tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post1407629644835963099..comments2023-11-05T01:50:47.040-07:00Comments on Bike Commute Tips Blog: Custom bicycles for the upscale commuterPaul Dornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03893190816290007375noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-71906825195290243162008-08-28T00:47:00.000-07:002008-08-28T00:47:00.000-07:00I have biked for 30 years plus if you don't count ...I have biked for 30 years plus if you don't count my childhood cycling. Then it is more like 45. Anyway, when the gas crunch hit I needed a commuter bike. I had long given up on expensive road bike fantasies because they are just not suitable for pot-holing and traffic jamming. First I bought a cheap Giant bike, a Boulder. It is a pseudo mountain bike and ended up so uncomfortable to ride on city streets I was bummed. <BR/><BR/>Then I went deep into my storage room and dug out my two really old bikes, one a Schwinn Le Tour that I once did Tecate-Ensenada on, oh, many years ago. But the frame geometry was horrible then and now. After that ride I had saved up and bought a Nishiki Cresta touring bike that I rode around for 10 years. I bought it because of the generous gearing and that it fit me better than anything I could find 30 years ago when they were not yet making bikes for women or short people. <BR/><BR/>I had the bars replaced with mountain bike bars and brake levers, adjusting the sidepulls tighter to make up for the greater braking distance. Then I packed up for the 5 mile trip to my office at least one day a week. It is perfect. <BR/><BR/>It is a bit lighter and more responsive than many lower priced mountain bikes and hybrids. It has that heavenly wide gearing for my nearly sixty year old legs and it has the sentimental value of an old friend. <BR/><BR/>I am convinced that rebuilding an old bike is a pretty decent way to go. I didn't want to spend the bucks to get a good hybrid or tour/commuter bike new. This has great components and is in good shape because I keep my bikes indoors and have taken good care of it. <BR/><BR/>As you can tell I am enjoying my return to the bike very much. The gas crunch is a blessing for me. I had forgotten how much I love my bike. Just like whem I was 10 years old.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-69327434711010634972008-08-24T11:29:00.000-07:002008-08-24T11:29:00.000-07:00The marketing folks need to change the background ...The marketing folks need to change the background on that bike photo el pronto!<BR/>Why was the commuter bike photographed with a huge tombstone behind it at a cemetery?! That creeps me out! Also, draws unnecessary reference to death with that bike!<BR/><BR/>Susan Beebe<BR/>@smbeebeSusan Beebehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11071162557804547026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-23623602833767610492008-08-20T14:54:00.000-07:002008-08-20T14:54:00.000-07:00I'd love a $2000+ commuter :-) But yeah, these guy...I'd love a $2000+ commuter :-) But yeah, these guys do see some abuse.<BR/><BR/>Georgina's "ugly" bike is beautiful! I can't believe a little rust marks a bike as abandoned. A big party of the beauty of bikes is they can be used forever.Yokota Fritzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04808661100114872654noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-4395732659521964492008-08-20T13:38:00.000-07:002008-08-20T13:38:00.000-07:00I agree with you Tom, on the price of the bike. I...I agree with you Tom, on the price of the bike. I started commuting this summer to work and school. Now I built a beater single speed for the easy commute to the bus stop. The bike cost about 150 bucks. It is an old Schwin Le tour. 27" wheels, but is should last the semester ok. I do still have the Specialized tricross as a back up. I didn't want to put too much damage on that one though.Chehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04537042371189350355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-13843526812377113562008-08-20T09:59:00.000-07:002008-08-20T09:59:00.000-07:00a commuter for $2,900? I think of the abuse that a...a commuter for $2,900? I think of the abuse that a commuter bike goes through..... and I wouldn't recommend anything above $1000. It is overkill. I remember a friend who bought a family car - a bmw with plush leather interior- for carting around his 2,4, & 5 year olds.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13940604655376353136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36250316.post-71661510865732429562008-08-20T06:13:00.000-07:002008-08-20T06:13:00.000-07:00Union Station in DC will have a bicycle transit ce...Union Station in DC will have a bicycle transit center (like a Bikestation) but it doesn't open until spring 2009. I guess ugly bikes aren't allowed until then. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com