I guess the dead horse can be beat just a little bit more.......

I rode an MTB as a bike messenger with slicks in 1997 and 1998 because I had it in my basement (it was my old MTB before I replaced it). When I stopped being a messenger, I kept it for commuting because it did the job well until 2004, when it became my winter bike. I bought another MTB for commuting for robustness, parts interchangeability and because I liked the fit. I thought I could just change the fork on the new bike from a suspension to a rigid fork, but found out I couldn't because the angles would be too messed up. I also found out that I did not necessarely need the robustness of an MTB. I started to regret the buy a couple of years later when my commutes became longer.

In essence, unless you really need it, an MTB is overkill for commuting; an hybrid, touring or cyclocross bike is much better suited for the job. That's why I bought a cyclocross bike yesterday.

+1 to above:

Get a cyclocross bike, best of both worlds. Adjust tire choice based on road conditions.

If it's someone jumping in with "Hey, the original question is something I was wondering too, but the comments in this thread don't explain xyz/I'm wondering about exception abc" or something like that, yeah, I can see it. If it's someone answering a question that someone asked eight months ago (someone who has most likely moved on and isn't even reading any more), not so much perhaps.

Highly doubtful. That kind of thread consolidation, I'm all about.

Yeah, that's it. Would you have preferred my starting a new thread?

i use a MTB because of the terrible road conditions where im going to school.

after i graduate and move someplace decent im buying a road bike with the first money i scrape together

More comfortable riding position, thicker more resilient tires and better gearing for hills. I also cant afford 2 bikes and love to ride in the woods. a mountain bike can be ridden anywhere, unfortunately the same cant be said for a road bike.

Cyclocross and touring bikes are more ideal but mountain bikes are more available.

I if get a flat, it´s easier to inflate to 40-45 psi than to 90-120 psi with a handy pump....

it's what most people have sitting in their garages/basements when they decide to start commuting.

Huh? Road bikes aren't manly for commuters? This is the first time I heard that one.

Is a road bike really going to snap in half or bend a rim or something if you hit a pothole or a curb? Is it impossible to cut across a grass field with 23mm tires? I thought the main reason not to use one was due to a lack of fender and rack eyelets but "durability" seemed to come up a lot in this thread.

I use my mtb to commute because I had a $500 bike I didn't get to ride as much as I wanted. I am fast enough on it with the 60psi Kenda Krisp 2in tires and suspension fork. A friend of mine that rides a road bike can attest to that. Now I have a rigid fork and 100psi 1in Richey Tom slicks on their way. In addition to that I can stop carrying around a floor pump strapped to the side of my milk crate as I have an inflater on its way also.

That is because most have never actually rode on one for any considerable length of time. Road bikes are durable. They however might not be suitable for commuting because most lack eyelets for attaching panniers and fenders.

i ride an urban mountain bike most places just cause i'm a pretty big guy and i like the stability and security of it and on a road bike i always feel like i'm going to bend a rim or something (not to say that i'm "against" road bikes at all)

back before mountain bikes were commonly available, we used to ride our racing bikes on dirt and gravel roads all the time. I remember one time having my bike sink into the mud up to the bottom bracket. That being said, I'm riding my mountain bike because it's the most durable. And also when I rode my vintage touring bike in last time, someone left a note on it wanting to buy the components. I figure other people might skip the note and just use an allen wrench instead.

I commute on this nearly everyday. I am starting to race a MTB (different from my commuter), so the commute helps my training. I ride 50-90 miles a week not including the weekends. I also have a herniated disc that is healing, so bending over a lot is not an option (i.e. drops are pointless for me to use). I can jump curbs, ride down and up dirt mounds, etc. I never see people doing those things on a road bike here. I put some steeper gearing on it, it has an 8-speed 12-25 in the rear and a 52-42-30 triple in the front, this helps a lot with speed. I run some 1.5" skinnies pumped up to 80-90 PSI. I can beat most roadies unless there is a serious headwind, (though I got beat by a girl on a fixed gear a few weeks ago, hehe).

I love my stumpjumper with its big fatties and wouldn't commute around Dallas on anything but a mountain bike. I think it's necessary for survival to be able to hop curbs and go off road at a moment's notice. I also like the freedom to go explore trails, railroad tracks, etc. as I come across them. I don't mind working a little harder for the fun.

Ha. Nothing to do with your post directly, but I'm dying to know--I watched your video on riding in P'cola, and I just can't figure out what road that was you turned off of onto 9-Mile Road! Things look vastly different from when I lived and rode there! (BTW, my bank is right near the tracks there on 9mi--Regions. Haven't been there in 3 years, but they take good care of me here) ;-)

And yes, it was a bit shocking to see someone from P'cola posting!

-Jon

I can't do stoppies on my cyclocross bike, so I ride my mountain bike. Doesn't everyone do stoppies on their commute?

Hey Jon,
I turned off of Jernigan onto 9 mile. It comes out between Scenic Hills Vet. Clinic and a Tom Thumb.
My new commute is nuttier than ever. Instead of turning right at the beginning, I now turn left and head toward Davis Hwy. Turn left on Davis toward Hwy 90 (9 mile Rd.) and head to Pace! They are tearing up the road on the land bridge over to the Pace area and the vibrations I get from the ground up pavement kills my speed! It is a 6 mile one way trip and I do it almost every work day. I need a new video, but I'm afraid the road will take my camera like it did my headlight!

this post convinced me, I'm riding my touring bike in tomorrow.

Oh, Jernigan! Man things have changed! It didn't used to look like that when you came out of Jernigan! (at least when I delivered pizzas for the Hut back in the 80s) But then again, that whole part of 9-Mile has changed drastically.

Well, enough hijacking the thread. ;-) BTW, having ridden all of Pensacola on 25mm tires on a touring bike, I can certainly understand why someone would want to ride a mountain bike there (although, I would still prefer the skinny tires--got a flat once, crossing Three Mile Bridge--and that was before they removed the "sidewalk" giving a place for bikes to ride). ;-) (there, back on topic)

-Jon

If I had a MTB, I'd definitely commute on it at least once a week. Why? It's a big boy's BMX bike, and I love urban shredding. Stairs, planters, old ladies; nothing would stand in my way.