Kona Sutra
That's my new bike! I have been riding the Kona Sutra for a couple of weeks now. Purchased from BOTS.
The Sutra has a steel frame and weighs approximately 14 kilograms. It is equipped with Avid BB7 disk brakes, strong Mavic rims, and bar-end shifters (front: friction, rear: index/friction). For the rest of the specs, look at the official site. Note that the bike lacks pedals and mud-guards(fenders). I got the 2009 model. The newer 2010 model has mud-guards and a different colour/graphics.
Me on my Sutra(click to enlarge)
The pedals in the picture are local pedals. I paid 60 rupees for them. Small change compared to the cost of the bike : 52,620 rupees only.
Wondering why this bike was chosen ? I wanted a reliable, all-purpose bike. Disc brakes were high on my wish-list. I have been riding MTBs since 2003, but I was looking for an easier ride for a change. Plus, I wanted a bike which was available in India. The Sutra fits the bill, with a name that is hard to beat!
The Sutra feels very stable during the ride. This feeling is hard to explain; it needs to be experienced ! I just love the way I can modulate the brakes! I'm still getting used to the riding position and bar-end shifters. The bike absorbs some amount of road bumps. Nothing like having shocks, but that was expected anyway. She climbs pretty well too. I did the last 15km of the ride to Somwarpet in 50 minutes. I'm not in the best of shape, so it is all about the bike 🙂
My pet peeves : few things I do not like about the bike (these characteristics are shared by most of the imported bikes, and can all be remedied using accessories)
- No side-stand. Makes this a pain to park
- No guard for the front chain-ring. Need to be careful while I'm riding the bike and wearing jeans.
I seem to be going faster on this new bike. Much faster than my older bikes for sure. To me, this represents a problem. Other riders on the road have a certain assumption about bicycles : how fast we can move, the position of the reflectors on them, not to mention the cost of causing an accident! This bike breaks these assumptions, and I better be wary...
I'll post a review of this bike and my experiences in Jan, 2010. I want to ride the bike before posting anything that looks like a review. I'll soon be upgrading the bike to include the B17 Brooks Saddle, and perhaps 1.75 inch wheels. Happy riding to me...
December 8th, 2009 - 14:48
so whats this bike called, shree sutra
December 8th, 2009 - 14:59
@kp: Perhaps, DPv2. That’s Desha-Premi v2 🙂 If and when I decide to go globe-trotting, I’ll rename it to Loka-Premi v1 😉
December 9th, 2009 - 15:12
so that seems to be the ultimate touring bike… waiting for jan review… particularly how fast it really is…
December 11th, 2009 - 14:13
@anand: Speed will be limited by my fitness 🙂 But do check back in January – for my first ever bicycle review.
December 11th, 2009 - 15:21
congrats Shree! did you get front pannier rack also along with bike?
looking forward to the detailed review.
Mallik
December 11th, 2009 - 16:14
@Mallik: Thanks. I did get the front pannier rack. I have no use for it right now, so it just sits at home.
December 11th, 2009 - 16:16
Namaskaara Sir,
Nimmanna monne cafeteriadalli noDidde! Ivattu nim blog kaNNige bittu!!
naanoo kooDa nim office navne, cycling nalli ondishTu aasakti ide. innoo geared bicycle togonDilla. sadyakke MTB ne oDisteeni mane hatra, mattondishTu kaDegaLalli.
nimmanna matte yaavaaglaadroo canteen nalli noDidre, naane bandu maataaDisteeni.. bye.. 🙂
December 16th, 2009 - 10:02
Congratulations! That does seem like a do it all bike.
December 16th, 2009 - 11:04
Sahi hai bhidu.
Are you doing another across the country tour for few months?
I wish I can also do something like this some day.
I envy you. Tumhe upar wala buri nazar se bachaye.
December 16th, 2009 - 19:34
Kool…
Atlast you are with your new bike…
A month ago one of my friend also purchased a bike named firefox from pune..
Enjoy the ride in your new bike…
Take care..
December 18th, 2009 - 14:42
@Anantha: Sigonappa yavagadru shutdown ada mele 🙂
@Abhishek: Thanks. I purchased it with the “do all bike” intentions. Let me see how this bike fares on the bad roads 🙂
@Nautanki : No cross country tours for a few months at-least. Will be spending the next 15 days visiting relatives on my bike !
@Ketan : Thanks!
December 18th, 2009 - 15:10
Sounds like an excellent bike for touring ! The panniers must be very useful on long hauls.
December 25th, 2009 - 12:58
Nice bike Shree. Looking forward to the detailed review. What tyres are you thinking of? I just switched from 1.5 to 1.25 and I think [not sure yet], that I was better off with the comfort of the wider tyres.
I had met you at the TFN start if you remember.
December 25th, 2009 - 13:00
BTW – I was referring [tyres] to the Surly LHT which I just got a couple of weeks ago
January 7th, 2010 - 10:12
@Lavanya: The bike comes with a front rack also. I haven’t used this at the moment. I’ve recently toured parts of Coorg, Dakshina Kannada and Kasargod districts on this, and am pretty happy with the bike at the moment.
@Deepak: I was thinking of switching to wider tyres. After riding a thousand kilometers on the bike, I have changed my mind. The 1.25 does seem to be doing a good job. Recently, I rode it without problems even in MTB downhill terrain ! So no plans to change it.
December 13th, 2010 - 14:54
How is your cycling going on Shree? Have you heard of FitnessThroughTravel in BTM. This is a shop which sells cycles which you love to ride. It is owned by one of my good friends (Kiran Kumar).
December 14th, 2010 - 10:12
@Balaji: How are you ? I am restarting cycling now-a-days after a 5 month break. Never heard of FitnessThroughTravel. Will see them next time I am in BTM.
December 14th, 2010 - 13:22
Cool! Check out his website: http://fitnessthroughtravel.com/blog/
Kiran has heard about you a lot.
March 20th, 2011 - 09:10
Happy riding bro. We have bicycles here in Fiji as well. It looks like a good bicycle.