Maxximum

You own a commuter bike, how many other ones? Is two bikes a waste? Can't I use the commuter for anything else? Then have one bike only?

77midget

I own one. It is an MTB that I converted for commuter. If I took the 5 minutes and put the knobbies on, it would be my offroad.

I would like to get a road bike though, but probably not until next year.

eAspenwood

I have two main bikes for commuting. A surly lht w/ racks and panniers for daily riding, and an iro single/speed for faster, unloaded rides. Garage space is cheap in houston though. You can certainly have just one bike for everything if you want. Just get something versatile like a surly lht where u can put skinny or fat tires on it, and set it up so can easily take a rack on and off.

daveF

Surly Cross-Check, Bianchi San Jose, & a Dahon Speed P8. Although, I have several others in my garage which I sometimes use, a IRO Mark V, Litespeed Classic, & a Bianchi Pista (in parts at the moment). These last 3 have all been my bikes which I've given to my son.

The San Jose is currently being used as a commuter, the Cross-Check as a road bike for fast training rides, & the Speed P8 for traveling & to pull my dog in a trailer. More bikes = more specialized uses!

pinkrobe

I have 4 bikes [see signature] that I use regularly, but I use the Trek as my summer and winter commuter. Since I'm running disc brakes, I just do the ol' wheelset switcheroo when I see snow on the ground - instant studs. I would commute on the other bikes, but the main commuter works so well I don't need too.

caloso

1) Race bike ('00 Trek 5200)
2) Neo-retro road bike ('83 Gazelle Champion Mondial with modern 10-spd drivetrain)
3) Fixed gear road bike ('89 Trek 660)
4) Beater/trailer-hauler ('90 Specialized Rock Hopper)

They all see commuting duty during nice weather but I commute on the FG pretty exclusively during the winter.

pwyll99

I own 4 bikes, see sig. The rockhopper is my commuter, as it has the fenders, disk brakes and rack. A quick switch of tires and it can do XC mountain biking. I also use the Bianchi for the commute as least once a week in nice weather (i.e. not wet out). And sometimes I'll use the dualie or cruiser just to be different.

aMull

2 bikes, one for rainy weather with frenders and all that, and a fixed gear for all other days. I enjoy the fixed a lot more.

sean000

Just the one commuter/all-rounder at the moment. I have my old racing bike from the 80s, but right now it is in pieces waiting for me to get the frozen stem unstuck

I've had some nice bikes in the past, but my commuter is the best all around bike I've ever ridden and I ride it everywhere:



That's an old photo when it was brand new and before I put the rear rack on. Without the bags she's quite fast and fun, but still handles well under the full weight of camping gear (or just work clothes and groceries). While I do enjoy a fast road bike and a knobby-tired mountain bike, this bike splits the difference and is at home on the road, MUP, gravel, and even single-track (though without knobbies you do lose traction more easily). Sometimes I encounter all types of surfaces in a single ride.

I bought this bike about four or five years ago when I still lived in an apartment and had only enough room for one. I had just gotten rid of my car, so even though this was an expensive bicycle it paid for itself very quickly since I was no longer dealing with the expense of car ownership. Now we live in a house, so I'd like to get more bicycles... but with housing payments (and we do own one car now), I'm afraid this might be the last bike I get for awhile. That's why I need to get the 20-year-old Pinarello up and running

I'd love a dozen bikes, but at the very least it would be nice to have: Touring/Commuter bike, a fast road bike (not necessarily a racer... more sport-touring), and a mountain bike. A totally upright comfort cruiser would be next. I'd also like a single-speed, but with the hills around here it's nice to have a triple-chainring on anything you ride.

So of course you can use your commuter for many types of rides, but some bikes are better set up for versatility than others. As someone who has been both a hardcore roadie and a hardcore mountain biker, I can tell you that you can ride anywhere for as long as you want and as hard as you want wearing whatever you want and riding whatever you got. Of course you might find that certain accessories or clothes make you more comfortable, or that certain types of bikes are better suited to some types of riding; but really it all comes down to this: Ride whatcha got anywhere you want. If you feel like your current bike isn't doing it for you, seek out another one that might work better. I've found that a comfortable and durable bike with a triple chainring and a good set of wheels/tires can take you just about anywhere.

But no... it's not a waste to own more than one bike. At least not to me. But that's a matter of opinion.

Sean

Machka 

Why in the world would you want only one bicycle??? What if something happened to it, and it had to go into the shop???



(I have 7 bicycles)

caloso

"Is two bikes a waste?"

Is two pairs of shoes a waste?

mtnwalker

4 bikes:

'06 Litespeed Teramo
'06 Schwinn Fastback 27 (fair weather commuter)
'06 Gary Fisher Marlin
'84 Centurion Accordo RS (wet weather commuter)

Winter76

I've got 4, I use all 4 to commute, depends on weather and my mood.

My wife, the self-proclaimed non-cyclist (she'd rather walk) even has three bikes that she uses on a semi-regular basis.

nowheels

2 matching havnooian sport road frames decked out with 700/28's and tubus fly racks and a spare touring frame hanging on the wall.

Andy_K 

I've got two bikes, both commuters: (1) Kona Jake with the knobbies swapped out for road tires. This is my main commuter, but I also use it for occassional club rides, and if I swap on the knobbies I can do some light trail riding with it too. (2) Marin Muirwoods 29er. This is my rain bike. The disc brakes make me feel a bit safer, and it saves the brutality of road grime from being inflicted on the Jake. In the summer (when it almost never rains here in Oregon), I keep platform pedals on it and use it for short trips and family recreational rides.

BCRider

The sig line says it all. 5 of them are used for regular commuting. The others are off road other than some short range errands.

Speciallized Stumpjumper M4 set up with 700c wheels so I could get disc brakes. I built this up before such a style was popular or even available.

Norco CRD3 road bike. I never find time for training rides so this one is up for sale. Did some sunny weather commuting on it though.

Canondale late 80's/early 90's touring bike. It looks like heck but it's my mount of choice for all my longest rides to date as well as my commuting.

Norco Monterey SL single speed conversion. This puts more grins on my face than almost all the rest put together. It's amazing how something so simple can be so elegant and pleasurable to ride. That and I've only got about $150 invested...

Norco early 90's Rampage. High end CrMo frame cross country race bike with street slicks. Another grin generator and a fantastic errand bike with the platform pedals. It also does light duty trail riding with a second set of wheels with knobbies as well as this is my winter early snow bike.

ax0n

I own four commuter bikes. Well, I own three. My wife owns the other one.

Any bike that's usable for commuting is a commuter bike.

Trek 1200 with rack, panniers, fenders and lights.

Diamondback Outlook with slicks, rack, fenders and lights (also added clipless pedals and better rear cassette for higher speeds)

Diamondback Sorrento mountain bike for winter commuting and hitting the trails.

My wife has a Townie 3 Speed.

heckler

'05 C'dale Road Warrior 400 with rack and panniers for commuting

'07 Fuji Roubaix Pro: For go fast road use

'08 Trek 6500: For my XC adventures/ racing for fun

all could see commuting. I use the road bike if i have clothes already at the office... the discs on the XC bike could be handy for bad weather though.

JanMM

Yes, then you'd be in a real pickle.

girljen

I just have one right now, a cheap little K2 T-Nine Crosswind from REI.

I'm planning on buying a Surly Cross Check in November, though; not only will it give me two bikes to choose from, it'll give me an incentive to keep commuting through the winter.

Mmmm.....Surly goodness......

VisualMonster

3 Bikes, all of them used regularly (at least once a week):

Mountain Bike = '04 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR
Road Bike = '01 Trek 1000 Alpha Series
Electric Commuter = '08 Ezip Trailz

I bike to work almost everyday and probably only drive to 10% of the places when commuting around.

huhenio

07 fuji roubaix

motobecane messenger

lshobo

Having more than one bike is certainly a waste if you don't use the others. I've got 4.5 but have always desired to get that number down to 2 - which doesn't seem possible.

Ironically, my first and least fancy bike is the one I use the most because of commuting. Ever since I got panniers, I even ride it in nice weather versus taking the road bike out.

mstrpete

Exactly. My wife took her Townie to the LBS today with a loose fender mounting screw and they wanted to keep it for a week and a half she rode home and told me, "I need a second bike!!" I have three myself, and plans to fix up a touring bike for her.

Maxximum

Some of you have many bikes.