I might be turning to the dark side AKA Drops V Flat
snooks
Posts: 1,521
Thanks to the wonders of ride to work, I now have stack of cash twice as high to spend on a new shiny bike (up to £1,000).
I have an mtb, well 2, or 3 if you include my current slicked, traffic busting, speeder with stylish rust patches and chipped paint
So I'm alright on the mtb front.
This is where the problems start. MTB's I have, but I'm looking for a bike to get me to work (13 miles, flat, London potholes etc) and back (another 13 miles still no hills). I see loads of 700cc wheeled roadies along the way, and I see such a number that I must be missing something.
So I'm looking to turn to the darkside and become a roadie (if you could see the expression on my face as I typed that you'll know why this is tearing me up inside
I've always ridden flat bars, from my Raleigh boxer upwards)
Anyway, I've looked into a few flat barred beauties (Kona PHD, Trek 7.7fx, Sirrus Pro, Charge Mixer...I'm sure you get the idea) Flat bars I can relate to....
But where the donald duck do I start with road bikes???? :?
Buy a Flat bar if that's what you know...I hear you say...Normally I'd agree, but I'd also like to go out on the roads at the weekend, and get some longer rides in. Not racing, but heading out on my bike without having to stick it in the car to get it muddy. I've even gone out on my rusty commuter...and enjoyed being on the roads! It's not right...is it?
So what should I be looking for (brands? Frame material, pros?, cons?)?...and no I'm not going to shave my legs!
.
I have an mtb, well 2, or 3 if you include my current slicked, traffic busting, speeder with stylish rust patches and chipped paint
So I'm alright on the mtb front.This is where the problems start. MTB's I have, but I'm looking for a bike to get me to work (13 miles, flat, London potholes etc) and back (another 13 miles still no hills). I see loads of 700cc wheeled roadies along the way, and I see such a number that I must be missing something.
So I'm looking to turn to the darkside and become a roadie (if you could see the expression on my face as I typed that you'll know why this is tearing me up inside
I've always ridden flat bars, from my Raleigh boxer upwards)Anyway, I've looked into a few flat barred beauties (Kona PHD, Trek 7.7fx, Sirrus Pro, Charge Mixer...I'm sure you get the idea) Flat bars I can relate to....
But where the donald duck do I start with road bikes???? :?
Buy a Flat bar if that's what you know...I hear you say...Normally I'd agree, but I'd also like to go out on the roads at the weekend, and get some longer rides in. Not racing, but heading out on my bike without having to stick it in the car to get it muddy. I've even gone out on my rusty commuter...and enjoyed being on the roads! It's not right...is it?
So what should I be looking for (brands? Frame material, pros?, cons?)?...and no I'm not going to shave my legs!
.
0
Comments
-
Reading this threads title, I thought you were considering flat bars - dark side indeed.
and then you ask for advice!
Before we can recomend much how about a few other specs:-
Do you favour comfort or speed?
Will you want clearance and lugs for guards and racks?
Do you intend to stay on the flat or take on the alps?
Any aspirations to race?
Will your budget need to set aside money for other bits and bobs (pedals, lycra, a ladyshave) or is it 1k just on the bike?
HTH"Impressive break"
"Thanks...
...I can taste blood"0 -
Hi Snooks
I can recommend a Specialized Tricross @ £699, they also do a higher specced one for around £1000
It's my first step from flats to drops and after a week or two the transition was done, great bike.
Stu0 -
don't forget you can pay more of your own money on top, so don't feel you're limited by 1K Purveyor of sonic doom
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed Pista- FCN 5
Beared Bromptonite - FCN 140 -
HA!
Snooks "suddenly" feels the need to come out of the closet and get himself a road bike.....
This would have nothing to do with you gaming alter ego and your secret inner realisation that no matter how many old ladies on shoppers you bag you aren't mixing it with the big fish is it????
Any end up I think you'll find that once you get roaded up there's no way back.
A grand will buy you an awful lot of bike and that price bracket ('cos let's face it you are in for 1,250 if you are looking at a grand - ahem) is stacked with cool metal...
You commute the same route as me (or near as damn it) so I'd suggest that these would be you key points
1. Geometry - Right then - not all road bikes are the same - they all have different mixes of tube lengths and angles. I'll stick my neck out here but basically there are three flavours -
Out and out Racers, short top tubes, very stiff
Audax or sportive, very hard to tell apart from the above but have longer top tubes and have more vertical "give" so your rumble stip takes less of a pounding (apparently)
Tourers - longer again and built of girder, rocks and the like.
I'd suggest that the sportive type is on the money as they are a bit of an easier "fit" and you won't really miss the "extra" racyness....
2. Wheels - A good set of stiff wheels that can take the punishment and not need trueing every four months... I'd look for any of the Mavics as a starter.
3. Cardon - I'd suggest carbon forks and cockpit (Chainstays et al) as a minimum as they damp down a lot of the road hum.
4. Chain ring - Double or Triple - "hard men" have doubles and dismiss the extra (ickle) chain ring as the "granny gear". Of course this is just pure machismo so get a double or else you'll be distaught......
5. Gears and stuff.... Shimano 105 or ultegra and nothing lower in the food chain.
6. Clipless SPDs
Me I ride a Lemond Chambrey that I bought three years ago for 1,200, not sure that they still do this one. I like this bike and I do circa 150 miles a week in and out of town. They are made by Trek so you are getting a good maker. Apparently lemonds are "known" for their easy geometry.
There's the Alpe Dhuez which evans are doing for a grand
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=86385
or for just 200 of your pounds more you can have Buenos Aires (don't mention the war)
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70409
That's a full carbon frame...
I'd suggest that the only drawback with these two are the Bontrager wheels which look cool with thgeir wide spaced twinned spokes but I had to swap mione out as thay lost true too fast ( I got Mavics and they transformed the bike - much stiffer)
I only live down the road from you. if you fancy you could pop over and we can have a look at mine before going up to the bike shop at the end of the road ..... They sell Colagnos....Italian........Cooooool.....Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
Cyclocross bikes are the true "Dark Side". Off road capability/ on-road capability, it's like having a very fast mountain bike, that just goes anywhere. Well almost anywhere, obviously you won't be doing any jumping on it, but singletrack MTB trails are great fun.0
-
Drops, it has to be drops.0
-
Drops, it has to be drops.0
-
Don't sweat your sack snooks. There comes a time in every man's life when it's time for a 'big boys' bike'.
Agree with most of the advice above, especially on the wheels. Get a bike with Mavic Aksiums if you can. They're great for a fast commute: quick and very strong. Also, if it was me, I'd get an Orbea of some sort. Can't beat Orbea's in my book.
Epic do the Onix (full carbon frame) for only £999 with Tiagra. I'm sure you could persuade them to pop on a pair of Aksiums instead of the the Shimano 500s for a small premium... http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/orbea.htm. Alternatively, the standard Dauphine (alu-carbon frame) will give you 105 and Aksiums as standard for the same price...0 -
cool topic snooks, I reckon I'll want a "man's" bike soon enough. but fixed.
Good tips on the wheels I have gone through 1 and a half of cheap wheels on my rear.. strangley enough, front is still in great condition after 5 years comuuting
(stock Rigida Dawes 301 wheels)
btw you will be more of a target, I'm sure you're aware. I think Greg's trying to get you on a higher FCN with that carbon thing so he can nip round the corner and have you.FCN4: Langster Pro
FCN8 Dawes Audax
FCN13: Pompetamine dad and daughter bike
FCN5 Modded Dawes Hybrid R.I.P.
FCN6 Fixed beater bike (on loan to brother in law)0 -
2wheelzgood wrote:btw you will be more of a target, I'm sure you're aware. I think Greg's trying to get you on a higher FCN with that carbon thing so he can nip round the corner and have you.
Cough - Splutter - It never crossed my mind...
Anyway Snooks travels into work mid morning (after he's finished his kedgeree and kippers and shot a brace of pheasants) so avoids the 0745 Chelsea embankment rolling start......Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
May be worth also looking at the Condor Accaiao. Steel, quite fast, comfortable, a bit different and in your price range with 105 group set. Not made to measure but Condor will fit you with the right size frame/bars. Not a competition bike but good for long, fast rides and, of course, commuting. That's what I went for and very happy, although the choice is wide indeed.0
-
Greg T wrote:HA!
Snooks "suddenly" feels the need to come out of the closet and get himself a road bike.....
This would have nothing to do with you gaming alter ego and your secret inner realisation that no matter how many old ladies on shoppers you bag you aren't mixing it with the big fish is it????
Greg, thanks for that, just the sort of info I wanted, with the cheek I was expecting :P ...If you can beat em, join em! Yep I did type that correctly!!
The ride to work scheme came round sooner than I was expecting, so I'm going to bite the bullet now...well within a month.....But I'll still be wearing baggies so I get a point from the lycra rodies...or are baggies on roadies a big faux pas??? See this is what I mean, it's not easy going from flat to wiggly bars, my whole life is on the edge and Michael Cane is in my head saying "nobody move, I have an idea"Dirk Van Gently wrote:Cyclocross bikes are the true "Dark Side". Off road capability/ on-road capability, it's like having a very fast mountain bike, that just goes anywhere. Well almost anywhere, obviously you won't be doing any jumping on it, but singletrack MTB trails are great fun.
Didn't know how these would go with slicks on, all the ones I've looked at has skinny nobblies, so I guessed they were more off road than on. So now I have cyclocross in the mix as well...prolly a good things with the London roads!!
Thanks all, some great tips and ideas, any other thoughts are welcomed with childish enthusiasm (well it has been 18 years since I bought a brand new bike!!) 0 -
I'd second a cyclocross-ish bike. Look at the drop bar version of the Cotic Roadrat for a best of all worlds road/cross/courier/trail bike. Disc or v brakes; tough; fixed or single or derailer or IGH; excellent all-round geometry; every braze on imaginable for commuting and touring. Really well-thought out geometry and features for fast real world riding rather than peletron girly-manning - a front fork that locks its disc brake in using its own torque, criterium racer high bottom bracket for aggressive turns.
Best of all, the frame's custom butted cromo, so you know that riding it will make your sperm count higher!
There's a flat bar version too, with a slightly longer top tube. Review of a single speed dropbar build here: http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... drat-10010
For a grand you could probably get the bike built up with Avid BB7 disc brakes and a 105 power train or an Alfine IGH.
(If I don't get my B2W sorted soon I'm going to go mad and buy a drop Rat even without the rebate..)
Coming from an MTB background you might want to look at wider than usual drops, like Nitto Noodles, or even Midge Bars.0 -
meanwhile wrote:I'd second a cyclocross-ish bike. Look at the drop bar version of the Cotic Roadrat for a best of all worlds road/cross/courier/trail bike. Disc or v brakes; tough; fixed or single or derailer or IGH; excellent all-round geometry; every braze on imaginable for commuting and touring. Really well-thought out geometry and features for fast real world riding rather than peletron girly-manning - a front fork that locks its disc brake in using its own torque, criterium racer high bottom bracket for aggressive turns.
Best of all, the frame's custom butted cromo, so you know that riding it will make your sperm count higher!
There's a flat bar version too, with a slightly longer top tube.
(If I don't get B2W sorted soon I'm going to go mad and buy a drop Rat even without the rebate..)
Coming from an MTB background you might want to look at wider than usual drops, like Nitto Noodles, or even Midge Bars.
Thanks...our R2W scheme uses Evans Cycles, so a Roadrat is out of the question, I also think I lack the fitness for a SS, though I do eye up the Langster which I pass on most mornings, but my legs are normal leg shaped, not like a kangaroo
Unfortunately Cotic don't do the Roadrat with the geared hub of the Charge Mixer, I've also heard the headset they supply is...well...erm...pants, so I'd get the hope one, hope brakes and an extra 300 squid, but like I say I can't get them from Evans...I'm coming round to the idea of getting a road bike, I no longer feel the need to wash my mouth out, when I tell mates I might be thinking about actually seeing if it's possible to kinda exchange money for a bike that goes on the road 0 -
snooks wrote:I'm coming round to the idea of getting a road bike
My money is on Snooks in Bib shorts and wraparounds by the end of the summer eyeing up the Kingston Wheelers...
You know this is a one way trip....Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
I too was in this dilema Snooks, having got into biking last year when I bought a Spec Hardrock.
I thought long and hard about a road bike but was a it concerned about bending wheels every time I went over a bump.
In the end after much deliberation I bought a Spec Epic Comp. As its an XC bike its a bit racier then a standard full sus. I can lock out the front and rear on the move and I have the benefit of Avid disc brakes.
If speed is the only consideration buy a road bike, if not you may want to think again.
By the way, if you get a racer, you must wear lycra, its the law.Specialised Epic MTB on slicks.
SPD clipless pedals: FCN 70 -
snooks wrote:Thanks...our R2W scheme uses Evans Cycles, so a Roadrat is out of the question, I also think I lack the fitness for a SS, though I do eye up the Langster which I pass on most mornings, but my legs are normal leg shaped, not like a kangaroo
I keep seeing posts about the integrated headsets burning out on Langsters and killing them. Pretty, but I'd rather have something like a Pompino.Unfortunately Cotic don't do the Roadrat with the geared hub of the Charge Mixer, I've also heard the headset they supply is...well...erm...pants, so I'd get the hope one, hope brakes and an extra 300 squid, but like I say I can't get them from Evans...
The way most Rats are bought is as frames which an LBS assembles with whatever the rider wants. An Alfine IGH will definitely fit - Rats have been built up this way - and for discs you'd probably want Avid BB7 *roads*, because they work with standard aero levers. Unfortunately you'd be stuck with a brifter for the Alfine.
Most importantly, if you did end up wanting a Rat, or any other bike that can be supplied as frame-only, Evans should easily be able to do it for you on B2W - they just order the frame like any other part and Robert is your parent's sibling. (Careful positioning of the apostrophe there..) The only way you'd have problems is if they deliberately act up.0 -
Attica wrote:Reading this threads title, I thought you were considering flat bars - dark side indeed.
and then you ask for advice!
Before we can recomend much how about a few other specs:-
Do you favour comfort or speed?
Will you want clearance and lugs for guards and racks?
Do you intend to stay on the flat or take on the alps?
Any aspirations to race?
Will your budget need to set aside money for other bits and bobs (pedals, lycra, a ladyshave) or is it 1k just on the bike?
HTH
Sorry Attica, missed your post the first time around:
iDo you favour comfort or speed?
Bit of both, I won't be racing, but I like speed and I'll need to be in the saddle for two hours a day when I commute.
Will you want clearance and lugs for guards and racks?
Nope, I just use a back pack and get wet then shower at work and try in vain to dry clothes out round the office
Do you intend to stay on the flat or take on the alps?
Flat with the odd hill, I might make it to king of the potholes thou, and although from Cornwall (I know it's not my fault) I don't like hills, unless I'm hammering down them on my mtb...but I'm looking to travel further afield, but no mountain in Surrey (and if there are I'll avoid them
Any aspirations to race?
Only myself, or other members of the Embankment after work scramble. But nothing serious, and nothing I'll admit to...honest!
Will your budget need to set aside money for other bits and bobs (pedals, lycra, a ladyshave) or is it 1k just on the bike?
Just bike, I might look a bit of a tw4t to begin with, but I ride a rusty (but fast) bike at the mo, and I'm not a roadie...yet :roll: I'll just get stuff as and when I need it, and can fit into it!
Thanks
.0 -
Be interested to know how you get on with the RoadRat if you do go for it Snooks. A fast roadie with disc brakes is the holy grail of commuting bikes for me and I quite like the idea of a disced up, geared drop version of the RR for my next ride.
The other alternative is the Orbea Diem Drop, but £1500 its well over the C2W threshold and even then feels like a bit of a stretch for a commuter...0 -
Sea_Green_Incorruptible wrote:Be interested to know how you get on with the RoadRat if you do go for it Snooks. A fast roadie with disc brakes is the holy grail of commuting bikes for me and I quite like the idea of a disced up, geared drop version of the RR for my next ride.
The other alternative is the Orbea Diem Drop, but £1500 its well over the C2W threshold and even then feels like a bit of a stretch for a commuter...
Exactly my feelings: the world needs more modern, practical drop bar bikes for urban riding. The Tricross is disappointing because its lacks disc brakes and really should have them at the price. The Orbea is extremely pretty, but for £1500 I'd rather have Avid BB7 than Shimano discs, and I don't see the point of an expensive carbon bike that isn't lightweight. In fact, for commuting and urban thrashing I can't think of anything better than a good cromo frame like the Rat's - they're tested and proven to soak up damage. Then there's the Trek Portland, and a LeMond Cyclocross bike that I don't think is imported into the UK - oh, and a Focus Cyclocross bike, which again has the so-so Shimano discs.0 -
meanwhile wrote:Then there's the Trek Portland, and a LeMond Cyclocross bike that I don't think is imported into the UK - oh, and a Focus Cyclocross bike, which again has the so-so Shimano discs.
Does anyone know any thing about the Trek Portland?
Just seems to be a 2007 model
[/url] 0 -
snooks wrote:meanwhile wrote:Then there's the Trek Portland, and a LeMond Cyclocross bike that I don't think is imported into the UK - oh, and a Focus Cyclocross bike, which again has the so-so Shimano discs.
Does anyone know any thing about the Trek Portland?
Just seems to be a 2007 model[/url]
I think the Portland was reviewed in Cycling Plus at some point within the past year (i've certainly read a review somewhere, just can't remember where specifically). Got good marks overall I think...
The Lemond bike is the Poprad*, but as meanwhile says, I think you'd have to import it from somewhere...
*Bizarrely I once spent the night in Poprad bus station cafe in the early 1990s getting evil looks from hairy Slovakian itinerants with broken teeth and what looked like knife scars on their faces. I could never buy this bike for this reason. God's honest truth.0 -
The Boardman range seems good value for money if you don't mind going to Halfords. Seem to get good write ups n'all'How can an opinion be bullsh1t?' High Fidelity0
-
Given you more detailed description of what you want to do, as I mentioned above, I wouldn't rule out a modern steel frame. Comfortable and strong.0
-
snooks wrote:meanwhile wrote:Then there's the Trek Portland, and a LeMond Cyclocross bike that I don't think is imported into the UK - oh, and a Focus Cyclocross bike, which again has the so-so Shimano discs.
Does anyone know any thing about the Trek Portland?
Just seems to be a 2007 model[/url]
My impression from US forums I use is that the Portland is a bit of a "so-what" bike, especially compared to the bikes that Surly and Cotic build, which practically generate cults. The pictures I've seen show rather silly/scary wheels - a trendy modern spoke pattern with very spokes combined with BB7 discs. I'd worry all that torque going through just a few spoke quite a lot if I was riding one...0 -
Neither fish nor foul...
If you fancy a road bike get a road bike......
I'd get off the fence and embrace the siren call of the 23...... You'll regret hedging your bets downstream.Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
andrewc3142 wrote:Given you more detailed description of what you want to do, as I mentioned above, I wouldn't rule out a modern steel frame. Comfortable and strong.
Well I've had a look at a few more...And had a really long chat to (Nigel) at the Gatwick Evans, Very good advise, very knowledgeable, and spent ages with me, even though I made it clear I wasn't going to buy a bike yet. He talked me though the options, components etc they had there, and gave me lots of food for thought.
Had a look at a Condor Fratello from bikehut (hey it's local to me) with 105 it's in budget
From Evans I had a look at lots, but liked:
http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/2008/road/1_series/19e/ Trek 1.9 Ulteg, black alu frame
http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/2008/road/1_series/17e/ Trek 1.7 105 black alu frame
http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1515&pid=8674 Felt Z35 15 CF frame +£100
http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1515&pid=8663 Felt F55 105/ulteg Alu/CF frame
and http://www.dawescycles.com/dawes/audax-supreme.htm Dawes Audax Sup, 105 steel
I did find myself looking longingly at a Colnago, they realising it's a very silly idea...as the saliva hit the floor
But I'm off to look at some more at lunch0 -
snooks wrote:I did find myself looking longingly at a Colnago, they realising it's a very silly idea...as the saliva hit the floor
What kind of backsliding talk is this?
That Colnago could be yours - you have to bet big to win big - having an Italian frame in your shed would make you happy and uber cool, it would also make you fitter and faster as you'd ride it all the time.....
I dropped Keira Knigthley a note about this and this is what she said:I only date guys who ride road bikes as, in my English Rose opinion, they are the funniest, cleverest and just plain hottest of all the bikers. I like their lack of compromise and of course their voracious "appetite" is irresistable
Colnago......Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
Greg T wrote:
That Colnago could be yours - you have to bet big to win big - having an Italian frame in your shed would make you happy and uber cool, it would also make you fitter and faster as you'd ride it all the time.....
Some help you are! :P
I ask for advice, and you want me to blow my budget on a very expensive plastic bike from Italy...Yes it looks good, yes I'm sure it would ride well, and yes it would make me happy, fitter and faster. but it looks a bit to good for my beer loving physique...it was also over my budget...no no no no NO!
OK, I'll have another look...no no no, people will laugh at me as they drop me. It has coloured tyres, so if I get dropped by a hairy rsed roadie then I might as well jump off Putney bridge on the way home 0
