Anyone use a cyclocross for commu ing

cjcp

Happy New Year, AT.

Jay dubbleU

Birthday today and first proper ride on the Croix de Fer - excellent weather cold but sunny - did about 10 miles partially on road and a couple of miles on the old railway track.
Not as much buzz from the cross tyres as I expected but a fairly slow ride as I kept stopping to make adjustments to saddle height and get used to gear changes etc.
Very responsive and the guys at Williams have set the bike up perfectly - however steering feels unstable compared to the MTB and will take some getting used to as will the brakes - cable discs as opposed to hydraulic on the MTB. - brilliant bike though - can't wait to get out and have another go

Jay dubbleU

Always Tyred wrote:

Trailradar wrote:

here is a link to probably highlight the fact that only a numbskull would use a cyclo-cross for commuting, unless of course they commute through the f$cking woods, and take in the regualr cyclo-cross race on the way to and from work, which they probably dont! If they were supposed to be for commuitng, ie, cycling on roads, through urban areas, cycle paths and to get to work then they would be sold as commuter bikes. Not cyclo-cross bikes. Its not that hard to work out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclo-cross - link to cyclo-cross info - stating that is not used for commuting - in a rounabout way

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_commuting - shows pic of good bike for commuting

http://images.google.co.uk/images?q=com ... =en&tab=wi

above is a link for commuter bikes, and guess what they are for commuting!

Practically speaking mountain bikers use mountain bikes for mountain biking; roadies use road bikes and urban MTBers use jump/trail bikes - that way you get maximum benefit because that is what they are designed to do! Just like NASA dont try and fly to the moon in a fccking hot air ballon - they are not designed for that purpose. Just like mp3 players are not used to cook pizzas!

Mind you I know that everyone is each to themselves so go ride to work on what ever bike you want - I just know NASA will do a better job of doing their intended mission of flying to moon in a spaceship. So if you use that logic you should be able to make an educated guess on what bike to use for commuting - did simple common sense get thrown out of the window in the GCSEs these days!

yeah, you proabaly could use a hot air ballon to fly from UK to NZ but they experience would be allot smoother if you were too fly by a people carrier (air hostess, place for luggage, inflight entertainment, experienced pilot, the list goes on.

ps sorry for the 'tough love'.

You and Village Idiot need to trade usernames.

Cyclocross was originally undertaken on road bikes. Would only a numbskull use a road bike for cyclocross? Now, they are basically road bikes with the cables routed slightly differently and more mud clearance. Take a look at some pro cross bikes - you will find them festooned with the sort of equipment used at Paris Roubaix.

The only significant difference between a cross bike and a touring bike is the number of frame eyelets, choice of tyres and the cable routing.

Unless you put road tyres on a cross bike with eyelets, in which case its pretty hard to tell which is which.

Oh, and when I can, I ride my cross bike on a predominantly road route, but with a significant portion of hill path thrown in. I suspect that with your myopic world view did not anticipate that anyone might actually be able to live in such a place as Notlondon.

I love it when a new person arrives on the forum.

So where does a hardtail on slicks fit into this world vision ? Cross bike are ideal for commuting - larger tyres and stronger frames than road bikes mean less of an issue on kerbs potholes etc - by the way why the constant references to NASA - one of the most penny pinching and conservative organisations in the world - I'd rather be in a Cameron balloon than anything designed by them :roll:

jimmypippa

Trailradar, how far and over what sort of gradients is the "commuter bike" suitable for?




Prawny said it best I think:

Even though my current commuter is a hybrid, and here is a picture of my bike on one of my summer extensions this year

prawny wrote:

Here's a picture of my commuter




Looks nothing like the commuters on wikipedia.

This will be it's replacement (one day)



Still not much of a resembleance.

I wouldn't fancy 40 miles a day on a pashley.

Here is a different version of my commute:



But cyclocross or road bike or tourer all look more suitable than the wiki "commuter bike" for any distance.

Possibly even a slicked MTB

moolarb

dexradio wrote:

I have a Trek XO2 and although I don't use it to commute (I work from home) I do use it for winter training. I've fitted road tyres rather the the X tyres and mudguards. Nice bike, very comfy, and I can't imagine any issues using a Cross for commuting with.

Dex.

What mudguards did you fit and how did you attach the rear one? I've also got a XO2 which I use for commuting and winter training - just bought some SKS chromoplastics but there's no holes at the seat stay or chain stay to attach the rear guard. The front one is OK as the fork crown is drilled.

If anyone else can advise on fitting rear mudguards to a CX bike it would be much appreciated. Can you buy aftermarket brackets or bridges to fix the guards to the frame?

Cheers.

crosstowncommuter

I also use a CX bike for commuting, but its my only bike. I wanted a bike with enough tyre clearance that I could fit 28+ tyres for the worst of the winter weather, but still go with skinny road tyres for the summer.

I currently have a Condor Terra-X which has served me really well. Most of the time I run it on 25 road slicks for the commute, with a swap over to some Schwalbe CX-Pro knobblies if I want to use it off road.

As others have said the only thing I am not sure about is the canti brakes. I have mine setup pretty well now with pink Koolstop pads, but even so probably not quite up there with a decent road caliper setup. Frame geometry is a bit more relaxed than an out and out road bike which I find better for longer rides. On my bike the front fork is not drilled for a caliper which makes fitting a front mudguard a bit tricky.

All in all though a CX bike makes for a good all rounder imho. Next year I might save the pennies for a road bike on the bike scheme, but will probably still keep the CX bike for winter duty.

matchbook

Trailradar wrote:

...only a numbskull would use a cyclo-cross for commuting, [...]

Numbskull reporting in.
Old bike:



New bike:


Had a few days' commuting on the Tricross single now, and it's been an absolute joy.
I've found the somewhat spinny default gearing pretty much perfect, given my somewhat hilly commute & rather low fitness level.

To me, this seems pretty much ideal as a commuting bike*.

It's my first time on a singlespeed and although there are a couple of rather trying ascents on my commute, as I managed to make it up them, without collapsing or getting off and walking, at this point the benefits of always knowing what gear I'm in seem to outweigh any difficulties related to the effort involved in climbing certain hills.

*(Aside from the tyres, which will be swapped with Marathons as soon as I can be bothered, and the saddle which was swapped for a more pothole friendly one)

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Matchbook, all above sounds very familar, I was having to "talk to myself in a motivating manner" on New Years Day while climbing Mousehole Lane and Leybourne Avenue, in order to prevent my first defeat to a hill since ~1996 (top of Althelstan Road on an ASDA BSO)!.

I got a p* from Xmas Eve, possibly down to me trying to not over-inflate the tube (tried ~80PSI on the front to support my 90Kg), giving me what looks like a slow snakebite. On NYD, the front tyre was replaced with a 25c Stelvio Plus, very comfy ride. The Houfflaize CX is staying on the rear for now (thinking better traction), but will be swapped for the other SP in due course.

Must get round to trying some mudguards, prolly will be the Beavertails from the Pylon8 (although I do have a set of Raceblades lying round, having replaced them with Mr Crud guards on the Felt)...

richardvaltos

I've got ooh about nine bikes MTB, road bike, fixed etc, depending on their states of repair. I bought a Genesis vapour about 18 months ago, and I'd say that I use it for 90% of my riding now. I have a 55 mile round trip commute every day, on road and canal towpath. It's a very pleasing beast indeed. I've done a brake upgrade and fitted a fork mounted cable hanger, and it's sorted. Rack 'guards, 28mm conti GP 4 seasons, and v. pleased. On my 3rd cassette, 2nd rear mech, and sixth chain mind. During this weather it's been superb.

cjcp

richardvaltos wrote:

I've got ooh about nine bikes

You, sir, are a legend. 8)

itboffin

Please put a t in the title of this thread, arrrrrrrrrrrrhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!

OP hold down the Alt key and type 116 on your number pad that will give you a lower case t failing that copy and paste this t

:?