tsl

I've had this Trek Portland on layaway since early August. Thursday was payday and I was sitting on the front step at the LBS before they opened. I handed them the last of the cash and I rode it home.


Is two years old too new to be considered NOS (new-old-stock)? This is a leftover 2006 model that the LBS had gotten tired of faithfully dusting once a week. When I indicated my interest, the manager immediately made me an offer I would have been stupid to refuse. Good thing too, because after I test rode it, I'd have paid full list price and offered to scrub the floors. It's one sweet riding bike.

The Portland hit all of the bullet points I'd established when looking for a four-season commuter and grocery-getter.

• Road style frame
• Drop bars with integrated brake/shift levers
• Room in the frame and fork for my snow tires
• Disc brakes
• Full fenders
• Rack mounts
• Triple chainrings with 175mm cranks
• Non-ferrous frame because steel rusts in the salt.

Well, the Portland doesn't come with full fenders, but I had the LBS swap out the flipper fenderettes for full-coverage SKS P-35s which I'll run in the three seasons, swapping them for 45mm PlanetBike Cascadias when the snow tires go on.

I almost bought something else because all the reviews I'd read of the Portland were of pre-release models with compact doubles. Between my old knees and plans to run studded snow tires all winter, I really need a triple, and the production models are triples. Good thing I double-checked before putting a deposit on that other bike.

Thus far, the ride quality impresses me most. It's a mix of cyclocross bike on the front end (even has a reinforcing lug where the downtube and headtube meet) with touring bike-style long chainstays in the rear. You'd think this would be an unhappy, schizophrenic combination. Instead you get the quick handling of a CX race bike with the stately ride of a tourer. Along with the carbon fork and 28mm tires, it takes the edge off potholes and even smooths out milled pavement.

Now that the bike is home, I'm beginning to appreciate some of its details.

• The fork crown and dropouts are beautiful polished aluminum pieces.
• The fork tubes have lowrider rack mounts, which I'm using for the full front fenders.
• The carbon headset spacers repeat the look of the carbon fork tubes--a purely aesthetic touch.
• The rear brake cable runs along the bottom of the downtube and under the bottom bracket, which leaves the top tube clean looking and free of cable stops. This is a real plus when shouldering the bike up my fire escape stairs.
• There's no interference at all in the rear between the disk brake caliper and the separate rack and fender mounts
• It comes standard with kevlar-belted tires, SPD pedals and two-bolt saddle clamp.

I'm looking forward to many happy commutes on my new rig.

ilikebikes

NICE! NICE! NICE! the only other thing I can say is, NICE!

stringbreaker

OOOOOOO I want one now

cruzMOKS

Very nice bike. The disc brakes look interesting. Do disc breaks work better when its wet?
Carbon front fork would be nice. The matalic paint looks great.

ilmooz

That's a good looking bike, and nicely outfitted. You should be racking up some enjoyable miles on it.

M_S

I see a lot of Trek Portlands in...um...Portland.

ilikebikes

I think he mentioned that it does indeed have carbon forks?

icedmocha 

Excellent looking bike! I must admit that I find utility to be veryattractive. I did not know you could purchase studded snows for 700c rims. Where at?

tsl

There are several makes and models available, but the general consensus in the Winter Cycling Forum is that the Nokian Hakkapelitta W106 is the best for street use. I got mine last year at Speedgoat, right there in PA. I've seen a better price this year at eBikeStop.

Sort of like seeing a lot of London Fog coats in... um... London?

That's what everyone says. I can't say yet from my own experience. They're calling for rain late next week. I'll know after that.

What I can report is that they are smooth and quiet. They feel great in the hands and are easy to modulate. Panic stops are like reaching the end of a rope, or maybe dropping anchor. I thought the Kool-Stops were great on my other road bike. There's a huge difference. IMHO, the disks are worth the extra pound per wheel and the $$ too--at least on a commuter.

The big reason I went for the disks is that last winter I wore my rims concave from braking with all the salt, sand and grit on the rims. Even though I hosed-down the rims and brakes every night, it took only 1,000 miles of those conditions to kill them. Rotors are supposed to wear a lot longer. And they're cheaper to replace.

gbcb

I saw a Portland in Toronto this summer, and I had to stop and gawk. It's a gorgeous bike! The only thing I don't understand is the really low spoke-count wheels... they don't seem to fit what's otherwise a very practical bike.

Congratulations on your purchase! Hope you have many happy miles of riding.

tsl

I'll admit to being leery of them too. When you actually count them, there are 24 per wheel, eight fewer than usual, but not so few to be a true low spoke-count wheel. It's the spacing on the rim that makes it look like there are even less. The spokes themselves seem heftier to compensate, as do the hoops.

The other deceiving thing about their appearance is that they're actually laced 2-cross. Since both crosses are hidden behind the rotors, so it looks like they're radially laced.

Joe Dog

I have similar (identical?) wheels on my LeMond Sarthe. I was leery of them, too due to the low spoke count, but I am assured by three different bike shops that these wheels are strong, and they have faired up very well for me on numerous club rides. I think the issue here is that if you manage to break a spoke, you are probably walking home because the wheel will be out of true pretty significantly. I have not broken a spoke yet *knocks wood* so I don't know for sure. I get out of the saddle for bumps so I am not losing sleep over it.

Nice bike - enjoy the ride.

marqueemoon

Good call on the SKS fenders.

M_S

There's a guy who posts in the CX forum who claims to have used his Poprad with similar looking wheels for tons of cross races and even a few cross-country mountain bike races(!) with no issues.

ilikebikes

I used wheels almost identical to your except mine had thinner spokes! and Im 222lbs! I rode them for a good long while on a few different rides, no prob whatsoever, yours look very strong with those hefty spokes! youll be fine, go out and ride!

nymtber

nice bike! Im near Rochester myself, in fact have an Interview at Gleason on tues...Who knows...

may I ask which bike shop you got the bike from? I deal mostly with RV&E in Fairport, closest and they treat me very good, plus they are located not far from the canal trail so i can drive half way, and ride the rest I think im gonna check out Towners tuesday since ill be just down the road a bit.

hope you enjoy that bike!

tsl

Good luck with your job interview. Gleason's is a good place to work. I live in the same neighborhood, ride past Gleason's every day, and have Tuesday off, so send me a PM or an email if you want to drop by and catch a coffee or a bite to eat.

I bought this bike at Full Moon Vista Bike & Sport, downtown on Saint Paul St between the Inner Loop and Andrews St (by the Water Street Music Hall). I really like the people and the service at Full Moon Vista, and recommend them highly. There are only two caveats. The shop itself is small which means the inventory is a little lean, and like most shops, there's not a lot of commuter-specific stuff on hand.

However, a big plus for commuters is that the one service area in the front window is designated for walk-in service. I've had to wait my turn, of course, (and the couch and coffee bar make that a pleasant experience) but I've never had to leave my bike.

I bought my first bike from Towner's last March. I like Towner's for the walk-in selection of components and accessories and I've had good service there. There's also something about the character of the place. Eighty years of bikes have soaked into the walls and floors or something. The other bike I was looking at this time was also at Towner's, and listed for $500 less than the Portland. Their bike buying experience leaves a bit to be desired, and that's a large part of why spent more money on the Portland.

My blog entries, Bike Shopping and Passing the Test illustrate the huge difference between their approaches.

tsl

Ah ha!

Today I figured out the real reason for 24 spokes and their odd spacing. It's the only way you can reach through the wheel to adjust the inner brake pad. I can't imagine how I'd do it with 32 spokes, 3-cross and evenly spaced around the hoop.

So there's more to the choice than fashion and aesthetic.

Phantoj

It's a little harder, but by no means impossible. Lots of bikes have discs and higher-count wheels.

TurdFerguson2

As someone who has worked on many Avid Mechanicals, I can say that would be a nice advantage. I suspect the wheel choice had more to do with Trek promoting their Bontrager line and picking somewhere to save weight than anything to do with brake maintenance.

Believe me, moving that inner pad adjuster on a mountain bike wheel (sometimes 24" 3 or 4X) is not easy, especially the older Avids. Flat blade screwdriver and hammer will work when you are too lazy to drop the wheel out. It sucks either way.

velocity

Can't go wrong with the name
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fender1

Nice Bike!!! Have you test fitted the Nokians and additional fenders yet to make sure the clearance is large enough? Just Curious.

tsl

I have fitted the Nokians. Everything's A-OK there. Although it's a little tight where the rear brake cable runs along the chainstay from the BB to the caliper. I hear that the 2008s have rerouted this cable so that even wider tires than my 35mm Nokians will fit. I'm going to check with the LBS to find out if this is true, and if so, if my bike can be retrofitted.

The only area of potential interference with the 45mm fenders is between the chainstays. They may fit, I may have to curl them a little tighter there, or I may have to trim them a bit. No matter how it goes, it won't be an issue.

JoeyMac

nice! I will keep an eye out for this bike around Roc-City