Cycling To Work

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Hello All,

This is my first post on the site and wanted some opinions.

I have recently been thinking about starting to cycle to work. The journey is 10 miles there and 10 miles back.

I am quite fit so i feel i would be able to get there in about 45 minutes.

I currently own a mountain bike but have been thinking about buying a hybrid for the journey to work as i think it would be quicker on a hybrid.

Is this the case or do you think I should just stick to the mountain bike and save myself the money?

Thanks for your opinions.
 

NigC

New Member
Location
Surrey
I'm not as experienced as a lot around here, but I would say you'd be a lot better off on a hybrid or road bike than a MTB on the roads. Those knobbly tyres really slow you down on tarmac. If the journey was shorter it may not make much of a difference, but 10 miles could be quite significant :tongue:
 
Location
Edinburgh
You could always do that, but if you are looking to save money and improve the performance of your MTB, try putting tyres on that are not knobbly and pump them up to the max recommended pressure as on thier sidewall. If you can lock the suspension on the MTB, do so.
 

Norm

Guest
Try it with road tyres (Schwalbe City Jets :tongue: ) on your bike first, locking the suspension if you can. If you get the bug and want to make it easier for yourself, then get a road bike.
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
Hi Liam and welcome to CycleChat.

Do you need a new bike? Or do you want a new bike?
Well that's a very good question isn't it?
Have you tried the commute on your MB yet?
Is the commute hilly or flat?
Will you be commuting everyday of the week?
10 miles is a fair old trot but not a huge distance for a commute.
If you are doing the commute 5 days a week, then you will need a bike that could take the punishment of a 20 mile commute day in day out. You MB should be able to do this however it will be hard going due to heavier frame and those knobbly MTB tyres.

A hybrid* (*cue Norms consternation) would make the ride easier definitely. As they are designed for road riding rather then paths & canals etc. IE lighter frame and skinny wheels/tyres.
 
Thanks for the replies.

If i do buy a hybrid i was looking at buying it through the cycle to work scheme, so money isnt a major concern at the minute.

Is there a major difference between using a hybrid or mountain bike on the road, and would i be able to do the journey quicker on a hybrid than a mountain bike?
 

jimboalee

New Member
Location
Solihull
Norm said:
Try it with road tyres (Schwalbe City Jets :tongue: ) on your bike first, locking the suspension if you can. If you get the bug and want to make it easier for yourself, then get a road bike.

This is the 'superb' advice I was going to give.
 

CharlieB

Junior Walker and the Allstars
Hi Liam,

I have a mountain bike and a Brompton, both of which I use for my 10½ mile commute in similar time.
I did make a few mods to the MTB, though that made it a bit more commute-friendly, and much improved the timings I was getting on it - have done it in under 32 minutes a couple of times.
Knobbly tyres changed to Schwalbe marathons.
Block and chainset changed to give higher ratios.
SPDs
Couple of other things I can't recall now.
Hope this helps!
Best of luck - where are you?
 

martint235

Dog on a bike
Location
Welling
Welcome Liam,

I agree with the advice given by the previous posters, however I'd give it a go on your mountain bike first, say for a week or two before you spend any money. You may find you hate commuting by bike (heaven forbid!!!). Once you've got a couple of weeks under your belt you will also have a better idea of which bike would suit your style of commute the most. You may even skip all this talk of hybrids and go for a full on racer!! :tongue:
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
It should be easier as a hybrid is basically a road bike with flat handlebars.

Personally I would say it's a better idea to get a new bike. You will then have the MTB as a spare if for any reason you get up in the morning and find something wrong with the bike. So instead of rushing around trying to fix it.. jump on the spare.
 
Norm,

I wouldn't say i need a new bike, my mountain bike is in good condition and i do use it for my off road trips, but i did fancy a hybrid bike for riding on the roads as id heard that there much more comfortable and faster than a mountain bike when used on a road.

I used to commute 7 miles on the mountain bike last year but i eventually gave up, so i believe i would be able to do the extra three miles.

Id be looking at cycling in at least 3 times a week ( I do two night shifts so wouldnt fancy cycling home after a nine hour night shift!)
 
My opinion, and it is only my opinion, would be get yourself the skinniest road-type tyres you can on your existing MTB and use that to start off with. Either service it yourself if you can or get it serviced by a local bike shop (shouldn't cost too much) so that it rides as well as possible. Keep they tyres pumped up and see how you get on.
You may well find after regularly riding it for a while you change your ideas about what sort of bike to get next, I certainly did!
 

Norm

Guest
ianrauk said:
A hybrid* (*cue Norms consternation) ...
*fingers in ears* la la la la I can't hear you! :biggrin:

ianrauk said:
It should be easier as a hybrid is basically a road bike with flat handlebars.
OK, OK, you've got me! :sad:

If you want to get another bike, Liam, be very careful with the term *spit* hybrid *spit*. The word has been taken over by marketing types to cover a wide variety of bikes from rigid MTB's with relaxed geometry and knobbly tyres to lightweight road bikes that, but for curly bars, wouldn't be out of place on a TT. Because of this, the word has become, IMO, completely meaningless.

If you want to get another bike, don't go looking for a *spit* hybrid *spit* because there is a chance that you will find bikes which are very similar to your current ride. You should be looking for a road bike.

There now, Ian, happy? :smile:
 

BSRU

A Human Being
Location
Swindon
Hybrids are ok but you will find, like me, that it is fine to start with but as you get fitter and faster you start wishing you had bought a road bike, especially on longer rides.
 
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