Commuter bikes!!!

Ah, youth...
When I was young I rode a lot. I know Georgia winters are not the stuff of legend, but I've commuted thru a couple of them. To get up and on your bike when it is a cold rainy day and start out up hill... It gives you a real understanding of weather and determination. I bought mountain bikes for the wife and I back in the early 90's, but they have not seen much service of late.
My brother is still a rider. Races on and off road, plans vacations round rides. Picks up a little extra $$ working in a freinds bike shop. Skinny guy. :

I hope you get some response from this post, biking is a good thing.

 

I may have mentioned on this forum I rode a bicycle a lot when I lived in Japan. Japanese drivers are very bike conscious and courteous and a bicycle is often the most efficient form of transportation eg, I could ride over and pick up my mail quicker on my bike than in my car.

Here in rural KY a bicycle on a lot of these roads would be downright suicidal.

 

in 1980, my dad and I both commuted 10 miles from east cobb county ga, to just inside fulton county (Atlanta). We crossed crossed the river on different bridges, but otherwise, versy similar commute. We both made those 10 miles in a half hour. He in a car, me on my bike.

 

I really got into bikes sometime around 2004 when I bought a Giant Yukon (it's a mt. bike) and things progressed from there. I was in college at the time and saved about $20 a month buy commuting on my bike. That was some serious beer money so it was worth it. That is still the only bike I own and it's seen more use and abuse than a whore's mattress.

Your bike should be great for commuting and probably geared more favorably than your mt. bikes are. Unless you were not already aware, clipping in can get you killed in traffic. Stick with platforms and you will live longer.

BTW, that thing looks light as a feather. How much does it weigh?

 

I know the age old argument about the effeciecy of clipins but they about killed me three or four times on trails. What's a VT? Is it a softtail?

 

Pretty much every day road ride pictured above.


This gets me back and forth the the Pima Pistol Club range, which happens to be on a dirt road.  Imagine that.   ;D

 

Yep! The carrying challenge definitely limits range time for my AR-10.  Good luck with the scabbard!  I'll want a copy of your design of course. The ArmaLite looks so lonely in the safe.   ;D

Round trip for me is only about 19 miles.  It sure beats driving, big time!

And, I need the workout to help fight the fat.   :

http://pimapistolclub.com/Home.aspx

 

I have what I like to call my brick cruiser. I take older rigid chromoly mtn bikes and convert them into relatively upright road worthy bikes that can handle the 100 year old brick streets of downtown orlando. I enjoy wrenching on bikes almost as much as riding

Currently have a nice lightweight bike that is saddled with a heavy rack and baskets. Need to get working on my grocery hauler. I might play with the light one and see if I can get a more dropped road position. I could also use a tourer. Took that one on a 50 mile trip, but it didn't handle the weight as well as I would like.

 

Here's one of mine, an '85 Trek 500 that I rescued from a garage sale for $20. I swapped out the old wheels, put an 8 spd. cassette on it along with new bars and a seat I picked up at a LBS close out. I use this one mostly for rail trails and gravel roads.

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Well done!  Pound puppies usually have the best personalities and are the most most loyal.   ;D

 

Well done!  Pound puppies usually have the best personalities and are the most most loyal.   ;D[/quote]

Yeah, the paint is beat up so it's not going to be a collector's item but surpisingly it's only a couple pounds heavier that my composite bike and a great rider. Too bad you can't find guns at garage sales. (Well, in my state anyway.)

 

Here in the Tucson area, you can!  

At the first neighborhood garage sale I cruised past on my bicycle soon after we moved here in 2002, the home owner looked a little out of place wearing a cowboy style holster filled with a big shiny cowboy revolver.  I didn't inquire, but in retrospect, it was probably for sale along with the couch, the lamps, and the other standard garage sale junk.  

I love living in Arizona!  And, not just because of the great biking weather.  

 

One of my favorite things to do is bike around to garage sales. Haven't done it in a long while, nearly passed out from the heat once after starting late. I think i need to do a garage sale tour again. I'll ask if anyone has guns too, will be fun and definietly legal in florida.

When I do garage sales, I always ask. I'm always on the hunt for vinyl, and have been in situations where asking got me a good deal on something they left in the house.

 

If clip ins are dangerous to you then you shouldn't use them. For those that are fluent with them, they are just as easy as platforms. And for the 6+ mph they will give you for extended distances they are absolutley the only way to go.

 

Great choice on the snake. That is an ideal commuter.