I'm sure I heard my bike say "Thank you"...

[BrumJim]

......as I walked away from it last night, having just cleaned off November and December's accumulation in mud and grime. At least two months without cleaning had left the mudguards looking like a vegetable patch, inside and out, and a head tube so thick in grime that the badge was covered. Nevermind the double thickness spokes on the rear wheel and the brake calipers missing under a pile of road & canalside crud.

 

[DCLane]

It wasn't "thank you", it was "why couldn't I have an owner who took better care of me?"

Two months ...

 

[BrumJim]

It's my commuting bike. When I get home it's dark, and I have a wife and child vying for my attention.

 

[Banjo]

Should be faster now without 10kgs of crud :-)

 

[Sunny Portrush]

It's my commuting bike. When I get home it's dark, and I have a wife and child vying for my attention.

All the more reason to spend time with your bike!

 

[Supersuperleeds]

@BrumJim ignore them all. All that dirt keeps your bike protected from the elements

 

[jayonabike]

It's my commuting bike. When I get home it's dark, and I have a wife and child vying for my attention.

Same as. The road bikes get cleaned after every ride, the commuter once a month if I can be arsed. Busy lives and all that.

 

[Globalti]

I sold my Tricross to a colleague who looked after it by spraying the whole bike with WD40 every week. Next time I saw it the brakes were a sopping filthy mess of black greasy crap.....

 

[Moodyman]

@BrumJim ignore them all. All that dirt keeps your bike protected from the elements

That was my thinking. A layer of crud will keep the winter salt off the bike.

 

[I like Skol]

You are imagining things, ignore the voices!

Seriously, bike cleaning is very over-rated. I clean my commuter every 4-5 years and as long as I do the required maintenance inbetween it runs like clockwork. Things seem to establish a healthy equilibrium after about 9-10 months
EDITED for typo.