Thinking of buying a bike to travel to work on

Trifid

Hello.

Basically as per the subject, I want to start cycling to work, which is 6 miles away. The main reason is to save some money (fuel+tyre wear+parking charges at work comes to £90 per month) but also to get a bit healthier at the same time.

I'm looking for a bit of advice for what bike to get and am also unsure whether to get a mountain bike or a road one. I'm thinking a mountain might be easier to live with as I'll need to take my suit and laptop with me in a backpack plus wearing shorts and a tshirt would be suitable.

These 2 bikes caught my eye:
Mountain: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... RRWidgetID
and
Road: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... e-ec030702

Does anyone have any thoughts on either of those bikes? Anything else that I should look at? Is there anything I should know before I buy? I've not bought a bike for over a decade ago and I'm pretty sure I just walked into Halfords...

Thanks.

ride_whenever

Get a road/cross bike that will take rack and mudguards.

if possible head to a local bike shop for your first bike as they'll provide good support and you'll probably end up with a relationship for life, with a nice discount and all the perks that come with being friendly with your local shop.

Whereabouts are you as we can probably recommend you somewhere to go.

Trifid

I looked at hybrids but they don't really do anything for me... I'd rather have the compromise of the road or mountain than sit in the middle achieving neither purpose.

I'm located in Southend, I know there is a Cycles UK shop just outside of town and I think there is an independent one just off the high street.

Twostage

Both of those are nice bikes. The MTB will allow you to go off road if you get the urge, the road bike will get you there (and back) faster and it has eyelets for putting a rack on the back if you don't want to use a rucksack.
Most people end up wanting to go faster.

godders1

On decent surfaces the road bike will be a lot more fun (and less effort) to ride.

There are plenty of road bikes built for winter training, light touring, audax etc. that will have bosses for guards and racks i.e. ideal for commuting . That said there are other solutions for carrying luggage (see "bad weather" bike pic in my sig for an example).

gosport_commuter

I would plump for the road bike without a doubt between the 2. However a cross bike or more relaxed road bike would be even better. Make sure you have enough room for guards if possible, they really do make the difference when the weather turns! A cross bike is not the same as a hybrid (even a hybrid comes in many different styles!) cross is short for cyclocross and is a more relaxed (geometry wise) road bike built to take the riggers of off-roading and these days they mostly have bosses for guards and racks, as well as great clearance for larger tyres.

A few examples:

http://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/produc ... rtno=40560

http://www.konaworld.com/cx.cfm?content=jake_the_snake

Even been some breeding between hybrids and cross bikes here! :
http://www.cube.eu/en/tour/cls/cross-pro/

davis

Can you leave your suit at work somewhere? It'd get crumpled in no time and it'd keep you very, very warm as the temperature increases! Seriously -- see if you can find a locker/cupboard/storage solution if at all possible. The less you have to carry the happier you'll be.

I would also echo what other people have said about which bike to get -- something road-orientated with mounts for a rack and 'guards. I'd hate to carry the weight of a laptop on my back, but it's fine in a pannier. Tourers, and most non-race road bikes would be where I'd start -- yeah, they might look a bit old-school, but the design hasn't changed because it doesn't need to.

Trifid

I've just seen the Secteur has gone up in price by £100.

The laptop is only a small 10" one and I only need to take it with me for 2 days (I work at a different site 1 day a week) and for the most part I could leave the suit at the office. Now that I think about it, I could probably always cycle to the main site and walk to the other office.

bromyG

Hi Triffid,
Welcome from a fellow Southendian!
Not much to add to the good advice already given other than to re-emphasis the need to look for something that you can attach mudguards to! Will save you from getting very wet when the weather turns!
I'm sure you'll enjoy it once you get going.

BromyG

Anonymous

Pannier racks aren't essential unless you need to bring the kitchen sink in each day.

The Secteur is a very relaxed shape so you wont feel you are bent over like a Tour de France cyclist racing for the final sprint stage, but will be very comfy. As for pannier racks/mudguard mounts, I wouldn't say these are essential either. During winter there are some extremely capable mudguards which don't need eyelets/mounts etc. (SKS raceblades/Crud Road Racer Mk 2).
For your gear, best bet is to leave your jacket at work, shoes in your changing room and you can easily carry a shirt/trousers/towel in a rucksack. Faster that way too. Can't you get a locker for the laptop?

If, on the other hand you have kids who love mud, defo get the MTB, and get them all one too. MTBing is jolly good fun

MichaelW

6 miles is short enough to ride on any reasonable bike from a gents 3 speed upwards.
At that distance, the time advantage of an athletic, fast ride is offset by the time taken to cool down, wash and dress. I rode 2x6miles at a moderate pace in casual clothing (to save on wear and tear) and changed without any shower at work.

If you want the bike as a money-saving utility vehicle, then rack and mudguards are almost essential. You may not carry a big load on your commute but you will from the supermarket on your way home. Get a bike with rack and mudguard eyelets and you can elect to not use them. Get a bike without and you have to bodge a solution with clamps, zip-ties and elastic loops. The rear disc brake position can be on seatstay or chainstay. The chainstay is more rack-friendly.
Get sufficient tyre clearance for your winter riding choice. On a commuter road bike this should be at least 28mm + mudguards. People use less and you can always fit thinner tyres if you want. Speaking of tyres, you will need the most reliable you can find. Being late for work because of punctures is not a big part of modern cycling if you use the best tyres. Schwalbe Marathon Plus are the toughest at the cost of some speed. Weigh up the cost of reliable cycling against your annual attendance review.

I suggest you think about your main alternate use as a leisure bike. Is it long days in the road, tracks and trails, pootling about with the family or a 2 week summer tour.
The most versatile all-rounder is probably a disc-equipped cyclo-cross bike with rack eyelets. Boardman do a nice version.

My grab and go utility bike uses 26" wheels, flat bars, no suspension, Shimano Alfine gears with disc brakes and a dynamo front hub.

supersonic

Pannier racks aren't essential unless you need to bring the kitchen sink in each day.

Very much this, a back pack is often the best route.

Also a hybrid doesn't always mean compromise - hybrids cover a huge range of bikes from basically MTBS with narrow tyres, to road bikes with wider tyres. What might compromise your comfort is going all out for an MTB or a Road bike. Somewhere in the middle maybe ideal.

An example:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499

This is a light, well specced bike.

Headhuunter

Unless you are seriously considering doing a fair amount of off road riding, I would scrap the MTB. The extra weight of the suspension, chunky frame, wheels and tyres as well as the added friction with the road surface that nobbly offroad tyres cause will not help you.

Cross bikes are OK for commuting but personally I don't see why you wouldn't just go for a road bike or a road orientated hybrid, unless as above, you want to go offroad.

Road bikes are lighter but may not have eyes for racks (if you want those rather than a rucksack). Road orientated hybrids are often essentially the same as road bikes except that the frame will have more relaxed geometry allowing a more upright riding position and the bars will be straight. Are you comfortable with drop/road bike bars? If not a hybrid may be a good option.

Otherwise you could consider touring bikes which look essentially like road bikes but have a slightly more relaxed geometry, eyes for racks and mudguards and lower ration gearing/a triple chainring