A year-round, all-weather, commando commuter for Hong Kong

Dear Cyclofiend:

This is my working bike, a MTB frame, but set up for fast commuting with road tires and drops. The emphasis is on all weather commutability, with the Rohloff hub, disc brakes and fenders, as I do not own a car and depend on the bike to get me to work year-round. I live in Hong Kong, and have taken this bike through 5000 tough urban kilometers in the year since I bought it, through typhoons, mud, swimming-pool-sized puddles, pedestrian crowds, incessant rain, heavy traffic and up the 15 degree slopes that have led HK to install the world's longest outdoor escalator. It will get me through any kind of weather, but still zip right along with the roadies when I take it out on weekend rides. With an 1100 square-foot apartment and two kids, you only get one bike, and this is it!

The full specs: Titus Ti Frame, Pace RC-31 Ti-carbon fiber fork, Rohloff internal speedhub, XT disc brakes and cranks, Trickstuff eccentric bottom bracket, Fizik Arione saddle, Honjo hammered fenders, Dura Ace road pedals, Mavic XM rims, Specialized All Condition Pro 26 X 1.0 tires, Nito watter bottle clip and metal water bottle, Exposure Joystick Maxx light on the front and Cateye LD1100 on the rear. And of course a good loud bell to help with wading through the crowds in the world's most densely-populated city!

Thanks!

Nathan Congdon
Shatin, Hong Kong

ncongdon at cuhk dot edu dot hk