Starting out

Peanutt

Hi,

I'm new to the road bike scene, having said that I have been using a road bike to commute but never taken it seriously until I started timing myself!!

I have an old Falcon Team Banana, while not the best bike it is in good condition and in my mind quite fast. Is this a good bike to start with? what could I do to upgrade the bike? I do need some new tyres, the current ones are 700 x 25 and I've seen some ones I like that are 700 x 23 does this make a difference? will they fit?

As I say I'm new to road riding so excuse any ignorance on my part.

Rich Hcp

Those tyres will fit, supposed to be less rolling resistance.

Keep the bike "Retro" and maybe buy a new one at a later date. You can sopend loads upgrading and then want to change anyway

Above all, enjoy it

markos1963

Got to agree with Rich Hcp, upgrade the tyres as they are a cheap and effective option. I have a 1985 Raleigh record and all I do is when things wear out ie chains,freewheels and so on I replace them. The only difference i would suggest is to find a good saddle and clip in pedals as your contact points should be the best you can afford as you can take them to another bike when you upgrade.

Peanutt

Thanks chaps, never could get the hang of pedals with clips tho, they always seem to be subject to gravity and I spend ages trying to flip it to get my foot in one, maybe there's a trick to it, never been able to get my feet out them fast enough when I stop either which inevitably ends up with me falling sideways flat on the floor, ah the life of a novice!!

I'm going to strip the whole bike down this weekend and clean and re grease everything, re tape the bars etc. I'm doing a sponsored ride in september which I usually do on my mtb but I'm thinking a 30 mile run on the banana might be fun, a new saddle is definitely in order, a nice white one methinks.