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Re: Gaelforce West

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  • 30-07-2008 12:22pm
    #1
    CunningStunt
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3 ✭


    Howdy all,

    been keeping any eye on here for a while but haven't seen anything about Gaelforce yet, and don't want to crash J Armstrongs post. Anyone on here doing it, and if so, on what bike? Might be able to get a loan of a cyclocross bike, but if not, was thinking of doing it on a hardtail MTB with 1.5 inch knobblies. Slower on the roads but obviously much better on the off road stuff than a roadbike. Any one have any opinions/experience of Gaelforce?

    Cheers


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    #2
    blorg
    Registered Users Posts: 15,989 ✭✭✭✭blorg


    No experience but when replying to another post I looked into it and they said it was mostly on road with only a short off-road section. I'd look into how long and what sort of surface the off-road is- to be honest if it is short I'd take the road bike.

    Of course if you can get a cyclocross bike that would be ideal. I did the Camino, around 25% off road, on 35c tyres (not knobblies, they would not be nice on the road at all.)


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    #3
    fergalr
    Registered Users Posts: 1,922 ✭✭✭fergalr


    Might do it this year, did it 2 years ago (did gf12 last year).

    If you want to do the cycling section in any reasonable speed (ie, you are actually trying to race, even slowly) then do not use a mountain bike with knobblies.
    I'd put the order of preference for bike as cyclocross > racer > hybrid > mtb with slicks > mtb with knobblies.

    The offroad section is very very short, 100s of metres offroad (mostly still cyclable with high pressure tires) vs 40k+ of road cycling.

    You might even be best doing it on a tt bike (theres no rule against drafting, but the field can be pretty strung out by the time the bike happens, so can be hard to find a group).
    I'd probably use a cyclocross bike with road tires.


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    #4
    blorg
    Registered Users Posts: 15,989 ✭✭✭✭blorg


    If you are talking only 100s of metres off-road vs 40km cycling, just use a road bike. Put on 25c tyres if the road surfaces are really bad, they are a lot more comfortable and not noticably slower either. Will marginally help on the off-road over 23c.


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    #5
    fergalr
    Registered Users Posts: 1,922 ✭✭✭fergalr


    If you are talking only 100s of metres off-road vs 40km cycling, just use a road bike.
    Its something like 1k of country lane (not asphalt, but dirt road ridable on a road bike), and about 500 meters of sloping offroad (which I road on cyclocross bike first time round, but would be hesitant to do on a nice cf road bike, pretty bumpy).


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    #6
    CunningStunt
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3 ✭CunningStunt


    Thanks lads, didn't realise there was such a major road bias, I thought there was a good few k's off road, bit of a no brainer then really between road bike and mtb, hopefully I'll be able to get the cyclocross bike, if not, road bike it is. Cheers again.


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