Beginner's Road Bike for Commuting
 

Hello,

I'm completely new to cycling outside of basic hobby riding. As a way to start getting back in shape I've decided to start biking to work.

The ride is only 5+ miles, so not far, but relatively hilly at parts. Right now I'll be using a Trek 7000 that I bought for my wife a few years ago. While I think it'll be more than sufficient given the short distance, it's a hybrid and I'm looking for something more street specific. I'd also like something is mid-tier, so I can use it to get into further riding as habit as well.

Any suggestions?

My price range would be somewhere around $1500.

I'd prefer something that is pretty ridable in stock condition, as I don't know a lot about upgrades, parts, etc. but that being said, something that's foundationally sound that would be upgradable late on if I wanted.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

I like my Surly Crosscheck. It's around 1200, which will leave you cash for lights, a rack, and some fenders.

Are you currently using the Trek to commute to work?

I plan on it, took it out today after doing some maint. on it just to get the feel for it again.

I would definitely hunt craigslist for a good deal. I've seen some very nice Treks and Cannondales in my area in the 500-1000 range and with a budget like yours you'd end up with a really nice 2011 or 2012 model.

I live in a smaller town and check out what I found locally.

http://stillwater.craigslist.org/bik/3580928096.html

http://stillwater.craigslist.org/bik/3561806667.html

I saw real nice Cannondale on there for $500 but someone must have picked it up already.

Ronin,
$1500 should buy you a really very nice bike. You can probably spend a little less to spend more on accessories. One decision to make is if you want a more race oriented or commute oriented bike. Racing oriented bikes are honestly very fun to ride, but can be less practical. They may not have rack mounts (should you want a rack) and if they do, the chainstays may be short enough that it's hard to set up with panniers without heel strike. Race bikes also often lack fender mounts, making fender installation harder. They also have limited tire clearances, and running wider tires can be more comfortable on rough roads. They may feature relatively high gearing that may be rough if you're not in very athletic shape, or if you're carrying heavy loads. They also are designed to be set up with a fairly aggressive fit that bends the rider's upper body far forward for aerodynamics and biomechanic efficiency, but this can be less comfortable and some riders may find it hard to bend their neck up to look ahead. It should be noted that fit is pretty variable and you can get a pretty upright fit on many racy bikes. That said, if it weren't for fear of theft and the occasional need for fenders, I'd probably do most of my commuting on my carbon road bike because I can generally get away with a relatively light backpack, and it's a fun ride.

A good compromise might be a decent cyclocross bike--most can run fenders and racks, but are still fast, performance oriented bikes, and as a bonus you can do some moderate off road riding as well. One thing to be aware of is that race-oriented cyclocross often features 46/36 tooth cranksets, which is narrower in range than is typical of most mid-tier road bikes (which now generally come with 50/34 compact craksets) and could make some steep climbs (or rides with luggage) a little rough. Some cross bikes however aren't particularly specced out for cross racing out the door, and will come with either 50/34 compact cranksets, or triples.

For racier bikes, many brands come with two different geometries, one typically being a "race" geometry, and one being an "endurance" geometry. The race geometry will typically have a lower headtube (allowing you to set your handlebars lower), and shorter chainstays (for snappier handling), and may be designed with a slightly more compliant ride. With your budget, you should consider mostly aluminum bikes with Shimano Tiagra or 105 drivetrains, or Sram Apex drivetrains, although you might find good deals on carbon or better specced bikes in your price range. Some example race geo bikes would be a Trek Madone 2.1, Specialized Allez Mid-Compact, Cannondale CAAD10-5, or similar offerings from a number of brands. Those same brands endurance bikes would be a Trek Domane 2, Specialized Secteur, or a Cannondale Synapse. I don't have strong feelings about those 3 brands in particular, they're just well represented in my area. Also the Surly Pacer is a very sanely specced bike if you're interested in a somewhat more practical bike that's also made out of steel, and will let you run a rack and fenders at the cost of maybe 5 lbs against the other bikes I mentioned.

Some good general purpose cyclocross bikes might be the aforementioned Surly CrossCheck, and the Specialized TriCross is also nice in that it's really designed more as a general purpose bike than a cross racing bike, and is available with wide range gearing (including a triple).

Hope you have fun. Buy what you like, preferably from a shop you like doing business with.

I second the Surly Cross Check suggestion. However, as the owner of a Trek 7000 for 12 years, I would recommend that you commute on that bike for a few months, if not a few years (assuming it fits you) before spending $1500 on a bike . Put road slicks on it so that you can go faster on it. Find out what you like and dislike about it, then starting thinking about investing in a different bike.

There's a wide range of bikes that fall into the road bike category. Everything from time trial bikes, pure racing bikes, touring bikes, to cross bikes.

And there's a lot in between. So when you say you want to get further into the riding habit it sort of depends on what you mean. The CrossCheck is kind of a jack of all trades, master of none sort of bike which is why it's commonly suggested. It's got room for wide tires which gives you lots of options, but it's not a full on touring bike like its sibling the Long Haul Trucker, nor would it make a very good racing bike for someone at all serious about racing.

sbslider has some good advice regarding the 7000, - as long as it fits you. Your $1,500 might be better spent after putting some time in the saddle before deciding on the next bike.

I concur, I plan to hold off for a few months before shopping around.

Thanks for everyone's suggestions so far.

I would do that also. Give yourself some time. Learn more about bikes. See if the "commuting thing" is something that you want to do. You spend that amount, you want to make sure its the right one that you'll be riding for a long time. Nothing wrong with what you've got now. Over time you may even make a few improvements to make it more comfortable to you.

If I were to do it over again, I would definitely consider the Surly Crosscheck like mentioned above with optional trekking handlebars. It just does everything well. But to answer your question, most any bike can be used for commuting. Thats the beauty of commuting to work, you don't need anything special to get back in shape and enjoy yourself.

I'd suggest Giant Defy 2 like this one:

http://kozy.com/product/11giant-defy-2-72337-1.htm

It's fast, with a relatively upright position and can accomodate fenders/racks. yet you can still put some serious miles and climbhills with it unloaded. Very versatile and save you some dough for shoe/cloth/accesories.

Crosscheck is nice tho. it's really sturdy but a bit on the heavy side which might affect climbs.

Describe what you mean by this. What kind of rides do you picture yourself doing?

I'll add another vote for Surly Crosscheck; that's what I ride. Stock is well under $1500. It is quite robust for commuting, and it will also serve well as a "mid-tier" hobby/sport ride. Look for some fairly slick tires about 32/35mm wide, and you'll be set for commutes and recreational rides on road, path, or even gravel!

I'll also add another vote for don't buy right away, spend a few months on the Trek to (a) ensure you will stick with it, and (b) have a longer baseline so you'll be able to realize how much you enjoy your next bike when you get it! (And to better be able to understand what better will mean for you; so you will buy the right next bike)

Also, if you have $1500 to burn, bully for you (really, it's chump change compared to the cost of a car, and X months of gas), but you can do very well for very much less. Shop CL in the $500 range and you can get a great bike. You know the kind of guy who drops big $$ on a fancy bike and almost immediately gives up and ditches it for less than half price on CL? Those suckas come along every day. Don't be that guy, take advantage of that guy!

The most important information about what to get for your second bike always comes from experience with your first bike. What do you like about it? What do you wish were different? Until you're really clear about those kinds of things you aren't ready to buy the second bike. Obviously you could buy the second bike anyway based on what you think you want, but there's a good chance that doing so would greatly reduce the time until you buy your third bike.

The Surly Cross-Check is an excellent suggestion. Surly also sells the Pacer, which is a steel framed road bike with fender eyelets. The Pacer's only shortcoming is the lack of rack mounts, but one can get around that with a large saddlebag, like a Carradice.

Bikesdirect has plenty of good commuter bike options.

Ride the TREK 7000 more before dropping the cash.

It's important to know what you want in a bike as they do many different things.

Personally, given my location, if I wanted a road-ready bike in that price range I'd def go with a randonneuring/audax bike like this because it represents excellent out-of-the-box value with quality aftermarket components

http://www.fahrradmanufaktur.de/bike...o-105-20-gang/

for a few reasons:

fenders
racks (front/back)
2x10 config (105 components)
nice dynamo
lights in front/rear
pump


however, they're not sold in the US, as far as I know

2012 version with SRAM instead for €1150.

http://www.ebay.de/itm/VSF-Fahrradma...item56532e916d

that is a good deal I should go check out in person

:D

That VSF has a lot to recommend it! Do they have a geometry chart? (My German is really rusty. :()

Another vote for riding the Trek 7000 a bit. That way, you'll know much better what is really important to have in your next bike...

I didn't read all of the follow up but I saw a number of bike recommendations.

My advice would be:
1) Decide/learn what style of bike you enjoy riding the most.
2) Decide/learn how you prefer to carry your commuter gear.
3) Buy a bike in the style you like with the capability to carry gear how you prefer.

That's one way to look at it anyway.

I think it's a really nice package for the money (especially the 2012 model ... you could probably offer them €1000 and forgo any service contract).

I just checked and couldn't find any geometry ... you can download selected pages from a 200 page catalog and I assume that the geometry is provided on the pages that you can't download :(

Ride the 7000 for a while. Seriously. I commute to work on my $3k carbon fiber road bike, with clipless pedals, too. I purchased a hybrid last year and I have ridden it about 10 times. I really need to sell it; I hate it. There are people here who hate road bikes. But I don't like the upright riding position and the handlebars make me feel like the wings of a 787. I prefer drop bar road bike. I do also like riding on the weekends, or taking 1/2 day off and showing up at work after a 35 mile ride.

$1500 will buy you a nice 105 level component 20 lb aluminum drop bar road bike. The Felt Z85 is still a well specced bike for the money.

I recommend getting enough miles under your belt before deciding what to purchase. I've seen Trek 7000s at work and they look like really nice bikes for mountain bikes.

Keep riding the Trek. If you know for sure that you are going to get serious with the hobby, then test ride carbon, aluminum, and steel bikes to zero-in on your preference. I favor the older 80s Cr-Mo road bikes with high-end tubings. They are very durable, reasonably light (21-23 lbs), and have good damping. Older 105/600/Dura Ace side-pulls have plenty of power to flip the rider. You can buy an excellent used bike on CL for about $500. Spend another $500 if needed to upgrade the drive-train to match your road terrain and strength level.

I upgrade the drive-train to 8-speed cassette and rear trigger shifters for greater durability and flexibility to match my ENGINE. You can slowly upgrade the Cr-Mo bike as you see fit. There will not be a significant decrease in commute time with an 18 lbs road bike. A drop of 4 lbs is less than 2% of the average weight of rider and bike. You may gain a few seconds up a hill, but will recover about 1/2 of that time as potential energy is converted into kinetic energy on the way down. Keep working on the ENGINE and climbing technique instead of focusing on an ultra-light bike.

Adjust the bike so that you can ride comfortably and work efficiently to put power into the ground.

Looks a lot like many of the cyclo cross bikes recommended here. Only difference is that instead here you get the bike and then spend the next 5 years swapping out for the parts you want. Especially nice is the Shimano dynamo front wheel with B&M lights. However, other parts, like the Tektro cantis, are common round here.

In fact, it's set up very much like my current favorite ride (excepting of course the 5 years it took me to get there...)