Question on roadies

rider2222

Since so many people say that how fast a bike will go depends on you and not the bike, then what's the difference between an entry level road bike and something thats gonna take $5000 outta your pocket apart from being lighter and made of better materials?

thx

pete4130

What the extra money gets you are lightre compnents, better spec parts (groupsets, brakes, rims, hubs). €5000 is a serisouly expensive bike. Unless your racing serisouly competetively I doubt spending €5000 is necessary.
A lighter bike is obviously easier to cycle with regards to acceleration and climbing hills due to its reduced weight. On the flip side, the reduced weight usually comes at the expense of strenght in some areas. For example, a lighter wheelset generally will have less spokes per wheel which would be more vulnerable to getting buckled or coming out of true more easily than an entry level bike with slightly beefier rims and a few more spokes. It's a trade off. Most people with €5000 bikes only use them for races and would have a cheaper (maybe an entry level or 1 or 2 models up from entry level) bike they would use for training and not have to worry about clocking up too many miles on their racing bike.

I've got an '06 Specialized Allez Sport, 1 model about the entry level. To buy its about €400 more than the entry level but have better shifters, better groupset, better brakes, lighter rims, better cranks and is obviously a little lighter.

Brand names can also cost more.....Italian bikes are generally a bit more expensive so it pays to do some research and see what your getting for your money and if paying more for a certain brand name is worth it.

bogmanfan

I remember the guy in Stagg's cycles saying he that some of the guys coming in spending huge money just to save a few pounds on their bike should have a look at their bellies first. Unless you're at racing weight, a diet is cheaper than a new set of wheels...

Hungrycol

Rider2222 you have a point to a certain extent. A pro cyclist you wipe the floor with me with him on a Postmasters bike and me on a €10000 road bike! When you get to a certain level in racing the better and more expensive components will start to make a difference. Until I reach that level I'm more than happy to ride my entry level bike. Shaving 100 grams on a new and expensive derailleur is nothing compared to the excess kilo's I'm carrying in body fat!!

Chips Lovell

Hungrycol kind of nails it. A light bike with good components will make a difference, but nothing compared to what can be achieved through training.

rider2222

OK guys thx for ur answers but dont be so serious.... im only asking whats the difference! I got my 2007 diamondback podium comp on a 43% discount just a few weeks ago and im fully satisfied with it, so i dont think i need a bike which costs almost as much as a car.

anyway i was just wondering what differences you will feel when you compare an entry level road bike and a pro's bike. will the pro's ride just feel easier to ride or will it actually go faster when you push it to the limits?

thx 4 ur answers again much appreciated.

mcgratheoin

To be honest, the main point is that the price/quality of the bike is one of the lesser order things that affects speed and performance. A good body position on a crap bike will be better downhill than sitting upright on a carbon t-trial bike for example.

Wheels have a fairly large (in equipment terms) effect on performance and spped - you want the wheels to roll as efficiently as possible and better wheels are better able to do that. You would probably go faster or use less energy on a pro bike than an entry level bike as you won't lose energy/speed through dodgy shifting/brakes/wheels etc.. but it's pretty much the same as starting playing golf - spending €1000 on lessons will take more off your handicap than spending the same amount on equipment.

I always laugh at people worrying about the weight of their bike in grammes and then heading off with 3 litres (3kg) of water strapped to the frame!

rubadub

If you are a professional then spending a few grand to get a 1% efficiency increase could be a bargain. Most of the high end stuff is not built to last, it cannot be expected to last at that weight, if you do structural testing on any product it is usually measured in time, there is always a trade off.

bogmanfan wrote:

should have a look at their bellies first. Unless you're at racing weight, a diet is cheaper than a new set of wheels...

Very true. I hear guys talking of shaving off a few grams here and there, could have saved themselves €2000 if they only took a dump before the race.

milod

OK, OP you asked for the difference felt between bikes... Speaking as one who needs to first address the extra kilos, I'm happy enough with my specialized sirrus hybrid. But assuming that my weight remains constant (i.e., I continue to consume enough Guinness to replace calories lost while cycling) here are my observations:

When I replaced my Ridgeback Speed (steel frame, 28C tyres) with the Sirrus, I could sprint faster and go up hills easier.

When I replaced the 25C tyres on my Sirrus with 23C, my average speed increased by 1kph - however, just as mcgratheoin points out, when I stopped lugging a waterbottle/backpack my average speed also increased by 1kph

Finally, when I borrowed my brother's Gitane 20 speed (weighs less than 9 kilos) I found it easier to go up hills - perhaps it was my imagination but with the light weight of the bike and the super smooth chainset/groupset I really felt like I could go faster and for longer.