My Bike Is My Car

Bianchi San Jose 2009 model

This is my daily use, utility and transport bike. I use it to commute to work (10 miles each way) every day, do my shopping, and for weekend bike rides on and off the pavement. To do all this, I wanted a bike that was smooth and comfortable for my 45 minute street rides twice a day, could take full-length fenders and racks, wider tires to handle the roadside debris and other shocks of the road, especially when weighted down with a lot of books, papers, food, and extra clothes. Most of what you see came with the bike. I changed the tires from the stock All-Terrainasaurus (too knobby, too much friction) to Continental Contact 700 x 32. I also put these Forté pedals on. They are platform for street shoes (good grip!) on one side and spd cleat compatible on the other side. I use both street shoes and clipless regularly and find both very comfortable. I added the rack that fits my Topeak bag and, of course, the lights. I also added both cages. In one cage I keep my tools and spare tube, but I’m thinking of getting a saddle/wedge bag for this purpose and carrying two water bottles as I sometimes run out of water, especially if I forget to refill before my return trip.

This is my first singlespeed bike. The hub can also be fitted for fixed-gear on the other side, becoming I guess what is called a “flip-flop” hub. I haven’t added the fixed-gear cog to the hub yet, although I am eager to try it and see what so many cyclists like about fixed-gear. I thought that singlespeed would take some time to get used to. Not at all. So far I’m extremely satisfied with the singlespeed and do not miss having more gears on my relatively flat commutes. When necessary I just stand up and pump.

The biggest advantage of singlespeed for my purposes, it seems, is that I don’t have to mess with tuning and am less likely to have any problems. That’s one thing that makes this more of a “utility bike” in the sense that my Dutch-bike-fan commentator emphasized. The wide tire capacity is another utilitarian element, as is the semi-upright position of the flat bars. This is also my first time with a bike that doesn’t use drop bars. I’m very comfortable with drop bars, having commuted with them (riding the brake lever rubbers) for at least a decade. I find that the flat bars put me in a similar position as drop bars but afford more visibility and greater ease of braking. Whether true or not, I feel that I can reach the brakes a touch faster and I feel that I am more alert to what is happening around me (not just in front).

This bike is wonderful and I’m quite satisfied. My  criticisms so far are few. I’m a little disappointed with the “start speed” from stationary position (waiting at a red light) to moving. It takes me longer than I would like to get this bike moving and up to cruising speed. Secondly, it handles corners like an old, overweight dog: stiff, upright and cautious.

If I were to start over looking for a bike for the same functionality (daily commute, transport, and recreation), I’d look seriously at the Surly Cross Check and Surly Long Haul Trucker (touring); Specialized cross bikes; Trek cross bikes; IRO and Soma cross bikes; and perhaps a Redline singlespeed. If I had more money I’d also look at Gunnar and the Dutch luxury commuters by Koga-Miyata. If I had had more patience, I would have continued looking for a nice, older steel frame such as a Miyata, Bridgestone, Centurion, Fuji and others made in the 80s.