road cycling newbie - help appreciated

D3PO

So Im looking to start taking up some cycling. I havent set a specific budget in mind for a bike but Id like to get something of reasonable quality so that I dont have to just go and buy something else in a year or twos time because it no longer suits my needs.

has anybody got any reccomendations on what brand - model - spec bike I should be looking at ?

km991148

D3PO wrote: »

So Im looking to start taking up some cycling. I havent set a specific budget in mind for a bike but Id like to get something of reasonable quality so that I dont have to just go and buy something else in a year or twos time because it no longer suits my needs.

has anybody got any reccomendations on what brand - model - spec bike I should be looking at ?

roughly what is your budget? can you use bike to work?

4k should get you something decent ..

Nah seriously, plenty o bikes in the sub 1k range - I am sure you will get many recommendations, but I would say, get out to some shops, speak to some folks and try out a few - whats good for one aint so for another!

Once you have an idea you can start focusing on what kind of quality components you should look at (i.e. for example for durability you prob want to stick to tiagra or above with shimano groupsets etc)..

D3PO

km991148 wrote: »

roughly what is your budget? can you use bike to work?

4k should get you something decent ..

Nah seriously, plenty o bikes in the sub 1k range - I am sure you will get many recommendations, but I would say, get out to some shops, speak to some folks and try out a few - whats good for one aint so for another!

Once you have an idea you can start focusing on what kind of quality components you should look at (i.e. for example for durability you prob want to stick to tiagra or above with shimano groupsets etc)..

yep I can use bike to work was thinking maybe up to 800 quid rather than 4k

Raam

A good starter bike is the Specialized Allez.

aspender

Raam wrote: »

A good starter bike is the Specialized Allez.

Or the Specialized Secteur which is a more relaxed geometry.

I got one on cycle to work a couple of weeks ago and am loving it so far. Got a couple of hundred KM under my belt and it's been great. You should try out various bikes and base decisions on what feels best for you. Hunt out your local bike store and go from there.

Perrin2040

D3PO wrote: »

So Im looking to start taking up some cycling. I havent set a specific budget in mind for a bike but Id like to get something of reasonable quality so that I dont have to just go and buy something else in a year or twos time because it no longer suits my needs.

has anybody got any reccomendations on what brand - model - spec bike I should be looking at ?

Hi D3PO, I dont pretend to be a cycling expert by any stretch, but iv done a little cycling and i have also gone through the whole buy a bike and then have to change lots of little things to make it fit what i need routine, so iv learned a little about picking the right bike for yourself.

Firstly if you apply for the BTW scheme then thats brilliant, its a great scheme and i would recommend using it to the full 1k, thats what gives the most savings. Even if you find a great bike for 800, over time you may want a better helmet, or a high vis jacket or something, so your better off putting a "package" together that comes to 1k to get the maximium savings from the scheme (after all its only every 5 years).

Secondly you say you are gonna take up some cycling, but what kind? There will be a huge difference between taking up some MTB, road racing, exercise, or just extended commuting and plus for anything on road you have to think about where you are based. Are the roads good, any cycle paths etc. If you post the type of cycling you hope to do, and where you hope to do it people can give more specific advice (not giving out, just my advice).

Thirdly once you know the general "type" of bike you want, think about are there any things you REALLY want/need, for instance a mate of mine is obsessed with getting hub gears and if its what you want you should get it, after all its your bike. The bike i had before my current one, was really good, but it had racer handlebars (the ones you bend over) and although it looked great and probably rode great, it wasnt until i started cycling a bit more often that i realised that for me personally i needed bullbars. It really is all personal preference so just make sure if there are some things you dont want to compromise on then you make a note of them.

Finally (so sorry for long post) I would really advise going in to a bricks and mortar shop, you cant beat getting a "feel" for a bike. And again if you post your general location im sure you could get some good advice about where to go.

Whatever you do, good luck and i hope you enjoy it!!! (whatever it may turn out to be)

D3PO

thanks for the help so far guys but take it easy on me when I say newbie I mean newbie. Hub gears .. geometry ? Talking about geometry springs to mind maths and nothing to do with cycling

I know you say try a few bikes out but try them for what ? The obvious being comfort but its not like I can go take a bike out of the shop for a 50km spin to see if I like it ?

I want to get something that allows me perhaps go for regular road cycles something thats going to last and will be comfortable for jaunts of 50 - 120km

I wont be using it for commuting thats what my car is for. Its purely for exercise with a view to maybe joining a club to go on group cycles with.

It seems from the posts so far Spezilised have a reasonable rang for beginners like myself, but any other opinions are greatly appreciated.

After all knowledge is power.

Raam

They won't let you do a 50km spin. Just around the block.

Personally I'd go for the Allez over the Secteur, but I may be biased since it was my first road bike. I bought it in 2006 and the frame is still going strong.

CramCycle

D3PO wrote: »

thanks for the help so far guys but take it easy on me when I say newbie I mean newbie. Hub gears .. geometry ? Talking about geometry springs to mind maths and nothing to do with cycling

Shape of the bike is what they mean here, eg is it shaped for racing, commuting, touring etc. Usually what makes you go faster will be more uncomfortable in the long run.

I know you say try a few bikes out but try them for what ? The obvious being comfort but its not like I can go take a bike out of the shop for a 50km spin to see if I like it ?

Comfort is basically what your trying to acsertain here. Different folks, different strokes. Whats comfy for your mate might be terribly painful for you after a few km. Some bike shops used to let you leave a deposit and take the bike for 2 days, haven't seen it in awhile though. I know Think Bike used to do it many years ago. "Bikerbhoy" works for them so maybe drop him a PM,(hopefully he won't mind).

You should be able to get a decent aluminium frame bike with carbon forks for between 500 and 800 with decent enough equipment on it. Helmet, shoes, lycra, lock and lights will easily take care of the rest. I still ride my BH road racer on long distance spins and nothing had been replaced on it until last year (and thats after 5 years of decent use). It cost me 600euro. Alas I started looking at boards and getting advice, it now is more akin to triggers Broom:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk24RdfXWcg

smacl

First off, I'm a newbie to cycling myself with less than a year under my belt. I ended up with a good hybrid, which I love FWIW, but you may want to consider avoiding this type of bike if you plan to join a club in the future. For example, from the Orwell wheelers pages

The following are also required to participate on these spins:

Road racing bike in good working order (no mountain bikes, hybrids, straight handlebars or tribars)

Thus anything other than a road bike with drop handlebars may prove to be a major downside if you want join a club and cycle with a group. You may not want this at first, but if my experience is anything to go on, after 50k and 120k spins, you may want to get into sportives, where a more conventional road bike makes sense. The flip side of this argument is that if you hit the occasional forest track, or just go exploring small roads that end up as unpaved bohereens, the hybrid works just fine where the road bike would not be suitable.

Perrin2040

first of all +1 to everything smacl has said.

Also just wanted to clarify the benefit of going into a shop, there are obviously a lot of things you wont know till you have cycled your bike a lot. But there are a few basic comfort things you can check if your in a shop.

Does the frame of the bike seem the right size for you (especially if your a newbie you may not know how big/small a frame would suit you without checking).
Are you comfortable with the distance to the handlebars (and angle) and to the ground and pedals (obviously AFTER adjusting the seat etc).
Some things like the seat you wont notice as much, my own saddle seemed fine in shop (nice aerodynamic racer one) but after a few km i definitly bought some padded pants!!!

Basically the idea is no matter where you buy your bike its a good idea to have a rough idea of what you like and see how the reality fits what you imagine, so go into a bike shop and see what you like, remember your under no obligation and any DECENT bike shop will look after you without making you feel like an unimportant beginner or forcing an unwanted sale on you.

Test For Echo

Had been considering getting a road bike through the Cycle to Work Scheme but hadn't a clue what to look for 'til I saw this thread

Contacted a local bike shop about the Allez Sport Double 2010 but they don't (yet) have an account with Specialized. Asked what similar (price & features) bike they would recommend and they suggested this Trek: http://www.westbrookcycles.co.uk/bikes-5/road-bikes-18/trek-1-2-c-road-bike-38187.htm

Any opinions on this bike?

* Bit of a thread hijack but thought it would be useful to OP, as well as myself, to stick it here rather than a new thread.

Gophur

I'm in the same boat, myself and the choice is bewildering. (I'm still awaiting HR to give the all-clear for the Bike to work scheme)

I have "narrowed" the selection down to
GIANT Defy 3.5
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=35&idproduct=31162

or GIANT Defy 3
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=35&idproduct=31168

(From what I can surmise, the essential difference between them is the 3 has a Carbon fork, the 3.5 has an Aluminium fork.)

or

LaPierre Audacio 200
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=35&idproduct=31007


The TREK 1.2 is also in the mix

as is

Carrera Vanquish (until they removed a 25% discount from the bikes, this week!!!) :mad:

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_272647_langId_-1_categoryId_212536

positron

Also in the same state, checking out various shops etc, and my initial thought was a Defy 4 or a Trek base model etc. But after reading various discussions, I am now thinking I should save up and get a model with 105 shifters, gears etc (whatever is the right term for that).

aquanaut

This thread is very cool and answers lots of questions. I know that Halfords don't have the best rep but I love the boardman range (I'm new to road cycling to) but one question I have is: could you comfortably ride 50-100km on a boardman hybrid - can anyone recommend these bikes are they to be avoided? Ie the boardman hybrid pro ltd or the team carbon - these are roughly within the cycle to work price but I can't recommend to the OP as I've never ridden them

Gophur

Another question, which I cannot see having been asked/answered previously,


what bike should be recommended/avoided for a person of 90Kg -100Kg, starting to do some serious cycling? Are the types of Road Bikes mentioned above, strong enough to carry such a weight?

Lumen

Gophur wrote: »

what bike should be recommended/avoided for a person of 90Kg -100Kg, starting to do some serious cycling? Are the types of Road Bikes mentioned above, strong enough to carry such a weight?

You'd want something with strong wheels, otherwise it doesn't really matter. Frames are very strong, and the rest of the components will be fine providing they're all ordinary. Only some high end stuff has weight limits.

Gophur

Lumen wrote: »

You'd want something with strong wheels, ................

That goes without saying. How does one know if wheels are strong enough?

Lumen

Gophur wrote: »

That goes without saying. How does one know if wheels are strong enough?

Search around for reviews.

I think the very cheapest Shimano wheels have a bad reputation, and I vaguely recall some bad reviews of the wheels that come on the entry level Giants.

There are generally tradeoffs between weight and strength, and strength is harder to achieve with lower spoke counts, but there are exceptions - it is possible for a wheel to be heavy with a high spoke count but still be a piece of crap.

Gophur

Cheers, thanks.