Opinions on the Surly Cross Check?

[dbb]

@OneEighth 27735 wrote:

Don’t worry—a very nice guy with a couple of years (?) and definitely a couple of gears on me (not to mention the lovely disk rear wheel and the aerobars) took my lunch money this morning at Hains.
It was fun.

All the gears in the world wouldn’t help me take you. I’d have to tie a cinderblock to your bike to act as a sea anchor.

[DismalScientist]

@mstone 27725 wrote:

So would 99% of tourers; unless you’re touring internationally in third world countries, it’s pretty hard to screw up an sti to the point that you can’t limp to a place that visa and mastercard can’t bail you out. It’s more a matter of custom than necessity.

Apparently it is time for me to ascend my retrogrouch podium and issue the following rant:

Brifters don’t offer any substantial benefit to anyone on a road bike that is not a) racing or b) riding in rough terrain such as city commuting or cyclocross. You can dial into a gear just as effectively with any normal indexed lever. Brifters weigh more, are mechanically complex, and cost more. If you can’t shift safely moving you hands from the hoods when riding on smooth surfaces, you probably constitute a danger to the general public. The same is true for city riding.

Your bike should be lugged steel.

Your bike should be a couple inches larger than what a fitter says it should be.

Credit card bike tourists are pansies.

Canvas is a better tent material than nylon because it smells nicer.

/End Rant.:rolleyes:

[mstone]

If you only tour on smooth surfaces, I can’t help but wonder if the loop around your driveway gets old, and if you ever yearn to go a bit further.

Back in the day I used friction shifters on the down tube. It worked, but brifters are just so immensely more convenient that I use the gears a lot more–which my knees really appreciate. On the other hand there’s the weight argument (on a steel loaded tourer you’re ready going to notice the weight of the shifter?) the complexity argument (of course it’s more complex–it does more; if you want simple I’ve got a balance bike that’s right up your alley) and the cost argument (this one holds water, but few people admit that they’re going with bar end shifters because they’re too cheap to pop for brifters).

[Jason]

Umm, dont most of us by definition ride in the city or city-like area?

[creadinger]

@DismalScientist 27778 wrote:

Credit card bike tourists are pansies./End Rant.:rolleyes:

Because traveling sans money is so much more hip and gnarly than actually enjoying your trip.

Retrogrouches are “retro” because they died out thankfully.

[KelOnWheels]

@DismalScientist 27778 wrote:

riding in rough terrain such as city commuting or cyclocross

Sometimes these are the same thing.

[eminva]

@DismalScientist 27778 wrote:

Credit card bike tourists are pansies.

Why? Don’t get me wrong, I like camping, but just wondering.

Canvas . . . ugh, I can still smell those old tents from the scout days.

Liz

[Dirt]

@DismalScientist 27778 wrote:

Credit card bike tourists are pansies.

I’m planning a 370-mile, 2-day, fixie pansy tour for this fall. Any other pansies that want to join me are welcome. Oh yeah… the whole route is on dirt trails. I might wimp out and make it 2 1/2 days.

[Mikey]

@Dirt 27806 wrote:

I’m planning a 370-mile, 2-day, fixie pansy tour for this fall. Any other pansies that want to join me are welcome. Oh yeah… the whole route is on dirt trails. I might wimp out and make it 2 1/2 days.

My family and I are doing our annual “tour” from FFX to Lock house 6 on the C&O on Saturday and Monday of Labor Day weekend, you are welcome to visit the Lockhouse our paths cross.

[Dirt]

@essigmw 27807 wrote:

My family and I are doing our annual “tour” from FFX to Lock house 6 on the C&O on Saturday and Monday of Labor Day weekend, you are welcome to visit the Lockhouse our paths cross.

Nice! I don’t know my timing yet. I may be driving to Pittsburgh and riding home in 2 days. I’ve been giving all kinds of excuses to NOT do this ride for a few years now and I need to just get off my butt and do it. Doing the whole GAP will be shorter and possibly easier than just doing a DC-Cumberland-DC ride… It is logistically more complex though.

[vvill]

Anytime I’m researching a bike, I’ll strike it off if it has bar end shifters. I don’t get the point either. I’d rather use downtube shifters! (Those were the first shifters on a road bike I ever used.) Brifters are the second and I’m not ever going back.

@DismalScientist 27778 wrote:

anyone on a road bike that is not a) racing or b) riding in rough terrain such as city commuting or cyclocross

I think a lot of road bike commuters around here do both at the same time = Brifters necessary!

@Dirt 27812 wrote:

I may be driving

DOES. NOT. COMPUTE.

[Dirt]

@vvill 27813 wrote:

DOES. NOT. COMPUTE.

The thought of me operating a motor vehicle definitely causes even the most hearty, brave soul to shake in their boots.

Super scary thought? I was once a licensed school bus driver.

What were we talking about?

[OneEighth]

@Dirt 27823 wrote:

The thought of me operating a motor vehicle definitely causes even the most hearty, brave soul to shake in their boots.

Super scary thought? I was once a licensed school bus driver.

What were we talking about?

There I was, there I was, there I was…in the Congo…

[5555624]

@Dirt 27823 wrote:

Super scary thought? I was once a licensed school bus driver.

I think that’s just a “scary thought.” A “super scary thought” would be finding out you were actually driving a school bus. (A school bus with kids — live kids — would be up in the “terrifying” region.)

[Dirt]

@5555624 27861 wrote:

I think that’s just a “scary thought.” A “super scary thought” would be finding out you were actually driving a school bus. (A school bus with kids — live kids — would be up in the “terrifying” region.)

I get that a lot.

[Author]

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