Tout Terrain Metropolitan

MSRP $4,692.89 USD

Marketed as a commuter bicycle, this is the kind of ride that might tempt you to bike right past your office and out of town. The bike is equipped well enough to take you across the continent. The Gates Carbon Drive System – advertised to last 12,427 miles (20,000 kilometers) needs no maintenance. The frame is double-butted CroMo steel tubing with an integrated rear rack, which reduces the weight of the rack and the chances of rack failure. There is also an attachment for panniers with snap-it adapters.

The Rolhoff 14-speed internal hub gives you an amazing range of gears; allowing you to take on any mountain pass that “happens” to find itself between your home and your office. The Hydraulic Shimano disc brakes won’t give you any trouble on the downhill ride. The lighting system – Schmidt SON28S hub dynamo and Edelux headlight with a three-watt LED and a very bright Toplight Line Plus rear taillight with a Fresnel lens – will make sure you never need to recycle a battery again.

I really appreciated the integrated rear kickstand mounting bolts and the headset Handlebar Stop braze-on that prevents the handlebar from swinging more than 90 degrees.

There was never a click, a rattle or even a stray sound that let me know that the bicycle was not operating optimally. Everything about this bike works so well and seamlessly that you forget it’s there, and that gives you the space to focus on the world around you.

peterwhitecycles.com