Road cycling - some thoughts
melliff
Posts: 63
I have been riding my new Allez for about a month now. I bought it to keep fit and I go out regularly for a 10 mile spin and really enjoy it. Having previously only ridden hybrid bikes for leisure and touring, I thought I would share a couple of thoughts:
(1) The roads are so bumpy! Having always had front shocks on my other bikes I've never really noticed how poor the road surfaces are here in West London. I don't know how people commute and tour on bikes without front suspension. It's so hard on the hands.
(2) There are so many traffic lights. Pootling around on my hybrids, I guess I've not noticed how often I've had to stop for traffic lights, but when I'm trying to keep up a steady rhythm for training, it's so frustrating to have to stop so often.
(1) The roads are so bumpy! Having always had front shocks on my other bikes I've never really noticed how poor the road surfaces are here in West London. I don't know how people commute and tour on bikes without front suspension. It's so hard on the hands.
(2) There are so many traffic lights. Pootling around on my hybrids, I guess I've not noticed how often I've had to stop for traffic lights, but when I'm trying to keep up a steady rhythm for training, it's so frustrating to have to stop so often.
Martin
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You get used to it!
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Burls Ti Tourer for Tarmac, Saracen aluminium full suss for trails0 -
melliff wrote:(1) The roads are so bumpy! Having always had front shocks on my other bikes I've never really noticed how poor the road surfaces are here in West London. I don't know how people commute and tour on bikes without front suspension. It's so hard on the hands.
You try some of the roads in North Wales.
As you get fitter and stronger, you'll go faster, and the poor surfaces hurt more.0 -
Front shocks on a commuter bike seems a bit poofy to me.0
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he will be wearing lycra nextbice wrote:Front shocks on a commuter bike seems a bit poofy to me.
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I've commuted twice on my road bike. Never again.
With a mountain bike you have better brakes, suspension, harder wearing wheels, more accurate steering and you don't need to worry about hitting drains, potholes and speed bumps.
At the end of a hard day at work the road bike is just too tiring to ride.0 -
road bikes are minimalistic and much more efficient to ride. unless you are talking about the mental effort to miss the potholes, drains and speed humps. i bought a road bike to commute on as my mountain bike was too heavy and unresponsive in tight situations.guinea wrote:I've commuted twice on my road bike. Never again.
With a mountain bike you have better brakes, suspension, harder wearing wheels, more accurate steering and you don't need to worry about hitting drains, potholes and speed bumps.
At the end of a hard day at work the road bike is just too tiring to ride.0 -
I got my MTB out for the first time in 6 month at the weekend I couldn't believe how heavy it was and how hard it was to ride compared to my bestest road bike.The gear changing, helmet wearing fule.
FCN :- -1
Given up waiting for Fast as Fupp to start stalking me0 -
boybiker wrote:I got my MTB out for the first time in 6 month at the weekend I couldn't believe how heavy it was and how hard it was to ride compared to my bestest road bike.
:? You wouldn't drive your Land Rover on a race track (unless it was a Bowla Wild Cat) and you wouldn't drive your Ferrari F430 across a field (unless you were a p1ssed up 23 year old premiership footballer). I could never understand anyone riding a MTB on the road, it's like taking a bath with your socks on. Okay, you can put slicks on the MTB but nevertheless, they just don't really belong on the road IMHO. Most people I see riding MTB on the road just look either
A. Seriously uncomfortable
B. Very Slow (contraversial comment, sorry but it's only an opinion)
or C. Fighting a losing battle.
Yet, off road, they look ace.
I'm seriously tempted to get an MTB for the winter training period. Would like to do some off road duathlons. But I'd never use it on the road, unless it was an unavoidable junction between two muddy bits. It just seems too much effort investment for too little return. 'How can an opinion be bullsh1t?' High Fidelity0 -
I use an iron horse Saracen MTB for jaunts along bridleways etc with the children and they are great. On the road they are plodders, even compared with hybrids. Can't see the point of 26' wheels on tarmac.0
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Doing the Ring of Kerry event in July (c.110 miles), I was seeing seriously overweight people riding knobbly tyres mountain bikes, while wearing full on monsoon proof raingear on a warm day and no rain. Moving very, very slowly.
And being passed by myself and fellow racing bike riders doing 25mph while wearing proper bike gear.
I don't know how they are even allowed to take part, given that the rules for entering require you to be on a road worthy bike and have the fitness to cycle that far.'Twas Mulga Bill, from Eaglehawk, that caught the cycling craze....0 -
That's the next stage, and from there you can never go back to baggy shorts.stronginthesun wrote:
he will be wearing lycra nextbice wrote:Front shocks on a commuter bike seems a bit poofy to me. 0
