Commuting on your MTB

bulletprooffool

Was wondering . . .

Who here rides their MTB to work?
How far?
How often?
How long does it take?
Do you ride knobblies, or have you changed tyres for the commute?

CycloRos

I do, it's an 18 mile-a-day round trip (takes about half an hour in each direction) and I do it 4 times a week.

A change of tyres is definitely a good idea, my Duster is running semi slick Continentals at the moment.

cps26

Does anyone ride an MTB to work on road tyres and then switch them back to knobblies for the weekend? Or is that just too much of a hassle? How much of difference does having the smooth tyres on make for a (say) 18 mile round trip?

cat_with_no_tail

I do, it's a 4 mile round trip. The way in is all down hill and can be managed in around 7 mins with an average of around 15mph. Actually faster than going in the car
Most of the time, I extend my commute in to around 11 miles mostly offroad, singletrack, plantations, fire road etc.

Way home is 2 miles, all uphill on the road.

I ride on my nobblies. I would change to MTB slicks if it was just a commute on the road or on cycle paths though.

toasty

I commute on my Stumpjumper HT, I used to swap tyres but don't bother now as I ride the Meta at the weekends so it has slicks on almost all the time. Slicks made a world of difference, much, much faster. They're also much tougher, both for puncture resistance and wear, my City Jets have outlasted numerous knobbly tyres but probably get far more miles, they quite happily run over glass too!

I have a hilly 16 mile round trip which takes 35-40 minutes on the way in and about 45-50 on the way back due to hills. I have the offer of a lift so usually only commute when it's sunny, although yesterday I messed up and got soaked, tricksy summer weather.

Edit: Oh and my wife drives in, then parks just outside the town center and has a short walk. It takes her about 30 mins from home to work, it takes me about 35-40 as I say. Not much in it, I get to use a cheeky bridleway which makes my route a lot more direct.

Garou

I commute on my trek 6500. It's about 18 miles each way, every morning (except today actually; i overslept) though i take the bike on the train on the way home two evenings a week as i have martial arts training (which i also cycle to). It takes between 1h15 and 1h30 depending on how tired i am or how windy it is.

I have commuting tyres which are definitely worth it for the smoother rolling and excellent puncture resistance. I do swap them when i want to do some off roading, but it's not every weekend (and not really often enough tbh), not too much hassle really once you get used to it, and have a decent track pump.

DrWorm

I commute in on my Trek mtb, only 3 miles each way and I usually just use phat tyres but since I injured myself I am not yet fit enough to go off-road so I am currently running 1.5 Continental slicks and the speed difference is amazing. You can accelerate so much quicker and they roll silently...none of that buzzing hum you get from nobbly 2.2's!

jimjamyaharr

Hello, i commute on a Giant STP0 its only about a mile but i also go home for lunch. I have kenda dread tread tyres on my bike because i do alot of 4x. If you only ride on road slicks make a MASSIVE diffrence!

cee

yip.....4 miles each way on my hardrock....I just leave the panaracer fire xc's on....

there is not enough of a time penalty over that kind of distance to bother changing tyres....

FSR Si

Dont do it!!!!

I used to commute six days a week in all weathers (gave up the car) did this for 2 years and it totally ruined my love of riding so much that come the weekend i had no interest in it whatsoever, Infact i gave up riding for a couple of years until i changed jobs and bought another car for work, then slowly my interest has grown again....Lesson learned.

Biggus86

Out of sheer lazyness i ride about 1mile round trip... though i have dinner at home, so i technically get more time to relax during that hour. (more time at home cause i despise the place i work at)

ski-freak

mines a 5 mile round trip. shaved a few mins off each way by swapping the knoobly kendas to semi slicks. makes so much difference, especially in the wind!

Northwind

I do occasionally (4 miles each way but quite a lot of climb) but not often, it's not the best tool for the job, and I don't like wearing those expensive parts faster than I have to. Plus, it's a theft magnet. Better to have a dedicated commuter, doesn't have to be expensive either, any old steel mtb off gumtree will do the job, add £50 for good road tyres and probably a new chain and cassette and you're laughing.

(I'm rebuilding my own ancient rigid steel mtb for a road bike, nearly finished, cost me about £100 all in though that doesn't include the old bike as I already had it... But for that low budget, it'll be faster on the road than my Soul, and slightly better specced for it (narrower bars frinstance) And that's a total rebuild, usually not neccesary but I wanted to make it as good as it can be.

Anonymous

I ride in to work on my old marin when the weather's nice. It's about 35-40 minutes each way - taking it easy so I'm not a big sweaty mess when I get there.
I don't bother changing the tyres, I strongly believe in one bike to do everything

Mind you, occasionally, I take an alternative route along a bridleway which is muddy and gravelly as well.

soy_sauce

How far?
How often?
How long does it take?
Do you ride knobblies, or have you changed tyres for the commute?

i commuting every weekday on my MTB. its about 2.5 - 3 miles each way depending on which route i am going base on the mood at the time.
go off-road once every 1-2 months, so the semi-slicks are always on and only change the XC tyres when i need them.
the semi-slicks made a big different and it reduce 30% of the total time per trip.

plan a few routes with different distance and surface, mix between them in different day so you won't lose your interest like FSR Si did.

clodhoppa74

i ride as often as i can. 11 miles each way, about 8 of them on gnarly townpath that's not kept well, so i keep the knobblies on. if it's been raining though, no way, i end up looking like al joleson at work then.

Chalky76

i have only recently (last 6 months) started commuting to the train station, roughly 3 miles each way, and it's made a massive impact on my fitness for the weekend spin.

Running some Armadillo slicks on an old Cannondale - fast but heavy as they are bulletproof

Trev71

I use my Genesis for a 15 mile round trip commute on a mix of tarmac, cycle paths, gravel tracks etc.Takes about 35 mins each way. Swapped the knobbly tyres for Continental Travel Contacts. Faster on the road, and just enough grip off road. Wouldn't want to get muddy with them though.

SDK2007

I ride to work on my Specialized FSR XC fitted with slicks once a week; it's 18 miles, extremely hilly and takes about 50 minutes.

I use my Enduro SL at weekends so don't need to change tyres.

projectsome

3 mile round trip. It's a good excuse to get a bit of excercise each day, otherwise I'd only ride at weekends

ashleymp777

I've riden my S Works into London every day for the past 2 years, 40 miles round trip. Tyres are pumpd up to 60psi to at least some feeling of slicks.

Have actually made some cycling buddies along the way too which is quite amusing.

bulletprooffool

ashleymp777 wrote:

I've riden my S Works into London every day for the past 2 years, 40 miles round trip. Tyres are pumpd up to 60psi to at least some feeling of slicks.

Have actually made some cycling buddies along the way too which is quite amusing.

you on firm knobblies then? Or do you have slicks / semi slicks?

ashleymp777

Yeh, knobblies! I race/train every weekend and can be doing with swapping the tyres over every week as they're a pain to change.

Si78

I ride to work most days. 7 miles each way. Takes about 20-25 minutes, depends on how knackered I am tho lol.

I have bought a second set of wheels, and fitted some Michelin semi-slicks to them.

Just switch the wheels over on the weekend, jobs-a-good'un!

Semi-slicks / slicks makes a BIG difference!

Daz555

Nope.

FSRxc stays in the garage and I ride my £30 commuter hack to work. If I have not been out for a while on the trail then I will ride my mtb to work on a random day just to keep things moving - unused kit can start to behave very strangely I find.

bulletprooffool

My bike is only worth £900, and i have very secure underground lockup parking at work - so i'll save the money for the commuter . . maybe buy a decent lock, or perhaps some slicks.

Problem is getting a spare set of wheels for an MTB with discs means getting wheels with discs? no? (new to this) - which could incur a fair cost.
Changing tyres every weekend of course . . pain in the a$$

Decisions . . decisions . . . decision

Oh, 20 mile round trip - should be 5 days a week . . . should be!

Si78

bulletprooffool wrote:

My bike is only worth £900, and i have very secure underground lockup parking at work - so i'll save the money for the commuter . . maybe buy a decent lock, or perhaps some slicks.

Problem is getting a spare set of wheels for an MTB with discs means getting wheels with discs? no? (new to this) - which could incur a fair cost.
Changing tyres every weekend of course . . pain in the a$$

Decisions . . decisions . . . decision

Oh, 20 mile round trip - should be 5 days a week . . . should be!

Yeah I got 2 brake rotors and a cassette. Exactly the same as the parts fitted to the original wheels.

I got:-
Xero Cyprus wheelset £85
Tektro Auriga Comp rotors £14 each
Sram Cassette £20
Michelin City Protek semi slicks £10 each
Rim tape £2.50 each
Continental inner tubes £3 each

Well worth it in my opinion

DC01

Lucky enough to have 2 bikes. Bought a 09 Rockhopper 2nd hand for my commute to work. 10 mile a day with another few mile on top of some single track as and when the mood takes. any thing from 15mins to 45 mins each way depending on route and wind as some parts exposed. Stiil got the original Fast Tracks for tyres but will probably get some Small block 8s when the time comes because i divert on a regular basis. Got an EX8 for weekend rides shod with nobby nics and would never consider that for work.

FSRsi is right. commuting all week can kill the weekend a bit. If i got a big ride planned locally or a day at a trail centre i ditch the bike on a thurs and fri. Feel fresher and enjoy it more that way.

Northwind

Si78 wrote:

Yeah I got 2 brake rotors and a cassette. Exactly the same as the parts fitted to the original wheels.

I got:-
Xero Cyprus wheelset £85
Tektro Auriga Comp rotors £14 each
Sram Cassette £20
Michelin City Protek semi slicks £10 each
Rim tape £2.50 each
Continental inner tubes £3 each

Well worth it in my opinion

That's way more than I've spent to build my commuter though. And it's yellow. Can't argue with that...

Si78

Northwind wrote:

Si78 wrote:

Yeah I got 2 brake rotors and a cassette. Exactly the same as the parts fitted to the original wheels.

I got:-
Xero Cyprus wheelset £85
Tektro Auriga Comp rotors £14 each
Sram Cassette £20
Michelin City Protek semi slicks £10 each
Rim tape £2.50 each
Continental inner tubes £3 each

Well worth it in my opinion

That's way more than I've spent to build my commuter though. And it's yellow. Can't argue with that...

I aint got room for 2 bikes tho pal

And I already had the tyres, tape and tubes.
Plus, it means I've got 'emergency' spare parts if I kill a wheel or rotor, for example.

fuelex

My roady/commuter got nicked last week so been riding my enduro sl with slicks on.
Looks a bit odd but it's quite good fun aiming for the London pot holes instead of avoiding them.