dazed and confused

andrewjamesroberts

Hello all!

This site has eaten up most of the past few days, and am now brave enough to post!

My Work is currently doing the cycle to work thing through Halfords (not the best place for bikes i guess) and im looking for new sport / hobby and also looking to try and get a little fitter!

So at first this was a no brainer! no tax or NI on a bike which you dont see comming from your salery every month!

I have set myself a budget of around 400 quid for the road bike less is better and a little more is ok and have only 6 more days left of the scheme being open at work.

What can i get for this from halfords? I know they could be open in getting other bikes? The guys on the counter were pushing Carrera Bikes which i guess is there own brand.

Im 6ft1 and have inside leg of about 32" and weigh about 12.4 st

Please help as i dont want to spend a year paying off some crap that i got which has no use!

Cheers

Andy

Roger_This

Hi ajr and welcome

Halfords will get just about any bike you want if you order through their dedicated Cycle to Work number - I think it's on their website.

I got a Ridgeback T1 worth £350, and if your employer's scheme is the same as ours, they provide 17% free accesories - v useful for track pump, lights, whatever. The Ridgeback is flat bars but fast, excellent for commuting which, strictly speaking, is the point of the scheme...

I saw a post elsewhere on the site suggesting that the Carrera bikes are ok.

Less us know how it works out!

andrewjamesroberts

Thanks for the swift reply!

i have also been loking at the Giant SCR 3 and 4 if these can be got through halfords then are these any good?

feel

have you thought about the Boardman bikes available through larger Halfords. They have been very well reviewed.

andrewjamesroberts

Hi here,

I looked at the boardman bikes but unfortunatly they are £600 which is quite a bit over what im looking at spending! I try to stick to it roughly otherwise i will be going for the whole £1000 which is not good for my wallet.

doobie919

I say try on a few of the bikes availible to you in store or something like that.

Fit is much more important than the components in my opinion. I've got a road bike and a MTB and I get a frame as long as it fits. Your probably a 19inch frame, that's if road frames are same sizing as american MTBS.

Roger_This

The Giants are well regarded, as is the Specialized Allez, although at £500 it might be a wee bit out of your price bracket.

You should definitely try them for size, comfort, reach, which you won't be able to do at Halfords for these bikes.

Good luck.

daniel_b

andrewjamesroberts wrote:

Hello all!


So at first this was a no brainer! no tax or NI on a bike which you dont see comming from your salery every month!

I have set myself a budget of around 400 quid for the road bike less is better and a little more is ok and have only 6 more days left of the scheme being open at work.

But you only end up paying about 60% of the original price due to it coming out pre-tax.
So if you buy a bike for £600, you'll only end up paying approx £360/£400 anyway.

Dan

andrewjamesroberts

I think i have selected the bike . .

Just been to the local bike shop on a reccy and talked to some helpful people even though i was not going to buy from them (most future sales will though)

And have decided on a Giant SCR 4 for 350 quid + im getting 50 quid to spend on stuff most likely some pedals and and with the 15% back from Halfords a helmet and puncture kit etc

Cheers for the advice and im sure ill be posting again once i get within the next month

Roger_This

Well done.

Having plumped for the T1 myself, and followed it up by reading bike mags, I'm actually regretting not going for an all-out roadie.

Maybe next year...

Gregore

Just got SCR 4 last week as my first road bike and cant stop riding it very happy with it.

andrewjamesroberts

Gregore wrote:

Just got SCR 4 last week as my first road bike and cant stop riding it very happy with it.

Ahh cool how do you find the bike? This would be my first road bike also.

HAve you swapped the peddles for clip less?

feel

andrewjamesroberts wrote:

Hi here,

I looked at the boardman bikes but unfortunatly they are £600 which is quite a bit over what im looking at spending! .

Hi Andy, sorry did not pick up on that you were set on a racer style bike. The boardman i was suggesting was the performance hybrid comp - price £399.

If you want to look further than the Giants, Decathlon Sports stores to a range of racing bikes at very respectable prices. I have no experience of them myself ,but have seen them mentioned on here. I suppose it depends if you have a store nearby.

Gregore

I''m loving it at themoment and finding it a good comfortable ride. Have swapped for clipless pedals and would recommend it(once i got used to unclipping suddenly).Hope you enjoy yours as much as me!!