Used the Wrong Bike
 

Last Sunday was overcast, misty, damp etc., beginning of a 3-4 day Nor'easter. I planned on biking the 35 miles to my son's house for my grandson's 8th birthday party. My wife tried to talk me out of it saying is was crazy because it was going to rain like heck later. But I had made up my mind so off I went. Turned oout to be a nice ride, cool, damp and only a couple of showers. Actually pleasant after all the heat and humidity.

Thought about using one of the older bikes but went with the Roubaix which I had planned on all along.

Today, I finally got around to cleaning the bike up..........awful mess, grit, sand etc in every crevice. just did a surface clean and lube since I plan on breaking her down for a thorough cleaning this fall. But in retrospect, I should have opted for one of the other steeds. :notamused:

I have a rain bike that I enjoy using. However all three of my active bikes get dirty and need clean-up every month, even if they haven't seen rain. Only my almost-new-condition 1974 Paramont looks good all the time.

I'd rather see my bikes dirty than to see them looking spotless due to a lack of use.

Mine get dirty just going down my long steep dirt/gravel driveway!

There is no doubt about that.............really happy with the performance of the bike that day, but man was there a lot of crap to take off of it. One thing about the cleaning though, I noticed one of the pedal cage straps was about to break from rubbing against the crank, so off to the LBS to replace them and get some brake pads for one of the other bikes.

My choice in the rain is either my AL MTB or my CF Tarmac, my steel bike stays dry. A thorough wash down is needed to clean out the grit.

I find it's good to have a "beater" for days like that. The "beater" also has fenders which greatly reduce the amount of crap that gets into all those nooks and crevices on the bike.

I don't like getting my Roubaix dirty either, but I hate riding the hybrid even more. I would like riding a bike with fenders in the rain however.

I've got fenders on at least one bike at all times just for those kind of days. I've never been one to worry about a bike getting dirty, and actually enjoy the cleanup afterwords. It's a good way to check over every inch of your bike to make sure everything's up to snuff.

Your story reminds me of:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjYBT...eature=related

Ah, yes: fenders. Amazing how hard it is to fit REAL (ie, full coverage) ones on most bikes these days...

SP
Bend, OR

Cruddy bikes are a way of life over here. Although we have had a good summer- you still get Chain grease on the frame and wheels- dust from the dry roads on the grease and everything gets layered with road dirt. And it is not always that dry- always a bit of moisture at sometime during the rides from field run off. Plenty of reasons to say the bike has to be cleaned regularly and getting the grease off is more than just a hose down job.

At least in the winter or in inclement weather you expect the bike to get dirty. At the minimum it is wash down the chain and relube after every ride. But it is easier to clean a bike when you know it is dirty rather than "It has been a clean ride so I'll just lube the chain." 3 rides like that and the bike needs decontaminating. Or just one long ride will do it.

I just hate getting my bike dirty. When I was racing, I liked being on the track because you're either indoors, or if it's an outdoor velodrome, everything shuts down when the rain starts. As a result, track parts last forever. I'm still using track wheels from the 70's. On an indoor board track, your tires wear very, very slowly.

We've had a pretty good summer here in Victoria and Vancouver, BC. I've only had the fenders on once since the middle of June, and only for a day or so. I've used the same brake pads all summer. In the winter, with constant rain or snow, I'll go thru three or four sets of brake pads.

That said, I would think that if you had a bike called a Roubaix, you would want to be riding in the rain on wet, muddy cobblestones.

Luis