jdbyron

Hi! New to the forum and haven't owned a bike in about 12 years, which were all BMX. Thanks for having me! Sorry if I'm breaching etiquette. I'm new!

I am in the market for a bike to ride to work. It's 20 miles each way. I recently borrowed a bike to check the route and it's mostly a nice path and smooth roads, with a few rough roads mixed in, but not bad. I'm looking for a bike under $2,000 that will allow for rack mounts so I can carry a laptop and clothes for work. I don't see it exceeding 20-25lbs on the conservative side. 40 miles round trip in the snow probably isn't realistic for me, so I'll probably be fair weather outside of getting caught in the rain from time to time.

Given the distance, I'd like something fast, but need to get a rack on it as well.

Any suggestions based on the criteria I've laid out? Let me know if any other info is useful.

m_yates

Welcome. Many local bike shops will focus on racing-type bikes in which attaching racks is something they are not designed for. Most bike shops can order from Quality Bicycle Products (QBP), which owns the Surly brand. The Surly Long Haul Trucker, Cross Check, and Pacer are good solid bikes that are popular around here and all can be had for much less than $2000. You local bike shop can help measure you, order the right size, and tune it up for you before you take it out on the road. A Trek 520 is another good option in your price range. Personally, I would look at touring style bikes with drop bars. They are designed to carry things, and the drop bars allow you to move your hands around to avoid fatigue from staying in one position, and also allow you to get low in a headwind.

jdbyron

Would you recommend steel for sure?
Do you have opinions regarding All City?

Leisesturm

20 miles one way is not a trivial distance. I wonder what frequency of commuting the o.p. imagines is possible. I would probably wind up divorced if I pulled ~2K out of joint savings to embark on a bike commuting lifestyle and after a couple of weeks had to stop due to overtraining. I don't think the o.p. has thought this through. There might be the option of what is called "multi-modal" commuting where part or even all of one of the in or out commutes is done by car/bus/train/other. All that said, a $2k budget is way overkill. And I do think it will exceed 20lb to 25lbs. But don't take my word for it. Go into a bike shop. Look around, talk to the staff. The very next poster after me will tell you something completely different. The one after him will contradict that. You won't be any further along at 3:00. One trip to a bike store where you can lift and touch and maybe even ride. You will learn lots.

H

MRT2

All City is also QBP, along with Surly and Salsa. From what I see, they look like good bikes. On paper, the Space Horse looks like it could be built up as a nice commuter. Test ride one and let us know what you think.

Edit: I own a Salsa Casseroll, which looks pretty similar to the All City Space Horse. If I were looking for a new bike today, the Space Horse, Mr. Pink, and Surly Pacer would be on my short list.

MRT2

Some good advice here as well. 20 miles isn't a trivial distance. 40 miles a day, every day, plus having to work. It is a lot of time on the bike and you need to be in condition for it. I can do 40 miles, even 50 or 60 when I feel energetic, but to date, I have never done 40 miles back to back, or back to back to back. You need to get a cheap bike and go out and ride it 200 miles in 5 days.

jdbyron

I should have stated...I plan to make the commute on bike about 2 times weekly and hopefully just for fun on the weekend. There are plenty of options to park and ride on the way as well.

Thanks for the help! I think I have the genre of bike and need to dig in from here.

m_yates

I agree with what the other replies have been, including the fact that everybody will have a different opinion. That being said, my opinion is to forget about weight. If the bike shop is trying to sell you something based on grams-this, and pounds-that, then find another bike shop and get a second opinion. The difference between a 22 pound and 27 pound bike is trivial for commuting purposes. If the heavier bike is more comfortable and more useful in carrying you and your stuff for 20 miles, then the heavier one would be the one to buy. As long as you are not trying to climb the Alps in record time, the extra few pounds won't make much difference in the time it takes you to get to work.

Also, to answer your question about steel frames. I just recommended those bikes because they are used a lot in long distance hauling (except not as many hauling options on the Pacer). There is nothing wrong with aluminum. Titanium would probably put you over budget and is overkill. Carbon fiber is not something I would recommend, but that is just my opinion.

jdbyron

Thanks for getting me started off in the right direction. Cheers

PaulRivers

Personally, I prefer full carbon as I've found it to be a smoother and less fatiguing ride vs steel or aluminum. Personally I have no issues with my butt, but my hands feel better after riding good carbon.

As others have said, 20 miles each way is a fairly long distance. Your average biker can bike 15mph average, so 20 miles is more than 1 hour each way for most people.

Where you work - do you get your own assigned work space (like a cubicle?) If you do, the best solution is usually to keep clothing at your work. I have a rack, etc, but it's easier to just leave a pair of shoes and a pair of pants in a drawer at my desk. I keep a shirt there to, though some people sweat more than I do so they prefer to carry a shirt back and forth.

The Trek Domane is a full carbon "endurance" road bike which means it emphasized ride quality over fast handling. The drawback of full carbon is that they often don't come with rack mounts, but instead you use a rack designed for a full carbon bike without rack mounts, like this rack -

Bontrager BackRack Lightweight (Bontrager is a brand of Trek, the same company that makes the Trek Domane) -
Bontrager: BackRack Lightweight (Model #08214)

Here's a picture of the two together, from a 2013 Trek Domane 4.0c -


What you'll find in advice is two crowds. There's the "modern" crowd that I'm part of - I like full carbon, try to minimize how much I'm carrying, though find a rack to be a necessity. Then there's the "retrogrouch" crowd that will insist you need a steel bike that's equipment for touring through the himalayas in order to commute. I find something more modern more enjoyable to ride, they seem to find that a heavier slow to respond bike is necessary to hold the extra weight of their beard (lol):


Obviously now I'm just getting silly. I love carbon endurance bikes, but it's not necessary. They love a million rack mounts and such, I don't find it necessary (though I definitely do find a rack necessary). It ends up being sort of a matter of preference/aesthetics.

m_yates

I guess I'm in the retrogrouch crowd. All 3 of my personal bikes are steel framed. I have built a few bikes for myself and friends from frames and parts. The only thing in bike mechanics that I have never done at least once is build my own wheels. I guess I need to get working on growing a beard.

MRT2

I am also in the steel camp, especially for commuting. That said, if/when I get below 200 lbs, I may buy a full carbon bike.

PaulRivers

Darth Lefty 

My latest crush is on the Soma ES so that's what I'm going to tell you that you need.

Tundra_Man 

$2k should buy you a pretty nice bike. The best bike to commute on is one you'll actually ride.

Ride a bunch. Pick the one you like best. Take it to work.

Sounds pretty simplistic but that's all you need to get started. You'll figure out the rest as you go.

50voltphantom

Excellent advice in this thread. I was going to chime in and say a Surly Cross Check. I do my 10mi fair-weather commuting on a Steamroller.

Jas556

another vote for Soma

I can't say I have personal experience with the brand, but I'm looking for a bike like the ones you are, and it looks like Soma is great value and offers better components, as well as better steels for the frame, vs. All City and Surly.

PaulRivers

One more thing - getting the right size bike and getting it fit well makes a bigger difference than which style of bike you chose. The #1 mistake I see friends and people I know make is buying a bike that's the wrong size because it's a "good deal" or the right colors. Nothing wrong with doing those things for the right size of bike, but don't buy something that's the wrong size. With the seat level with the handlebars, you should be able to sit on the seat and pedal and your leg should reach almost all the way extended at the bottom, but not quite.

ksisler

OP; First - welcome! Now to your questions.

Given that you haven't been biked for 12 years there is a high likelihood that your baseline knowledge, experience, and also your body is completely out of wack with today. I say this to suggest that jumping into a $2,000 bike immediately is unlikely to be fully successful.

I would suggest instead that you hit a coop or craigslist and look for something like a used Trek flatbar bike in good condition (also known as an Trek MTB). There are tons of them for sale in the $100 or less range (search the bike forums for Trek model numbers you might look for such as 600, 720, etc.). If it has 2" tires or has knobbies, you might want to switch on a set of 1.5" road tire or hybrid tire for easier commuting.

Some replies with swear off upright riding / flat bars. I am recommending them because they get your head up where you can see traffic, see the road, and be seen by traffic. Living through your first year of commuting is not to be taken for granted or assumed.

The suggested bike would let your skills, endurance and your body come up to the point where you could make real use of a higher end bike and for you to be able to select it more intelligently. Making a $2,000 error now is a big "oh crap" and hard to recover from.

Hope this helps
/K

rms13

As far as I know, Soma only sells frames not complete bikes so the components are whatever you decide to use. I was considering a Soma Smoothie before I built my Cannondale. Soma makes very nice frames for the money but building a bike up will cost considerably more than buying a complete bike especially if you pay a shop to do the build as oppose to building yourself.

I also owned a Cross Check and hated it. I wanted to love it but I just didn't. The fit and geometry were all wrong for me (and I tried 2 sizes) and it is not a fast bike by any means. But Surly makes nice frames. If you want steel a Surly Pacer or All City Mr Pink are good choices.

But if your budget is $2000 you can get a number of good bikes in any frame material. Most people here suggest the rack/panier route like you are saying but I say get something like a CAAD10 105 which you might find new for $1200-1300 right now. Get a backpack or messenger bag for the laptop and if you are only commuting by bike part time, stash some clothes at your office when on the days you are not riding. This is what I do and it works out great

fietsbob

20 miles each way daily is adding about 3 hours to your working day ..

Taiwan has good factories , most bikes are made there .. a handfull of big factories

make most brands you see.. pick the Shop (service after the sale), then the bike ..

the brands compete with similar bikes at various price points, test ride a bunch..



I would not go with the currently fashionable low spoke count wheels.. thats me..

Jas556

Soma sells complete bikes now. They sell the Bueno Vista, ES, Double Cross Disc, and Saga as configured bikes, on top of selling them as frames too. I've been lusting after a nickel ES, which comes with Apex components.

40 miles round trip seems pretty long for a backpack though, especially if he expects up to 25 pounds of kit.

Ozonation

If you're going to spend about $2000 and are willing to up the ante a bit... consider a Rivendell Sam Hillborne. A little old school, and not everybody agrees with Rivendell's perspective on bikes, but the Sam is solid as a rock, rides fantastic, and is highly adaptable.

Go to Rivendell's blog at BLUG and you'll see an entry for a preview of their new Sam brochure.

And yes, 20 miles is a long one way trip - plan carefully. But if you want to do it as an occasional challenge - go for it! My dad every now and then walked to work when I was young "just because". Took him 3 hours because he was walking from the north side of the city to the south side. He's in pretty good shape now for a 69 year old grandfather. Go big or go home, as they say.

Mind you... 20 miles... about 90 minutes give or take... might not be THAT long and a whole lot more attractive if the alternative involves a lot of sitting around in a grid locked car!

jdbyron

Thanks for all the posts!
I went with the All City Space Horse for my first purchase.
So far, it's been awesome. I've started with 2 times per week and storing clothes the day prior.
I found a nice parking spot to cut my route to cut the most challenging 5 miles by my house to cut my ride to about 50 mins (similar to rush hour in my car).
I should have mentioned that even though I haven't biked in 12 years, I've been active enough to be ok with the new muscles used for biking.

I'm thinking of upping my frequency enough to want to pack clothes and my laptop, so rack/panniers are next.
Seems like Axiom makes quality products that don't break the bank like Ortliebs do. Any opinions on makes/models for waterproof panniers that will hold clothes/computer?

Thanks again! This is fun!

mcrow

I'd look at a Surly Long Haul Trucker. Seems like a good bike for your needs. It is built tough, can haul a lot of stuff, is fairly fast and has room for larger wheels. Cross-Check could be better if you are looking to maybe do cyclecross or want something that will handle rougher terrain better.