Best of the Biking Season

This biking season I've been using three of my four bicycles for commuting home from work.  The one bike I rarely ride but will never ever get rid of is my old Bridgestone MB-2.  I'm just not much into mountain biking any more.  To recap, the three commuting bikes are:

• Specialized Sirrus flat bar road bike with fenders and a rear rack to which I attach a briefcase/pannier.  This bike also has a new (and expensive) hand built rear wheel.  I kept breaking spokes on the old one so I had a locally well-known wheel builder make me a new one.  It's proven itself very durable.

• Cannondale cyclocross bike.  It's the first bike I've owned that had clipless pedals and STI shifters.  I didn't know what I was missing; these are great things.  When I commute with this bike I use a messenger bag because I don't want to put a rack on this bike.  This bike looks like a typical drop bar road bike but the wheels are stronger and the 32mm tires a bit wider.  This fall I am considering riding it in an entry-level cyclocross race.

• Specialized Globe Centrum single-speed urban bike.  Urban?  Yeah, the bike is totally black!  But some people with say that the 26x1.5 inch tires and a single speed drivetrain are what make it urban.  No, it's not a stupid fixie.  This is the bike I blogged about a few weeks ago when I added a front basket.

After using the Globe with the basket I have to say that basket was worth ten times what I paid for it.  Well, that's not totally accurate because my friend Greg found the basket in a junk pile and gave it to me for free.  The basket is the best accessory I've ever put on a bike.  If I ever sell or lose this bike the replacement won't come into my garage until it has a basket installed.

Speaking of replacement, not that I need a new bike but if I just had to get one I'm leaning towards the Surly Troll (with gears) or the Surly Karate Monkey (single speed).

I had two soft-sided briefcases, two changes of clothes and a bunch of other crap in the office today that I needed to bring home.  It all fit nicely in the basket under a few brightly colored bungee cords.