Commuting and family friendly bike... possible?

Kyrotek

I have been using an hardtail MTB for some time to commute every other day as it was useful for weekend trails with the family. We were using a trailer but may now move up to tag-a-long style rides for the boys which will share the hauling duties on future rides, which will be nice. However, I am hoping to commit to a full time commute as I have recently changed jobs to a much more cycling friendly company who provide locker rooms and showers.

What I would like is a flat bar bike which is nice and quick on the tarmac but also good for weekend trails over much different surfaces including gravel/sand/leaves and the like. I don't like drop bars and prefer a more upright position for riding. I can't afford masses of machine but up to about £800 for a single bike. The hardtail will have to go as I refuse to lose my Reign2 full-suspension MTBeastie due to fun factor when free to roam alone.

I have only found a few in my price range and so far the favourite is the Trek 7700 but I am not sure about that headset style shock absorber. Any other suggestions for a family friendly commuter?

il_principe

You need a CX bike...

fossyant

Keep all the bikes...Full Sus, hard tail, and a road bike.

sarajoy

I think the real problem here (whether you went for a CX with drops, a flattie roadie, or a more MTB-style geometry) is that roads like slick tyres, and trails like knobblies.

I suppose you could end up with semi-slick tyres, sort of knobbly on the sides and pretty slick in the middle - but I think that can make cornering on a wet road a little bit dodgy, and likewise loses you traction should you hit any mud or gravel going uphill on a trail.

If you are really regularly switching between road and trail, maybe you could have wheels for each, that you just swap? I understand that cassettes and chains often wear together, so if you ride mostly on road and then intend to occasionally swap to trail wheels - you might find the near-pristine cassette on the lesser-used wheels might not do your chain much good.

Or something? I don't really know my stuff...

You could always just ride with 32mm knobblyish 700c wheels, whether on trail or road.... that's somewhere in the middle and would be the best compromise, I suppose?

sarajoy

PS I ride a Spesh Vita Sport, much like the Sirrus Sport - it's a flat bar roadish beast, with 28mm slicks on 700c wheels.

I managed a very gravelly, occasionally muddy and often lumpy trail on it, but it was pretty shakey, and I did struggle to make it up one or two of the muddier/rockier inclines in a wood.

It's absolutely doable, but was at the limit of comfort on that bike, and I wouldn't like to do it too often...

ride_whenever

how far is your commute?

If it is less than 5miles then you could just buy a nice mtb.

Rich158

Il Principe wrote:

You need a CX bike...

bloody perverts :shock: ignore them their popping up everywhere.

I'd guess pretty much any hybrid, but the Trek 7700 looks fine, and the headset style shock should take some sting out of the ride.

roger_merriman

have you thought about just swapping the nobblies for some faster slicks? makes a real noticable differnce.

The Rookie

Hardtail MTB, put some semi slicks on it and have a spare pair of wheels with nobblies for family trails, that's what I have.....although the rack looks a bit silly of road!

Simon

Kieran_Burns

A Tricross Sport costs £750.....

sarajoy

Kieran_Burns wrote:

A Tricross Sport costs £750.....

Kyrotek wrote:

I don't like drop bars and prefer a more upright position for riding.

_Brun_

sarajoy wrote:

I think the real problem here (whether you went for a CX with drops, a flattie roadie, or a more MTB-style geometry) is that roads like slick tyres, and trails like knobblies.

I suppose you could end up with semi-slick tyres, sort of knobbly on the sides and pretty slick in the middle...

Dread to think what the marketing department might come up with to sell tyres which are part knobbly, part slick.

rolf_f

I'm shifting to a road bike shortly but I've been doing 14 miles round trip on a knobblied MTB for some months and ithas been fine. The tyres are Continental Speedkings which roll relatively quickly (enough to make me quicker than most road bikes in Leeds) on road but behave well off road too and, to be honest, I find it fine. The downsides are that the tyres wear a bit quickly - 1000 miles or so (basic Speedkings aren't too expensive though) and that it seems silly to me to cover so many miles on road with a bike I got for off road.

Besides, I wanted a light weight bike just for the fun of it - I have no problems at all with the current machine - it does a fine job of the commute and if I was bothered about cost/space, I'd be happy to keep it. That said, the new road bike was purchased for about twice the cost of the replacement MTB tyres I'll need soon. If cost is the only issue, there are hundreds of good commuter bikes out there for from £30 or so upwards. No need or point in buying new.

sarajoy

_Brun_ wrote:

Dread to think what the marketing department might come up with to sell tyres which are part knobbly, part slick.

Slibbly?

Kyrotek

I've got centre railed knobblies pumped up hard for the road which are softened up for weekend rolls. I suppose its the weight and gearing of the MTB which let it down more than anything, pedalling like the clappers will still only get you 20-25mph on the flat. Lighter, bigger wheeled and more road than trail is what "I would like" (pronounced: "the missus says I can have") despite wanting a Spesh Sirrus Expert or the Trek 7.6FX... apparently the carbon parts wouldn't take too well to the vibrations from uneven terrain.

Enough dreaming! I did look at the Cotic Roadrat for fiddling into a CX styled ride for a while, mind you.

vorsprung

Any of the Marin ALP bikes ie the Lucas Vallley

Eau Rouge

sarajoy wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

A Tricross Sport costs £750.....

Kyrotek wrote:

I don't like drop bars and prefer a more upright position for riding.

Sara, you know we don't actually believe posters when they say they don't like drop bars. We just assume they mean they don't like the idea of drop bars but have never really ridden for long enough on a set to appreciate how perfect they are, and are just assuming that they must be only for riders looking to get picked for Team Sky next season, which is far from true.

UndercoverElephant

Sounds to me like almost any 700c wheeled, MTB-based hybrid would do fine. As for the tyres, just knock down the pressure 20 PSI or so when you're off road, it won't be as good as a real off-road tyre, but it'll be fine.

sarajoy

Eau Rouge wrote:

sarajoy wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

A Tricross Sport costs £750.....

Kyrotek wrote:

I don't like drop bars and prefer a more upright position for riding.

Sara, you know we don't actually believe posters when they say they don't like drop bars. We just assume they mean they don't like the idea of drop bars but have never really ridden for long enough on a set to appreciate how perfect they are, and are just assuming that they must be only for riders looking to get picked for Team Sky next season, which is far from true.

I know exactly, but I also like to trust that people know what they want, and will move on to other things if/when they're ready

Stuey01

I'll save you some money:

Buy a set of carbon rigid forks for the hardtail. - £100
Buy a set of light XC wheels. - £150
Buy some proper slicks (i like spesh nimbus armadillos for their p*ncture resistance) - £40
Sell suspension forks. +£50 (?)

Install carbon forks and xc wheels with skinny tyres onto your hardtail.

For weekend excursions swap to current wheels with mtb tyres for off road traillie stuff with the family.











(buy a road bike)

roger_merriman

Kyrotek wrote:

I've got centre railed knobblies pumped up hard for the road which are softened up for weekend rolls. I suppose its the weight and gearing of the MTB which let it down more than anything, pedalling like the clappers will still only get you 20-25mph on the flat. Lighter, bigger wheeled and more road than trail is what "I would like" (pronounced: "the missus says I can have") despite wanting a Spesh Sirrus Expert or the Trek 7.6FX... apparently the carbon parts wouldn't take too well to the vibrations from uneven terrain.

Enough dreaming! I did look at the Cotic Roadrat for fiddling into a CX styled ride for a while, mind you.

most mtb's have cassettes that go fairly high at the rear ie 11T so with slicks they should be good for 30's?

i do find the road bike quicker than the slicked MTB but it's not the differnce that slicks do.

windbreaker

I use my Edinburgh bicycle courier. It has the rack and the Rhode Gear Limo child seat which quickly slips on. I also used it to tow my trailer (which I sold today). I have the attachment for the trailgator which I use for my tiddler who is too small for the real tag along.

Oh yes and I commute at least 30 miles per day, sometimes up to 50. It is very robust.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/38699266@N06/3641214079/

How do I post the image itself?

jedster

Windbreaker,

You can probably fit a tag along hitch to your full susser's seat post. This would then be fine for towing the kids along trails. This would mean that you could keep your new commuter for road duties and avoid the whole tyre wheel swapping palava.

I tow a trailer bike behind my Trek Fuel EX9 at times. Obviously it's a bit like bringing a heavy machine gun to a sword fight but it works fine.

J