Project Bike: Jury's in.

I've been commuting on The Cowan Commuter for an entire season now and I'm very happy to say it's everything I hoped it would be and more. I commute rain or shine, daytime and at night. My commute involved paved road, rough road, gravel road, and sometimes rec. trail. I also did short tours involving pavement, unpaved roads and some unmaintained roads. This machine is now my goto bike for this type of riding and hands down the best commuter of anything I've put together so far.

Fitted with 35mm Panaracer Pasela tires which I usually run around 50psi it feels smooth and inspires confidence on gravel roads and fast downhills. With a generator hub powered automatic lighting system it's not  featherweight but I have light whenever I need it with no intervention and there is no noticeable power consumption.  The powdercoat finish is not showing any marks after a season of use and the bikes shifting is flawless.

I put a lot of time into this project. It has been educational and inspired a sense of accomplishment. My confidence is up and I'm sourcing parts for the next build. It will be utilitarian and economical like this one but not built to a specific price point which I feel is liberating in terms of specing parts. Stay tuned for previews of The Sparrow...njc