MTB Vs Cyclo-Cross, As A Winter Commuter.

gb155

Not sure what forum to stick this in TBH

Ok, so was chatting with someone at work when the conversation went onto MTB's and the fact I still dont have my Cube back

He said what at first I suspected to be a throw away comment:

"Try and get a refund on the Cube and get a Cyclo-Cross to commute down the canal on"

Im never going to do any MTB'ing, Im too much of a road rider now, its my passion, but I enjoy the Canal when its been snowing, I got the MTB because I can fit Marathon Winters to it, but I have seen Marathon winters in 700x35 sizes and most cyclo-x's will take tyres of that size.

So , what do you think ? get ride of the MTB and get a Cyclo-x ? will it offer the same amount of grip as a MTB when the weather gets tough (with Marathon winters ) or keep the MTB to use for 6-8 weeks a year ???

Gaz

Harveytile

Pfft! Not heard of the rule?

N+1 my friend, N+1 :roll:

gb155

Harveytile wrote:

Pfft! Not heard of the rule?

N+1 my friend, N+1 :roll:

running out of space with

CAAD 8

Cube LTD Team

Pug SS

and 1970's "Emergency commuter"

Kieran_Burns

Cape on standby..... never underestimate the power of the Dark Side.

nich

I probably would go for a CX bike if it's just for road / canal paths. Grip will probably be the same, weight will probably be similar, wheels will be bigger, you can fit discs (on some), you can fit chunky tyres, you can fit road tyres

If you go for something that's not quite a CX bike (on-one pompino, cotic roadrat etc) then you can also fit panniers and full length guards.

Kieran_Burns

I've got some 700x35c (and 32c) CX tyres for the Tricross and it eats Canal paths for breakfast. The triple chain ring gives you very low gearing if needed and near road bike speed when the right tyres are fitted.

Seems like a no brainer to me

iPete

I'd love a disced CX bike as a Winter ride/Commuter.

Winter is windy, drops = win.

Phate

Go Cube for Cube and get an X-Race, loving mine as a winter commuter and it's light enough that the CX tyres will come off in the spring and it will be my summer road bike!

posh_pedaller

Any ideas for disc-enabled frames, other than the Kinesis Decade Tripster (I'm a bit worried over the integrated headset) or the On-One Pompetamine (need more flexibility than/cheaper options to hub gears)? I'm thinking about putting one together. 29er MTB might work but the geometry wouldn't be helpful.

cjcp

CX, Gaz, but with discs - better stopping, particularly in the wet. And it rains a lot up North, right?

pastryboy

Having used both extensively on canal paths I'd go for the cyclocross with nothing less than 32c tyres for winter, preferrably 35c for the bumps you won't see coming.

tailwindhome

Gaz you must be a bit confused after all this weight loss.

Let me put you straight.

Existing road bike + insurance money = new madone

If you insist on this canal path nonsense a basic hardtail form Halfords should do.

Hope this helps.

vorsprung

Cotic Roadrat has huge tyre clearance, run it as a single speed, fixed or alfine for commuting with no bother

posh_pedaller

Have looked at the Roadrat again, previously thought it was SS/hub geared only but it seems it can accommodate derailleurs too. Seems a good option. Now to find the money from somewhere...

badwolf

My winter is a CX, I'm not man enough to go out on icy roads with anything less :shock: Brakes are utter crap though.. so if you are getting one, get one with discs.