Comments on: Abused commuter bikes

By: LoneRider

LoneRider — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 01:47:41 +0000

I would say have a bike to commute on as well as a “fun bike”. Sometimes they can be both, however. I find for the commuter I attach things like light mounts etc. and can leave them there, whereas on my road bike I’m tempted to remove them when finished which is no help the nextmorning.

Besides, the commute bike is still faster than the commute car in traffic. Who needs ten speed chains? In my day we did it with five gears in the back and a downtube flipper…

By: burnsey

burnsey — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:51:58 +0000

A dedicated commuter bike is the answer. Who cares if some tired, overworked, just got yelled at by a cager, ties his bike too close to yours on the rack. Rain? Oh well. Lube? Tomorrow. Dirt? Adds character. When I see expensive specialty bikes used for transportation, I wonder, what are they thinking? Yeah, I lock mine, but I don’t worry too much, as I don’t have a lot of money invested it it.

By: Ed W

Ed W — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:23:14 +0000

Over a couple of weeks, spilled Gatorade accumulated around the bottom bracket on my Bianchi. I thought it was just overspray from the aerosol chainlube…until it started to attract bees. I had to gently shoo them away before I could ride home.

By: Nicole

Nicole — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:00:10 +0000

I’m with ethan — I like that my old commuter doesn’t ask for much. Also, having a dedicated commuter means I don’t have to worry about carrying a messenger bag or swapping fenders, racks, etc in and out. The road bike is always ready for a recreational ride, and the commuter is always ready for a commute or errand run about town.

By: ethan

ethan — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:01:32 +0000

On my ride home last night I thought about how I abuse my commuter bike. By not maintaining it. It’s nice to have a bike that doesn’t need to be lubed or tuned all the time. I can let it be dirty. I can let it chirp and rattle. It still goes. (Yes, I plan on doing a little maintenance tonight.)

By: XchokeX

XchokeX — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 02:47:23 +0000

It all sounds like normal everyday stuff to me. Abuse would be throwing it down the stairs or letting your buddy borrow it for the weekend. Bikes aren’t going to last forever.

By: tadster

tadster — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 19:48:42 +0000

bike rack blues:
my 925 has several scratches along the top tube, inflicted by hasty cyclists smashing their bikes against it while it was locked to a bike rack.

It’s not so much abuse as it is par for the course though. You can’t expect to lock a bike outside and not see it occasionally take some superficial damage. If I had a nice road bike, I would more than likely not commute with it, nor would I lock it outside if I could help it.

I figure some bike ugliness builds character.

By: Juan

Juan — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 19:23:26 +0000

Due to a tweaked back a few weeks ago, my girlfriend and I took the bus home. The racks on the front were taken so you can probably guess where our bikes ended up….on top of each other in the cargo area below. If I had my road bike, I would have ridden it home instead of sticking it in there.

By: Karl McCracken

Karl McCracken — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 19:13:13 +0000

Two words: “Getting stolen”

My nice road bike never gets left anywhere other than in her kennel at home. I know that anything with drop handlebars is far less likely to get stolen (see quickrelease.tv’s anti-theft tactic #2), but I still don’t leave her out & about for anyone to get tempted.

And my bike-around-town bikes are:
o A fast, but worthless (in looks and real.£value) looking hybrid – a.k.a. A Sturdy Commuting Bike
o A fast, but quirky fixie
o A DIY cargo bike.

Resale value of any of these three? So low as to render them not worth your average bike-thieving scumbag to bother pinching.

By: SteveS

SteveS — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:10:08 +0000

Nice post. I think it clears up some things I don’t experience on my commute. I’m moving to a new area soon, however, and may need to rethink my commuter bike strategy depending on a few of these considerations. Thanks, everyone!