First ever ride on a road bike....

rufus357rufus

I bought a Carrera Virtuso of ebay - 6 months old looks brand new with computer and lights and pump for £200. I am sure none of you will be impressed but I was quite pleased!!!

Anyway went out for my first ride today and just did 12km but had a few issues.

- There was a lot of weight on my arms due to the forward leaning position.
- I got a crick in my neck from having to bend my head up to see forwards.

Are these 2 things normal and I wil get used to them or is the bike potentially set up wrongly for me?

I am 5'9" and it is a medium.

skyd0g

It is pretty normal to have stiff arms and neck when you first ride a road bike (due to the lower position). This normally reduces as your "core strength" improves over a few weeks.

There's a guide on set-up here http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm which may help. A general guide is that the front hub should be obscured by your handlebars when you look down.

Stick with it mate - it will get better!

Matt the Tester

christ my back was killing when i rode today when i was out with skyd0g but it was worse a month ago so just keep plugging along and you'll feel it ease.
now neck pain christ it's agony isnt it lol i got that through riding a bike with a stem massively too big for me when i first ever got on a road bike (it was only a month go) :P

rufus357rufus

Thanks guys; as I suspected- just get used to it!

The fitting link is interesting.....

skyd0g

Another point, (other than the fit) is to try & vary your hand positions while riding - drops / hoods / flats, as this will reduce the pressure on the same muscle groups. It will also allow you to sit-up & relax your neck.

You may also want to try & relax your grip on the bars & bend your elbows a little to absorb the bumps in the road. Novice riders often have a vice-like "death-grip" on the bars when they first go out, until they get used to the handling of the bike.

sturmey

The Virtuoso is quite a small bike for the size of frame. I rode a large and though I am only 6'tall I had to borrow a longer seatpost as the standard one was not long enough. Then the drop to the bars was quite significant.
maybe you should consider flipping the stem-this will raise you up a couple of inches and make quite a big difference to your ridng experience.

le_grimpeur

rufus357rufus wrote:

I bought a Carrera Virtuso of ebay - 6 months old looks brand new with computer and lights and pump for £200. I am sure none of you will be impressed but I was quite pleased!!!

Anyway went out for my first ride today and just did 12km but had a few issues.

- There was a lot of weight on my arms due to the forward leaning position.
- I got a crick in my neck from having to bend my head up to see forwards.

Are these 2 things normal and I wil get used to them or is the bike potentially set up wrongly for me?

I am 5'9" and it is a medium.

The Peter White thing is great for changing your position on your bike, what I couldn't find was anything about changing the equipment you have. I bought a specialized tri-cross and got the same neck crick you mention. What solved this was buying an adjustable stem. The theory was that as I got used to being stretched out, I could change the angle that suited me. As nice as the people are in the bike shop, there was an element of snobbery mixed in with their belief that no-one knows more then they do, I sourced a new stem. It made a huge difference to my riding.

Pross

The aches you're experiencing are completely normal when riding a road bike for the first time. Don't worry though as you soon get used to it like when you try a new sport and use muscles in a different way.

rogerthecat

"I bought a Carrera Virtuso"

I'm sorry to hear that!



:idea:

Matt the Tester

skyd0g wrote:

It is pretty normal to have stiff arms and neck when you first ride a road bike (due to the lower position). This normally reduces as your "core strength" improves over a few weeks.

There's a guide on set-up here http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm which may help. A general guide is that the front hub should be obscured by your handlebars when you look down.

Stick with it mate - it will get better!

yup i had intense neck pain first time i road a road bike but i was not tired at all the pain was stopping me from cycling.. some stupid cow thought i was tired but i wasnt... we only done 50 miles for christs sake...

now i don't have neck pain and i hardly experience back pain... i have had my own bike for a week now and i have been riding for 5 weeks on road bikes since i was borrowing the clubs bikes

hopper1

steady rider wrote:

skyd0g wrote:

It is pretty normal to have stiff arms and neck when you first ride a road bike (due to the lower position). This normally reduces as your "core strength" improves over a few weeks.

There's a guide on set-up here http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm which may help. A general guide is that the front hub should be obscured by your handlebars when you look down.

Stick with it mate - it will get better!

yup i had intense neck pain first time i road a road bike but i was not tired at all the pain was stopping me from cycling.. some stupid cow thought i was tired but i wasnt... we only done 50 miles for christs sake...

now i don't have neck pain and i hardly experience back pain... i have had my own bike for a week now and i have been riding for 5 weeks on road bikes since i was borrowing the clubs bikes

A tad aggressive, is it not?
I hope you're not referring to a member of your club! :shock:

Matt the Tester

hopper1 wrote:

steady rider wrote:

skyd0g wrote:

It is pretty normal to have stiff arms and neck when you first ride a road bike (due to the lower position). This normally reduces as your "core strength" improves over a few weeks.

There's a guide on set-up here http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm which may help. A general guide is that the front hub should be obscured by your handlebars when you look down.

Stick with it mate - it will get better!

yup i had intense neck pain first time i road a road bike but i was not tired at all the pain was stopping me from cycling.. some stupid cow thought i was tired but i wasnt... we only done 50 miles for christs sake...

now i don't have neck pain and i hardly experience back pain... i have had my own bike for a week now and i have been riding for 5 weeks on road bikes since i was borrowing the clubs bikes

A tad aggressive, is it not?
I hope you're not referring to a member of your club! :shock:

sorry it wasn't directed at a club member. how was it agressive? i didn't mean for it too come across like that.

hopper1

None aggressive might have read:

A lady thought I was tired, but I'd only done 50 miles.

The 'stupid cow' and 'christs sake' are not really called for...

And, before you anger the religious in the forum Christ begins with a capital 'C'

Enjoy your cycling.

Matt the Tester

lol sorry will not happen again sir =p


but seriously it wont

northernneil

rogerthecat wrote:

"I bought a Carrera Virtuso"

I'm sorry to hear that!



come on, its ideal as a first bike and for the sounds of it if he doesnt like it he could probably sell it without a loss, I hate bike snobs

idreamoftailwinds

northernneil wrote:

rogerthecat wrote:

"I bought a Carrera Virtuso"

I'm sorry to hear that!



come on, its ideal as a first bike and for the sounds of it if he doesnt like it he could probably sell it without a loss, I hate bike snobs

So you assume it's the Bike and not the supplier that the reference is too; who's the bike snob now :-)

redddraggon

sturmey wrote:

The Virtuoso is quite a small bike for the size of frame. I rode a large and though I am only 6'tall I had to borrow a longer seatpost as the standard one was not long enough. Then the drop to the bars was quite significant.
maybe you should consider flipping the stem-this will raise you up a couple of inches and make quite a big difference to your ridng experience.

The Large size is the same as other larges really. I had a large Virtuoso as a commuter and it was too big, but a medium would have been fine.

Headtube is pretty long.

Garz

rogerthecat wrote:

"I bought a Carrera Virtuso"

I'm sorry to hear that!



:idea:

Tard?

No need to get elitist... :idea:

rogerthecat

No sense of humour on this forum then :roll:

kfinlay

I thought it was a joke too due to the
Some people just have a dry sense of humour thats all, we're all grown ups aren't we :P

Bill D

You could try drugs for the stiff neck: I use ibuprofen gel (available from the chemists without prescription). Rub on soon to be affected areas just before a ride. After a bit, try riding without it and see the improvement. (Also works on sore knees etc).