single speed – popular with cycle couriers and some commuters.
A commuter has various choices for a bike.
- Cheap Mountain bike (usually from Taiwan) – Can get for under £200, even under £100.
Pros – don’t have to overly worry about getting stolen. Fairly solid and upright
Cons – sorry gharish coloured mountain bikes will never have any style. They are so slow it can put you off cycling, you will never win those commuter sprints. - Hybrid Bike from £150 upwards. Similar to mountain bike, but thinner wheels, more geared to practical road riding. Can usually be easily fitted with mudguards, panniers e.t.c
Pros – designed with commuter in mind. Good value for what you can get.
Cons – no major downside, not necessarily something to get overly excited about. - Converted Road Bike. A Road bike will be the quickest, ideal for any commuter who travels a considerable distance.
Pros – can be quick and a form of training. ideal for long distance commute
Cons – no fun in icey conditions, top road bikes make attraction for thieves - Single Speed. Either fixed or single speed bikes
Pros: tend to look cool and are easy to maintain. Great if you live somewhere flat, but not recommended for San Francisco or Bristol (though I’m sure some still manage)
Cons: It is nice to be able to change gears - Folding Bike – Pros: ideal for the commuter who cycles part of the way and gets the train or car for the rest.
Cons: not fast, not cheap. - Retro Bikes – old fashioned style bikes. Look great and are built for carrying stuff on your commute. Will tend to be slower and heavier than road bikes. But, if you prefer style over speed, retro bikes are a good choice.
- Electric Bikes. Increasing in popularity. You may not get so many health benefits. But, if get put off by the idea of cycling up a hill
Some Suggestions of Commuter Bikes
Dawes Discovery 101 / 201 / 301
The Dawes discovery range offer a good solid introduction to the hybrid market. They are likely to be sufficient for most commuting needs. Based on a light alloy frame. They come with 24 gears and offer options for panniers e.t.c. They look stylish without being posy. A good example, of a hybrid bike that gets the job done. The 201 comes in at £250 so is quite affordable. As you go up the range you get a better selection of gears and extras like suspension seat posts.
- Comfort – high
- Value for Money – Good
- Speed – satisfactory
- Functions: enough
- Dawes Discovery at Evans cycles
Dahon vs Brompton Folding Bikes
The most popular two versions of folding bikes are the Dahon and Brompton. Both have a good reputation for quality, but, Bromptons tend to be a bit more pricey because of their stronger brand image. (After all, there is a Brompton world championship)
For example, the Dahon Espresso 2010 based on a 7005 Aluminium frame is £450. The Brompton M3L with Sturmey Archer 3 speed and steel frame is £699. But, the distinctive build of Brompton does give an excellent upright comfortable posture.
Road Bike
My own commuting bike is a Trek 500, equivalent to a Trek 1.1. It’s a bottom of the range road bike, but, becomes a nippy commuter bike. You wouldn’t really want anything else apart from a low range road bike, otherwise there is too much risk attached to locking it up in town. If you look at GT road bikes, they can start from as low as £350
Trek Bikes at Evans
Specialized Langster
I really enjoyed riding this single speed. It gives a greater simplicity to the commute. The Steel frame is also really enjoyable to ride as it is great at absorbing the bumps and shocks of the road. A steel frame may be heavier than aluminium, but it does give a more enjoyable ride. However, the steel version has track handlebars not ideal for commuting.. Specialized Langster review
Dawes Mono
Another single speed aimed at the all-year round commute. Some nice utilitarian touches like clip on mudguards, room for panniers. Also rear wheel is reversible meaning you can switch between fixed and free wheel. Not most exciting single speed out there, but more on practical side. Dawes Mono Review
- Hybrid Commuter Bikes at Wiggle cycles
- Commuter Bikes at Evans cycles
Related
Two points to note; (compare like with like) A retro bike is neither neccessarily heavier or slower. And is unlikely to have the stupendous number of gears machinery manufacturers like you to buy, but you don’t need.
Aluminium frames are not lighter than, equivalent standard, steel frames but are much more rigid and take about eight times as much energy to produce.
Fixies are ok if you get the gear ratio right- alot of companies seem to finally be adjusting to more suitable gearings compared to relatively huge track gearings.
Personally I think you should have had a Cyclo Cross Bike on your list for their sheer do everything practicality.
Try looking at the Montague range – full size folding mountain bikes and hybrid tourer style bikes!
http://www.mycommuterbike.co.uk/category/montague/
interesting you suggest fixed wheel is not suited for bristol. there’s a thriving group of fixed wheel riders in the city who regularly organise social rides, film nights, newport track excursions, as well as lung-bursting hillclimbs.
http://www.boikzmoind.com/
http://traumradfahren.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/hell.jpg
http://trackdropouts.com/forum
just shows, where there’s a will, there’s a way