Comfort Bike for Commuting ??
 

I have a beautiful Specialized 2008 Crossroads Elite bike that I have been trying to sell. The bike has VERY few miles on it and rides like a dream. I have been trying to sell it because I want a cool commuter bike ... but maybe my cool commuter is my Crossroads Elite.

Has anyone put fenders, panniers on a comfort bike like a Crossroads?

If so, do you have photos?


wll

I am glad you asked. I have a similar problem. I have a 2005 Syrrus that I bought new and rode less then 5 miles total that I am trying to sell and have a hard time doing so. Meanwhile I commute on my Brompton, which is not so efficient because I am afraid to ride my road bike downtown L.A. streets full of potholes. I am thinking about turning the Syrrus into a cross/commuter bike by changing to drop bars, bar end shifters, larger tires, etc. but am afraid to make that step. I am very interested to see the answers you get.

I have a 2004 Crossroads Sport with fenders and a Trek Interchange rack. I swapped the plush seat and suspension seatpost for a narrower firmer Specialized saddle I picked up at LBS for $15.00. I needed a longer seatpost than the bike came with. The bike is very stable, sure-footed and comfortable as you know. I think it makes an excellent commuter for distances of 10 miles or less. It is great, given rough pavement, potholes etc. If I can I will post a picture tomorrow.

David

I agree with Northshore Man. I have a Trek 7100 w/ a Trek Back Rack II installed as my commuter. 18.6 miles RT into Boston. Everything else is stock and my bike is great for this duty. The suspension fork and 700c x 35 tires soak up a lot of the rough road and the tires don't flat easily. The bike is pretty fast too, as I average about 39 to 41 minutes each way depending on traffic and stop lights. I am looking at picking up Trek Interchange panniers in the near future. For now if just bungee my duffel bag to the rack and off I go. I have used a backpack in the past, but I greatly prefer the rack solution. Also the upright riding position is great for seeing what is going on in traffic around you.

Try out your Crossroads Elite for a week or two and then decide if you want to invest in any upgrades.

Good luck.

Fenders/racks will go right on. The bridge on the suspension fork should have a threaded hole in it for mounting a fender;you'll prolly need to get a smaller screw at a hardware store than what the fenders will come with,but that's no big deal. Rear fender/rack will go straight on.

Used a Giant Sedona as a commuter for a year. Sold it because it was heavy and slow. If your commute is short,the Crossroads sould be fine. Might want to swap the suspension fork for a rigid,and put on some narrower/higher psi tires though.

I used to also commute on a Sirrus Sport Disc until some hoser dorred me and dented the frame down by the bottom bracket. :( They make fine commuters. I was running 28's with hybrid width fenders. If it wouldn't have been ruined,I would've mounted some cross tires and ridden it through the winter.

28's should be fine for most roads. If you're really concerned,go up to some 32's. As for drop bars,you're gonna spend a bunch 'o dosh,even with barcons. You've got V brakes,right? Not only will you need to get new shifters and brake levers,but you'll also need to get travel agents to adapt the road levers to the V brakes. If you want more hand positions and/or to get aero,go to REI and get a Safari(trekking) bar. You'll be able to use your stock controls,so you'll only have to spend $20 on the bar plus a few more for bar tape or grips. You'll be able to adjust the bar to get aero and have all kinds of places to move your hands around.

My two cents:

Comfort bikes, cross bikes, hybrids, whatever... they are THE BEST commuters.

I've been commuting for years on a '99 Crossroads Euro Elite. It's great for hopping kerbs and short-cutting down gravel paths, things I couldn't do back when I rode a "respectable" Cannondale road bike to work & back.

I run Performance (or are they Nashbar?) head & tail lights, Mt. Zefal hybrid fenders, a no-name rear rack, and a Performance rack trunk that's big enough to swallow most of the stuff I need to take with me. Tires are Forte ST-K, and the Schrader tubes are full of Slime. All up, it weighs 36# on the freight scale at work.

Heavy doesn't always equal slow. Commute time & speeds don't have to suffer if you ride one of these... You just have to work harder to go fast. Think of what it would cost you at the gym to build that kind of strength.
(I'm told it builds character too... I'm still waiting for that part to kick in.)

One upgrade I strongly recommend is a heavy duty wheelset. I found a pair of 36 spoke Velocity Gliders for just over $200 at one of the online retailers.

My #2 commuter is an old Fuji mtb w/1.75x26 street tires. Weinman 519 36h rims. Looks very similar to the bike pictured here. Rack, trunk bag, lights, blinkies, cages, etc. The only mods are a 46t Rocket Ring single frt w/a 12x26 7 sp cluster rr. It's slower than my #1 rb commuter, but I allow for that and it IS more comfortable. Use it for short trips and change of pace.

I say max out your current steed w/fenders, rack, bags, etc. Narrower tires, too. Get some liners or check out some airless. Get the HP type and up your psi at least 20-30 psi from where you run your tires now.

My commuting (actually, only) bike is a Giant Sedona. Yeah, I'm slow on it, but I get from point A to point B over all kinds of roads and in all kinds of weather.

Here's a pic after I did my century in October. Since then I've added a front fender like this that screws into the hole between the front forks, and changed to a DiNotte 220L light.

Dynarider. Thanks for the tip on the bars. I will check them out. I went on Performance website today and added all the stuff I'd need for conversion and it would indeed be quite a bit.

Sorry: that should read Dynaryder.

http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/100_1411.jpg

Mine is an 06 with 23's on it. I am thinking about getting some 32's for the winter. I do not recommend the straight bar. I really would like to get a trekking bar for it. I believe the drops would be better than the straight bar. Personal opinion I guess though. I am 50 miles from breaking 2000 miles this year.

If you can pull the gears then all you need is fatter tires, I run 38s on my 7300 Trek. They're rated for 85 pounds, but I run them at a hundred. The only thing is I hardly ever use my 48X11 gear, so I'm thinking of changing out the crank to 44-32-24 . Especially since I use my lowest gear a lot when loaded down with a weeks worth of grocery.

This used to be a Trek 7500 "comfort" bike... the conversion has turned what was already a pretty nice bike into an incredible bike.

http://members.shaw.ca/feynn/biking/7500night2.jpg

I hope this works. Attached is a picture of my Comfort bike commuter!