Comment by 🚀 Tomi
Re: "I ride 20km to work, on bike paths and sand, with an…"
To limit exposition to air resistance you might want to alter a bit your position. Without doing any purchade, an immediate idea is to have a much lower stance by bending your elbows and lower the head that is also the hardest thing to do when you aren't used to as it involves muscles from the back and neck.
A much easier thing to do is narrowing your frontal area by putting your hands closer to the center of the handlebar. Note that it can also mean you are less stable/in control and your hands may not be close to the brake levers so only do that on long stretch of smooth empty road/bike path.
2025-07-21 · 10 months ago
4 Later Comments ↓
To limit impact of gravity, best option is through weight loss through nice diet and exercise. This can come naturally if your diet is already good. If you are already a lightweight person, having a lighter bike can help but the expense/performance gain ratio is usually bad so it is best to not obsess about it.
To limit impact of rolling resistance, having good, supples tires is key as well as dialing tire pressure ( higher is not always faster). You mentionned sand and unregular surface but not the kind of bike you are using. Cheap wire bead tires + thick tubes are usually slower than foldable tires and latex tubes but you might want to factor flat resistance in the equation. You didn't mention either if your wheels are tubeless compatible. Given the description I would favor fast (what we call filetread or semislick) and large volume mtb/gravel tires but only when your current tires nred replacement.
Bottom line, you don't necessarily need to change anything in your bike, at least not immediately. If you enjoy riding and don't have any rush to be back home, you could consider doing a longer ride back once a week. Being used to do a 30 or 40km ride once in a while will naturally make those 20km daily ones feel easier and faster for you.
Make sure you know how to repare a flat without pinching a spare tube if you go for longer rides though.
🚀 mycrobe · 2025-07-22 at 13:48:
You're just starting out, so if you want to change something, do something small but significant first: Tires. Narrower and lower rolling resistance.
Since your bike is upright/heavy, the next step to going faster would probably be to replace the bike. But don't rush that.
But in my opinion, you're doing the most important thing to get faster already, which is to have a solid routine! I agree with Tomi that one longer ride a week will be helpful.
Original Post
I ride 20km to work, on bike paths and sand, with an inexpensive, heavy, upright hybrid. What should I invest in to achieve higher speed and lower effort - a different kind of bike? Slick and narrow tires? If road/gravel is too expensive, is there anything I can do to commute efficiently on a quality MTB?