So when a bike is your primary means of transportation, having it stolen is a lot like having a car stolen for most commuters. You might still be able to get from point A to point B via some other means (in my case car, carpooling, borrowed bikes), but it’s not the same.

So after my bike got stolen and I called family/friends, I gave a call to Jim from Hiawatha Cyclery. I “met” Jim via the blogosphere and was thrilled to see him open his shop earlier this year. He suggested a Breezer 3-speed, that it would be similar in price range as my Trek 7300FX (which he remembered I had), but it was meant specifically for commuting. So I did my research and sure enough, the Breezer’s fit my needs.

Due to some changes at my work, I need to regularly commute in, which is approximately 7 miles away. The Trek was great for that ride. It was a hybrid, with fenders, a bike rack, and collapsable grocery carriers. My coworker lent me a racing bike which really couldn’t fulfill the role. So as much as I didn’t want to plop money into a new bike so soon, I decided that I probably should just get it over with.

Jim says the Breezer’s haven’t been as popular as he would have expected… so I’m going to plug them :) This is why I’ve ordered a Breezer Citizen this weekend.

• At first glance it reminded me of my Trek. It has a lot of the whoozits and whatsits that I added to my Trek, so I immediately had an affinity.
• It has a 3-speed internal hub. I think that’s neat. It changes gears inside the hub, no cog-rings. Going down from 24-gears to 3 might be a big jump, but I think I’ll enjoy the simplicity.
• It comes with a bike rack. I bike to work, and regularly carry my clothes or even a computer. A rack is a necessity for me, as I’m not into the whole backpack thing. It’s even silver, like my old rack.
• Fenders!
• Generator driven lights. Like the internal hub, this is something I never expected to have on a bike, but thought it might be neat. I like being energy efficient, and I couldn’t think of a better way than this.
• You can lock it up with a ring-lock. It has a built in lock, common to bikes found in Europe, that lock the rear wheel. Great for when I forget something in my house, and don’t want to pull out the U-lock for five minutes.

View the full spec sheet.

So I rode a similar model that Jim had built up. I should have rode it a bit more, but I just went around the block where Hiawatha Cyclery is located. It rode well, and seems like it’d fit my commuting needs. I can’t wait until this comes in. I really need to be back on the rode. If you haven’t had a chance, and want to check out a nice small bike shop with a good selection of bikes that work well in this city and no pushy sales people, give Hiawatha Cyclery a try and test-ride the Breezer.