Thinking about getting a new commuter bike
 

I currently ride a 2013 Cannondale Quick 4 that I bought about a year ago. It's a great bike and I love it, but I was thinking I might move up to something a little better. My biking is mostly on roads, with eight miles of daily commute plus 15-20 miles of just fun riding every 2-3 days in decent weather. I'm wanting to keep under about $1400 plus whatever I can sell my current bike for. I like to ride fast and smooth, but I don't need a racing bike or full carbon fiber body or whatnot.

The main contender I'm looking at right now is a Cannondale Bad Boy 1. It looks like a great commuter, a bit high on the MSRP but I think it fits nicely with what I want, and has a great look to it.

I'm not terribly familiar with bikes though, and so Cannondale and Specialized are about the only makers I know anything about beyond their names so those two are definitely preferred (Cannondale above Specialized though).

I wondered if anyone had any suggestions for a good bike that would fit my needs. Is the Bad Boy 1 worth getting at the higher price point? Is there something else that's as good that I should consider instead?

The Bad Boy 1 is, in my opinion, not that great for a commuter bike. There are things I just don't like personally. Do you really need a head shock for a commuter? How are you suppose to put fenders on, if it is a commuter in Chicago where it rains? The bottom bracket sits really high and I can never figure out why if it is a recreation urban bike as they say. The lefty fork is gimmicky at best, especially for a commuter. Why use a triple up front, doesn't make sense for the bike it is.

But if you like and will ride it, then it is irrelevant of what I say. I use to own the original Bad Boy with 26" wheels and it was one of my favorite bikes. Once they went to 700c wheels, they ruined the bike.

There are lots of great bike to chose from, Trek, Giant, Jamis etc. Are you wanting to stay with a flat bar? Is it going to be locked outside? Do you want or need rack and fender mounts? Are you a fair weather commuter?

Have a look at the Kona bikes Dew series for a start and see what you think.

Flat bar is preferred but I'm not dead set on it, and I usually bike commute only in good weather because I have my work laptop I carry with me and can't risk it getting soaked in a backpack (might invest in a waterproof backpack just for that). But when it's not a commute I do ride in rain as long as it isn't just unpleasantly rough outside. I've never used fenders so I didn't consider that point, but I do use a back mounted rack with bags. And I won't keep it locked outside for longer than maybe the time it takes to stop somewhere for lunch (my apartment building has indoor bike storage and I take it into my cubicle at work).

I just took a look at the Kona Dews, they don't seem like much of an upgrade from what I have currently, from what information is on the page at least. I'll keep looking around I think. I haven't had a chance to test out a Bad Boy 1 yet, when I test ride one it might turn out that I hate it.