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A question for the bicycle community out there
I am pondering acquiring a bicycle, and am looking for recommendations. I would use it for two primary purposes:
1) Riding from my condo to the train station. This is a distance of about a mile, over cobblestone, brick, wood, and asphalt pavement. (Mostly asphalt, with cobblestone a significant second.) There are bike racks in the parking garage at the train station.
2) Grocery shopping. The store I usually go to is about 2.5 miles away; there's a closer one that isn't as good about a mile away. Either way, I'm still facing the same pavement mix as above. I have not looked for bike parking at either store, but I believe there is none.
I may also use a bike for random short rides around the area. I am unlikely to take up any sort of long distance, competitive, or significant unpaved riding (though there may be a bit of unpaved riding here and there).
Any additions to a bike for carrying groceries should be either easily removed or so integral to the bike that it would require significant disassembly of the bike to get them off -- to prevent theft when they're not in use. (I'd prefer the former, and just bring them into the store with me.)
I would prefer regular bike pedals so I don't have to change shoes when I get where I'm going. I vastly prefer drop handlebars to straight ones.
Thoughts?
1) Riding from my condo to the train station. This is a distance of about a mile, over cobblestone, brick, wood, and asphalt pavement. (Mostly asphalt, with cobblestone a significant second.) There are bike racks in the parking garage at the train station.
2) Grocery shopping. The store I usually go to is about 2.5 miles away; there's a closer one that isn't as good about a mile away. Either way, I'm still facing the same pavement mix as above. I have not looked for bike parking at either store, but I believe there is none.
I may also use a bike for random short rides around the area. I am unlikely to take up any sort of long distance, competitive, or significant unpaved riding (though there may be a bit of unpaved riding here and there).
Any additions to a bike for carrying groceries should be either easily removed or so integral to the bike that it would require significant disassembly of the bike to get them off -- to prevent theft when they're not in use. (I'd prefer the former, and just bring them into the store with me.)
I would prefer regular bike pedals so I don't have to change shoes when I get where I'm going. I vastly prefer drop handlebars to straight ones.
Thoughts?
no subject
I was getting quite pissed off with the battering my arms (and particularly wrists) were getting from the shitty roads I have to commute over, and I am much happier now I have front suspension.
Don't get long-travel suspension or soft suspension, as they absorb more energy than is necessary. I also like the fact that you can get (and the Sausalito has) forks you can lock into a no-suspension mode so they don't move if you don't want suspension, like touring on good roads.
I suggest getting a luggage rack and panniers. I tend to leave the pannier on the bike, secured to the frame with a cheap bike lock, and noone's nicked them yet. If your local thieves are too bad for that, then most panniers can be easily clipped on and off. I use Altura panniers.
Overall remember that once you have a frame, you can have most any compnent replaced or added as you wish, so it should be possible to fit drops to any frame, a rack and panniers to most any frame, etc.