with the snow and cold my guess is that the southwest corridor and Jamaicaway bike lanes will be less than available, so maybe I should just wait on getting a new bike. in any case, I probably need to plow $80-100 into a new rear wheel for my old bike to make it usable at all. that said, seems like there should be some good deals in the Jan-Feb timeframe as the LBSs become ghost towns…

I suppose it’s not a huge surprise.  I bought my Giant Cypress ST last summer when I was just intending to ride a couple miles to the commuter-rail station in order to save on parking. The bike has certainly paid for itself. No big regrets there – in fact, in a way I’m glad I went with the cheapest bike in the store b/c it gives me an excuse to upgrade 🙂

Then I started commuting all the way to work (Westwood to East Cambridge) a couple of months ago and began to run into problems:

1. the upright “comfort” orientation was great at first, but now I find myself bending at the elbows to lean over the bike, especially in headwinds
2. the gears routinely slip and fail to shift, sometimes several times each trip. I’ve been to the shop where I bought it multiple times, and they just shrug “you could upgrade”
3. I’ve broken a few spokes, especially after putting my heavy backpack in a rear  basket
4. the rear brakes are unreliable when it’s wet – not just when it’s raining, but after riding through puddles. this is a bit scary when coming down Bellevue Hill
5. there are a couple dozen intersections on the Southwest Corridor (my current bike path of choice, though I’m experimenting with the Jamiacaway bike path) and I inevitable forget to downshift once or twice. then I’m stuck starting up in a high gear.
6. even though I have lights, I’m not a huge fan of riding at night. also, sometimes I ride in but then it rains and I don’t want to ride home. I hate having to wait until 7pm to get on the T – that way I don’t get home until 8:15 or 8:30. and I can’t get to the office before 10:30 if I take the bike on the train in the morning.

So I am looking for a new bike. I am thinking about the following, all of which have internally geared hubs and non-rim brakes:

• Giant Tran Send EX – pretty much my current bike though with a thicker rim (fewer broken spokes) and slightly less upright position. I saw one of these at Farina’s and wasn’t that excited though it looks functional and is on sale. Also, would want to replace the rack that comes with it.
• Giant Seek 0 – a lighter bike that could be used for touring (if I ever get into that good of shape). saw one at Harris Cyclery and loved it though didn’t get a chance to ride it yet. No fenders or rack but not a problem as I can harvest these from current bike.
• Trek Soho – this has “roller” drum brakes instead of disc, which I hear are not quite as snappy but probably good enough for me. The belt drive instead of a chain is attractive / cool.
• Dahon Cadenza 8 – this could be my perfect bike. internal gearing, disc brakes, *and* it’s a folder!  only problem is that I would need to drop some pounds first, and I need a bike nowish unless I just hang up the commuting until spring.
• Xootr Swift – another folder, though the stock version doesn’t have IHG or disc brakes. I’m checking to see if I can order a version with those; if so, this is really attractive (though the bike looks a bit goofy esp in blue).
• Breezer Uptown 8 – I shouldn’t include this b/c it doesn’t have disc brakes, but it does have integrated lights and gets rave reviews all over the place.

Any thoughts on or experience with any of these?  Much appreciated.