13 mile hilly commute on poor Devon B roads!

50spence

To those who can help,

I've decided to buy a bike to do a 13 mile hilly commute on poor Devon B roads. The commute is very hilly in places and being Devon there are a fair few pot holes!

There is so much choice, racer, tourer, hybrid, mountain etc etc. I want as much speed as possible and ease up the hills but i don't want to be getting punctures too often.

Does anyone have any ideas or are there no easy answers?!

Any help much appreciated.

Spence

bornagainbiker

Hi,
Out of interest whereabouts is your commute?

50spence

bornagainbiker - the commute starts in Hemyock, Devon and ends up in Taunton, Somerset

jimwin

I too live in Devon and have been over most of the cr*p roads with high-end road bikes - both steel and titanium. Just don't go for carbon or aluminium. So assuming you're not going off-road, you'll be ok. But make sure you have mudguards and a triple chainset.

The main things are the tyres and the frame. Tyres - 25mm min and a steel frame with carbon fork should work well. A lot depends on price - from a good steel tourer IRO £400 upwards. C+ has had many such reviews in the recent past.

Good luck.

- JimW

DavidTQ

I live in Devon (Torquay) and also have a hilly commute along some very less than ideal road surfaces, no problems at all with a road bike on those conditions. (I have had the road bike off road as well)

Personally Ive never found anything that my Giant SCR 1.0 with alu frame and carbon forks and seat post cant handle. I really appreciate having 3 chain rings at the front as well, many will tell you that real men use doubles etc, thats all well and good but a triple makes it easier work .

I do find that a road bike goes up hills far easier than a hybrid or mountain bike

I would say if you are commuting long term and all weathers you want something that will take full guards and most likely panniers as well. (Yes they look geeky but they reduce back sweating lower your centre of gravity and encourage cars to give you more space)

Id definetely recommend something with lightish weight roadbike wheels, dropbars and a triple at the front.

My SCR is a "comfort" bike its designed to be comfortable as well as fast, and although I cant point to which of the features helps the most it adds up to a very comfortable ride - far more so than my previous MTB geometry 700c wheeled hybrid. Ive had the bike for well over a year and its not showing any signs of problems caused by the state of the roads.

Puncture proofness comes down to tyre make more than anything else, marathon plus's are famously bomb proof. I have no problems with my nice grippy 23mm continental gp4000's. I think all tyres become less resistant to punctures when they are worn down

50spence

Many thanks for the advise so far, think i am getting to grips with it. Sounds like a road bike/tourer will be suitable. If there's any other features worth looking out for i would be grateful to know.

Regards,

Spence

50spence

Many thanks for the advise so far, think i am getting to grips with it. Sounds like a road bike/tourer will be suitable. If there's any other features worth looking out for i would be grateful to know.

Regards,

Spence

bornagainbiker

Don't really know that neck of the woods.

If your interested in a steel frame & fork setup may I suggest you get Simon at www.fairlightcycles.co.uk to sort one out for you. I managed to get hold of a discontinued planet-x frame which was then bulit up with new and recycled bits into a very good bike. The last time I was at his shop he had a few of the frames left priced at £140. My setup is 9 speed (12/27) with LX rear mech, Tiagra Front mech, Deore triple 48/36/26 square taper chainset and old (03) 9 speed sti shifters. The frame has braze-ons for rack and mudguards and I currently run 28 gatorskins but only the back mudguard fits ,the front needs to drop down to a 25 ( its the fork to brake clearance).

Hope this is of help.

50spence

All

Many thanks for the advise. Think i may go for a Giant SCR or OCR. A few people have recommended them to me and they seem to get good reviews,

Many thanks,

Spence

peejay78

i ride from bristol out towards axbridge most mornings, and back in the evenings. it's very very hilly, and i go via dundry, the roads are terrible. it's about 16 miles each way.

if it's really hosing down i ride my fixed winter bike, 72", or my geared bob jackson, with a 53:42 on the front and 15:23 or something on the back. i guess gearing is personal preference and fitness.

if i was to recommend a frame material i'd say steel - 531, columbus, dedacciai - light, responsive, and very comfortable for that sort of riding. all my bikes are steel. (1953 holdsworth path, 70s bob jackson, newish condor acciaio, raleigh 531 bodge conversion, 1979 colnago super).

the main problem i have is keeping hydrated and not getting too burnt out. it takes a shade under an hour, that's 32 miles a day, 160ish a week, not counting one longer ride at the weekend. try and have a bail out option if you can, i get the train two thirds of the way if i need to.

peejay78

i ride from bristol out towards axbridge most mornings, and back in the evenings. it's very very hilly, and i go via dundry, the roads are terrible. it's about 16 miles each way.

if it's really hosing down i ride my fixed winter bike, 72", or my geared bob jackson, with a 53:42 on the front and 15:23 or something on the back. i guess gearing is personal preference and fitness.

if i was to recommend a frame material i'd say steel - 531, columbus, dedacciai - light, responsive, and very comfortable for that sort of riding. all my bikes are steel. (1953 holdsworth path, 70s bob jackson, newish condor acciaio, raleigh 531 bodge conversion, 1979 colnago super).

the main problem i have is keeping hydrated and not getting too burnt out. it takes a shade under an hour, that's 32 miles a day, 160ish a week, not counting one longer ride at the weekend. try and have a bail out option if you can, i get the train two thirds of the way if i need to.

joew4ll

I reckon I can guess the route you'll take and I've ridden all round the area on my Carbon bike with no probs, however for the winter grind I've got a Dawes Giro 200 which is a road frame with straight bars and takes all sorts of punishment and was only £270ish.

Knowing the hill up from Hemyock to the monument and the other way round a triple is a must, especially for those cold mornings when you can't warm up enough to give the hill a proper crack.

The main thing though is to invest in some decent wheels. I had some hand built which only cost £90 for front and back but they were so much stronger than the ones that came with the bike - chuck them on ebay and invest wisely. Other than that, I find 23mm tyres are not a problem. By the way I go 15 miles each way Ottery St Mary to Exeter for the last 2 years and it's great - apart from the lack of scalps (see SCR thread for more info!). You'll soon have it down to a fine art, enjoy the increased appetite!

peejay78

i eat all the time, all day.

if i'm not careful i get the knock near home, after some hills. it alwayss surprises me. i have to eat something before i leave.