver and back(live in L.A.)and all over Hell and Creation and has never let me down.I like CroMo frames myself,strong,forgiving,last forever and soaks up bumps well.

You, sir or madam, are a veritable cyclo-commuting demi-god. My hat, if I was wearing one, would be off to you.

I just recently bought a Scott Sportster. It set me back about $%00 and I think is a great commuter. I believe it is a standard hybrid. But it suits my needs very well, it is comfortable with a upright position, and still has a raod bike feel. The wheel base is longer than a road bike so it will not take a corner as well as a road bike.

Holy crap!!! That is very impressive!!!

What kind of maintenance have you done? Do you have some regular schedule where you replace cables, tires, etc...? What about things like the bottom bracket and headset?

Same wheels??? How often do you have to true them? Obviously, you have been through many, many sets of tires in 200,000 miles.

You must eat well, too. That many miles burns a lot of calories. I typically burn a lot of calories, but I maintain my 190 pounds with a pretty aggressive "calorie replacement" program!!! I love to eat!

Don't feel guilty. Just enjoy the ride.

I ride this.

http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k1...iq/Picture.jpg

A flat bar road bike 1981 Peugeot.

I ditched the backpack once I got a "cycling" jacket and started using my panniers more often. I wound up picking up some speed on my average MPH.

I bike in 3 days out of 5.

Yno, this forum is the best one, hands down.

People actually love helping each other. Bragging is fun, not offensive. (I feel at home with that :D )

You just can't start a fight here. :)

You got a problem with that, buddy?


;):D

nope just ride my bike.

:beer:

I don't feel guilty when I take my brand-new CAAD8 to & from work. ;)

I smoke,drink,cuss,go to bars,play with girls and eat whatever I damn well please.If I'm lucky,I'll die with a cig in one hand and a pork rib in the other.SHHHHH! I don't wear a helmet...I have a bunch of those funny biking hats.....

The bike gets torn down twice a year.All bearings cleaned,repacked and replaced where needed.Still has the same headset cups/bearings,BB cups and wheels.The rear hub cracked about a year after I bought it and the LBS I bought it from replaced it for free.It gets a new chain every 3000 miles or so.A new free wheel every every 2-3 chains.New chainrings every 4-5 chains.I put teflon lined cable housings on it a few years ago and they still work great.Been running kevlar panaracers on it the last few years(not much choice these days).When the back gets worn,the front goes on the back and a new tire goes on front.

This weekend it is getting torn down and getting new chain,freewheel and new chainrings.It will also be getting it's first sealed BB(68x127-UN54).The wheels get trued when something doesn't look right.Keeping the grease clean pays off in spades.The chain gets cleaned/lubed every weekend(5 min) and the bike get a cleaning(30 min).

I'm getting ready to build new wheels for it here soon(700's).Deore or 105 hubs,triple butted spokes and I have not decided on a rim yet.I'm tired of having 3-4 tires to choose from,and 2-3 of them are junk.

I'm an automotive machinist by trade,so I learned along time ago that keeping things clean and the grease dirt/grit free works well.

LBM...you can build a nice bike for $600,IF your not in a hurry and look around for the deals.Stay with the middle of the road stuff(I like Shimano Deore/105 stuff).I'd look for a complete 70-80 luged CroMo touring bike with a good frame/fork,good crank,brakes and levers.Put your money into some wheels and drivetrain.Get something thats all there so it doesn't nickle and dime you to death.Then as you save some money you can update the little stuff.Have fun!

KHS Flite 500. R/T 15 miles. Roads? Got it all. Hills, residential, park, parkway, bike trail and industrial. Industrial sucks! I ride with a lime green backpack but my bike does have a mount for a rear rack. 28cm tires on 36 spoke Mavic open pros. Pheonix Nitehawk light.

Another GREAT post. Thank you very much.

Oh I don't know that I'd go that far...:D Just start a thread about clipless pedals being better than platforms or walmart bikes. :lol:

My new commuter...

Hanging at the shop...

http://members.shaw.ca/feynn/biking/7500mxa.jpg

On the commute...

http://members.shaw.ca/feynn/biking/7500mxb.jpg

I looked at that bike online, but I couldn't find one locally to test ride.

Too bad. :)

very cute bike

probably very quick commuter

"very cute bike

probably very quick commuter"

Thanks !

It's the pinkish cork isn't it ?

The bike was originally a hybrid with all the associated comfort bits like an adjustable stem, suspension post, and rather flexy cranks so I replaced the cranks, stem, bars, tires, post, and saddle and converted the drive to a 2 by 8 that runs 29 - 109 gear inches.

She's almost as fast as my roadie and can handle the MUTs and light singletrack really well so is probbaly the most versatile bike I own.

I also have a set of road wheels for her and the frame would probably also accomodate 26 inch mtb wheels.. I am going to have to test this theory.

Sixty Fiver

What model did the bike start out as? Thx

Definitely prefer a road bike, and since my commute is short and flat, I love my Lemond Fillmore (fixed). For the rain I use a 94 or 95(?) Trek 6500 Mt. bike with fenders.

I commute on a 2008 Schwinn Fastback. Did the commute on my roomates mtn bike for 3 weeks before purchase to make sure I really wanted to do it. Love commuting on a road bike because it is much more intense and demands more focus than something with wider tires. Commute is only 4 miles each way and I can get to work in 15 min. in the morning. Extra speed = extra time in bed for me.

WOW!
If you had only waited 10 more days this thread would have been 1 year old......

Geez... now it's birthday will be anti-climatic.