[Closed] BMX commuting?

A bike with a really low gear that you cant really sit on the saddle of why ? Would be like riding a little kids bike !

I think a three mile commute on a BMX would get annoying very quickly, probably before the end of the first morning.

You should definitely still get a BMX, though, they're ace. Just not for commuting...

I did a 5 mile commute by BMX when was at uni for a while. You can be quite fast and have fun but its not relaxing!

Would a rigid 26" SS mtb with slick and a QR front wheel fit in your car easily? I used to be able to fit my old 26" rigid bike across the rear car seats with the front wheel out. Forks in footwell rear wheel on seat diagonally. Might have to drop the seat too. As quick to assemble as a folder.

Bye bye knees!

I used to do 4 miles each way on a bmx. As above, quite fun to zip about on, but definitely slower / more effort than a road bike.

Thing is it's got to fit it the back of the car and fit in small space at work so full size mtb wouldn't work, it'll live in the car so it doesn't have to be pretty & 3 flat miles isn't exactly far. & I can learn to manual all the way..

What about the front wheel off bike across rear seats diagonally?

I used to work with someone who commuted from Wrexham station to Llandegla on a T1 (bmx).That's a LOT uphill.

Its just an excuse to get a bmx I'll admit, but Looking forward to having a go

What about a cruiser with a different sprocket on the rear.

I've got a 1999 GT Pro Series XL (21" TT) geared 42/17 for sale-

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/90s-gt-bmxs-for-sale

BMXs are ace.

😀

edit- what about a 24"? I've got a DK General Lee 24 that's actually shorter (wheelbase) than the Pro Series XL.

edit- 3 miles... what's that then? about 15 minutes' fun on a BMX before and after work? Yeah, go on then!

I had a five mile each way bmx commute for about a year. You will be fit and you will be the manual king

I occasionally do a similar distance on a jump bike. Not being able to sit down and pedal is annoying, but it's worth it if it justifies getting an extra bike that will be fun elsewhere.

Used to do a 4 mile BMX commute when I was in my teens (the days before I owned a car). Definitely a bit more 'involved' than just sitting twiddling away at the pedals on a road bike. Suppose it depends on your commute really. Could be great fun, or could get tiresome pretty quick.

What`s a manual ?

If you want another bike just buy it.
Or do you just want approval. 😛

Thule 591 on a roof rack has to be quicker overall than riding a BMX 3 miles and no wet and dirty bike in the car.

Buy one & Try it. If it doesn't work out, sell it and buy something else/more suitable. Or you could just run it. A nice 5km jog to work would be a nice start to the day...

I Ran a cannondale hooligan as a commuter to work for a couple of years and that was about 12 miles each way....

i dont think if you size it right 3 miles is going to be that much of a hardship on a normal bmx imho.

I reckon you could do 1/2 of that on one wheel for giggles wiv a bit of practise 🙂

Wow! so much naivety regarding BMX here.

Race BMXs are not low geared.
riding a BMX for a few miles each day will not ruin your knees.
riding standing up for a few miles each day will do wonders for your core fitness which can only really be an asset to your general mtb fitness.
in built up areas a race BMX over short distances is easily as fast as roadbike commuters. infact. in really built up areas, lights to lights, once you're used to it you'll destroy most roadies.
Police will not stop you riding on pavements on a BMX and will even turn a blind eye to RLJ if you do it on pedestrian crossings on a green man.
biggest downside IME is lack of mudguards on a bike that begs to be accelerated repeatedly on rainy days.

That's why I typed cruiser with a different cog. Big bmx's are fun. Unless you smash your knee on the stem

A pimped Raleigh 20 would be fun, you can build them up into surprisingly capable pocket rockets.

I used to do 12 miles a day on my McNeil Whitton (park/street bmx) through london as part of my bike/rail commute to waterloo train station to get out to Esher. Bmx was ideal for the train as it took up much less space than my MTB.

On a number of occasions the return train would be heavily delayed or cancelled so I'd ride my bmx back to London from Esher, Surrey. Not hard when you regularly ride bmx, just takes a while!

Read stories about pro bmx riders in the states getting dropped off by tour buses, then riding 50 miles home carrying a big backpack.

I have one of these

[url= http://www.saracen.co.uk/bikes/bmx/destination ]bmx[/url]

That's hardly been used. High quality and a hoot to ride. £200 if you want it. Fits in my car no problems.

You could always add a longer seat post or extender. Quite a lot of pro BMX racers use them for warm up/cool down.

I've ridden to track session about 3 miles away and it's not too bad stood up (6'1" and ride 20" and 24"). Quickly gave up with the full face on the road, lost peripheral vision and couldn't hear traffic behind.

I totally agree with mtbel on the fitness thing, I use the General Lee

[img] [/img]

for popping to the shops and local pottering/bombing about and it's way more tiring (in a good way!) than my MTB.

kayla1, your thread shouldn't be in the classifieds, it should have a proper place in bikes forum. Love those those two late 90's GT's and, of course the General Lee.

Shame I have neither use or room for a BMX. But I will need a bike respraying soon, and couldn't decide on a colour scheme. A confederate MTB might be just the job.

Just to join in properly here, I'd do 3 miles on a cruiser with a long seat post and decent ratio gear.

3 miles of park and ride with limited storage at the work end has to be perfect Brompton territory. BMX might be fun for a while but would get tiresome soon enough and on rainy days would require sitting in your own filth or a change of clothes without guards. I appreciate this is a dull middle aged response!

Middle ground. BMXify a Brompton (is that possible?) or bodge some guards onto a BMX (lack of coolness not an issue as you'll be a grown man commuting on a BMX FFS!).

[img] [/img]

Getting a stronger and stronger itch to get a BMX myself but living in a village with no skatepark and not much street furniture I'm struggling to justify it.

Raleigh Shopper 20? About £50 from Gumtree?

Unless you're a teenager, the novelty of riding a a BMX every day will wear off real fast.

Get a Dahon. I used one every day all last year, fits in the boot of my car easily, and was actually quite comfortable to ride which was a surprise for my gangly 6'4" body.

Police will not stop you riding on pavements on a BMX and will even turn a blind eye to RLJ if you do it on pedestrian crossings on a green man.

Amazing that bank robbers haven't cottoned on to their miraculous imperviousness to the law!

I had a BMX for getting around at uni. I'm 6'5"... It was clearly silly but I loved it. Only issue was that I had a couple of accidents caused by normal shoes slipping off the pedals when it was wet one of which almost resulted in me being run over by a bus 😯

facing forwards is ok - on way to smallest antigee ice hockey training regularly see a guy riding a bmx facing backwards and mixing it with big traffic, not messing on way somewhere

here in Melbourne specifically not legal - as is no helmet - hope he survives long enough to see that law rolled back

Vic state road rules

Bicycle seats and handlebars
When riding a bicycle you must:
sit with a leg on each side of the rider's seat
[b]face forwards[/b]
have at least one hand on the handlebars.

You'll be fine! Used to cycle 2.5 miles from my flat to Bristol Temple Meads, mostly flat the whole way. My knees were totally fine, didn't stress about having no seat. I stopped only because it's cheaper to get a bus from the top of my hill. Coincidentally, this brisk 10 minute walk gives me sore knees most days!

can't you get a cheap beater and lock it up at the park and ride? If they don't have bike storage they're kinda missing the point of the "ride" aspect

I spent a week recently riding my 24" jumpbike to work from a hotel whilst working away. Was only 1.5 miles and it really hurt my ankles! might just be because it has crap pedals and I'm fat...

but it was quite fun when not in a rush and messing about

i got to agree i do 5miles a day, and go via skate park and its great fun!, have even found myself riding it more than the mtb!

My old commute years ago was 5 miles each way with a load of good features en route so I used to take the BMX now and again.

On the plus - a load of fun and felt more of a ride than a commute (if that makes sense) and I could go to Kelvingrove or other spots at lunchtime

On the minus - only for dry days, carrying anything was a pain and hilarious comments about riding a child's bike coming from morons in vans got a bit tedious after a while.

I really want a BMX but the fiance said she would leave me if I got one.

It's a really difficult call to make.

I did this for a few years as a student. Great fun, made every commute an event. Not at all relaxing.

Also, for some reason, I got a lot more road bother from motorists whilst on a bmx too. Something unintentionally antagonistic about a grown man sprinting about the place on a very small bike.

I have commuted 3-4 miles on a race BMX in the past if I had mechanical/ puncture on the commuter. It was rubbish.