Alternative Bicycles

rollingscone

Been talking to PaterScone a bit lately about the N+1 Phenomena and the point of having multiple bikes when you exclude Utility and competition.

If you already have a good bike for club spins and have no plans to go full on MTBing, is your other roadbike anything but a winter / alternative in the case of breakdown or do people really find a satisfying variety of leisure riding experiences?

magicbastarder

my N+1 (in my case, 1+1) hasn't been used in about a year. i'm planning on getting back to commuting via bike though, and may use this (a hardtail MTB).

robyntmorton

For some it would be like asking a mechanic why he has so many 15 mm spanners. You will be told it is to have the particular spanner for the particular job. Some people may feel justified in having a downhill MTB, a hardtail, a full suspension et cetera ad nauseum.

For others it is the "Pokemon" philosophy of gotta get 'em all.

And, for others there is the idea of just having a variety of different styles of bike, all of which offer their own personality and quirks.
I myself am only on two at the moment - my hybrid (Giant Escape 3) and my roadie (Vitus Razor VRL). I would not be averse in the (not too distant) future to adding another roadie to the fleet, but it would be something with a racier, more aggressive feel.

I'm sure everyone will give you their own reason for justifying N+1 though.

Cee-Jay-Cee

I have 3 bikes, my 'best' bike is only ridden in dry weather and although I've been caught out in showers while cycling it, if the forecast gives heavy rain then I won't take it.

My wet/winter bike is used all year round and almost exclusively from October to March. It has full guards and lights and is alloy so won't melt unlike carbon.

I recently bought a HT 29er and absolutely love it and can see myself using it quite a lot during winter for trail and gravel roads in the massive expanse of forestry and mountains on my doorstep (literally) I bought it two weeks ago and have been out on it 8 times already (short 20-30km spins on gravel fire roads) It is so so enjoyable and comfortable!

I don't think I need any other type of bike so 3 will do for now.

Just as an aside, when I first decided almost 5 yrs ago to buy a bike, my wife rolled her eyes and said it'll probably end up an ornament in the garage. A year or so later when I then bought a carbon bike, she asked how anyone could possibly need 2 bikes when you can only cycle one at a time. About a month ago when I told her I was thinking of getting a MTB, she said she thought it was a good idea as I could cycle/explore the countless forestry roads near us.

She had learned.

Weepsie

Ive the good full carbon Sram red monster I treated myself to after to breaking my elbow, feeling sorry for myself and turning 30.

But less than a year earlier I picked up a Reynolds 653 Steel tourer and I use it nearly everyday. Bought fully with the intention of doing long, slow cycles with panniers but not done that much.

Then an old trek sl1000 that takes a rack and guards for when the tourer is a bit heavy and the weather not agreeable.

Just stripped down a wilier escape which I've no idea what to do with. Loved cycling it however, tempted to turn it into a single speed but really don't know.

I live in an apartment, I keep one of them at my parents for when I'm there and want to cycle, though I normally just cycle there. Ive considered asking my sister could I leave one at Hers in Scotland as shes very near the mountains there.

My very young niece asked why I needed 2 bikes, she looked dumbfounded when I said I have 4 and probably thought I was a moron

rollingscone

Interesting stuff folks, I have a decent alu roadbike and a heavy but lovely steel all rounder that I plan to save for off road and touring this year as my light and nippy singlespeed covers most of my flat winter spin requirements (a la the Great Dublin Bike Ride).

Last winter because of the pain in the backside I had cleaning my steel all rounder after offroading in the Phoenix park I put 38mm knobblies on my city hack (an old steel Raleigh rigid MTB built up as a singlespeed) and had a jolly old time mud boating around on it.

The hack lives outside which obviates the need to spend an hour cleaning it after a spin.

secman

I have an old Steel frame Raparee with full Dura Ace, it's a 1992 custom build job. It's solely ridden in Wexford at the weekends. Then I have a cannondale caad 9 which is the mid week bike for Dublin.
Many moons ago, I had the Raparee as the dry bike, an old viking with 105 as the wet bike and a merida mtb, got rid of mtb as I still had a mortgage ! Lost count of times I came off that bike...

Would really like to get a carbon next year; have a bit of a milestone birthday:) big oul 60 on the horizon... we shall see !

Beasty

My only problem with "N+1" is working out what "N" is......

magicbastarder

Beasty wrote: »

My only problem with "N+1" is working out what "N" is......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTeJ64KD5cg

Macy0161

rollingscone wrote: »

If you already have a good bike for club spins and have no plans to go full on MTBing, is your other roadbike anything but a winter / alternative in the case of breakdown or do people really find a satisfying variety of leisure riding experiences?

Everyone likes new stuff, don't they?

I use my old road bike as my commuter. Has been used for club spins when the other one has been in the bike shop.

My "good" road bike has disc brakes and an endurance geometry, so my ultimate plan is to have that as the winter bike when I upgrade. I break rule 42/ sometimes cycle without socks, so haven't decided whether the upgrade will be to go TT or a more race geometry road bike yet (a few things, as well as money, to come together first, and heart says TT, head and number of "hardly used" TT Bikes on donedeal says road!).

I also have a hard tail mtb, for occasional off road and also used as an occasional leisure bike by the missus (too big for her, but easy to drop the saddle!).

I also have a project bike - my first "grown up" steel 5 speed racer. Was brought second hand, and my mother kept it. Isn't in too bad nick. My plan is for that to become my leisure bike rather than going for a hybrid.

rflynnr

I have five bikes and genuinely can't imagine how I'd get by without all five. There's a triple for bringing the kids to school, a road bike for heading out by myself for a couple of hours, a single speed for short trips into the city, a hybrid for longer trips and/or steeper gradients and finally a folder for bringing with me on the bus/train. (I even have a Dublin Bike subscription.) If absolutely pushed I'd ditch the single speed although as the frame has been with me for nearly 30 years it'd be a wrench to let it go. We own a family car but as an individual I've sought to organise my life around the assumption that, if I'm going somewhere, it'll be on two wheels to the greatest extent possible. Hence, for me N=5.

magicbastarder

rflynnr wrote: »

There's a triple for bringing the kids to school

that must be a bastard to wheelie.

Chuchote

This thread needs TomasRojo.

I just have the one old crock and a Dublin Bikes subscription (and Velib', come to think of it); there's a folding bike in the garage (not mine but I can use it), but it's a Giant, mad heavy to use and to lift and with swollen tyres, a horrid thing.

Weepsie

@rflynnr is it you I see passing through Phibsboro the odd time on it?

rflynnr

@Weepsie. I suspect so: I do live there.

AlreadyHome

I've got the fixie for getting around and the carbon road bike for leisure cycling and racing. Planning on adding to it with a touring bike - something for long distance tripping with front/back/all-around panniers that's got every gear under the sun and can take a magazine from an AK47 and remain roadworthy.

Then I'll probably only need an upgrade on the road bike and I'll be done. Except maybe I'd also like a cargo bike. And a dutch-style sit-up-and-beg bike.

Then I'll probably only need...

pedro_colnago

Ive way too many bikes. Autumn bike sales drive my OCD mad. That and the habit of seeing a good aluminium framed bikes going for cheap which I then tend to upgrade. For example a couple of years ago I bought a tiagra BMC street racer for 800 euro and pimped it with Ultegra groupo and wheels, replaced stem, handlebars saddle and seat-post, brought the weight down on it and it's a rocket of a bike, it actually descends better than my SWorks SL2 Tarmac. It is just one of 4 race bikes that I have, along with TT bike, a cyclocross bike, a hardtail mtb, and two disc brake 'winter' bikes. I sooooo near a clear out! That or a bigger garage. I can kinda justify each of them to a cyclist but to a non cyclist they think it's insane (which it actually probably is)

07Lapierre

pedro_colnago wrote: »

Ive way too many bikes. Autumn bike sales drive my OCD mad. That and the habit of seeing a good aluminium framed bikes going for cheap which I then tend to upgrade. For example a couple of years ago I bought a tiagra BMC street racer for 800 euro and pimped it with Ultegra groupo and wheels, replaced stem, handlebars saddle and seat-post, brought the weight down on it and it's a rocket of a bike, it actually descends better than my SWorks SL2 Tarmac. It is just one of 4 race bikes that I have, along with TT bike, a cyclocross bike, a hardtail mtb, and two disc brake 'winter' bikes. I sooooo near a clear out! That or a bigger garage. I can kinda justify each of them to a cyclist but to a non cyclist they think it's insane (which it actually probably is)

A real cyclists wouldn't ask you to justify having them!

mr spuckler

pedro_colnago wrote: »

Ive way too many bikes. Autumn bike sales drive my OCD mad. That and the habit of seeing a good aluminium framed bikes going for cheap which I then tend to upgrade. For example a couple of years ago I bought a tiagra BMC street racer for 800 euro and pimped it with Ultegra groupo and wheels, replaced stem, handlebars saddle and seat-post, brought the weight down on it and it's a rocket of a bike, it actually descends better than my SWorks SL2 Tarmac. It is just one of 4 race bikes that I have, along with TT bike, a cyclocross bike, a hardtail mtb, and two disc brake 'winter' bikes. I sooooo near a clear out! That or a bigger garage. I can kinda justify each of them to a cyclist but to a non cyclist they think it's insane (which it actually probably is)

holy sh1t!

i have a cervelo s2 for long / leisure spins, sportives etc. i commute on a basic enough cx with mudguards and racks and also have a single speed which i previously used for the commute. because of garage space restrictions i'm planning to get rid of the single speed and replace it with a decent hardtail, maybe second hand to start with, to see if i get use out of it up around howth etc.

07Lapierre

There's a guy in our club who has his own bike shop!

magicbastarder

he calls it a bike shop, but it's just a front for a storage depot for his bikes i suspect.

rtmie

Really happy to see this thread, as it may help me with my current dilemma.
I bought a hybrid (Giant Rapid 4) 4.75 years ago on what I call the Bike to Shed scheme, I bought the bike and chucked in the shed unused for 18 months.
Then I took a notion and went for a few short local loops, kind of liked it and upped to a couple of local club intro spins. Soon I "needed" a road bike but given i did not have BTW had to cut my cloth (well not really) and bought a Rose Pro SL Alu with 105. I now use this all the time for weekend / mid week solo and club spins. Needing a use for the hybrid I started using it to commute to work a a couple of days a week (20K each way). so far so reasonable.
Now a couple of problems, I don't like the wide flatbar on the hybrid and was thinking of doing a drops conversion, I also don't like the triple on it, I only ever use the middle ring and given that the bike is only for relatively flat commute that won't change, so was thinking of convert to either compact or ideally a single ring on the front. Starting to get a bit expensive to justify against a Rapid 4!!!

So to complicate matters am due new BTW next year. The Rose doe everything I need and I do love it, although I would prefer a slightly lower position especially for solo spins, so how to spend the BTW is my question. I'd like to have a carbon bike, nothing in my cycling justifies it but just 'cos!
Assume my max number of bikes will be 2, what to do with the Rose?
Jettison the Hybrid, use the Rose as winter bike commuter
Keep the hybrid, sell the Rose and put towards Carbon bike?
Some other mad money spending scheme?

My gut is the first one as I do not have a lot of gra for the Rapid but do for the Rose. But that would require a pretty good carbon bike to justify having a full 105 Rose bike as the winter bike, and believe me I am a duffer of a cyclist so need some encouragement to make that leap.

mr spuckler

rtmie wrote: »

nothing in my cycling justifies it but just 'cos!

without "just 'cos", i'd have a very different bike & cycling clothing collection!

when my alu roadie was robbed 2 1/2 years ago, i replaced it with a carbon road bike and a cx bike. why? just 'cos

Esroh

I have an alu KTM with Ultegra as the 'Good Bike' for Club Spins and Sportives.
A trek 1000 sl with rack for doing the shopping ;-)

A Specialised Full suss MTB which that I got for a song but still dont deserve.

A 1950's Humber (high nelly) which weighs a tonne I love to take out just for spins on the back roads.

A 1968 DUblin Built Raleigh High Nelly which is lighter and get to go to the pub/shop.

A 1978 steel frame raleigh which was resprayed so not sure what it is but i have put Tiagra on it as my winter bike.
And just this morning I got a Falcon Team Banana 60cm in perfect nick for 3o euro for what Im not sure.

There are also a couple of Ladies Nelly'S and a Boys version sitting in the shed. All in need of work but actually road worthy.

I would love a Hard tail MTB and am always on the look out for a bargin

P_1

Have the road bike and a cheap rigid MTB for getting around town that if stolen it isn't the end of the world. Adding a fat bike to the fleet come payday.

rollingscone

Turns out Paterscone's idea of N+1 is to buy an identical bike as a backup...

triggermortis

I have a carbon Rose with Di2 as my main bike, an Alu Cube which was my first road bike and is now my commuter. There's an Alu Boardman that's stripped down and needing a paint job that I intend to make into a winter/wet bike and a Giant VT2 full sus MTB that was my first bike but rarely gets used these days.
I can use the BTW (once I get her indoors to approve it) but I don't really need to just now - unless I ditch my rebuild plans for the Boardman and get something new

Harrybelafonte

At the risk of this thread becoming a boasting session:

1. Planet X Nanolight Carbon: Racebike and summer training
2. Orbea Orca Alu: Winter Bike and roller training
3. Fuji Track Pro Carbon: Track training and group races (this I got for free after Aer Lingus broke my other frame)
4. ADR Nero Track Carbon: Pursuit bike (the other frame)
5. Specilaized Fat Boy ALU: Occasional MTB and touring, but just for days of fun
6. Larry Vs Harry Bullitt: Everything, shopping, occasional deliveries, had for about 6 years and won't let it go. Bought for me as a Thank You gift
7. Fuji Track Classic STEEL: Old rave bike, now fixed commuter
8. 90s Racing Haro BMX: Unfortunately not getting much use.

All bought for super cheap, either second hand or with a large discount or free.

However, I have the same attitude to cars and would have at least four of them if I could.