Today I clicked over the 4000km mark on my beloved Surly LHT, by far the favourite of my current bikes. I thought I would just share a few thoughts with you guys after spending a fair amount of time on the bike over the last few months.
If you want to read a very early initial review it can be found here.
The bike remains the same component wise as when I first picked her up, the only thing I have done is de-badged it. IMO it gives the bike a much more dignified presence than the tacky Surly decals.
I have run the bike in all weather conditions, from severe storms to heat over 42’c and she has never let me down. The fenders keep lots of the water away from my shoes and clothes in wet weather and the frame geometry works a treat for both comfort and longevity during a ride.
The brooks saddle has settled down over the time I have owned it and altough initially it was not that comfy on extended rides I am happy to say that it now fits like an old pair of shoes that you do not want to throw out.
The components have behaved exceptionally well, wheels have remained true and run freely even after carrying some large loads, gear’s shift and behave as they did the day it left the bike store. The only noticeable sign of wear is on the bar tape, which although I probably shouldn’t change what works well I am looking to maybe get some moustache bars for the bike, which I hear are very comfy.
The bike mainly gets used for commuting to and from work, thus it takes a fair amount of luggage on a daily basis, work clothes, plus food and drink. Doesn’t sound like much but when you add up the weight on a few diet cokes and your lunch box it is.
I have also done a few metric centuries on her with no issues. I find the bike adapts really well to how YOU want to ride her, I can average 30km/h on a morning commute loaded up, with no issues. However its equally at home on a 18km/h average ride down the coast.
All in all a great purchase and a great bike, the add ons although not much take the machine to the next level and I really look forward to many many more thousands of KM on my great Surly.
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