Just a quick post.
12September 12, 2010 by welshcyclist
My Carrera Subway LTD
Thought you all might like to see what I’m commuting on, well in truth, it’s my only ride, even though I’ve actually got four bikes. I took a few shots while I was “prepping” it for my commute, I’m nights for the next four nights. I’d taken my front lights off to recharge the battery, so it’s not in all it’s roadready glory.
Tail view
You can see by the allen keys on the bench, I’d been working on the LTD, I had to adjust the rear disc brake, it had no stopping power whatsoever, finally got it right. It took me about 20 minutes to sort it, I’m so hamfisted at doing such jobs.
I have a couple of sets of panniers, but I only use a single, all my tools are in there and there’s enough room for other essentials I need to carry. As you can see, I clip my waterproof, more like showerproof, and my gloves on top of the rear rack, when not in use.
Front view.
It’s a relatively heavy bike, too heavy probably, loaded up and with me on board, its 18 and a half stones on the move. No wonder I struggle up those hills!
But she does the job, and over these last 9 months that I’ve commuted on the LTD, she’s proved very reliable and road worthy. However, I’m now in the mood for something more, shall we say sporty, or sexy? So I’m starting to look at what’s available, ready for my employer’s next Bike2Work scheme, in October. You may all laugh, but those bikes with the really skinny tyres, frighten the life out of me.
A chap passed me, everybody does, last week on a flat bar, but the tyres were microscopic. I can’t imagine me travelling along with so little tread, I just couldn’t rely on such as those to stay upright on corners etc., even at my sedate pace, could I?
So, my reader, if you’ve any advice or words of wisdom towards a good reliable sexy pedaller, for yours truely, bring it on.
Cheers.
Welshcyclist's Weblog 
Neither a word of wisdom or the review of a sexy pedaller (unless you were referring to the young busty blonde I saw on the A…………….).
I put some skinny road tyres on my hard tail mountain bike for a sponsored road ride and I hated them, I just felt the tyre would go bang and the wheel would fold up underneath me.
Why don’t you look at getting a proper mountain bike and keeping the ltd for commuting??
Sadly, Tim I’m not into offroading, which you wouldn’t believe if you saw the state of the towpath I use quite regularly. No I’m after a roadbike, most probably a tourer, which have tyres similar to my Subway LTD.
No words of wisdom here. I guess you just have to find something that works for you. My newest commuter is off to the painters this week. I bought another Cross frame (A surly Cross Check), which is my favorite commuter bike. It fits and rides much like a road frame, but has clearance for 45mm tires and fenders. I’ve been riding it with 35mm tires, but the new one will be getting 40mm studded tires for the winter. I will also be trying out a Gates Carbon Drive system. I had a framebuilder add a coupler to the seat stay so that I can get a belt drive on the frame. No more hassles with cleaning and lubing chains. The belt drive runs dry and should outlast 3 regular chains. I’m very excited about the possibilities.
Hi Doug, I’ve heard about drive belts, but aren’t they only suitable for single speed?
Gates makes a cog to fit the Shimano Nexus 8-speed Internally Geared Hub I’ve been using. I’ll be setting it up with that.
Sounds good.
How about some sort of Cyclocrosser Welshie? Kenesis Crosslight is a good one so I’m told…
75% of my riding is on a Cycle Cross. A tough, reliable bike. LIght enough to be zippy and fun, but built hardy
Thanks for the comment MrDaveyGie, that’s sounds great.
You might want to look at tourers? They’re not as scary as racing bikes but are a bit more nippy than mountain bikes or hybrids. You don’t have to get drop bars, I’ve got touring or butterfly bars which look a bit odd but give you the ability to change hand position which is useful on longer rides, without having to go right down onto the drops. The problem is they’re not cheap, even secondhand, but you’d get a lot of use out of one
Hi there disgruntled, just been surfing the net, found a blogger called “cgoab”, that’s “crazy guy on a bike”, posts blogs by touring and round the world cyclists. Very interesting stuff, but that then led me to Sabbath Cycles, who build touring bikes etc., and I’m now in love. The bike of my dreams has now been identified as Silk Route, Sadly it’s on the distant horizon, I should say, very distant horizon, because this is a very expensive bike, couldn’t actually get a price for it, on the web site, but Sabbath’s Cycles’ Mondays Child, a road bike retails at £1799, for the frame alone, or £3699 built complete. I’d have to sell the car to raise that kind of money, much as I’d like to become “carfree”, my boss, her indoors would see that as being somewhat “carefree”, with an extra e, about her travelling requirements. So, unless her indoors, finally cracks the lottery, the Silk Route, will remain, just like it’s namesake, a very distant dream on the horizon. Ah well, back to Halfords web page.
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