Bike Selection

kennykill

Hello cycling gods, and mere mortals

I'm new to the scene, and looking at picking up an entry level road bike for the bike leg of triathlons/adventure races, and possibly on into cycling. There are some sections of the race stages that will be off-road/trail (~3km) but I'm hoping I can get away with using a wider, more robust tire than the standard road bike tire.

I've noticed that Halfords have a sale on, was looking at this Carrera TDF Limited Edition. Any opinions on it or on the price? A saving of €195 seems attractive? I've placed a link to the bike. If there's a better place at a better price for similar please let me know!

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/st...egoryId_212536

Thanks guys

Lumen

Link broken.

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_786805_langId_-1_categoryId_212536#dtab

Seems fine for the money. It's mostly bottom end Shimano kit (2300). My biggest concern around that price would be the wheels, but the bike is very cheap and you can always upgrade those.

Regardless of purchase price, bikes can be expensive to fix when they go wrong due to labour costs - bike shops have overheads to pay for. If you're on a tight budget you should learn how to do you own maintenance - there's everything you need to know on the internet and in books, you just need patience.

kennykill

Thanks Lumen.

It is entry alright, but I think it's best for now what with me just getting into the sport. As you said, I can upgrade as needs be.

Would you have any recommendations for tires for a road bike for trails/off-road sections? As I said, it's mostly pavement cycling but there will be these sticky spots.

Also, there's only a couple of months to get my legs into condition. I was thinking of some weight training (squats, leg curls, lunges, etc) when in the gym to build my legs and then spend plenty of time on the road. Would you recommend this type of routine or just clock up as many miles as possible?

Lumen

kennykill wrote: »

Would you have any recommendations for tires for a road bike for trails/off-road sections? As I said, it's mostly pavement cycling but there will be these sticky spots.

Just use normal slick road tyres and take it easy on wet grass.

petethedrummer

The bike comes with 23mm tyres. Just get the widest it will take which is probably a 28mm. Might be more, might be less. Check before you buy.

Or chance your arm on the one's that come on it. As Lumen says, careful riding might be better than wider tyres.

Lemag

Wider tyres will make it easier for the offroad but they will be slower on the road. From what you've described it sounds like the 23mm tyres would probably be better. What time you lose taking it handy for the offroad sections with the narrower tyre you should be able to make up for when on the road. Pretty much echoing what Lumen and petethedrummer are saying.

kennykill

I might go with wider tires if I can, I don't want to be struggling through the off-road section and I'm not pushing the top spot (only looking to finish in a decent time) so the loss of time with wider tires on the road will be fine. Plus, making the ride a bit easier with wider tires would help my confidence in the end.

Lumen

kennykill wrote: »

I might go with wider tires if I can, I don't want to be struggling through the off-road section and I'm not pushing the top spot (only looking to finish in a decent time) so the loss of time with wider tires on the road will be fine. Plus, making the ride a bit easier with wider tires would help my confidence in the end.

Sorry, missed that bit about adventure races in your original post. I would definitely not recommend 23mm slicks for off-road racing.

Lemag

kennykill wrote: »

so the loss of time with wider tires on the road will be fine. Plus, making the ride a bit easier with wider tires would help my confidence in the end.

You might also find that your effort will increase when on the road with the wider tyres with others whizzing by thus you'd have expended more energy over the cycling section which could have a knock-on negative impact on your performance in the other disciplines in the event.

kennykill

Damn, good point sir! Is there a noticeable difference in effort? Bear in mind I've never competed in a distance bike race, but then again, I don't want to exert myself too much with other stages ahead of me. Maybe a compromise in tire with between 23mm and 28mm perhaps? I assume thread will have an impact also?

kennykill wrote: »

Also, there's only a couple of months to get my legs into condition. I was thinking of some weight training (squats, leg curls, lunges, etc) when in the gym to build my legs and then spend plenty of time on the road. Would you recommend this type of routine or just clock up as many miles as possible?

What do you think of this?

Lemag

kennykill wrote: »

What do you think of this?

The best thing is to get out and running and cycling. Weight training wouldn't be hugely beneficial initially. It'd be more of benefit to those elite athletes who are looking to optimise their performance.

kennykill

Thanks very much Lemag! The road it is