Road Bike as Commuter Bike?

[szsz]

totally serviceable old road bikes for under $200, I'm thinking I'll just buy a beater/commuter for riding to work. I realized I don't want or need to put all that wear and tear on my nice bike, and I can afford a couple hundred bucks to avoid it.

Exactly! I have my 20+ year-old hard tail outfitted for around town. It's the bike I use when we go out to eat or to street fairs or the grocery. I have the tires filled with slime so that I don't have to worry about flats. It's slow and heavy with streamers and a neon rack -- people see me. It's an old steel workhorse and it is the one I would grab if there was an emergency. Peace of mind bike. I don't love riding it but I love that it is part of the stable.

Sorry, off-topic!

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For another bike that I may use to commute short distances I am hoping to be able to find a small basket that is easily attached and removed from the front bars. Anyone ever seen such a thing?

[VeganBikeChick]

Thanks for all of the replies I'm trying to get out of the mind set that a road bike is just for racing/touring. And actually, I've seen quite a few road bikes around here that are totally set up for commuting, so I don't think I'll feel so weird about it now.

[sfa]

My touring/road bike is also my commuting bike--a 20 year old steel Miyata. I've even raced with it a couple of times. I leave the fenders and rack on most of the time, but take them off for most races. I left them on for one charity triathlon that was only 10 miles on the bike, so I didn't feel like dealing with taking the things off and then putting them back on. I may have stuck out a bit, but there were all kinds of bikes at that event, so I stuck out less than the woman on the banana yellow cruiser with daisies on the basket!

[amandar]

What sort of touring are you talking about and how much weight are you planning on carrying?
I love my Salsa Casseroll, it serves as my road bike, commuting bike, and light tourer (loads under 20 pounds)
You'll want to keep in mind what the roads are like around you. The roads where I live are terrible, so my commute bike needs to be able to run at least a 700x28 tire. You also need wider tires for touring.

Does your current bike have fender and rack mounts? A lot of modern road bikes don't.
Fender mounts are a plus, but not a necessity, race blade fenders along with waterproof shoes work fine for me.
The same for rack mounts, you can get by with a roomy saddlebag or seatpost rack.

[colorisnt]

Don't know if this is a really late reply. I have been so busy with school that I haven't been around a lot lately, but I have two road bikes - one is dedicated for touring/racing and the other is only a commuter. I don't like the idea of having to take that stuff off when I ride because I want to go pretty fast and be pretty competitive (at least that is what I am training for now). However, if you are okay with having those things on there, I know plenty of people who tour with fenders/a rack and do great! They don't care and only have room in the budget for one bike.

I really don't like MTB's or hybrids, but I love a good road bike. It's all preference. My Dad has a commuter that he likes that is a hybrid and thinks commuting on a road bike is nuts, but when you deal with the hills I do, you are happy to have a carbon fork and a very light bike! It's all personal preference. Some people can't stand road bikes (my mother), but love an MTB or a hybrid. Who cares what anyone thinks! You love your bike, that is all that matters!

[VeganBikeChick]

Thanks for your reply, colorisnt. I decided to go ahead and get fenders and a rack for my road bike. It doesn't bother me so far, and if I decide I really want to get into riding, I may get a more decent road bike down the road.

[colorisnt]

Awesome! Glad to hear it!