tacomee

Personally, I would never buy a bike without a test ride, and I've got a good idea of what size I need in bike. I've seen way too many problems, wat too bikes not the right size, way too much money thrown away.

And I wouldn't believe half of what you read on this forum-- nothing personal, but the internet isn't the Holy Bible afterall.

Internet research isn't the first option to buying a bike. Don't get me wrong, the internet is a good tool, but bikes are a physical things.

hopperja

I'm not sure what you mean here. The CC will support front panniers with the right front rack. Though I don't have it yet, I plan on getting the Jandd Extreme front rack, which will work on the CC.

531phile 

+1 I get my groceries with a modified 80s schwinn prelude with Performance bike grocery getters. I get heel strike every once in a while and when I do, I have to pick up my food on the side of the road. Not fun. I'm currently, selling a lot of my older unused bicycle collection to buy a LHT. Hopefully Adams Avenue Bike shop in San Diego will have a LHT to test ride in my size.

KeatonR

I have mine set up as a flatbar commuter, and I wouldn't trade it for anything that would "better fit the bill." In my mind, the LHT gives me the most options, with mounts for front and rear racks and fenders, plus the ability to take fatter tires for different conditions. It's the ultimate commuter, in my mind, and gives me the option to consider a ride down Alaska's Kenai Peninsula next summer, if I can swing the time off from the cubicle.

grolby

Have you ridden an LHT? Or are you just pontificating based upon your personal understanding of how the world works?

I don't want to sound grumpy, but there seems to be some kind of belief, even in this forum, that a bicycle designed for loaded touring must handle like a Mack truck and be about as heavy. And that, therefore, it's way too specialized a design for anything else and you'd have to be crazy to want to ride it around for any other reason. Nothing could be further from the truth!

The kind of frame that works for loaded touring has very generalized, versatile road geometry. A well-designed loaded touring frame (of which the LHT is a fine example) is a joy to ride both loaded and unloaded. Handling is stable and predictable, but also a lot more nimble and responsive than you would expect. Throw in a low BB, and you get a bike that goes exactly where you point it, every single time, without twitchiness or hesitation. No need for it to be heavy, either. You can easily build a 25lb LHT. That's not light, but it's a lot lighter than my unladen 31lb touring rig. With a lot more effort (and money), a 20lb LHT would be possible, albeit pointless.

LHT geometry is perfect for pavement riding, unlike the Cross Check. The higher BB on the Cross Check gives it better clearance off-road, but this is a compromise of on-road handling stability. By the numbers, you get a better ride on the LHT. Clearance for wide tires on the LHT gives all the off-road capability most riders will ever need. If you're planning to ride anything more than nice, easy trails on a regular basis, that's when you need to consider something different.

Part of the problem here is that we're comparing only the Cross Check and the Long Haul Trucker complete bikes. I won't deny that there are bicycles better suited to the needs of the OP, but of the two options given, the Long Haul Trucker is clearly the superior choice. I would suggest expanding the search to other bicycles. Without even changing manufacturers, I can point to a frameset that would make a lot of sense for the OP's needs: the Surly Pacer. It's only available as a frameset, but that's really the kind of bicycle that the OP should be looking at: an all-day road bike with fender eyelets, clearance for 28-32mm tires and lively but stable geometry biased for road riding. These bikes are out there, don't get sucked into making a choice between the lesser of two evils when you can do much better.

Oh, and have some respect for the humble loaded touring bike! They don't ride like cows, really. They're lots of fun.