Another beginner's question - when to buy a new bike ?

Escargot

Hi all (again!!)

I've just been getting into my cycling and am currently riding on what most would consider to be an utter piece of crap (Carerra Valour). I bought it about 5 years ago to get to work so spent as little as possible in case it got nicked (£250). Ultimately I never ended up using it so it has spent 5 years gathering dust :oops:

Anyway I'm reluctant to buy a new bike right now as I think it is better to get the engine up to scratch first and also to see how much I get on with being on the road. However, providing my training goes well the intention is to treat myself to a new bike after I complete my first sportive (Oxford to Cambridge in Sept).

The problem is that I visited my local bike shop the chap there showed me a lovely Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Xenon. As my birthday is about a month before the event then I thought about getting it for my birthday but am not sure if this is a great idea.

In terms of training would I need more than a month to get used to the bike (doing about 100 miles per week) or would I be better off waiting till after the event before getting aquainted with a new bike ?

I hope this is not a silly question as I'm still getting used to my bike after 6 weeks in the saddle. However I'm not sure if this is because I'm a complete novice or whether it normally takes time to get accustomed to a new bike.

Again, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards

Darren

richa

Darren,

Assuming that the bike was not a hugely different size/shape to your current steed (which would raise more questions about whether one was not the right fit for you) then a month should be plenty.

Do bear in mind that Aug/Sept is then end of the season. If you can wait another couple of months there will be some good discounts on 2009 bikes (2010 bikes start arriving in shops in October).

Aniother reason for waiting would be that you are able to better assess how much you are into cycling and then decide whether your new bike budget should be £500, £1000, £1500, etc. Thus avoid splashing out and underusing an expensive bike or not splashing out and wanting to upgrade again in a year.

Anonymous

I'd wait until September/October when the 2010 models will be released, that's when all the bargains can be had (I got £500 off my Look, £600 off my Commencal MTB by doing this)...

Escargot

Thanks for the advice guys.

I didn't realise the season ended in September so will definitely bear this in mind.

To be honest I'm hoping to keep up the cycling as it's been a great experience so far and is a cracking way of keeping fit. But you're right and I should be patient as the Oxford to Cambridge will either kill off my enthusiasm completely or get me even more hooked.

I'm sure it will be the latter but my only problem then is spending £1000+ on a bike :shock: and then obsessing about lightweight components and leg waxing

Sadly I have to confess to having some sort of OCD as I used to be into hi-fi and obsessing about cables, isolation and speaker positioning (oh dear).

Or maybe it's not OCD and just a man thing as most of my mates are highly into one thing or another ??

SpinningJenny

Escargot wrote:

Sadly I have to confess to having some sort of OCD as I used to be into hi-fi and obsessing about cables, isolation and speaker positioning (oh dear).

Or maybe it's not OCD and just a man thing as most of my mates are highly into one thing or another ??

It ain't just a man thing, Escargot! Come round at look at the cupboards in my home for photography equipment (thankfully, it does all get used!)!