The closest thing I’ve had to it, in terms of pride of ownership, was a Nishiki Rally that I rode as my only transportation back in the 90s. It has that same quality feel to it. I am a clydesdale, so many bikes feel flimsy to me, but not the Detour Deluxe.

I also had a similar ’70s Motobecane touring bike during the ’80s. It also had a genset, rack, and full fenders. The fenders on the Detour Deluxe are not as stout as the old Motobecane fenders, but I’m sure they are much lighter. I missed that bike and am happy to have something like it again.

I feel that it is the perfect bike for me, living in the San Francisco bay area and having to pull very steep hills. The 24-speed gearset works out perfectly for me. The shifting is fine and the brakes work great. This is my first disk equipped bike, but they work better than the economy level V-brakes (which I had no complaints about) that were on my last bike.

The suspension seatpost is a dissapointment. I had hoped that it would offer a similar feel to my 2003 Motobecane DS600 rear suspension, but it has a lot of stiction. It basically feels like a hardtail bike until you hit a big bump and then it absorbs the shock. It does not absorb small bumps.

I have added a set of folding baskets to carry stuff and a bottle cage. I have also purchased a computer, but have not installed it yet. I just ordered a Lezyne Pressure Drive Pump and another bottle cage.

I plan on adding a battery powered tail-light to add visibility and upgrading the headlight to an Inolight. Other than that, I’ll just wait and see if anything cries out to be upgraded.

I got a 17 based on previous experience with a variety of frame sizes….it feels pretty small to me due to the sloping top tube, but I fit just fine (no brake parts sticking off the seat stays for my foot to hit ), but my old ride is an ‘91 18″ Cannondale cross bike with geometry that’s much closer to road bikes than the Detours is.

I’d say that if you’re taller than 5′8″ you want to move up to the 19″ for sure and in the 5′6″-5′7″ range it’s up to personal preference…you could probably ride the 19″ with no problems. These frames seem to “run short” both in stand-over and reach to the bars compared to a bike with more traditional road geometry, or even most mountain bikes (which seem to have longer top tubes, or at least feel that way due to the straight bars).

I upgraded the lights on mine to Busch&Muller LED models with “stand-light” feature and *much* better headlight coverage, the stock units aren’t bad, but the upgrade is easy and not horribly expensive. The stock brake pad compound is a bit odd too, I’ll be swapping the “resin” Shimano pads out for some straight organics soon. Aside from that I really like mine so far, a great commuter/utility package for small money! Now all they need to do is pick a better frame color

People don’t see me pointing when it’s dark.

I also prefer to steer with both hands.

Drivers are “trained” to respond to a pair of lights, one of which is flashing. It could be a car or a truck or a bicycle. I do understand there’s challenge to creating the right instantly processed visual effect, but it just might be worht further exploration.

I realize that I haven’t seen turn signals on European commuter vehicles (the ones with the full chainguards ) … but there are enough inherent differences in the transportation cultures so that I don’t think that’s enough to dismiss them for here.

“I have to wonder why someone would buy that when for the same price they can buy the Sojourn?”

There are a bunch of reasons; First and perhaps most importantly, some of us don’t like drop bars! (sure you can convert, but that’s a serious pain *and* an added expense). Second, the Sojourn has a steel frame with completely different geometry. And finally there’s the dynamo hub.

BTW, my local bike shop is putting the Detour Deluxe on the sales floor at $650 plus tax.

The Sojourn is undoubtedly a better tourer or high performance commuter, but for general city riding or dirt roads I’d argue that the Detour is a better choice.

Remind me to never hope on a bike when you get behind the wheel!

Most drivers won’t see a bike if it had fireworks launching out of your back rack. The same is true of motorcycles.

It doesn’t matter what a bike or a motorcycle looks like, most drivers are psychologically blind to anything without 4 wheels.

That’s why we have to take responsibility for our own safety.

Don’t ever assume a car or truck will let you in because you used a hand signal or have a turn signal. They probably don’t even know you exist.