Why 2 bikes?

sopworth

Why do people have two bikes? Surely, if you are to splash out 2k on a carbon machine, you should be using it all year round?
Am I missing the point for a damn fine excuse to tell the missus I want a second bike or is there a more defining reason why I should have a winter trainer?
If you clean and service the bike regurarly then surely one bike should be fit for purpose (providing it can take mudguards in the winter etc)?
Just interested to hear what you guys say.

VMT
Mark

EssieP

For some people- they just happen to like bikes.
I am frugal compared to some- with three in my stable.
1st for commuting
2nd for summer riding- no guards/rack, lighter with campy transmission
3rd a fixed road bike. a speculative purchase this one- but if I didn't get on with it, it would take little work to convert to a hub gear for commuting duties or a winter trainer.

...that's it, the shed is now full (leaving space for the turbo).

gazer

the main reason is that you dont want to ride the expensive bike in the winter as the roads have been gritted an the salt get's into the groupset which you don't want, and aloso youve got a higher chance of crashin gin the winter with ice/snow/potholes which could wreck the bike.

Also some people prefeer to train on a heavier bike as it makes the expensive bike seem faster and the rider go faster (or so they hope)

Gareth

Pork Sword

I've six bikes clogging up my garage. carbon road, titanium Winter bike, steel fixed wheel, turbo trainer bike, 2 MTB's... still stare longingly through the local bike shop window. It's a disease... I wouldn't dream of riding my carbon bike through the winter as it would get wrecked inside 3 months. Far better to wreck the winter bike as it's cheaper to replace the bog standard kit it has and being titanium the frame wont rust. If you can afford it - why not? I've spent a lot less than some spend on a new car and my bikes give me far more enjoyment.

sonny73

I have 2 road bikes, about to buy a 3rd frame (probably Cervelo) to build up with parts I have. The first is a really old 80's Peugeot which I use for A-B getting about and don't mind locking it up outside in public, the 2nd is a Tarmac I use for serious riding (all year round).
I want the new bike as simply I want something a bit better performing and something different, to enjoy the ride and also, and more importantly, as simply it's my passion and the only thing I really spend spare money on.
When I get the new bike built I will still ride my Tarmac and will enjoy doing so very much, but I will likely use the Spesh in the winter more so as it's the older bike.
If I had the money and space I would have a massive fleet, no doubts.

rake

for me the old bike has a lot of advantages,
1. steel fork strong frame. better stand up to pot holes and the chance of coming off.stronger heavier wheels.
2. fitted with lights and reflectors for winter, dont have to mess about swapping over. including summer if i fancy a night ride.
3.cheaper to maintain with older lower level equipment and in winter its not possible to avoid getting dirt, salt and water in hubs, headsets cranks etc which will wear them out much faster regardless of maintenace.dirt also scuffs away at the frame. id rather be riding than spend more time fully stripping down after every ride which youd have to do to keep it nice.
4. dont have to keep swapping between winter and summer tyres.
5. if either bike is out of action, you have a spare backup to ride in the meantime.
6. in the long run its cheaper than having one good bike.

acidstrato

most people cringe at the prospect of their one, two, three thousand pound pride and joy getting covered in dirt and grit day in day out throughout the colder months. and the risk of stacking your lovely carbon frame beauty is greatly increased

so for me having an alu framed bike fitted with guards and half decent cheap wheels with better tyres for the winter is a no brainer

plus i then also have a more comfy set up with better gearing for eating up the miles and hills in the summer

ilm_zero7

why two ? indeed, why? Two is hardly enough is it, one for summer, one for winter, and one spare is surely a minimum?.... at least until you see the next new 'best bike'...

Berk Bonebonce

I used to use two bikes. Now I realize that the extra one is a false economy and time spent servicing it is time wasted.

cougie

Cheap fixie with full guards and lights for winter. Nice carbon for riding when the weather improves.

Doesn't matter too much if you crash in the slippery weather if you're on your hack bike.
And if you have a mechanical - you have a spare bike in the garage.

MaxwellBygraves

If you could see the state of my winter bike after yesterdays mud/ice/slide-a-thon, I think you'd realize why a lot of people have winter bikes!
It may seem counter intuitive to buy an expensive bike then only ride it 8 months of the year, but for me, other than the fact the winter bikes gets covered in grime, the main reason to ride a winter bike is because of the increased chance of having an off.
Wet leaves in Autumn, ice and general crap the rest of winter. I don't want to damage my nice bike but I can live with breaking an alloy frame which can be replaced fairly cheaply.

unixnerd

I have 3 bikes:

1. Nice road bike
2. Tourer / winter bike that has proper mudguards and a big set of panniers, 28mm tyres
3. mtb

rake

Berk Bonebonce wrote:

I used to use two bikes. Now I realize that the extra one is a false economy and time spent servicing it is time wasted.

hows that? maybe if both bikes are expensive but thats not the idea of a winter bike. you got the concept wrong.

Gav888

I have one for winter / commute / turbo work and my nice carbon for spring, summer, autumn rides.

Mainly because my winter bike only cost £400 and I dont want to use my carbon on the turbo. The wheels on my carbon bike cost more than £400 let alone the rest of it!

Also I wouldn't want to ride my carbon during the winter because of the bad weather and salty roads, it would cost a lot to replace parts on it...

mroli

I reckon you need the following bikes:

Station bike: something you can lock up at the station and not be worried about it being nicked.
Shopping bike: pannier carrying beast that can take heavy loads (mine is also my station bike).
Commuter: Single speed/Fixed gear bike for day to day commuting work
Folding bike: For those days that cycling all the way is too much.
Winter Hack: Mudguards, cheaper groupset - if you put a pannier on it, it can also be
Tourer: See above
Good bike: For days where it won't get drenched in mud/salt etc
Cross bike: For riding cross obviously.
TT bike: For triathlons/tts
Tandem: For riding convivially with the wife
MTB: For riding mountains (if that's your cup of tea)
Race Bike: for racing on.

I think of the above list, only the last 4 are dependent on particular NEED, I reckon all the others are "essentials" I guess the commuter/shopping bike/station bike could be one bike, but that still makes it 5 bikes as an ABSOLUTE minimum - otherwise I reckon you can get to twelve bikes pretty easily!

SDK2007

mroli wrote:

MTB: For riding mountains (if that's your cup of tea)

Yeah but you can't just have one MTB

nicklouse

2 bikes!

never

its all N+1

I.R. Baboon

In the case of mountain bikers, we spend more money on the bikes that we want to get dirty.

I have 2 bikes - about to become three:

1) Orange Five - trail bike used all year round regardless of the weather/conditions
2) Trek 6-series hardtail - used to be my main bike, now demoted to commuter duty (because it would be MADNESS to commute on the Orange due to the weight of the bike and width of the bars)

The third bike will be a reconditioned road bike arriving in April (likely an 80's Peugeot hanging in my folks garage if I have my way) which will take over main commuter duty from the Trek. The Trek will then get a new lease of life, and some much needed love and attention, as a light weight XC rig.

Generally speaking the number of bikes needed is "n+1", where 'n' equals the number of bikes you currently have.

I.R. Baboon

Hey... I'm an echo.

Echo.

echo...

mercurykev

This is my stable and I still think that a few bases have not been covered:

1)Fast commuting bike
2) Ti audax bike
3) Carbon Road bike
4) Steel tourer
5) Full Sus MTB
6) Brompton

I suppose it depends on why and how much you cycle. I've got a nice car but I use my bikes to get to work, got to the shops, ride audaxes, ride for fitness, go on holiday. I could actually do all this with my TI audax bike but where is the fun in that.

Bobbinogs

I'm another one for N+1 or 2.

I started with one and now have four: one sportive machine, one retro rider for audaxes and bimbling, one hybrid for trips to/from the pub (and family days out, etc.) and then one lovely Mercian left at my mother in law's for occassional w/e use in Exmoor.

Now, no carbon frames in the above set, and a winter hack would be good too, oh dear!

Bozman

I've got three: A Look 585 and a Viner Perfecta, both are used on a regular basis to get fags and beer from the shop, but at this time of year my pregnant wife goes on my Tifosi because i don't like the cold and the other two hate the salt!

slowlanejane

*SIGH* I would lurve more bikes. I have been in the sport about a year and own:

1. The Bianchi 1885 which is modest compared to most on here but def my pride and joy. Currently in the LBS having lots of bits replaced after one gear mash / topple too many. It's my newbie bike, intended to get me up & running , have my slips and learning curves on & get me decently fit - if I get good enough will become the winter trainer when I upgrade. But in the meantime I love it.

2. My ancient MTB whose frame is waaay too big but it and I did kazillions of miles together over all terrains over the years and I'd be sad to part with it. It's steel and indestructible. It's also a real dog to look at now and I use it for town centre trips where it can be locked up in Toerag Central and left unmolested.

3. New (to me anyway) Specialized Sirrus Comp, bought 2nd hand last week, in great shape it's a looker but also v practical and is now my shopping / commuting / tootle-down-the-towpath-with-the-kids- on-the-tagalong machine.


I would like:
A) Ti tourer

Carbon TT bike (this is a fantasy list, so needless to say I would also like the physical condition to make such a thing worth having).

C) Brompton folder with the neat little laptop bag that goeas at the front .

D) Trek Soho DLX 2011 as my communter (replacing Sirrus)

Al the others are ADDITIONAL.

I would also like a really BIG shed to keep them in.

mattsaw

My only reason for having two is that I commute daily and one of them is usually broken.

My older bike is currently seriously ill with a cracked downtube and aged bb. Currently considering on upgrading to a nice Cervelo carbon frame

lfcquin

I'm down to 7 after selling my folding bike today.

I'll be back up to 8 by the end of the week when my new Pompetamine arrives from Planet X.

I get good use out of most of my bikes, so far this week I have ridden 3 of them and it's only Monday!. If they don't get used then they get sold. Changes in family circumstances have seen the folding bike out and the track bike will follow in the coming weeks.

I could not imagine trying to manage with one bike. It's peverse!

silverpigeon

Why 2 bikes? Ah yes, I remember asking that same question - just before I bought my first.

I've got 5 now with 2 more on the way :oops:

nochekmate

2 bikes (or more)?

Reason is simple as others have said - buy a cheap winter hack to protect the nice summer bike and this then allows winter riding without the need to constantly clean the sh..te from the best bike. Not much fun riding for an hour or two and then having to spend the same amount of time having to clean & lube afterwards.

£150 for my winter hack - GT with Sora triple and Alex rims. Ride it, come in and stack it without cleaning, all ready to go again the next day. Will be cleaned & maintained in March!

kettrinboy

Ive got four bikes at the moment, carbon road bike,hybrid,MTB and an old steel road bike, and i use them all a fair bit,well the road bikes anyway,i need to get out on the MTB more only did 400 miles on it last year,the advantage of having several bikes is you spread the mileage between them, and have to buy new tyres and drivetrain parts far less often than if youve got just one bike , and if one breaks your never without a bike to use,ive got enough bikes for now but i wouldnt mind a fixie to add to my collection.

Gav888

If we are talking mountain bikes I've got one of those too, so 3 bikes in total

west green

Great thread, I've only got 3 bikes

Bianchi Liquigas 10speed Campag - only ridden in the dry, but at least I use it during winter, the guy I bought it off only rode it in the summer.

Brian Rourke single speed conversion - just the sheer fun of having a light steel bike, with no gears, sks mudguard to keep some of the crap off in winter/ rain

Ridgeback - my main commuter, weighs a ton compared to the other 2, but I don't care if it gets trashed - went into a car door (low speed - his fault) just after Christmas and still going strong. It's now my lucky bike so it's a keeper

neeb

You need a second bike to take all of the slightly older components you move from your best bike when you buy new bling for it. This makes it easier to justify the expense of the new stuff - "well, I can always move the current components to the second bike, so I'm actually getting two upgrades for the price of one"...

Actually in my case I am working abroad so the second bike is in the UK for when I am home visiting. I guess that means I really need a third bike...

Seriously though, it's good to have a second bike for crappy conditions or just for when the best bike is unavailable, e.g. you are faffing with it, it's fixed to the turbo with an indoor tyre on it, or (if the worst comes to the worst) you've just seriously crashed it or had it nicked.

Having more than two bikes of the same general type in the same place at any given time seems excessive to me however. I would usually get rid of one at that stage.