Commuting with totally the "wrong" bike = a great ride!
 

I usually ride the 15 paved miles from my house to work on a CF road bike which is hybridized with straight bars. Best time in so far with this bike is 54 minutes total with cooperative traffic lights and wind. There's not too many different options for the route if I want to stay on bike-friendly streets, so, wanting a change in the ride, I took home my Schwinn s-25 http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...QEwBw&dur=3376 , (not my bike, but an example) that I paid too much for - $100 - at a pawn shop a few years ago. New this sold for something like $159 at your local "big box" store. I did take advantage of e-bay to put a Dart fork on the front and a Fox rear air spring on it.

So what was good about riding this bike to work today?

1 -- Just that its different. Different bike makes a different ride.

2 -- Luxurious smooth ride like your grandmother's Lincoln Town Car. Couldn't feel a single bump despite exercising no vigilance to avoid potholes and miscellaneous road hazards. The 2.25 off-road tires have a smooth center stripe and, at the rated 80 PSI, were silent and jitter-free.

3 -- MTB gearing caused me to spin much more level or downhill, which is not a bad exercise and change. I tend to "mash" my road bike in the hardest gear.

So what was "wrong" about riding this bike to work this morning?

1 -- Front and rear suspension and 34 pound weight meant more energy expenditure. But, guess what? If I wanted to minimize energy expenditure I own a 2009 Honda Fit which will get me to work with no exertion at all!

2 -- Front and rear suspension and 34 pound weight meant ride to town took longer -- an hour and 7 minutes. But, guess what? If I wanted to minimize ride time I own a 2009 Honda Fit which will get me to work in 18 to 25 minutes.

3 -- Some fellow cyclists could see me and think, "Look at that idiot on his department store BSO with not only a suspension fork, but REAR suspension, fat MTB tires and riding it on the street!" But, guess what? TOUGH!

Probably bring the road bike home for the next ride in, but will be riding the Schwinn again soon!

Peace and love --Don in Austin

Good job Don! You tell it like it is. It still remains, any bike is good for commuting and changing it up once in while is fun. Every now and then, I take out my Raleigh road bike to commute to work on a nice day just so I can remember what its like to get beat up. It keeps me straight and reminds me to appreciate my hand built mountain bike commuter that is "oh so plush", with no suspension.

As they say, the best bike for you is the one you actually ride -- and the more you enjoy it, the more you will ride it!

I had the opposite experience; I commute regularly on a Surly Crosscheck; it was out of commission for a few days while I was working through some crankset issues, so I rode my MTB (GT Backwoods, front-suspension only), and HATED it. Not only is the seat an ass-hatchet, the knobby tires, UGH, the commute was such a drag! When I got my XX back on the road, it felt so good and smooth and fast!

All that to say, I would recommend giving a try to some slick or at least "city" tires on your Schwinn, then you can roll smooth and fast AND in plush grandma's-cadillac comfort. Putting these Nashbar Slicks on a MTB is what launched me back into being a cyclist again, after 15 years of not riding. They're very well reviewed, and dirt cheap (only $12 each, and a free shipping deal right now) so not much to lose. Nowadays I put these (and a rack) back on my MTB when I want to tour -- because my engine needs MTB gearing to get up SoCal mountains!

While true you CAN commute on any bike, some are simply going to be better at it. I myself need a bicycle with a fair bit of hauling capability, so that makes many bicycles a bad choice for me. Many also can't take fenders which in my opinion automatically makes them a bad choice. To make the blanket statement that any bicycle is good for commuting is misleading to an extreme.

Last night I noticed I had a flat on the regular winter commuter I take from my house. Turns out it was a sidewall failure in the tire. I have other tires I could have put on the bike, but I chose instead to ride my mini-velo today. This despite the fact that we are getting a wintery mix of precip and my regular winter commuters have studded tires this time of year. It's not like I haven't ridden my mini-velo since fall, since I do use it for shorter jaunts around town all year round, but I have not commuted for work on it since fall. Definitely a nice change of pace. It's a lot more fun to ride though when it is not loaded down with panniers like today.

I have 3 MTBs. I have had slicks on all of them at one time or another. The 2.25 tires on the Schwinn I put on there for a 25 mile off road ride when we were out in West Texas. They are knobby on the sides but slick down the center stripe. Maybe at my old age of 67 in a few days my eyesight is failing me, but I swear they say they can take 80 PSI! Anyway, that's what I put in them last night. They didn't explode and they ran nice and smooth down the center slick stripe, without a hint of knobby tire hum. The suspension on the bike is set pretty firm to avoid see-sawing under load, but it is still great at absorbing all the myriad imperfections of urban streets. I have seven bikes total. There is only one I would ride if I were racing -- but I don't race. That is the same one I ride if it is challenging to keep up with a group on a road ride. Otherwise, mixing up what I ride maintains my interest and motivation.

As much maligned as a "BSO" or "department store bike" is, at one time the Schwinn was my primary ride and it has never let me down. It was beat up and neglected when I bought it from a pawn shop, and I have put total maybe 2k miles on it in the past 5 years. I liked it enough to strip it down and get the frame powder coated and then get custom pin-striping done on it afterwards.

When a person is not racing or trying to keep up with a challenging group, riding only a light weight fast bike has a little bit in common with seeking out the parking space closest to the front door of the gym so you can go in and use the treadmill. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy my CF homemade Franken/road/hybrid bike also.

Don in Austin

I say right whatever you feel like riding. Every once in awhile I just feel like riding my Surly Pugsley and so I'll commute on that. I just max out the tire pressure and ride. Not necessarily the most ideal bike for a commute, but who cares, right?

"Any bike is good for commuting, IF IT FEELS GOOD TO YOU...."

Don in Austin

But that's NOT what he said. He made the blanket statement that any bicycle is good for commuting, which means that any bicycle would work for any one in any situation. He needs to clarify that, else he is just wrong.

I agree Don, if you have a bike that you can reliably ride it works for a commute. Not to generalize to extreme cases naturally.

Sounds like your tires are already getting you what I was recommending, so I'm not surprised you found this a fun and easy ride. Also, bike commuting 15mi each way (and avg speed 15mph) at age 67!! Sir, I salute you! Keep up the good work, and keep enjoying it!

Well there's a big difference between a Schwinn from the 90's(?), and, say, a Magna you might walk out of WalMart (are they "department" stores really?) today. Those will let you down, before you get to 2K miles for sure. I used to get excited about $20 bikes on CL, but got burned by some that were so bad that no amount of my effort could make them ridable, and I just ditched them for free via CL again.

So right! Too many people fixate on the lightest and the fastest even though they are not using their bikes for anything like a racing application.

I'm not misleading anyone. The fact remains you CAN commute on any bike that suits you for your given usage. Get off your high horse, its just opinion based.

Nice, I'm the same way -- I have three bikes, and although I tend to use the fixed gear for commuting a majority of the time, I like to change it up and ride the roadie or the MTB fairly often too -- I'm lucky enough to have some pretty sweet alternative routes for each, that throw in huge hills and views, and/or trails, respectively.

the majority of people on bikes here are the impoverished and semi-homeless.

i see everything from Walmart full-suspension mtb's to undersized bmx's to vintage Raleigh 3 speeds. anything that will roll.

we all seem to get where we're going and we all wave when we pass eachother. :)

i've started carrying a small bottle of chain lube though, offering to share when i hear a squealing chain. *shudder*.

and it has the added benefit of being able to roll over parked cars..... :)

Nice!

Really, wide smooth tires can actually work really well as far as rolling resistance and comfort. (Where they fall down is aerodynamic drag.)

And, it is amazing how much some form of suspension can help - my folding bike just has a sprung saddle, and it feels like a Cadillac compared to my trike, on a bumpy road. (That said, if I'm riding more than about 2 miles, or in higher winds, or up or down hills, give me the trike any day.)

Only bike I has is a trek 3700. **** the haters I have 50 miles on it in the past two days.

I spend a lot of time rubbing elbows with John and Jane Wolfpack, and there are numerous times where a heavier, fat tired, full suspension bicycle just won't be advantageous, and the extra effort and time spent will eventually grow old, especially if one spends a lot of time in the saddle. Usually when I want to spend a little more time and effort, is when I go to the grocery store and return home with 50 lbs or more of items.


The only time I knew that I had the "wrong" bike, is when I got dropped by an elderly woman riding an old English three speed with a horribly squeaky chain.

Sometimes I ride my BMX to work.
In most ways, totally the wrong bike. But for smiles, totally the perfect bike.

and, this thread just reminded me of how much i want to try a Cannondale Hooligan. very much the "wrong" bike for my ride, but it's just so cool/cute in a horrific way.....