Need advice on a basic bike

Brussels Sprout

Hi,

I'm going to buy a bike because I'm going back to university in September and I want to cycle instead of using a motorcycle like I did when I first went there. It's about 4 miles each way-relatively flat terrain-over typical irish city roads (cracks, potholes etc).

I was thinking of getting a hybrid bike but my friend who cycles quite a bit advised me to get a road bike instead. I had discounted these as I wasn't too sure if it'd be suitable for this type of commuting with a bag on my back.

I have thought about doing a triathalon although realistically that wouldn't be for at least another 2 years as I'm only just doing beginner's swimming lessons. at the moment.

My budget is only about 600 euro. I'm currently living in the UK but I'll be returning home in 2 months to start this course.

So:

A: From the information I've given which type of bike would be more suitable?

B: Would I be better off getting the bike over here and posting it back or are the prices roughly the same?

C: Would you advise me to get a decent 2nd hand bike or a cheap new one?

AstraMonti

Any chance you can stretch out the budget a bit? http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Focus_Variado_Expert_Compact_2010/5360045297/

smacl

There's a lot to be said for going to your local bike store and trying out a few bikes to see what suits you. If you're thinking about triathlons or club cycling, a road bike is going to be the smarter choice. For me, as a novice I far prefer a hybrid and went for one of these which is not far off your budget. The hybrid with lockable suspension is great for forest tracks and the potholed minor roads and boreens around the country, but is a lot more work for anything sporty.

Brussels Sprout

smacl wrote: »

There's a lot to be said for going to your local bike store and trying out a few bikes to see what suits you. If you're thinking about triathlons or club cycling, a road bike is going to be the smarter choice. For me, as a novice I far prefer a hybrid and went for one of these which is not far off your budget. The hybrid with lockable suspension is great for forest tracks and the potholed minor roads and boreens around the country, but is a lot more work for anything sporty.

How do you find out the prices of those bikes on that link?

petethedrummer

I put this in the wrong thread. Nevermind

cdaly_

OTOH, leaving your new EUR600 bike in college may not be the best option. It might be worth considering a relatively cheap second-hand for the college commute and spending your budget on something decent that doesn't go near college.

I would suggest you're better off getting a good second-hand in the UK and bringing that back home for your road bike and pick up a commute bike from http://www.rothar.ie when you get here...

smacl

Brussels Sprout wrote: »

How do you find out the prices of those bikes on that link?

Found the site after buying the bike! My local bike shop is McDonalds in Terenure, the Neos was €670 and with a tiny bit of haggling they threw in a pump, some shorts, a spare tube, and a set of tyre levers. Enough for a comfortable W100. No doubt you could do better on line, but support your local sherrif and all that jazz. As a novice, the local bike shop is a good bet. Got some good gear off wiggle since then, but for a major purchase, I'd always go local.

Brussels Sprout

After doing a lot of research in bike shops and thinking about how I'm going to actually be using this bike I'm leaning toward a basic hybrid. Realistically I will only be using it for commuting. Also I may well have to leave the country in a years time so it suits me to get something that isn't too expensive.

The local bike shop has Specialised Global Vienna 3's for 300 pounds (plus another 50 pounds to get it back to Cork from the UK). So that's roughly 420 euro.

I was also looking at the Carerra subway at Halfords for 330 euros.

Just wondering which if these people would recommend me getting?