Hello all

I am Sunder from fremont california. Most of my life I have been doing mountain biking. After having a kid (now 5 years old) it is becoming difficult to commit to mountain biking.

So now I am planning to switch to road biking and also use the same bike for commuting to work (21 miles one way). Partly I have a selfish motive , I want to save the gas money (and the gym membership money) and fund my eenny winny start-up project , well a website I am working on.

So considering my needs and also considering I am ultra stingy (max 700$), what would you recommend me.

Thanks

Check the beginner forum, "sticky" threads at the top about buying bikes etc.

Also the commuting / ride reports forum, plenty of experienced commuters there.

My thoughts:
- you could put skinny slicks on your mtb and do fine
- you could get a used / older road bike, slap fenders, lights, and heavy duty tires on, and be in business
- save a lot of cash for accessories like fenders, lights, appropriate gear for commuting
- 21 miles one way is a long one. Don't plan on doing it every day... at least at first.

look for something on your local Craigslist. that's probably your best shot for something in that range that would get you something nice. check your lbs too, they might have some clearance models lying around

Get the Surly Cross check complete. $800 new. It is a very versatile frame and works great as a commuter, tourer, beater, bad weather, single-speedable drop bar trail bike. The common knocks against it are weight and the fact that it is a bit too slow steering or stable to be fairly compared to a standard road bike. It is about as do anything as a single bike frame gets.

Does your "project" require paid subscriptions?

I was thinking of some used bikes on craigslist and may be would get one. I bought my mountain bike frame from craigslist before and built a bike. Initially I think I will put some skinny tires on my mtb and try out (I generally can do 20 miles on the present one but am dead meat after that).

thanks for your advices and also I do not think I will bike everyday as I play hockey on tuesdays and thursdays so biking to work and playing hockey on the same day will drain me off and not to mention building and maintaining my website after my son (he is DEMANDING) sleeps !!!!

No, it is a small website which is modeled around the concept of sharing and renting rather than traditional classifieds. I need some cash so that I can hire some one off shore to speed up the development (though I am a developer myself for last 11 years, I am soon hitting my limits).

if you really would like too spend less
the Motobecane Fantom CX is perfect for your use

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/fantom_cross_cx.htm

The Blue ones we just got in are all early release 2009 - so they are 9-speed
so you get an 18-speed cyclo cross for under $500
and lots of people are using these for the type of riding you want to do

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/images/cx_blue_gallery/

Could buy my cannondale street for $700 dollars plus shipping? Let me know if your interested I can email you pics...:thumbsup: fenders rack all included nice bike I just want to generate some cash for my othere bikes to suck up

if you really would like too spend less
the Motobecane Fantom CX is perfect for your use

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/fantom_cross_cx.htm

The Blue ones we just got in are all early release 2009 - so they are 9-speed
so you get an 18-speed cyclo cross for under $500
and lots of people are using these for the type of riding you want to do

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/images/cx_blue_gallery/
Let me go to the local shop and try similar bike and see how it feels. I know most of the low end bikes are similar but would just like to know.

Different fork color will not bother me at all.

If you decide to buy new online, you may want to consider Perfromance Bike (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/sub_cat.cfm?subcategory_ID=3040&thisstart=33&orderby=6&filterby=&searchSize=). They have a large selection of bike and many within your price range.

You can join Team Performance ($20.00 fee) and get a 10% store credit from your purchase, use thier Performance Mastercard and get 3% cash back and wiat for a 10% or even a 20% coupon code.

If you time it right, they probabaly offer the best deals online and they recieve much better customer service and product quality reviews than Bikesdirect.

If you decide to buy new online, you may want to consider Perfromance Bike (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/sub_cat.cfm?subcategory_ID=3040&thisstart=33&orderby=6&filterby=&searchSize=). They have a large selection of bike and many within your price range.

You can join Team Performance ($20.00 fee) and get a 10% store credit from your purchase, use thier Performance Mastercard and get 3% cash back and wiat for a 10% or even a 20% coupon code.

If you time it right, they probabaly offer the best deals online and they recieve much better customer service and product quality reviews than Bikesdirect.

Thanks Life love, heard that and there is a local shop here also which is part of performance bike. Will check it out.

Thanks Life love, heard that and there is a local shop here also which is part of performance bike. Will check it out.


Absolutely,

While I'm in favor of supporting smaller, family owned LBS's, if you have a Performance retail store nearby you should check it out. I have one about 3 miles from me and often use it.

Even if they don't stock the exact bike you want to try, I think you can order it and have it delivered to the store at no charge. They may even assemble it for free(?). If you don't like it (fit or any other reason) you can take it back to the store and not have to deal with paying for packing and return shipping like you would with Bikesdirect.

All the same discount can be applied at the retail location as well.

Build or buy a fixed gear bike.

Build or buy a fixed gear bike.


We sell a ton of fixed gear gears to commuters - and at under $300 - why not
BUT the OP is in fremont california and an ex-mountain biker
I think cyclo cross would be perfect for him; no matter where he got it

Cyclo cross bikes are very versitile for commuters [if they have eyelets]
and the tire options alone make them better for many riders plus having 18 or 20 gears is
better for many riders


3 years ago our cyclo cross bikes sold thru slowly; now we can not get enough to ever catch up with demand and have a good selection. Cyclo Cross is really taking off

do not get me wrong
I love fixed gear bikes - but for this OP in fremont california - I think cyclo cross would be great

We sell a ton of fixed gear gears to commuters - and at under $300 - why not
BUT the OP is in fremont california and an ex-mountain biker
I think cyclo cross would be perfect for him; no matter where he got it

Cyclo cross bikes are very versitile for commuters [if they have eyelets]
and the tire options alone make them better for many riders plus having 18 or 20 gears is
better for many riders


3 years ago our cyclo cross bikes sold thru slowly; now we can not get enough to ever catch up with demand and have a good selection. Cyclo Cross is really taking off

do not get me wrong
I love fixed gear bikes - but for this OP in fremont california - I think cyclo cross would be great

Thanks Mike for the information.

As you said I think I don't think I can manage with a fixed gear one as I am very used to gears.

I will need to buy one in March for sure as soon as I am back from my vacation. I am going to vacation in Bangkok, Vientiene (Laos) and Agra, Delhi (India). Heard there are some insane mountains in Laos and some Australian Mountain Bikers there .... so need to see ...

Went ahead and ordered the CX today. I already have 2 road bikes and a mountain bike but needed a cross bike to commute to work come springtime. Will save about a half hour to be able to take the short cuts to work. Can't wait to see how it rides.

Went ahead and ordered the CX today. I already have 2 road bikes and a mountain bike but needed a cross bike to commute to work come springtime. Will save about a half hour to be able to take the short cuts to work. Can't wait to see how it rides.


Congratulations .... I need to come back from my vacation to see if I can put more on my road bike.... Hope I do not over spend ... but again I will be spending most time in Thailand and Laos so not sure:(