Whats up all? So Ive been doing alot of thinking (yes my head hurts bad). Withe the rising gas prices, global warming, bla bla bla. I thought commuting to work on a bike this summer would be great economically. Now I just cant bring myself to ride a mountain or a track bike (sorry to the fans of those style of bikes but I just dont like them). Now Im 6' 1" weigh about 185, I can fit pretty decently on a 20" and can ride around my neighborhood jumping curbs and what not just fine, however the trip to work is going to be just about 24 miles round trip, and I just dont think a 20" is going to be very comfortable for that long of a distance. So Im thinking of a 24", as I've been on a 26" and that just feels TOO big. Now I have the new 24" Quadangle frame on order and was thinking of building it for the task, however I've heard those frames have a bit of flex to them simply because of the design, I dont know I've never been on one. I can tell you that Im not a big fan of flex, not to mention if it does flex, and I ride those kind of distances on it, wont that shorten its life span considerably? So maybe should I be looking more towards a Floval, or maybe one of those So-Cal Flyers? (What color are those things anyway?) Do any of yous guys have any of these models and take them over those kind of distances? And lastly (thought I'd never get there did you?) What kind of gearing would you run for that kind of distance? Bearing in mind that I dont want to be out of gas within the first mile or so. Well sorry for the essay, I just dont know. Thanks for reading and or responding.

i think it depends more on what you're comfortable with...

one of my jobs is a 10 mile ride each way. sometimes i do it on a 24" (sometimes even a 20"). i usually use a road bike, though. the cruiser takes around 10-15 minutes longer than the geared bike.

cruiser gearing is 42 x 18.

Wow, 24 miles each way?! Thats brutal. I have actually been debating riding my bike to work once I get it built next week. Right now I live one block from the Business I run, so thats a no brainer. I'm for sure riding that one. But I'm moving in 3 months and will live about 4 miles maybe 5 away from my work. I have been a little weary of that ride on a 20" BMX bike. But man if you have the balls to ride 24 miles totall each day then I'm gonna give it a try for my puny little 4 miles each way. Cheers!!

you are in illinois? 24 miles through the summer.
if your weather is like iowa, which i know it is.
you are going to be a leather skinned sinewy muscled maniac by the end of summer, probably capable of competing professionally in france. good luck with that one!

24 miles. man, you need one of those 3thousand dollar titanium/carbon road bikes with 43.2 gears.

Did I say 24 each way? Im sorry if I did, I meant 24 round trip, 12 miles each way, cmon you know you guys did more than that when you were kids everyday. Or is it just me? Ive allways been an endurance kind of person, ran distance in high school that kind of stuff.

You did say 24 miles round trip. In your situation I'd go with a road bike or a mountainbike. I know you said you didn't want to, but it would be easier. I commend you on riding to work. I've given it thought but the hot weather/humidity/crazy traffic has always given me plenty of excuses not to.

I say get a pit bike!


At that height a 26"er sounds the best. 12 miles isn't too too bad but you want to be comfortable. Stretch those legs all the way. The new om flyer would be a choice depending on your geometry preference. Ditch the yellow tires, grips and seat and you're in biz! Perfect commute gearing to boot.

Amen!

Yeah, I'm surprised you think a 26" is too big for ya. I'm only 5'7" and I think my old Schwinn King Sting (26") was one of the most comfortable bikes I've ever ridden. It had 5 speeds too (hint, hint). I also think the OM would be a good (economical) choice if you go with a single speed bike.

Well I've never been on a cruiser at all before, except once at my LBS, I took a short test ride on a 26" and it just felt HUGE, maybe if I were to get used to it I might change my mind. But again I do appreciate all your guys input on this matter.

When it was cooler, I was biking my 26" MTB 3 miles to work. I would not dream of trying that day to day on a 20 or 24. If I had to get something new, it would be a 29" mtb. Bigger wheels cover more ground, know what I mean?

Someone turned me on to this Ebay Store

Nice work Mister Boogie!

Check out the Redline Monocog 29er. You get a lot of bike for the money. It rides like a big BMX. I bought one recently and absolutely love it. It makes a great commuter and you can take it off road if the fancy takes you.

Good luck.

J

I can't imagine riding back and forth to work will shorten the life of a bike. all mountain bikes have these big springs in them, now that's what I would call FLEX.