Leisesturm

Shows you how much I know... I thought Passover would be early for the same reason Easter is early, because they were using the same Lunar Calendar... mea culpa...

noglider 

It's a Jewish leap year, which happens every 19 years. There is an extra month tossed in. Calendars are complicated. Look up the formula for Easter!

Dave Cutter

Easter is early! And my wife always feels compelled to have the flower beds, yard, patio, and decks is good shape by Easter. With the normal erratic Midwestern spring weather... it hasn't been easy to do yard work AND log miles.

Joe Minton

tjspeil (#2) -- It's ridden to work. That's really what it comes down to. --- Amen, brother ;o)


I live in a hilly area, no long or very steep climbs but many small ones; my six mile fitness lap climbs a total 1300 feet yet no one climb is more than about 300 feet. There is no place I go where I do not have to climb a hill, however short it may be.

I am 74 yrs old, 6'1" with a BMI of 29. I am not fit and am 40# overweight. My everyday bike (the one I ride every day) is a full-suspension mountain bike with 3x9 sprockets and 16-104" overall gearing. It is right for me and where I ride.
The suspension and Schwalbe 50x559 "Kojak" slick tires give an incredibly smooth and high-traction ride, and, I don't have to dodge little cracks, small potholes and drain grates. Also, this bike can easily carry a rather large person (see: Clydesdales/Athenas in this forum) without collapsing wheels, etc. Mountain bikes usually have wide and relatively low gearing. They are very strong.

If I lived and commuted in a flat area, I might use my half-step + Granny 2013 Cannodale Synapse or maybe even set my 1989 Merckx as a fixie/single speed.

My Advice: Set your bike up to fit your personal needs and capabilities together with where you ride. Ignore the TDF wannabies.

Joe

PatrickGSR94

And it's probably flat as a pancake. My 15 mile commute is endless hills.

I have ridden my heavy Dutch-inspired utility bike to work once, and home from work 3-4 times. Every time the trip ends up being 10-20 minutes slower. I simply cannot go as fast on it as I can on my road bike commuter. This morning my commute to work with a head wind took 86 minutes. The one time I rode the utility bike to work, also with a headwind, I was up to about 105 minutes and then had a flat about a mile from work, so I just walked the rest of the way.

grolby

As pointed out by Darth Lefty, it's not accurate to say the entire world outside of the U.S. considers that a commuting bike. The French style is quite different. They embraced the derailleur. The old British commuter bikes (i.e. Raleigh Sport and similar "English racer" 3-speeds) are not unlike the Dutch version, but a bit lighter and nimbler - though there were also the old rod-braked roadsters that fit the Dutch model to a T. Within countries, there was variation, too, as with the British example above. These days, I think hybrids of various sorts have become very popular commuter bikes in Western Europe. Not to say the Dutch style isn't still quite popular, but it's not universal.

From what I see in the U.S., at least here in Boston, is that the most popular commuter bikes are crummy department store bikes or bike boom ten-speeds. It is CRAZY how many of those old ten-speeds are still in use. The used market is just swamped with them. It's nuts.

Indeed! Some of us don't even own a non race bike.

Ok, that's not true. I do have an old hybrid bike for kicking around town, and it was very handy when I lived closer to work and in a denser part of the city (Allston/Brighton, for the locals). But it's not much use for my 8-mile commute now, and I'll be selling it soon. The thing is, having become very accustomed to riding road and cyclocross bikes, the real-world difference in speed is academic. The problem with the old hybrid is that it feels heavy and sluggish, and going fast on it feels unpleasantly like work. Perfect for short trips, but not to my taste for a longer trip. Most of what I like about my non-commuter commuter bikes has little to do with how much faster they are in the real world. Mostly I just like riding them a heck of a lot more.

CrankyOne

How do your hills compare to the Cauberg?

kickstart

You may be surprised if you ever get the chance to try a real roadster, yes they're slower than a drop bar road bike, but do much better than most assume. I have over 3000 commuting miles on my classic Dutch bike.

GovernorSilver

I admit it.

I fell for the "commuter bike" marketing. My first bike was indeed marketed by Breezer as a "commuter" bike. What they call "transportation bikes" this year is what they called "city commuter bikes" last year. They're really hybrid bikes with accessories slapped on that are popular with a fair number of commuters - fenders to keep rain, piss, etc. off their backs, a rack for carrying panniers/bags, hub powered lights, etc.

That was before I learned that people can and will commute on just about any bike. The choice of bike is just a personal thing - whatever you're comfortable/happy riding on for your commute. Over time I made the Breezer work for me. It was hardly the best choice I could have made for my particular commute but I got a good deal for the money at the time, given that I was too intimidated/ignorant to shop effectively in the used market. Also, I had just learned how to ride a bike - as an adult - and I was impatient to start bike commuting ASAP instead of spending weeks on end agonizing over various bike choices. For a total noob like me, there's just some things I would not be able to learn without experience.

Gresp15C

I live on a "main drag" for cyclists in my locale, so I see a lot of bikes. The commuters are riding pretty much anything with wheels: Hybrids, mountain bikes, drop bar bikes, single speeds, and the occasional "commuter" bike. Some riders are obviously into cycling and/or tinkering, and are riding fancy, historic, or oddball bikes. Every time I think a particular kind of bike is inappropriate for commuting, a commuter passes me on such a bike.

If somebody is thinking of getting started with commuting, and already has a comfortable bike that isn't a theft magnet, I usually suggest riding it to get a feel of their route: Distance, traffic, terrain, weather, payload, parking, and so forth. Talk to other people about their bikes, what they like and don't like, etc. Get used to routine maintenance such as fixing a flat. These things will give you a better idea of your own preferences when you decide to spring for a new bike.

My bike is kind of the US version of the English classic, but thrown together from parts. I'm showing it, just to emphasize that the requirements for commuting can be pretty modest, at 8 miles round trip over relatively flat terrain. On the other hand, this bike is supremely comfortable for me. I had just gotten home from Home Depot with a quarter sheet of plywood:



Also, this is what an IGH is:

nycphotography

If you don't have secure storage, a commuting bike could be a cheap beater that you don't worry about leaving parked in a iffy spot.

If you have to commute every day rain/snow/sleet/or shine, a commuting bike might have winter tires, fenders and a chain guard to keep the glop off of you. It might also have a rack or panniers for carrying your laptop and/or work clothes.

If you have to commute just for a while until you get your drivers license back, a commuting bike might be whatever you can get for $99 at Walmart. Ha.

If your commute is more rugged, maybe rough sidewalks, dirt or gravel trails, dirt or gravel roads, crappy shoulders, a commuting bike might be a cylcocross bike.

For me, I only commuted on good days, and I had secure parking garage to look after my bike, and I only commuted so I'd have the bike to ride after work. So MY commuting bike was my full race trim Tarmac SL2. Although sometimes, I would add a heavy Niterider light when I wasn't sure I'd be back across the GWB before dark.

mr geeker

The answer to that depends on the person who is commuting by bike and even the type of weather they intend to expose it to. For example, my giant escape is my "fair weather" commuter and has no fenders or rack but has a top tube bag to carry my phone and a thing of halt. On the other hand my huffy is a beater best suited to crappy weather, though it lacks fenders too.

rhm

As someone whose commute always involves a bike (or two, or three), the main distinction of my commuter bike is that it's not a "nice" bike. I try (often unsuccessfully) to avoid using a "nice" bike for commuting. Nonetheless it has most of the characteristics mentioned: low maintenance, fenders, dynamo lights. No rack, though (I use a messenger bag).

In the summer I use a folding bike, because I use a train station that doesn't have bike lockers. The folding bike looks completely different from my 'regular' commuter but it rides about the same.

Loose Chain

This probably describes the public perception of bicycle commuting and around here probably describes accurately 90% of bicycle commuters among which the Walmart dual suspension MTB is the choice de' jour. Considering they have spent all of their money getting out of jail and paying legal fees even that is a stretch.

Whenever I pass (in my Jeep) a guy (and it is always a guy) riding a Walmart dual suspension MTB on the sidewalk, yep, DUI.

Today the winds were gusting over 50 MPH, bicycles are just not a practical transportation solution here much of the year, too hot, too cold and in between too windy. Unless you are desperate.

I commuted though grade school on a ballon tire bike, HS on an English "Racer" which I commuted with well into college though I had a car as well. Since then it simply has not been practical for me except for a short time when I interned for a company beginning my first career path. I now have another English 3 speed which I intend to set up for short commutes on nice days to the nearby coffee shop from my office.

J

grolby

Are you saying you can determine someone's legal history just by driving by?

I'm gonna suggest something kind of crazy: I suspect most people riding $99 Walmart bikes are riding them because they're cheap, not because they have a criminal record.

Loose Chain

I did not say I believe that necessarily, I said that is the public perception, but then again, yes, many of them do have a DUI or for whatever reason cannot get a DL, they may not be legal. And I know it is the public perception because over and over, in settings not specifically bicycle related, and told by people who do not know I am a cyclist, that is the case, THEIR perception, not mine, right or wrong.

Edit, bike theft being an issue, I bought a Hiplock for my new commuter. Not sure if it is enough but I will be keeping it in my office. I am sure this has a large effect upon what a commuter bike is defined as, in some cases perhaps the most disposable bike available.

ColonelSanders

What hellish City do you live in?

Robert C

I agree with this; however, I will add that a commuter bikes focus id reliability. Whenever a compromise is made, the heaviest weight goes to reliability. The next is low maintenance. When a bike is used hard on a daily basis a lot of the little post ride tinkering becomes burdensome.

After those two thing I agree with he racks, fenders, lights, that are common on commuter bikes; but not commonly seen on sport ride bikes.


Here is my daily commuter, as it is currently configured (except I have removed the studded tyres):

Robert C

Yesterday, I kid you not, going to work there was a 24 mph headwind. Then during the day the wind direction shifted and I rode home against a 32 mph headwind with 50+ mph gusts.

tarwheel 

You can commute on virtually any bike. Since different commuters' routes, distances, weather and other factors are so varied, what makes an ideal commuter is really individual choices. My commute is fairly long (32 miles round trip), with lots of hills and decent pavement. I ride year-round and we get a lot of precipitation. So, my ideal commuter bike is reasonably light weight with mounts for fenders and racks. I've got several bikes that meet those criteria and I commute on all of them -- which include two touring bikes, a sport touring bike, and a cyclocross bike. If I had to pick one to keep, it would probably be one of my touring bikes or the sport tourer.

GovernorSilver

Do people in your area also think that Walmart mountain bike riders are criminals?

Robert C

No, they are people going to work.

But then, I teach at a middle school where many of our students drive. The reason that they drive is that if they are pulled over and the parent is driving, the parent will be deported. If the kid is driving they, at worst, will get a ticket. However, in most cases they will be told to park the car and walk the rest of the way. then after school they go back to get the car.

bmthom.gis

In my state, the DUI people either just drive w/o a license or get a scooter, bc down here you don't need a license, registration or insurance to drive one. Of course, plenty of students are also riding them around. Mostly, it's the working poor who are riding wally world bikes, usually salmoning or on the sidewalk just doing their thing.

GovernorSilver

In my area as well, it's typically the working poor (dressed as if they're commuting to/from physical laboring job of some sort) who ride cheap mountain bikes - usually on sidewalks, although I see more and more of them using the bike lanes when they're available. Practically nobody here assumes they have DUIs.

alan s 

I'm back after pondering the question. This year on the MUPs, I started seeing an overweight guy riding a fat bike with an electric motor of some sort. Never seen him actually pedaling. Therefore, literally any kind of bike can be used as a commuter.