Time for a new Commuter Bike!!!

I hummed and hawed over buying a nice drop bar disc brake bike for commuting and easy offroading all last summer and Autumn. I really enjoy riding the old 1980`s Peugeot Triathlon to work and doing a bit of light off road on it- or "Roughstuff" as it was known here in the UK well before MTB`s appeared,  riding off road on road bikes is nothing new, the Victorians were at it on the first safety bicycles.

Gravel Grinding seems to be the new brand word for drop bar off roading. If you want an insight into some proper gravel grinding check out blogger friend Guitar Ted - one of the best and informative cycling blogs out there.


Previous Commuter`s;
Along with the old Peugeot that my big brother bought new and raced while at Uni i also have the old Muddy Fox Courier which has in the last year been stripped to a bare bike and become the Pub bike...

Last 10 years;
When i moved house and started to cycle most days into work i used a simple 8 speed Edinburgh Bicycle Co-operative Courier, mine was the older 26" wheel bike;

This was kinda done so i stuck the rack and mudguards etc onto my old Cannondale John Deere Green Killer V...

The rigid alloy frame and stronger MTB wheels made it a great bike for hauling stuff in the BOB trailer- I used to get skip wood daily at work for my fire when the Whitekirk houses were being built, check out the ice!!!...

Then i sold the Dale and bought an early 1990 Dawes Super Galaxy from a friend, a gem of a classic Tourer that was real comfy and nice to ride...

It`s wheels were a bit shot and i fancied a disc brake drop bar 29er so i sold it to help finance the build, maybe i sold this bike too quick and should have kept it, as it was a lovely bike to ride...

So i built a Salsa Fargo. This bike is well known and liked for it`s do everything-go everywhere ability...

But i found the ride harsh, heavy and not much faster on the road than a regular 29er MTB. You can read about it Here...
The wheels and tyres i used did not help the weight of the Fargo but when unladen i just found the ride harsh.


Last Summer i rode a proper late 90`s road bike to work and then further afield to visit my dad at the nursing home after work or friends etc.. and it was good, as fast!...

But you were constantly scanning the road ahead for holes and gouges etc, and well i just get bored only riding on the road!, i was riding past tracks thinking "wonder where that goes?".
I never went out on it just for a road ride like i do with for a cycle with all other bikes as i could not go off road if i wanted. Road cycling in a large group i have no desire to do, it just does not interest me doing group road rides with Mamils (Middle Age Men in Lycra) lol
I also want no association with large groups of road riders that sit 4 or 5 abreast on busy A and B roads around our county-which is illegal, also how they get real militant at car drivers who they don`t give way to, when they should pull in and wave past. They do no other cyclists any favours with their attitude to drivers...i have no time for militant assholes...

So back to getting a new bike. I have never spent more than £300 on a commuter,many have even been free. I have always enjoyed commuting as i am saving money on fuel and miles on my old car- Just want to say i`m not trying to save the planet!, i just like that when you cycle into work your mindset is prepped for the days work ahead as you have time to think when cycling, and then you can also unwind when you ride home, It deft makes you a much better mood of person,
All these different bikes have been fun to commute and run errands on to the shops etc, as cycling should be.
And probably the old Peugeot-more so than the Salsa Fargo has been the best to use as a bench line for what i want in a daily bike that can do some light offloading along with the road commute if i want to add a bit of fun to the day...

I definitely want a bike with more `700c road` wheels than `29er MTB` in the wheels department, just for the speed and roll ...

The old Peugeot is fun to ride as it is comfortable on road and surprisingly well off road. It is fast enough on the road despite me cramming 35mm cyclocross tyres onto it and the drop bars make cycling into the wind a doddle compared to an MTB. The Reynolds tubes frame and crown fork gives a surprisingly comfortable ride off road-you can watch the forks flex over the bumps absorbing stuff, all good.
Loaded with commuting stuff including a rack for the odd pannier to be used it is a good old hack and with a Dutch horse shoe lock fitted i have no worries about leaving it parked up.

This bike will still be my daily bike to ride when the roads around here are caked in road salt and mud.
I have just sold the old Muddy Fox Courier to my work mate as i also now have my big Bro`s old Pearson Fixed single speed gear road bike to use for a Pub bike now...

The Fixie is a size too small for me, why i have not been riding it as much as i planned. But it will be ok for short local rides, running a 19t on the rear now as was a bit tall geared on the 18t. I like my knees to keep working!,

A Third Drop bar bike;
There are some lovely steel frameset drop bar/disc brake 700c wheel bikes to choose from....

I liked the idea of the Surly Straggler...

The Salsa Vaya 3...

Nice bikes with loads of mudguard clearance esp on the Surly, but both out my price range. I wanted to keep the bike sub £1000.

I had looked at one of these by Genesis bikes...
Genesis Day 1 Alfine 2013, cool with the clean chain line of the Alfine hub for riding long grass on green roads mid summer...

Just over my price budget before the Xmas sales. However there was what looked like the perfect bike by Genesis at the right price at £899...
I like the look of Genesis bikes, have done since i saw the Shimano 8 speed Alfine internal hub gear MTB`s at Glentress a while back. And all summer i tried to keep telling myself not to pay up a bike for commuting....

The 2013 bike i fancied buying was then sold out in my size- 56cm and the new 2014 colour of silver i did not like so that was that itch scratched and i forgot about the idea...back to the old Peugeot!.

The Edinburgh Bicycle Co-operative have some good value bikes and gear as well as selling other makes, and i went on line to browse through the Xmas sales stuff on Xmas eve to see what was on offer...
And there it was back on the website and reduced by £200 to £699 and 0% finance available. and there was one left in the Edinburgh shop in my size-56cm...

Merry Xmas to me, from coastkid... -)

Genesis Cdf 13;
The Cdf is the de-tuned version of their famous Cross de Fer multi sport bike. The Cdf has been de-tuned and a lower spec to keep the price under £1000 for the Bike To Work Scheme
This is exactly what i have been looking for, i hope this time!, for some fun going to work and and back. then some fun out and about in evenings or weekends...
What i like is of course is it is steel, i like steel bikes. Reynolds 520 throughout,
I am not a fan of SRAM gears and this bike has tried and tested Shimano Sora 2x9,
Mechanical Avid BB5 brakes, i have a pile of new pads for these having had a set previously on a fatbike!.
The bike does not have enough clearance for full lenght wide mudguards with the 35mm CX tyres-i knew this already as read loads of reviews of the bike,  but that's alright as i just want clip on type guards...

The plan is to leave the bike totally stock until stuff wears out. Keep it cheap!
I have fitted some mudguards, a Zefal Swan rear road guard, the matching front did not fit well so i used the mounting bolts on the down tube and fitted a front MTB Crudcatcher,with 8mm spacers for the guard to clear the gear cables,
Bicycle Co-op bottle cages,
A Blackburn micro pump,
Topeak under saddle bag with tubes and tools,
A Raleigh rear light i have had for a few years and is real bright-ideal for the road,
Still to buy a front road light, preferably rechargeable with a  USB,  until then using one of my Magic shine 872s

The Continental 35mm Cyclocross tyres do not have a puncture proof casing so before riding the bike i took the time to do the inner tubes with some sealant for the Hawthorns around here. non removable Schrader tubes so had to pierce a small hole, i used a tiny Phillips screw driver, opposite the valve and on the inside.

Using Joe`s No-Flats Super sealant these days. I buy the 1 Litre, also added some glitter to add more granules and increase the life of the sealant hopefully!.
The smaller 125mm bottle is ideal to squeeze the sealant in-remember and screw tight the Schrader valve before doing this!, with the amount of thorns this year i filled each tube with 125mm of juice-to hell with the weight increase, hassle flat free cycling!,

Patched and job done...

Can never have too many patches and stuff in stock!...

Ready to go!, and off to work this morning!... still dark of course!, sunrise is now 08.39am...

Only a 7 hour day on winter hours, but it`s a long 7 hours when you have a new bike to ride after work!
Good views today though with the clear sky...

Ride Time;
Soon enough it`s home time and across Becky`s Strip Byway, time to get the bike dirty!...

Mid winter and the Byway is easily rideable on the Genesis...

The Public Meeting for the proposed resurfacing of the Byway is on Tuesday 28th January, 7pm at Whitekirk Golf & Country Club, i will be cycling along...

A new cast sign, and a new bike to hang for the traditional new bike pic!...

Onto North Berwick, this bike is nice to ride -)...

I`m real chuffed at getting this bike for a great price. A lot of fun times ahead...