What are the bikes commuters find to be the best? Are they hybrids, cyclocross, road bikes, mountain? What kind do you ride and how far is your commute? Advantages and disadvantages of particular bikes?

The Urbanmonk

I don't believe in "cheapo" bikes, say a $ 50.00 used, beat up bike. If you're gonna spend plenty of riding time
back and forth from work, might as well invest in something a little decent. I just invested in a Volpe for example at $ 530.00, enough gears for my hilly area, plus decent quality to give me a decent ride. In my case I don't have to worry about parking 'cause I can park it inside the building, very securely.
A light touring, cyclocross seems to be the way to go, then again it all depends on your distance and type of riding....mine 12 miles each way.
Corsaire

I have been riding a 2003 Specialized Allez to work 7 miles each way for about 5 months, on the road most of the way, but in some areas forced on to the sidewalk. I love the speed, but I'm thinking of trying some 700x28 tires because some roads are not in the best shape.

Before this bike I was riding a 1980's steel touring bike with 26" wheels, road almost like a MTB. I chose to get a speedy road bike because getting to work reasonably fast is important to me. If I had a car, my commute would be only marginally shorter and that's when traffic is good. I like flying by traffic on busier mornings.

So, for me, the best commuting bike is a fast one.

Tend to agree with fast being good.
I use a steel tourer, copes well with all the
pot holes and varying surfaces, but is
fast enough to frustrate all the motorists
sitting in rush hour traffic.

www.belfastandbeyond.com

If you are going to be riding every day for commuting, you need a reliable bike. The wear and tear on commuter bikes is an important consideration.

Get a bike that you will feel comfortable maintaining yourself and learn how. Learn how to change tires, change spokes, do brake maintanance, etcetera.

A dedicated light-weight road bike, for example, is not a good commuter in my opinion because most of them cannot handle the abuse. A mountain bike is OK, but too slow and exhausting if most of your time is going to be on paved surfaces. A touring bike is probably a good route to go.

Get tires that are going to last.

Mike

I think a road racing bike can handle the abuse. Ive ridden 3rd-hand Canondale racers on farm tracks with no ill effects. It is the gearing, tyre clearance and luggage capacity which makes them unsuitable for the job.
Audax-style lightweight touring bikes are built of the same stuff as racers , but with touring style features for fast day rides. They are ideal for most general purpose commuting, but a good model doesn't come cheap.
My own mount is a road training hack bike which was good when new. The components are all just good enough, and there is plenty of clearance.
For purpose-built commuter bikes, Thorn in the UK (at sjscycles.com) make some interesting models, including the Raven, which uses a Rohloff hub.
Commuter gearing is a pretty personal choice. You may want to used fixed, singlespeed, 7spd hub, 1x9, low-ratio double, or a mid-sized triple system.

It's all "horses for courses", I think

I ride a "purpose-built commuter bike" over a moderately hilly, urban (20 stoplights and stopsigns each way), 11 mile round trip. Weather conditions include frequent precipitation, lots of black ice in the winter, and road crews who dump lots of salt and sand. I wear normal office clothing. I don't like to spend more than a half hour or so per month doing bike maintenance. My bike is nearly ideal for these contidions. One particular strength of internal gears (other than durability/reliability) is that one can downshift when stopped. This can provide a significant speed advantage in a downtown situation

In different circumstances, I could see myself using a road bike, cruiser or touring bike. I've never ridden a mountain bike, but suspect it would be less comfortable than a road bike. One can choose different hand positions on a road bike, after all.

My household also has a hybrid and a road bike, both of which I ride once in a while, usually when I discover a flat tire in the morning. They both work for my route, but not as well. If my commute was twice as long and had fewer lights and steeper hills, I'd probably take the road bike, except during the winter. My wife's road bike is surprisingly durable and my backup hybrid surprisingly fragile. Then again, it is an older steel road bike. The lack of a chainguard is an annoyance, but I would probably buy some bike togs if I had a commute long enough to justify the road bike.

Paul

I usually use my weird old rockcombo, with 26x1.25 paselas and moustache handlebars. It's a pretty smooth ride, and fairly indestructible to boot.

If you own a car, figure out how much it costs per year. Don't forget to add liscences plates, insurance, gas, repairs, tolls, parking, and police tickets to the price of the car.

Now multiply that number by ten (a realistic amount of time to own a bike) and subtract 1,000. That 1,000 is your budget for bike repairs. Heck, double the bike repair budget if you like! The money you save from not driving is your bike buying budget.

The average new car costs over $20,000 just to purchase. I'm guessing that opperating it for ten years will probably double that. Hopefuly you have a new car!

Get rid of it, and spend $38,000 on your new commuting bike that weighs 2lbs, is built like a tank, and has platinum braze ons. Oh, don't forget to insure it!

Best commuter bike is what gets you there . That said, I ride an old road frame converted to cruiser-style riding and single speed - I commute a piddly 2.3 miles each way though and over mostly flat terrain. I have thin 700c tires which aren't great in packed snow, but I'm working on a urban tank that will be internally geared - then I will probably ride into boston every morning and along the river just to get back to cambridge for a longer ride. After using a derailler bike for commuting, I can say I much prefer the single speed and will probably also enjoy the internal gear. Besides, with derailler comes too many gears. Around here the roads ain't so great- sometimes I get to work with a headache after some of the pot holes I forget to avoid, so some form of suspension is good too... although I detest for example suspension forks - my bike right now has a sprung saddle... and the tank will have a suspension seat post. 26" or 700c - eh... 700c can be fast and rolls with less pedaling or something like that... but 26" is quicker to start at a light and can be pretty dern fast too - throw on some Specialized turbo's - 120psi 1" tire for 26" rims!

Further, the best commuter has FULL fenders and at least one rack- but preferably either two racks or one rack and a basket, and a few lights that are also easily shut off for stealth.

[QUOTE=iceratt]If you own a car, figure out how much it costs per year. Don't forget to add liscences plates, insurance, gas, repairs, tolls, parking, and police tickets to the price of the car.

Now multiply that number by ten (a realistic amount of time to own a bike) and subtract 1,000. That 1,000 is your budget for bike repairs. Heck, double the bike repair budget if you like! The money you save from not driving is your bike buying budget.
{QUOTE]

I like iceratt's logic to use automobile costs to justify your bicycle and maintanance costs.

I think one major advantage of bicycle commuting is that if anything goes wrong with your bike, you can fix it in the evening by yourself and be riding the next day. I have a spare EVERYTHING for my bike(s) and there is absolutely nothing I cannot fix by myself in one evening.

That said, it is also practicle to have more than one bike. Then, if anything goes wrong with your primary rider, you can take the 'lady in waiting' and fix your primary when it is convenient or when you get the part you need.

Audax is the British term for light touring type of bikes, isn't it?
Tomorrow, going to work, I'll be debuting my new Bianchi Volpe 2003. I've already put Armadillo Nimbus 700x28C tires, which should give me a decent reliability against flats plus the added speed. Before I had flat handle bar bikes, needless to say the Volpe and my Vigorelli are my first Road bikes (drop handles), and I've discovered something, very revealing to me (except when I get a Mtn bike): the drop handle bars suit me wondefully, it's one of those: how did I ever ride w/o them before? ( I had been kind of hesitant about them for a while)
Now I understand the why of the drops, no more flat bars for me, the few times I've been riding, after two hours or more I have arrived refreshed, with the flats my arms were tired and kind of beat up, not to talk about by sore butt. The kind of upright position of the hybrid was killing my lower back, this new, more aero position of the drops, cushions my back very good, and I thought I was gonna need a rockShox post, not anymore, the incorporated cushy Bianchi Cosmos saddle (the stock one) plus the drop handle position is enough to give me a long refreshed and invigorated ride w/o getting my back and lower back sored (mind you on 23cs!)
I'm a happy camper (rider?)
Flats are out for me, unless I get me a Mt bike like I said....
Corsaire

[QUOTE=mike
That said, it is also practicle to have more than one bike. Then, if anything goes wrong with your primary rider, you can take the 'lady in waiting' and fix your primary when it is convenient or when you get the part you need.[/QUOTE]

Ok, so our bike commuter could buy 2 bikes for $19,000 each!

Or, buy 4 bikes that cost $2,000 each, in case a couple get stolen, and have almost $7,000 available for a "free" bicycle vacation anywhere in the world that he or she chooses, every 2 years.

Or...

Man, its time I sell our car. I hope my wife doen't notice!

Ok, so our bike commuter could buy 2 bikes for $19,000 each!

Or, buy 4 bikes that cost $2,000 each, in case a couple get stolen, and have almost $7,000 available for a "free" bicycle vacation anywhere in the world that he or she chooses, every 2 years.

Or...

Man, its time I sell our car. I hope my wife doen't notice![/QUOTE]

You're a thinker, icerat and I like the way you think

Well I'm going to be different on what is the best commuter bike.

I ride two junk bikes. Reasons?

1. I don't commute very far and use bikes along with rail transport.

2. I would never leave a new expensive bike parked by the rail station as it may get stolen or vandalized.

The first bike I commute with is a 16' inch wheel junk folding bike. I take this junker for 1 mile each day to the light rail and it makes an excellant commuter. Why? The crooks leave it alone as there is nothing you can steal worth taking! I use the Kryptonite NY 3000 U-Lock and go to work with confidence.

After I arrive in New York City, my second Junk bike (Pacific Toy store bike) is waiting for me at the other station. This junk bike stays on the cruel streets of Manhattan 365 days a year.

So far, both bikes are working out great. If you have to travel just a mile or two and you can't park the bike in a safe location, then a junk bike makes a lot of sense. On the other hand, if you have to travel more than 3 miles, you better get a good bike.

I have to admit, my system of junk bikes is working better than I thought!

Racing bikes and touring bikes are ok for commuting but i would invest my money in a bike purpose built for commuting. I used a 03 specialized sirrus sport to commute to and from school (only about a 2 mile ride) for almost a year before it got stolen. Now i walk

[QUOTE=MichaelW]for purpose-built commuter bikes, Thorn in the UK (at sjscycles.com) make some interesting models, including the Raven, which uses a Rohloff hub.


I want a THORN!

I am lusting after a thorn bike for commuting, touring and expedition riding....

My Giant X800,has served me well for the best part of 7 years, but is begining to show its age and the raviges of Salted winter roads.

I reckon for £300 it has paid for itself, several times over, so it owes me nothing, and man those Thorns are such Sweet bikes........

This is exactly why I ride junk bikes. An ugly used up Pacific toy store bike with a Kryptonite New York Chain probably would not have been stolen. These toy store junk bikes are good for something folks. My junk bike is on the street right now and no one steals it.

I agree junk bikes are good at not getting stolen, but - especially in the winter - nearly all of my riding is just for commuting, so I'd prefer to have a good ride..... with lots of locks.

I know that that it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but I left my bike unlocked infront of the food co-op this afternoon, as I went shopping. It was cold enough, and I just wanted to get inside. I figured that the only person that would want to ride off with my bike and paniers would be one of us dang fools. We're honest and we already have bikes. Still it's stupid to take a chance with a thousand bucks.

I had a nice ride on the lake ice, by the way. The snow cover provided enough traction for slicks. The ice made weird sounds, like a shortwave radio being tuned. It had to be thick enough, there are ice houses out there, but I was still a little scared.

I am buying the Giant OCR Touring for both commuting and touring. I think that it is a great bike for commuting, because of the disc brakes!