dude72

a lot of fun. i changed the handlebar and the brake levers. it is now (imho) better than the original set up.

GriddleCakes

I think it's great, but I lack a frame of reference; I've only ever bike commuted here, South Lake Tahoe, CA, and Bend, OR (which is the gold standard of the three). I've been commuting here on and off (being that I've moved away and then back again) since 2001, and I can definitely say that it's better than it ever was. We have almost no bike lanes, and the city is criss-crossed by 45 mph 5-lane boulevards where the average speed is 55 mph. We have just under 300,000 people in Anch, but we're pretty spread out, so road speeds stay high outside of rush hour, and cyclists on high speed throughways are almost unheard of here. There are more cyclists every year, it seems, so motorists are getting used to seeing us.

On the upside, we have greenbelts with MUPs that cross the city several ways, and outside of those a savvy commuter can learn to link together slower speed neighborhoods, MUPs, and sidewalks to get where s/he's going with minimal motorist conflict. Sidewalk riding is legal in Anch (albeit risky, know what you're getting into) outside of downtown, and even in downtown there's zero enforcement (a common summer sight is the summer-only bike cops trying to weave through the crowds of tourist on the downtown sidewalks). Downtown is one of the areas where street riding is safe, though; low speed with lots of stops to keep motorist speed down. Between that and the high level of pedestrians, there's no reason to ride on the sidewalks downtown (unless you're a cop who doesn't know better ).

And then there's winter...

Very few of us ride all winter. Streets stay icy all winter, sidewalks become gigantic snow berms as the street plows bury them under (always after the sidewalk plows have cleared them, at taxpayer expense), the MUPs are groomed for skiing instead of plowed so they're frequently too soft to cycle on. In the past, when my commute was short, I would ski to work during winter storm cycles. Now that I've moved across town from work, I bought a fat bike to ride during storm cycles. Even if you don't ride on snow days, studded tires are a must, unless you like crashing a few times a winter.

I'm lucky in that I live at one end of an MUP that spits me out into downtown, where I work and where street cycling is easy. For several years I commuted solely on surface streets, summer and winter, all the way across the most motorized parts of town, and it was harrowing. I got to where I was going, and it was generally fun like riding a bike is fun, mixed with regular moments of extreme stress.

Long story short, I like it now better than I ever did. It used to be terrible, now it's less so, and you can mitigate that further depending on where you live and where you work.

50voltphantom

RubeRad

I have to respectfully witness that it is not always the case. I have been bike commuting for 17 mo now and am the same weight as when I started. My commute is much shorter (about 5.5 mi each way), flatter (300ft ascent in the morning, negligible ascent on the way home), and I am lazy so I don't work that hard, it's really like taking a walk. So weight loss depends on how much effort you put into your riding.

FBinNY 

Yes, cycle comuting doesn't always result in weight loss. But it doesn't hurt. It's even possible to gain weight while riding an hour a day.

OTOH- cycling even that little, or at low effort levels, generally replace some body fat with muscle, so even at the same weight, you're still healthier.

Weight is a poor indicator of condition, and over emphasized because there's not an easier index, but I'll venture that a 250# football player is likely fitter than most people with very favorable BMIs. Proponents of the BMI even had to come up with a category -- the fit fat -- to get around the statistical issues with the system.

IMO, those Clydesdales who take up biking should focus less on the scale, and more on their belt size. This will usually show more progress and be less discouraging than the scale.

RubeRad

Good points, and it must be a fact that if I had been driving instead of riding all this time, I would undoubtedly weigh even more!

I will be losing weight over the next few months though, as my work is paying for registration in the Devil Dog Duathlon, so I'm going to have to do some running training, and also up my cycling fitness with intervals and generally commuting harder.

RhythmRider

What stand are you using?

Jakkar

The stand is a feedback. It is an Alfine 11 speed in response to an earlier question. Really enjoying the bike for trips around town and to the train station so far.

TransitBiker

The rear of the front fender is way too high off the ground.....

How wide is the fender vs the tire?

- Andy

bbeasley

For me:
Fitness is earned on the bike.
Weight control is earned at the dinner table.

Enjoy your ride!

danspun

Longtime lurker, infrequent poster, but I thought I'd share my trusty steed (good ol' Japanese steel from 1975). Added this to the stable two years ago and have added about 3,200 commuting miles to its unknown total lifetime of miles.

No braze ons, so everything attached is a bit jerry-rigged, including the rear rack (nothing has fallen off, yet ).

Jjdsyd

New commuter here... with a new commuter here:

2014 Focus Planet 2.0. Hydro discs, 8 speed Alfine hub with Gates belt drive. I really like it. It came with 32c Conti Sport Contacts on it but I swapped them out for Marathon Plus 38'ers. Don't want to be dealing with punctures. And picked up the Thule pannier for it. An impressive bit of kit.

Just wish Focus hadn't added the graphics to the frame this year. Would prefer it stealthier.

DVC45

Nice bike!

virtu

Hi there,

After a few weeks, here it is


--

monsterpile

I sold my Breezer last fall. I didn't want to but I can't keep every bike and it was ready to roll so I found a buyer. Very smooth a great bike and I miss it a little, but the 3-speed wasn't enough gears for an everyday commuter with a bridge I had to go up and over.

bigbenaugust 

This is true, but the Nexus 8 we had was a little overkill for puttering around campus.

Mark Stone

Nice looking machine! It's one of those bikes I would probably never ride because I'd be sitting staring at it all the time lol. These city bikes are real lookers these days.

One thing, though - Switching from the SportCONTACTS to the Marathons was more of a side-grade (if there's such a word) than an upgrade because they are both exceptionally puncture resistant. I've ridden on a pair of sportCONTACT tires and haven't punctured since 2008 (6 years, prolly 12,000 miles). Continental and Schwalbe really have it going on as far as puncture resistance. I'm not bad-mouthing the Marathons, but you already had good slicks my friend . . .

BTW welcome to the groupo!

agchopz

i cant stop looking at all the bikes... must sleep.

hermanchauw

RubeRad

You're commuting on a BMX bike?

hermanchauw

Yes.

RubeRad

doesn't seem ergonomically feasible to me, unless the commute is just a mile or two, but if it works for you, more power to ya!

Che13

DSC_0061 by Makadam 360
Here is mine, Specialized Rockhopper 94 Sport.
No need for fenders right now, maybe when summer will be over.

Fizzaly

I know a guy that round trips 12miles on a BMX, granted he modified a lot especially the gearing and it helps that he's only 5'5"

MEversbergII

BMX bikes contend with junky MTB's around here for "most common transport bike". Neither ever have functional brakes 9/10 times though...

M.