New Commuter

[culimerc]

Well I’ve got to replace my Vaya. Any suggestions for a commuter/tourer/gravel grinder do all kind of bike? I was hoping to find something a little more esoteric or obscure. So not your usual Trek/Specialized/Cannondale thing. Not that I’m ruling them out, just that I’m hoping for something different.

[dasgeh]

@culimerc 56702 wrote:

Well I’ve got to replace my Vaya. Any suggestions for a commuter/tourer/gravel grinder do all kind of bike? I was hoping to find something a little more esoteric or obscure. So not your usual Trek/Specialized/Cannondale thing. Not that I’m ruling them out, just that I’m hoping for something different.

When we had a bike stolen, insurance covered replacement costs, but for the same bike (though this year’s model). Before you spend too much time shopping, you may want to call insurance and see if it’s a similar deal.

[culimerc]

@dasgeh 56705 wrote:

When we had a bike stolen, insurance covered replacement costs, but for the same bike (though this year’s model). Before you spend too much time shopping, you may want to call insurance and see if it’s a similar deal.

Already started the claim process. I get a check for replacement -deductable for anything I want.

[KayakCyndi]

@culimerc 56702 wrote:

Well I’ve got to replace my Vaya. Any suggestions for a commuter/tourer/gravel grinder do all kind of bike? I was hoping to find something a little more esoteric or obscure. So not your usual Trek/Specialized/Cannondale thing. Not that I’m ruling them out, just that I’m hoping for something different.

Volagi Viaje!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3203[/ATTACH]
Not that I’m biased or anything …

[mello yello]

That totally stinks that your bike got stolen. I was on the mall for Folk Life Festival on Saturday, and noticed lots of bikes around, some not very well locked. With that many people and that many bikes, I’m not too surprised that there were thefts… just sucks to be the one stolen from.

Aside from a direct replacement Salsa Vaya, maybe look at:
Surly LHT (available in disc)
Soma Saga
Bruce Gordon BLT
Kona Sutra

I have an IRO Rob Roy, similar idea but SS/FG specific (rear-facing dropouts), but Tony has discontinued those.

Edit: And, of course, Bianchi Volpe

[Bilsko]

Curious question: Is it your homeowners insurance that is covering the theft?

You may want to add the Surly Disc Trucker / Long Haul Trucker and Surly Crosscheck to your candidate list. I’ve had my Disc Trucker for just shy of a year now and have gotten a lot of use out of it:
Crystal City Challenge ride and a 24hr Fleche on 700Cx28s
Numerous gravel grinders with Dirt and co. on 700Cx40s
My first 200km brevet on the stock 700Cx32s.

The bike isn’t terribly light, but its pretty nimble and handles bad road conditions well. LOTS of eyelets for mounting racks/fenders/pumps&cages, etc.

[hozn]

I’m sorry to hear the Vaya is gone! I’m also a little envious of your opportunity to build a new bike – I hope that doesn’t sound insensitive!

Honestly, though, the Vaya seemed like a pretty sweet bike in that niche (you don’t just want another one?). I know you didn’t really like the Sram Apex group.

I guess neither the Salsa Warbird 2 or the Colossal (which looks really cool) have fender/rack stays — so I assume that’s a deal breaker. And the latter is probably too road-y.

I also have on my disc-road short list the Gunnar Fast Lane: http://gunnarbikes.com/site/bikes/fast-lane/ I think that fits bigger tires. It looks like it has fender mounts, but no rack? Hmmm.

I will also give a shout out to my Habanero cx frame (http://www.habcycles.com/cross.html). I would buy another, but hope I’ll never have to. While I did break the earlier frame riding singletrack, I will say that they replaced it under warranty w/o any hassle and new one has been fantastic. And they let me pay the small difference to upgrade to a disc frame. I am sold disc for on- (and off-) road application and it has rack & fender drilling, but the rack mounts are quite a bit higher on the seat stays than traditional. That might present some challenges with rack mounting, not sure. I also had to do some creative bending of my fender stays a bit (and use Jandd mount extenders: http://www.jandd.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=FDBFA) since the disc is more traditional mtb location. But I love that bike.

Or in a slightly less metalic direction, the Foundry Augur has fender (and rack?) mounts: http://foundrycycles.com/bikes/auger

[americancyclo]

Tout Terrain Silkroad or Grand Route!

[Dickie]

I’ll add in my sympathies as well… totally sucks that your bike was stollen, so sorry Culimerc.
So, it’s not sexy or unusual, but I bought a Cannondale CX bike last winter for all the same reasons…. comfort, durability, rack/fender mounts, multipurpose, etc. I bought a 2012 on clearance and got a killer deal. Absolutely LOVE the bike except for the brakes, but easily an upgrade down the road.

If you want exotic and unusual, how about the Renovo Elwood? Although you might need to get a second mortgage:

[83b]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I had some bikes swiped from my old building’s garage a few years ago and it still rankles to think about them.

If you’re interested, I’ve got a ’04 LeMond Poprad CX bike built up similarly to your purloined Vaya that I’ve been toying with selling. My new shorter commute is on a cargo bike, so it hasn’t seen enough use lately.

It’s also a 60cm and is outfitted with hammered Honjo fenders, a Nitto rack, Dura Ace drivetrain, bell, etc.

So if you’re looking for a turn-key solution to get back on the road quickly, it might be a good fit. I’m happy to take some pictures or host a test ride if you might be interested.

[jopamora]

Van Dessel WTF

[KelOnWheels]

Space Horse!

Or maybe a Macho Man Disc?

[Greenbelt]

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=rove

or this (which doesn’t do justice to the paint’s awesome orangeness)

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=jake_the_snake

[hozn]

@jopamora 56731 wrote:

Van Dessel WTF

Wow, that looks AWESOME.

[NicDiesel]

The Surly Cross Check is a really good “Swiss Army Knife” bike but, like with all “do it all” tools, it doesn’t do any one thing extraordinarily well. It’s too slow (and heavy) to do any serious road riding, it’s a little too aggressive of a geometry for serious touring, and it’s a little too unforgiving for any serious off road riding. That said, now that I’ve gotten the right frame size and a proper fitting I’ve grown to really love my Cross Check but if I had it to do all over again I’d look at an All City Space Horse (Kel has one that’s awesome) or a Bianchi Volpe or, if budget wasn’t an issue, a Gunnar Fast Lane (mentioned before). A friend of mine has the Gunnar and would not stop trying to get me to buy one before I bought a new CC frame.

[Author]

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