Hey guys, I'm new to the forum, this is my first post and I'm new to cycling.

I have a 12.5 mile commute to school every day, entirely on pavement, year-round. Cleveland streets are rough as hell. I have never done winter cycling before so I am wondering what my year-round bike should be (I can only have one, for many reasons). It's a downtown commute.

Are their bikes that can utilize both hybrid AND mountain bike tires? One for summer, the other winter? Or would going with a mountain bike and simply putting slicks on in summer be better? I hear hybrids can have a harsh ride and an upright geometry, (not a good position for me). Would giving up the 700c tires for mountain really make THAT much of a difference in speed?

Any advice? Thanks!

1. Speed is mostly about the rider, not the bike.

2. The line between hybrids and mountain bikes is pretty blurry. There's really not *that* much difference in geometry, a hybrid is really just a mountain bike with 700C wheels (and even some mountain bikes are starting to use that size wheel, which they inexplicably call "29 inch.")

You can put studded tires on a hybrid w/ 700C wheels for winter or put slicks on a mountain bike for summer. Unless you are drawn to a specific bike or tire size (700C vs. 26inch for most MTBs), either option would work.

From Wikipedia. "Cleveland possesses a humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dfa), typical of much of the central United States, with very warm, humid summers and cold, snowy winters."
You're gonna need studded tires for the Winter. Find out which tires you can get for Winter, with full studs, and buy the bike accordingly. Don't forget the width of the tire, you gotta get them on the bike. A spare wheelset is the best way to do this.

As a first guess, get a mountain bike, rigid, with Schwalbe Big Apples for the Summer, and Ice Spiker pros for the Winter. Allow extra time for Winter commute, even if there's no snow, the tires will be slower.

And to the extent it is about the bike it is about

1.1 How flat and stretched out the rider position is

1.2 Handle bar width and height

1.3 The tyre quality

1.4 Other stuff

Some hybrids are 26ers - the defining difference is whether a bike is designed/marketed for offroad use. An MTB should be able to run at least 2" wide tyres and the frame should be stronger and heavier than a hybrid. In decently designed bikes there may be geometry differences as well - MTBs that are really right have amazing grace and forgiveness in skids and what passes for emergency braking on the road, because that's where they are designed to live offroad.

Absolutely. I'd add to avoid hybrids or MTBs with suspension - it eats pedaling energy, doesn't have a place on the road, and cheap versions can have very nasty handling. Look for a bike with good brakes that can take wide tyres, make sure said tyres have good wet weather grip, and fit Kool Stop Salmon brake pads. Oh - and the wheel rims must be aluminum alloy, NOT steel - which is fatally ungrippy for brakepads in the wet.

That said, if I was riding in really bad conditions, I'd take my classic Kona Lava Dome hardtail MTB over any other bike I've ever ridden. But that's not just because it's an MTB, but because it is one of the best handling (hardtail) MTBs ever designed: www.mtbr.com/cat/.../lavadome.../PRD_349408_91crx.aspx

$200 on ebay should get you a Lava Dome in user condition or just below it, and another $200 should fix it up, if you can do the work yourself. Do treat the frame with Weigle framesaver or something similar if you're using a chromo bike as a winter commuter.

The advice about Big Apple tyres is worth considering - grippy, bouncy, not ultra fast but definitely not slow. I'm morally sure that Coldfeet is sure about the studded tyres too, although I don't have experience of riding in those conditions.

The only real reason a hybrid made much sense to me was I could get drop-down handlebars more easily... carpel tunnel runs in the family and my sister (dr) suggested it. But I guess the MTB makes more sense considering everything else.

I can't find the Kona Lava dome but I will look for something that works.

Thanks!

Aww man.... good thing you post this in a Commuter forum. If this made its way to the Hybrid forum, you will be stoned by death threads!

How aggressive winter bike you need will depend on whether you will bike EVERY day or only on the good days. In Cleveland downtown I suspect that the roads are cleared quite well 24/7, so you will not need the most aggressive snow bike.
The varying conditions call for different tires with a huge variation of speed. With a 12.5 mile commute I would consider having two tire options available (separate wheelsets or even separate bikes!).

General thoughts about tire performance in winter conditions:
Narrow tires cut through wet snow better than wide ones.
Knobbies grip better in loose snow than slicks.
Slicks grip better on ice than knobbies (more rubber-to-ice surface), but generally non-studded tires are very dangerous if any ice may be expected.
Knobbier tires can accumulate lots of "sticky" snow (need more fender clearance).
If you expect to ride on roads that are well cleared (plowed) a tire with two rows of carbide studs is enough for the icy days, but if you expect to ride before the roads are cleared I would recommend more aggressive tire (240+ carbide studs per tire).
The front tire is more important to have good grip than the rear.
DIY studded tires are very slow and wear out very fast, not suitable for commuting but a fun experiment.
I ride NOKIAN studded tires and love them. But I haven't tested other brands so I don't have any comparison.

General thoughts on winter commuting:
Studdded tires (with carbide studs) and good lights keep you alive in the winter conditions. Whether the frame is MTB or hybrid, what kind of bars, disk or rim brakes, gears, these things only improve your speed and comfort and are not as important as tires and lights.
However, rim brakes tend to loose some braking power in winter and also wear out faster, so if you have the funds, disk brakes could be the better option.
Suspension is a waste of energy, money and weight for downtown commuting.

Neither would be easy to add drop bars to. You'd be looking at say 200 bucks and that's if you can do the actual work yourself.

My 2 cents would be get a Mountain bike with maybe a trekking handlebar for wrist or hand pain. Also, make sure it fits correctly. The early to mid 90's mountain bikes were heavy but pretty much bomb proof. And while front suspension might add to the weight and rob you of some pedaling efficiency; I do appreciate mine over some spots of my commute

Tire wise though it depends on the road. I am not sure how often Cleveland cleans its streets but I suspect it is fairly often. I think studded snow tires may be a bit much, but I don't live there. Wet or icy conditions are alway hazardous. Perhaps a tire with recessed tread might work well enough.

I'd go with something like the Trek FX series personally. They can be made wicked fast for a flat bar bike, and have enough clearance to run all kinds of tire.

I'd go that route but I want discs, so I'm looking at the Trek Valencia. Pretty much the same geometry but has discs.

Get something with disc brakes and get studded tires.
If it has front suspension, make sure it has a lock-out mechanism.
My Specialized Rockhopper 29er disc works quite well.

I'd say go for a cross bike. Specialized tricross, Surly crosscheck, Soma Doublecross, Kona Jake, etc.

They'll take a variety of tires, fenders and racks (you'll want to double check fenders & racks though on some of them). Plus you have a drop bar to get down and out of that lake wind a bit.